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My question is how to take advantage of the Radio Shack bankruptcy/ fire sale and get an appropriate outdoor antenna. According to FM Fool I am less than 30 miles due south from just about all of the NYC radio stations (and many from New Jersey too - most are on the Empire State Building or the NYTimes building), and I need 9-12 feet of elevation for line-of-sight reception.
I anticipate that I can get a big discount for any of the Radio Shack antennas that are in stock, so which should I get? Is there any downside to getting too much antenna, e.g. the biggest one the have? I will use it primarily for FM, but might experiment with HDTV as well, since the drift away from cable seems to be increasing.
Actually, the store near me that is shutting down seems to have only this one (aside from the much smaller ones):
Catalog #: 1500274 ANTENNACRAFT HD850 HEAVY-DUTY VHF/UHF/FM ANTENNA
http://www.radioshack.com/antennacraft-hd850-heavy-duty-vhf-uhf-fm-antenna/1500274.html#start=17&sz=12&srule=price-high-low
Any thoughts/discussion would be much appreciated!
Pete
Follow Ups:
Another benefit with an indoor antenna is it will not bring a lightning strike inside your listening room. However, if the FM station of interest is too weak, a directional outdoor antenna is required.
The best indoor antenna is rabbit ears. It can be orientated for best signal and lowest multipath.
You're near me. If FM is your main goal, that little X shaped omnidirectional antenna would be your best bet. At least for me it was.
That big UHF/VHF/FM antenna will be great if everything is in one direction but here that's not the case.
I have a Sony Tuner modded by Radio X, rabbit ears are enough here.
Elsewhere in SF, especially given the hills, I would seriously doubt the universal efficacy of rabbit ears.
And it will also depend on what the building is made of.
The only way to guarantee good FM reception is an external directional* antenna pointed at each desired station. If it isn't just a dipole it will have gain.
No tuner made can reject multipath effects.
Warmest
Tim Bailey
Skeptical Measurer & Audio Scrounger
I ended up getting aVR-90XR for $5 at the RadioShack store which is closing today. I haven't gotten to hook it up yet, but I'm planning to put it in the attic. Signal strength should be okay for me in the busy New York metropolitan area, but there's at least one college station that I'm trying to get which gets interference from another closer station on the same frequency. And it's fun to experiment!
Winegard still makes 2 models of FM only and can be shipped by UPS.
Jim Tavegia
At 30 miles the pattern should be able to cope with the ones you want.
Warmest
Tim Bailey
Skeptical Measurer & Audio Scrounger
Thanks Tim,
I was hoping you would chime in!
Regards,
Pete
Advertised any discounting yet for company stores for product in the stores? No real deals online at the link you had.
E
T
Edits: 02/10/15 02/10/15
There is one local store that was already in the process of selling off its stock and closing, with progressively increasing discounts. No sign of closing in the other local store I visited. There is apparently a list out there of which stores are closing.
I have one of those Sony HD tuners, as well as a McIntosh MR67, a mono Scott LT-10, Fisher FM-100(?) with mpx adaptor, Harman/Kardon receiver, etc. etc. (You get the idea - too much stuff!)
Our FM band is very crowded, so I'm thinking directional will be an advantage. I agree I probably don't need a rotator, since it looks like the ESB and NYT buildings are in a line from my house! I've looked at the turnstyle ones in the past - don't know if omnidirectional is the way to go, though. I guess I'll see which one I can get for a song at RS and give it a try.
Thanks for the input and advice!
Pete
30 miles out overload should not be a problem. I use a similar antenna in my attic and get signal out the wazoo at 8 miles. If all your desired stations are in the same direction, you don't need a rotator; a directional antenna will give you better selectivity than an omnidirectional one, especially in a crowded area like metro NYC. Also an omni will pick up more multipath (bad). Also our cable went out during the Super Bowl but we were able to watch it using the antenna!
Edits: 02/10/15
A directional antenna is used for long distance reception or to help null out a multi-path issue. If multipath is not an issue and your favorite FM stations are received well, I would buy a non-directional outdoor antenna and save the cost of an antenna rotator.
I lived in Manhattan and strong FM reception with local stations was not an issue with an indoor rabbit ear antenna. I also received a station in CT with full quieting. The receiver was a tube type Fisher with good sensitivity. Some better SS FM receivers have higher sensitivity.
What tuner/receiver are you using?
FM in stereo needs low multipath on the input signal. And a strong signal to get the front-end to full limiting.The only way to guarantee both at 30 miles from the centre of a city is with a directional antenna.
A rabbit ear antenna is better in some ways than a folded dipole because it can be 'pointed' at each station more easily and less intrusively. So that it is effectively more directional. But, they often don't have as much gain.
Indoor antennas are also prone to be blanked out by our bodies, and since the mid 1990's by spurious EMI / RFI from all our tech stuff as well.
Warmest
Tim Bailey
Skeptical Measurer & Audio Scrounger
Edits: 02/12/15 02/12/15
Peter,
"Way back when", RS had a nice 5(or so) element FM only Antennacraft beam. You might be able to find one in an "older" store.
They do still list the "turnstile" dipole.
Charles
...I have one mounted indoors and it picks up any station that I want. Years ago I had an eight (or ten, I forget which) element Yagi; it turned out to be TOO MUCH antenna, not to mention the need for a rotator. Anyway, I gave it to a friend and picked up the turnstile one in the link.
Later Gator,
Dave
I wold think that the O'scope on my Marantz 10b would show a lot of multipath with that setup. The picture shows a perfectly tuned station with no multipath. If there was significant multipath present, you would see a squiggly, crooked, or tilted line, instead of the straight line shown.
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