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Model: | Attic InTenna |
Category: | Tuner |
Suggested Retail Price: | $189.95 |
Description: | An indoor antenna designed for Attics etc. |
Manufacturer URL: | Antenna Performance Specialties |
Model Picture: | View |
Review by Tuckers (M) on November 04, 2006 at 16:58:35 IP Address: 24.5.143.166 | Add Your Review for the Attic InTenna |
I have had many indoor antennas in my home, including Fanfare Whip antenna, various Magnum Dynalab antennas, BIC boxes etc. What I have been using for the last few years is the Magnum Dynalab ST-2.I have an Antenna Performance modified Kenwood KT-8300 tuner, which has bested all of the supertuners I have had in my system for tuning in stations in my environment. I have had several Magnum tuners, a Sansui TU-X1, a Quad FM4, a Fanfare tuner, a vintage Fisher 200C, a Marantz 10B. I prefer the sound of the KT-8300 to those others as well.
The Magnum Dynalab ST-2 did the best at tuning in my favorite station here in the city of San Francisco, KQED at 88.5 FM. But it didn't pull in other stations very clearly. Getting this station in clearly is a trick that most tuners and antenna could not do. I live within 10 miles to the broadcasting tower of KQED, but there is a mountain between it and me, and also in direct line of site of me is Sutro Tower (a big TV broadcasting tower about 2 miles away). Sutro Tower has a very strong signal that plays heck with tuning in what you actually want. Multipath and interference are severe in my location.
The Attic Intenna is UGLY! Look at the picture in the link above. It's a big four foot tall cardboard cylinder painted flat black. It is meant to be placed in an attic where you won't see it. I figured I could paint it the same color as the wall behind my rack and it would kind of hide behind it. I haven't painted it yet, but it does look like this will work fairly well for me.
I was amazed when I hooked it up. I am bringing in 3 times the stations on the tuner, and at least 5 new stations are coming in crystal clear. This is a major improvement for the difficult area that I live in. KQED is not coming in any better, but it was pretty perfect before, so I wasn't expecting anything different. The fact that this antenna does not mess up reception of this station is excellent. I now get KPFA 94.1 in very well in stereo, before I could capture it only in poor quality mono. This is great, because they have live music in their studios a couple of times a week, and the sound can be astoundingly good. The antenna is omnidirectional, and not that picky in placement. It pulls in much stronger signals that the ST-2, appearing to have a lot of gain, but the specs say the gain is 0db across the board. If you want to cut the signal, you can turn the tube upside down, or put it on the side. While I may listen to one or two stations regularly, if I want to listen to more, I may move the antenna out from behind the rack and play with placement to DX other stations for the day.
I am mightily impressed with the antenna, as I was when I received the modified Kenwood KT-8300 tuner back from Antenna Performance 3 years ago. These guys really get FM.
Product Weakness: | It's really ugly. It's kinda big for an antenna. Of course it's meant for an attic or other invisible area. It could go behind curtains or in a closet too. It's not made to survive outside. |
Product Strengths: | Best indoor tuner I have ever used. Flexible in placement, you can turn it upside down to lower the gain or put it on its side. It has a lot more gain than any other indoor solution I have used. I think the price is a good value, in light of what it does. |
Associated Equipment for this Review: | |
Amplifier: | Shindo Sinhonia |
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated): | Shindo Catherine |
Sources (CDP/Turntable): | VRS Revelation Music Player, Well Tempered Reference w/ Airy3 |
Speakers: | Horning Akiabades |
Cables/Interconnects: | My own silver interconnects, Auditorium 23 speaker cables, TG audio power cable, Nirvana Power Cables, etc. |
Music Used (Genre/Selections): | Classical, Jazz, Vocal, Folk, Blues |
Room Size (LxWxH): | 35 x 24 x 8 |
Room Comments/Treatments: | Custom built room |
Time Period/Length of Audition: | One Month |
Other (Power Conditioner etc.): | Sound Applicaitons, my own power filtration, Quantum's Symphony Pro |
Type of Audition/Review: | Product Owner |
Follow Ups:
Is it directional at all? I could put one in my attic (so called - really just a tiny space between the ceiling and the roof), but I couldn't turn it much.tia,
Just a guess, but if it is designed to be placed in the attic and doesn't have rotor function it must be omni
Julien
"There's someone in my head, but it's not me"
I'd get that info on their web site.
My only concern for such a product is whether or not it could take the 150-degree heat in the attic of an Arizona home during the hot summer months....
Other than adhesives to hold wire in place, i doubt that there's anything else in there that would be damaged by such temperatures. Obviously, the manufacturer would be the one to ask about this. Sean
>
Greetings, nice review...I just bought a fully modded Sansui TU-919 from APS. I'm additionally having them bridge the volume pot with Vishay S102 resistors. It will now have a fixed output at the 7 oclock position.
APS is still working on the additional mod. Hopefully, it won't take to much longer, as I traded up an APS fully modified Sansui TU-717, and have been without a tuner for a little while now.I'm experiencing some serious FM withdrawl symptoms! Don't know how much longer I can hold out, loosing stregnth, wah :)
I also have the APS attic antenna and find it's performance to be excellent.
Why? 'cos if you live in a separate house on your own block, and there's just one TV station on CH6 VHF. Then ......NO-ONE can stop you having an external directional antenna, call it a ch6 TV antenna and do it, refer to the FCC site - there's a rulling overruling any and all by-laws, private caveats etc.
And no it is NOT big - for an FM antenna it is TINY!!!!
WarmestTimbo in Oz
The Skyptical Mensurer and Audio Scrounger'Still not saluting.'
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