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Old 10-02-2009, 05:59 PM   #1
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Need Help..Trying to get 50 to 60 mile tv signals for RV

Has anyone been able to get TV signals from 50 to 60 miles away with there roof RV antenna ?
If so how did you do it ?
I need to get TV signals from the FLA.Keys to Mainland Fla. app. 50-60 miles.
Has anyone added this to there WINEGARD batwing antenna ? IF so about how many miles away do you get signals ? ...... MY GUESS is LESS THAN 30Miles ???
#Rv-2005 replacement head & wingman...........
improve your Winegard Sensar batwing antenna's VHF/UHF performance with the Wingman. This lightweight, sleek add-on attaches with 4 simple snap-on screws to the Sensar head to increase db gain up to 100% on DTV channels.
Features.....
Optimizes Sensar for DTV channels
Increases performance up to 100%
Attaches to existing Sensar head

Thanks in advance for ANY info.
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Old 10-03-2009, 08:40 AM   #2
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Re: Need Help..Trying to get 50 to 60 mile tv signals for RV

What you're wanting to do is difficult.

Forget that Winegard Wingman thing. It's just an attempt to make a VHF antenna more resonant at UHF freqs (where all the TV stations are now, it amazes me that Winegard and others are still selling VHF antennas... the stations in that band are gone, folks!).

So, what you need is something like this 8' long monster:

Winegard HD9095P
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Old 10-03-2009, 09:07 AM   #3
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The main issue with DTV reception is antenna height, at least at distances. We live about 35 miles south of Rochester NY where there are 5 TV stations. When we first got the convertors a year ago, the reception was intermittent due to them using temporary channels. Once they settled into the permanent channels, reception got a lot better.

We live on a hill that is around 850' higher than the valley below us. From the north side of the hill we can see right into downtown Rochester. Because UHF transmissions are essentially "line of sight", we have very good reception on a set of rabbit ears alone. But we did find that moving the downstairs antenna to an upstairs closet greatly improved reception reliability. 8 feet of height made a big difference.

Most of us have the Winegard "bat wing" antennas. It's the standard for the RV industry. But it only stands a couple of feet above the roof of the RV. So it's a built-in limitation. There's no way to increase the height at this time.

I think Winegard (or some other manufacturer) will come up with an antenna system that offers the ability to get the antenna 8' or more above the roof of the RV. It will take time and pressure from the RV public.

I considered getting a small weather balloon, some coax and rope, and a tank of helium. I could then lift an antenna up to 50' or more above the trailer. It would work, but we don't spend much time in front of the TV when out camping.
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Old 10-03-2009, 09:27 AM   #4
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I do have a new 96" UHF antenna With a 120 mile range that I am not using at home.
If I don't get any other advice I may cut the 96" antenna and add part of it to the Rv-2005 Amp.replacement head & Winegard wingman. The wingman has 3 elements, so I could add more.
I don't know how that will work..
Any input on that..

Thanks,
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Old 10-03-2009, 12:09 PM   #5
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Don't cut up antennas... they are engineered to work as a unit. You'd be better off with just the wingman or possibly even a coat hanger.
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Old 11-05-2010, 08:33 AM   #6
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Question UHF Antenna

Has anybody tried this New for 2010 Antenna (LAVA HDTV2605 Antenna )......

40 to 80 Mile range, (150mis. Without trees,mountains etc.)
I need app. 60mile range,as I explained in post#1

Looks Very promising.
Attached Images
File Type: png yhst-23711792297957_2127_114659 HDTV Antenna.png (21.0 KB, 164 views)
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Old 11-05-2010, 09:36 AM   #7
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We were at Claytor Lake State Park in Dublin VA this summer. On the way down we stopped at Camping World and bought the wingman add on for our antenna. I think it was $23 or something like that. We got 2 Roanoke VA channels in the park without the wingman. Then Steve put the wingman on and we got either 5 or 7...wish I could remember which...but it was a significant increase. That's 59 miles on roads, but looks to be about 50 as the crow flies.
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Old 11-05-2010, 10:18 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Tweety View Post
We were at Claytor Lake State Park in Dublin VA this summer. On the way down we stopped at Camping World and bought the wingman add on for our antenna. I think it was $23 or something like that. We got 2 Roanoke VA channels in the park without the wingman. Then Steve put the wingman on and we got either 5 or 7...wish I could remember which...but it was a significant increase. That's 59 miles on roads, but looks to be about 50 as the crow flies.
I installed the wingman late last year. It does work good from NY to FL, BUT NOT in the FL, KEYS.....
Is there a another RV forum site that I may find usefull for this question
PS..with the wingman added to the antenna they say it is good for up to 55miles. I need over 60mi.range.
Thanks,
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Old 11-05-2010, 11:23 AM   #9
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are the broadcast freqs uhf or vhf? but that might not matter, southern FL has no high points (even on big antennae) and 50-60 miles is out of line of sight and there aint no mountains to bounce off of like FM (where tv is sorta close to - low band vhf and high band vhf bracked midband FM radio) and they wont skip like AM/shortwave (altho low band FM - tv 2-6, might skip a little at night.)

