Flat plate digital antenna inside rv

[quick83]

Is there anybody else that tried just hooking a flat plate digital antenna to the TV inside the RV with the RV antenna disconnected and no booster? I find it interesting that I did that at home and just set the flat plate antenna up on a shelf and got 60 channels. I was wondering if anybody has tried this while they were camping. Probably don’t get anything in a remote area without a booster. We do have our Internet TV but I’d like to watch local channels where we’re at, or Tv cable needs repaired. I was wanting to try this digital antenna while we’re away sometime and was wondering if anybody else has already done this. I’m not talking about a digital antenna on the roof , just connecting it directly to the TV and having it inside the RV with you, also, I thought I have some flat type cable that lets you put part of it through a window I use for my cell booster antenna and could put the digital antenna outside also.

[Aussieguy]

I got an app on my old android (wonder where I put that phone)
Cant think of the name of the app
search for " TV tower location"


anyways the app... it locates TV towers and suggests the best direction to turn your antenna.


IF you were going remote a lot... you can try a real antenna ,sitting on some collapsible pole, pointing at the correct direction
and the Higher you go..... the better chances .

[BehindBars]

Originally Posted by quick83

Is there anybody else that tried just hooking a flat plate digital antenna to the TV inside the RV with the RV antenna disconnected and no booster? I find it interesting that I did that at home and just set the flat plate antenna up on a shelf and got 60 channels. I was wondering if anybody has tried this while they were camping. Probably don’t get anything in a remote area without a booster. We do have our Internet TV but I’d like to watch local channels where we’re at, or Tv cable needs repaired. I was wanting to try this digital antenna while we’re away sometime and was wondering if anybody else has already done this. I’m not talking about a digital antenna on the roof , just connecting it directly to the TV and having it inside the RV with you, also, I thought I have some flat type cable that lets you put part of it through a window I use for my cell booster antenna and could put the digital antenna outside also.

I can’t vouch for the effectiveness of an indoor flat antenna in the RV, but I’m amused by it being described as a “digital” antenna. Over the air TV signals are radio frequencies in the UHF or VHF bands. Whether the RF carries analog or digital encoded information makes no difference in the the design of the antennna. You can have an antenna designed or tuned for UHF and/or VHF, but you do not need to design or tune an OTA antenna specifically for ATSC digital TV standards.

[richp]

Originally Posted by Aussieguy

I got an app on my old android (wonder where I put that phone)
Cant think of the name of the app
search for " TV tower location"


anyways the app... it locates TV towers and suggests the best direction to turn your antenna.


IF you were going remote a lot... you can try a real antenna ,sitting on some collapsible pole, pointing at the correct direction
and the Higher you go..... the better chances .

TV Fool is what I use.

[Aussieguy]

phone app allowed me to stand under the antenna and pointed to the transmission towers for best signals


made it real easy... never tried it without cell service?
might require service to load correct maps?

[tomkatb]

No experience with a little plate antenna.

Having been a child of the 50’s I sort of know.

A modern larger rotatable antenna on a roof 12’ above the ground with a powered booster will work better than a set of rabbit ears.

It will likely be better than the tv antenna alone. Just because you can aim it.

I dislike our cheap plastic King antenna on the roof because they break. But, it works well. About $100.

[camper_Lucy]

We have one of these as a fall back when we can not use internet to stream, works much better then the antenna mounted on the camper.

https://www.amazon.com/Winegard-Flat...0-4513d670b6bc


They make more powerful ones now that are supposed to reach up to 380 miles (i doubt it, but...) this one works to 55 miles from inside the camper, as tested with a broadcast antenna locator application on my phone..

[quick83]

Wow Lucy thanks. That’s encouraging. The one I used did not have a power source. I just screwed into the TV and still got 60 channels while at my house in the RV . we do have one in our home one with a power source that hooks up to the TV and to the antenna plug both.

[TitanMike]

Originally Posted by camper_Lucy

We have one of these as a fall back when we can not use internet to stream, works much better then the antenna mounted on the camper.

https://www.amazon.com/Winegard-Flat...0-4513d670b6bc


They make more powerful ones now that are supposed to reach up to 380 miles (i doubt it, but...) this one works to 55 miles from inside the camper, as tested with a broadcast antenna locator application on my phone..

TV reception is always going to rely on terrain between transmit tower and receiving antenna.

When camping in the desert I can often get stations well beyond 50 miles yet here at my house which is 25 miles from several towers I get zip. My antenna is a roof mounted Sensar "bat wing" which is fairly directional but the 100' high ridge makes it all moot.

When I camp at Quartzsite I see all kinds of antennas up on 20-30' poles and when I ask how reception is, most say "not that good".



