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Dave Platt Dave Platt is offline
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Default TV antenna question

My buddy doesn't have cable where he lives so I got him this antenna:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...?ie=UTF8&psc=1


How do I hook it up to his TV?


He has a tube TV with a coaxial connector.


Depending on his TV, you may very well need some additional equipment
to make this setup work.

The actual antenna-to-TV arrangement is fairly straightforward and
should be described in the instructions packed with the box.
Basically: mount antenna and rotator on a mast on the roof. Ground
the mast (you'll need a separate heavy-gauge grounding wire and a
ground rod, probably available at a good hardware store). The antenna
comes with a 40' length of coax cable - attach one end to the antenna
and run the other down and into the building (add a "drip loop" at the
bottom just before it comes indoors) and to near the TV. Connect this
to the "antenna" input on the control box which comes with the
antenna. The antenna comes with a second (1') length of coax cable...
use this to connect the control box to the TV's coaxial connector.
Plug the control box into AC power (it may have either a full power
cord or a "wall wart").

At this point you should have a signal, and should be able to use the
remote control which comes with the antenna setup to rotate the
antenna to point it towards various TV station transmitter sites.

And, you may not be able to see a picture. Most "tube" TVs will
handle only analog (NTSC or PAL) television signals. The US and most
other countries have switched over to digital TV transmission, and
older TV sets won't see them as anything but noise.

To receive digital TV you'll either need a newer television (probably
flat-panel), or will need to attach a "digital TV converter" between
the antenna control box and the TV's coaxial input. These are fairly
easily available here in the US (they were being sold via a subsidized
"coupon" system a few years ago in order to ease the switchover to
digital TV) and you can probably find one on CraigsList or in a local
thrift store if you look around.

Most older cable-TV systems are still distributing at least the basic
channels in analog form, and don't require a converter box for basic
service. That is no longer true of over-the-air TV broadcasts in the
US; analog TV is for all practical purposes gone.

--
Dave Platt AE6EO
Friends of Jade Warrior home page: http://www.radagast.org/jade-warrior
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