look here: Television Frequencies plus CATV, Radio, and Satellite Frequencies to see where your channels will fall
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Old 11-05-2010, 08:46 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by luvrque View Post
Has anybody tried this New for 2010 Antenna (LAVA HDTV2605 Antenna )......

40 to 80 Mile range, (150mis. Without trees,mountains etc.)
I need app. 60mile range,as I explained in post#1

Looks Very promising.
I was wrong thinking it was 60mis....
It's 85 miles straight line (If the signals are coming from Miami)

I still think I will try the LAVA HDTV2605 Antenna.
Attached Images
File Type: png yhst-23711792297957_2127_114659 HDTV Antenna.png (21.0 KB, 148 views)
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Old 11-06-2010, 03:38 PM   #11
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I think the easy solution here is in one word. Satellite.
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Old 11-06-2010, 03:48 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pwb01 View Post
I think the easy solution here is in one word. Satellite.
Yup, 85 miles is well beyond the range for DTV transmissions. I think even 50 is pushing it except for extremely level terrain with no obstacles between the transmitter and the receiving DTV. Even then, a tall antenna is necessary. It is simply the nature of the digital RF that it doesn't travel nearly as far as analog signals did.

We have DishNetwork, and discovered when we moved that we didn't need to buy the larger, more expensive receiver to get local channels. Local channels are $5 a month added to base charge. We're using it here in the Adirondacks because almost nothing gets through from Albany at ground level. The only downside is that loss of all the neat DTV features like wide screen and the back channels.
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Old 11-07-2010, 07:24 AM   #13
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I agree that 60+ miles line-of-sight is pushing digital TV signal reception a bit. Having lived in FLA most of my life, I can also agree with there not being any "high" points south of Orlando... unless it's a building.

I haven't tried it since the DTV conversion, but I had a friend who brought a house-sized antenna (6 or 7 feet long) with him on college football camping weekends. He used a pipe-type mast to hold the antenna up, with the bottom of the pipe supported on a block of wood. He used velcro straps to provide support along the length of the pipe, tying it to to the roof supports of his popup.

That pipe had sections which allowed him extend it UP... he usually had the antenna 8 feet above his popup roof. He would aim it using what he jokingly referred to as the "Armstrong Rotator". It worked really well.
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Old 03-09-2011, 12:40 PM   #14
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I don't know what the differences are but the TV does make alot of difference in reception as well as the antenna.

I have two TVs. One is a Panasonic, basic TV without any extra inputs or monitor connection. The other is a Samsung with extra inputs and the computer monitor connection. I have used both on a small omni-directional HDTV antenna with a power booster that I bought at WallyWerld for $38. The Samsung gets more stations with better quality than the Panasonic.

I connected each set, searched for stations and then swapped TVs and repeated. Did this several times to see if it was just conditions but it was always better on the Samsung.

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Old 03-09-2011, 12:44 PM   #15
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Interesting Jim...our TV is also a Samsung.
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Old 05-22-2011, 11:17 AM   #16
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Exclamation Antenna update

Quote:
Originally Posted by luvrque View Post
I was wrong thinking it was 60mis....
It's 85 miles straight line (If the signals are coming from Miami)

I still think I will try the LAVA HDTV2605 Antenna.
OK here are the results in Long Key FL after installing the LAVA antenna on a 16 foot adjustable mast............
#1..At times a got up to 35 diff. stations, about 30% were in spanish.
#2..Some days (Appox.25%) I could watch for hours (CBS,NBC,ABC,FOX,PBS,Weather,Sports etc).with a perfect picture.
#3..Other days I could not get a perfect picture EXCEPT for some spanish stations like: (41.1 & 41.2)
#4..BOTTOM LINE...It seems (like I read before) that Excessive Humidity (moisture) in the air or Fog ...Makes the BIG difference!!!!

Here are 3 photos of the Antenna Down, partly up,and fully up.........
Attached Images
File Type: jpg DSCF1296.jpg (56.6 KB, 4 views)
File Type: jpg DSCF1303.jpg (55.7 KB, 1 views)
File Type: jpg DSCF1308.jpg (51.2 KB, 5 views)
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