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[Reverse_snowbird]

Our best 'flat' antenna inside our tt was the cheapest WalMart had at the time. Our antenna was unable to pick up digital signals (yes, it was several years ago). We'd put it against the window that would get the best signal and it worked well.

We use the app DTV Antennas which detects the tv towers and tells you how to aim the antenna and how far away the towers are. It even shows the channel numbers.

It'd be worth trying. Let us know what you find.

[MarsbarsCT]

Antennaweb.org

[BehindBars]

People are mentioning web sites and apps. One place we camp regularly that has a little trouble with TV reception also has no cell phone or internet services. Are there antenna assistance apps that work off line, perhaps actually measure signal strength from the antenna, or do they all require data service to function?

[Aussieguy]

I don't have access to my old phone any more...
but my app was free so if it works OFFLINE that's a added bonus




If you must have electrical entertainment..
see if you can download movies etc before you lose internet

[Homebrew]

We use a app call DTV antenna, it’s free and points in the direction of each station’s signal.

[kenandterry]

Once you’re parked wherever…….

Use “tvfool.com”

You can pinpoint your location exactly, tell it how high your antenna is, and it will show you what direction and how far to various Over The Air (OTA) towers for your antenna to aim.

[BehindBars]

Originally Posted by kenandterry

Once you’re parked wherever…….

Use “tvfool.com”

You can pinpoint your location exactly, tell it how high your antenna is, and it will show you what direction and how far to various Over The Air (OTA) towers for your antenna to aim.

As I asked before, what if " parked wherever" has no internet data service? tvfool.com cannot help you. Is there an app or system that can assist in antenna aiming when you are off line, other than scanning for channels on the TV?

[Reverse_snowbird]

Originally Posted by BehindBars

Is there an app or system that can assist in antenna aiming when you are off line, other than scanning for channels on the TV?

Apps usually require access to a phone signal.
You'd have to do it the old fashioned way of moving it around the rig and scanning each time you move.
There's probably a standalone device that will measure signal strength, but I'll defer to others who may know what that would be.

[llr]

Originally Posted by BehindBars

I can’t vouch for the effectiveness of an indoor flat antenna in the RV, but I’m amused by it being described as a “digital” antenna. Over the air TV signals are radio frequencies in the UHF or VHF bands. Whether the RF carries analog or digital encoded information makes no difference in the the design of the antenna. You can have an antenna designed or tuned for UHF and/or VHF, but you do not need to design or tune an OTA antenna specifically for ATSC digital TV standards.

Correct, but at least in my area and I think most the main analog channels where on VHF and almost all digital channels are on UHF. As such it seems the old "analog" antennae's were designed more for VHF and were many times questionable on UHF. The new "digital" antennas are geared for UHF, are much smaller and probably not very good on VHF. The last time I looked in my area the only VHF digital channel was a low power college station that I can't get and don't really care about, I would probably need an old antenna, if it even has enough power and height to reach me.

[Larry-NC]

Originally Posted by llr

Correct, but at least in my area and I think most the main analog channels where on VHF and almost all digital channels are on UHF. As such it seems the old "analog" antennae's were designed more for VHF and were many times questionable on UHF. The new "digital" antennas are geared for UHF, are much smaller and probably not very good on VHF. The last time I looked in my area the only VHF digital channel was a low power college station that I can't get and don't really care about, I would probably need an old antenna, if it even has enough power and height to reach me.

Well, sort of. During the migration period (~2000-2010), the ATSC stations were placed in the UHF band (channels 14-83), because the stations were concurrently broadcasting in NTSC and most of those stations filled the VHF band (channels 2-13).

Once the migration period was completed, the NTSC stations shut down, and the ATSC broadcasters moved to the lower channels, which generally provided better and longer-range transmissions.

Once that was mostly completed, the FCC yanked back the highest part of the UHF band (channels 55-83) and assigned them to other service.

As a result, many (most?) of the ATSC stations are in the VHF band, not UHF.

[llr]

Originally Posted by Larry-NC

Well, sort of. During the migration period (~2000-2010), the ATSC stations were placed in the UHF band (channels 14-83), because the stations were concurrently broadcasting in NTSC and most of those stations filled the VHF band (channels 2-13).

Once the migration period was completed, the NTSC stations shut down, and the ATSC broadcasters moved to the lower channels, which generally provided better and longer-range transmissions.

Once that was mostly completed, the FCC yanked back the highest part of the UHF band (channels 55-83) and assigned them to other service.

As a result, many (most?) of the ATSC stations are in the VHF band, not UHF.

That doesn't seem to be the case in the Dayton / Cincinnati area, I didn't know they pulled back the top part but I didn't find any in that range either. 14-36 is what I find in my area.