On Tue, 15 Dec 2009 23:57:00 -0500, Tony
wrote:

mm wrote:
I now plan to put a pretty big tv antennas in my attic.

1)I won't need an assistent for aiming because I have a co-ax splitter
in the attic, I'll bring a tv up, and I'll have RF remote control for
the DVDR tuner. So: Should I use a color tv, or is a (lighter) B&W
tv just as good?? The B&W is 12 and I think the color is 14 inch. (I
have no stairs, just a hatch in the closet)

2) The roof is not free-standing, but has trusses every 24 inches.
And those trusses include inverted W's, made by 2/4's. On each side
of the antenna, only two pieces of 2x4, more likely only one, are
likely to be in the way.

I'll bring the antenna up still folded, but because of the 2x4's, I
might want to unfold an element a little bit, remove it completely,
and reattach it in the fully unfolded position. Is that possible with
Winegard antennas, or any other brand? (I"m afraid they might be
riveted on, loose enough to open but not more than that.)

3) The truss 2x4's are all at oblibque angles and I can move the
antenna up and down and forward and back, so it's likely I can find a
spot where they all extend, and I'm sure this question is obvious, so
please excuse me, but which is better, an antenna with 36 elements but
where one was permanently removed in order to mount or aim the
antenna, or a smaller one one with 28 elements??? (Or 41 and 36)
IIUC, I might have removed an essential one, but I could probably
remove another for a station I don't receive, move the antenna, and
put the first one back, right??

4) Does it matter if I tighten the F-connector all the way to tight.
Usually, just touching the center wire to the center hole is enough to
get a good and strong picture, without even touching the outer nut to
anything. But with weak signals, like distant channels, does it
matter if the connection is tight?

First of all I hope you aren't replacing an analog antenna with a new
"Digital" one.

Well of course. But I'm also replacing a 15" diameter, flying saucer
with rod wings amplified antenna whose amplifier seems to have broken
a year ago**, with a 6 to 10 foot long channel 7 to 69 outdoor
antenna, in my attic. (Yes, I know they don't use channels above
51?, anymore, but that's how Winegard labels the antennas.

**Actually I had two identical Radio Shack amplified antennas and
together they lasted about 24 years. They both seemed to break, in
that each stoppped working. Other than verifying that the adpater
still worked, I didn't any time hunting for a a solvable problem with
the first one. I just bought another one, and it worked. Although
what is strange is that the voltage is 12 volts on the second floor
but only 8 or 9 in the attic, while disconnected from the antenna. It
should be the same, right? Yet if the center wire in the co-ax were
broken, it would probably be zero.

The truth is that there is practically no difference.

I certainly know that. Right now I'm using a single strand wire about
7 feet long that I plug into the hole in the co-ax Antenna In
connector on the back of the DVDR/digital tuner. And I hang it across
an radio cabinet from the 30's.

It does very well, since I'm in Baltimore, getting channels in DC,
7.1, 7.2 and 66.1-4 and sometimes channel 9!, which tvfool.com says I
need an attic antenna to get. And this is just a wire. But there are
still 8 channels (not counting any .2 or .3 there might be) that I
can't get in DC, and I'm hoping to get most of them.

If you have the style with wide elements on the far end and they get
smaller the closer it gets to the middle, then the only difference is
that if you wanted to you could break off a few of the widest ones.
Those frequencies aren't used for TV anymore. That's it. That is the

Well, I wasn't going to buy an antenna designed for channels 2 to 6.
I presume that's the ones you mean.

BTW, you're not quite right. IIRC there are 40 stations nationwide
using low VHF. In fact 3 of them are around here but distant enough
that tvfool.com says I have very little chance of getting them even
with a very big antenna designed for low VHF. Plus I"m in a little
valley. I asked here about using a GPS to find out my altitude
compared to the main street a quarter mile from here which runs along
the crest of a small hill, while I'm right next to a small stream at
the bottom of the hill. With the hill between me and DC. tvfool
indicated that I would neeed a 50 foot tall antenna to get more
stations than an attic antenna would get me, and 50 feet is just too
much for me, to get a couple more stations.

only difference between digital and analog antenna.

The whole idea of opening up an antenna up there doesn't sound like
anything I'd like to try. Most likely the elements will snap into place
and you sometimes need pliers to squeeze the clip before you can fold it
in again.

I didn't even ask about that. I assumed I'd be able to get them folded
again. I can use pliers.

Also with a person in the attic, your reception will likely change. So
you have to come down each time when you think you are close. Even
people in the next floor below the attic can effect the signal. Most of
it depends on how strong your signal is.

Definitely tighten up the connectors, and use the largest color TV you
have for testing. If you had an antenna, start with the new one
pointing the same direction.

Good point. I think it faces the same direction. Although it is much
smaller and could easily point any direction, I also pointed it to DC
because those where the stations i wanted.