I was planning to cut the cord earlier this year but directv gave me a killer deal to stay, so I haven’t done it yet, but I bought an RCA outdoor compact antenna that works for up to 40 miles from the stations towers. I am about twenty miles away as the crow flies and can see the towers from my house.  I forget how many channels I get, but it’s a lot! Most are crystal clear, a couple pixelate a bit, but I think they might be out of line with the other stations. This antenna is not omnidirectional, so you do have to point towards the stations. There are websites that can help you find which direction the stations in your area are located and the distance. Helps for picking the right antenna. Mine lists at $79.99. Can’t remember if I paid that or not, but I think I bought through Amazon. I also bought a Channelmaster DVR that records over the air broadcasts only. Those sometimes go on sale for a decent price, but are a couple hundred bucks at least. You can save by buying your own hard drive for it. I use it to record TBL and the local pbs station mostly.

lara1 wrote:

Thanks Brittany and HoneyWest for the info!

It’s a bit tricky for me , because although in the city I’m very close to the transmitting towers, my apartment faces the opposite direction away from the towers so might be hard to get a signal. And I can’t have an outdoor antenna.

Will see. ....😁

 
That outdoor antenna that I have says it can also go into attic spaces, so maybe it can be indoors?

Honey West wrote:

That outdoor antenna that I have says it can also go into attic spaces, so maybe it can be indoors?

Yes. I hope I can find you the youtube I saw about that. Let me look . . .

Here's one -- not the one I want, but it's got good info
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpvfOmPwnww

I'm out of time to look, but I saw a youtube last year where a guy mounted one of the Walmart omni-directional antennas in an attic and got over 50 channels, some from his area and some from the next town over. He was a sports nut but had to cut the cable.

The main thing you need to watch is how you ground it -- if you're using electricity to power an amplifer and don't know much about wiring, I'd pay someone to do it right so it's not a fire hazard. If you're just hanging the antenna in an attic and then plugging in a portable amplifier to a wall plug near the TV, that should be fine and not need the services of an expert. Again, though, if you have any doubts, have an expert check it. One time I helped a senior install one with a high-powered amp that caused the lights on the first floor to flicker. That's an example of a potential problem.

I don't have any worries about the plastic indoor antennas! Those aren't fire hazards.

 

Last edited by IowaWatcher (12/07/2017 6:18 pm)

lara1 wrote:

Many thanks IowaWatcher!  lots of interesting information there.  Very helpful!

I think my biggest issue will be the strength of the signal in a highly populated area and the inability to use a mega antenna.   

This is where an amplifier can help, and some of those little indoor antennas have one: just plug it into a regular wall outlet. If you're close enough to the station, though, getting it on the right wall might be all you need to do. These new antennas are tons better at picking up weak signals than the old rabbit ears with tin foil on the ends! Yes, I did that, and it sort of worked, LOL!

In any case, it's worth experimenting -- you'll save a ton of money if you can get something to work. If not, then you might want to look into things like Roku and streaming, but that does require a fast internet connection, which I don't have.

Added: I was messing around earlier and decided to re-scan my channels . . . never mind 19! I've now got 29. Unfortunately, most of them were playing either infomercials or obscure movies from the 1950s and 60s. Then again, I imagine that I could find *something* to watch if that was my goal.

Last edited by IowaWatcher (12/07/2017 11:57 pm)

lara1 wrote:

Thanks IowaWatcher!

You're welcome. Let us know what ends up working. This is a subject near and dear to my heart because a lot of seniors/etc are on a fixed income but hate giving up all TV. If I can help them pull in their local stations on an indoor antenna, it makes my day. I have a real grudge against my local cable companies. They are slime!