HD Antenna

[craigmar]

Because one of the local stores was having a sale on their Televisions, my wife and I bought a large flat screen for an upstairs apt over our garage and also a smaller one for the van to replace the older one currently in use. The question of an antenna came up because the sat setup that I currently use takes up a little space when not in use. It's good for most of the out of the way places we go if we decide we want it to tag along but usually take it only on the longer trips. I was at the local Big Lot's store the other day and picked up a small antenna (13"Lx10 1/2"Wx 3/4"Thick) made by TriQuest thinking that it might be ideal to carry in the van but because of the cheap price (around twenty$'s) I had my reservations. The antenna can lay flat, be wall mounted or stand on its own. It's omni-directional and receives all digital and analog signals, supports UHF,VHF and FM signals or so the box said. After hooking it up to the small TV and having the TV do a channel search, I came up with 36 HD channels and 5 analog channels. All channels are clear as can be with the exception of one or two analog channels. Some of the channels are sub channels of the main channel such as 5-5.2-5.3 along with channels such as world news and some radio only channels as well.
I think that this antenna will work just great for our vans and because its so small and compact it will easily find a place to store. The small TV we purchased also can be used as a computer monitor, plays cd's or dvd's has all the other hookups for external devices and even has a headphone jack so as not to disturb sleeping partners. All in all I think we are set and with the addition of the above antenna our TV experience will be enhanced if we choose to watch.

[nvestysly]

I stumbled across this thread today and thought I'd ask... are you still happy with the antenna you purchased? Were you unhappy with the antenna provided in the B190 (built into the roof I think)?

We've tried the built-in antenna in three locations. Two locations were in metropolitan areas and we received a fair number of channels and relatively good reception. The third location was rural and we were in a campsite that was totally shaded - no reception there. Keep in mind we've only had the van for a few weeks so as we travel more we'll have more details.

I suspect the Winegard crank-up antenna that allows rotation to tune in the strongest signal would be best but I'm not sure about putting another hole in the roof. I like the idea of a small antenna like the one craigmar mentioned if it works well in a variety of situations.

[slapthecat]

I've used the rooftop/luggage rack antennae a few times with some decent results.
Otherwise, I've built a few of the Lifehacker Fractal antennas, which I use at home and in the van. Works great, and only the cost of the Balun and an hour of arts and crafts time!

http://lifehacker.com/5919128/build-you ... hd-antenna

[nvestysly]

I've used the rooftop/luggage rack antennae a few times with some decent results.
Otherwise, I've built a few of the Lifehacker Fractal antennas, which I use at home and in the van. Works great, and only the cost of the Balun and an hour of arts and crafts time!

http://lifehacker.com/5919128/build-you ... hd-antenna

Hmmm.... that's interesting and it seems like something I can tackle. I think I have all the parts, including the 300 ohm to 75 ohm transformer, in the garage. Don't know if I'll have time tomorrow because I'm still working on other aspects of the van. But I'll definitely make this antenna at some point.

I have a problem at my house because the TV signals come from three different directions. I'm currently using a 20-year old multi-element antenna and it usually works fine but I sometimes have to rotate it to get a strong signal. Maybe the fractal design will eliminate the directional aspect of the antenna.

[slapthecat]

I tried a few different store bought antennae with little success - I made the fractal, just to see, and ended up canceling cable! Amazed!