It is just as easy to build a much superior M4 or GH (http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=119489). Our members are knocking their socks off designing and improving the very best DIY antennas, so forget about that garbage youtube design.

When I put up my 7778 amp ( almost the same as the 7777) up on the mast last summer, It didn't occur to me that the bottom plate was even water tight. If your amp was in any position other than the aluminum shell facing straight up, I think water has made its way inside the unit. I would take it down, open it up and see if its wet. If so leave it alone for a day or two to dry out.

[feels as if he's going off topic and posts should be moved to the weatherproofing thread, BUT..]

It's been dry for the past 2 days, how can I tell there's been damage, unless the water doesn't evaporate as fast inside the preamp (if it did go inside at all).

I WOULD think that a $100 preamp would have SOME form of water tolerance at the very least. This is the first soaking it's been subject to so I doubt it's all out, but I'll take some pics tomorrow...

I hope to get my rig back up in time for LOST tomorrow...

Unless you open it and (if) its wet inside, it will take too long to dry out and corrode. More details = off topic.

WGRZ 58 (hey, it's back!)
WIVB 74
CBLT 69
WKBW 78
CFTO 68
CHCH 60
WNED 77
WNLO 67
CBLFT 63
*WNYB 24
WUTV 43
CITS 42
*CIII 18
CJMT 76
WNYO 85
*WPXJ 12
CITY 48
*CFMT 21
*CKXT 15

*channels not being recieved, 40 needed for stable lock on Sharp HDTV. Antenna aimed just east of WNYO.

The amp got fried. There was green powder all over the circuitboard. Only the part under the OUTPUT POWER jack. The rest of the board looks fine. Wondering if it's bust, or fixable. (Soldering to fix the corroded part?) *sigh* the price of free TV...

Connected the thing without the amp, got most of my channels back. Most of the Toronto/Buffalos didn't suffer. Few did change.

WUTV dropped from around 70 to 43
CHCH dropped from 70 to 60
WNYB gone, dropped from 65 to 26.
CIII, CKXT, and CFMT all gone dropped from mid 60s to 10-20. (owch). I can get these back by aiming at TO, but not worth it can watch in analog.
Rest no change whatsoever (or so marginal I can't tell as pre-rain signal values are mere guesses)

Kinda expected that from 150 feet of RG6. Lots of line loss hah.
Whatever.

Still having trouble with WGRZ peeps. :S
Am I the only one in 'sauga/oakville area that's having this issue? Can anyone living in Southdown/Lakeshore/SE Oakville area confirm this?

it was better than last week but still cutting in/out severely.

Sorry if I sound like I'm pestering you guys, but what should I do now? I've almost exhausted all possible options (refer to earlier posts).

:(

I live right in that area as well - 12th floor of an apartment facing southeast on Truscott Drive. I can pull in pretty much all of the Buffalo stations except for 2.1 & 4.1. I recently noticed that I can get ION again, but after playing around a bit with my CM4221HD on my balcony tonight I couldn't pick up anything for WGRZ yet.

So long as I can get Fox for the Saturday baseball games - that's good enough for me!

Hmm, 4.1 should not be anywhere as hard as 2.1. Especially at that height. I know that apartment, it's close to my former high school. It's pretty tall.

2.1 is back for me for the last week due to the warmer temps, I'll keep you posted though.

Try having your antenna face the smokestacks to the south. That's where I have it aimed and the Buffalos are coming in problem free. (If you're aiming too SE you might be sacrificing alot of strength on the Buffalos, the Torontos should still come in)

Still have some minor amplification wrinkles for my setup, but it's mostly good.

If you still can't pull in the other Buffalos, try a 7778 preamp. I doubt you'll need one though. Check if your cable is RG6, and make sure it's not too long (or using splitters) or else you might be suffering from line loss.

Glad you're happy with your setup though, best of luck :)

Tried it again this morning and I now have WGRZ and WIVB again! Just had to do a new search on my TV and there they were!

I have about 15 feet of RG6 between my antenna and the TV. No splitters yet as I only have the only HDTV in my apartment.

Wow. 120 feet AGL and facing in the right direction? Sounds like OTA heaven! :)

Hi there,

I'm new to this forum and have been doing alot of reading. I've learnt alot thus far. There's a wealth of info here. Its just too much for a newbie like myself, it can be somewhat confusing :)

So i'd like some input as to what indoor Antenna i should be looking into. I also have an older TV so i require an ATSC converter.

Now i've read the FAQ and the following Antenna's were suggested:
1)CM4220 2-bay & Clones
2)Zenith Silver Sensor & Clones
3)Winegard Sharp Shooter

Do you guys suggest something else or would the above do the trick?
Location: Hurontario & 403 in Mississauga. I live in a condo - 9th floor, and facing CN Tower.
An external antenna is not an option. I also got some quotes earlier from a local business - In total i'm looking at around $200 for the atsc & indoor antenna (Antenna Direct)

Thanks alot for your help., much appreciated!!

In total i'm looking at around $200 for the atsc & indoor antenna (Antenna Direct)

Sounds a little steep for just a convertor box and a set top indoor antenna.

Just off the top, for 200 bux would think ya should be able to get an outdoor antenna, a rotor, and all the cables. Obviously not an option for you.

A basic convertor around here (USA) goes for around $50 Bux.
Basic meaning nothing fancy, SD Output, and no PVR, etc. An indoor antenna,
not sure re: the ones ur lookin at, but can't possibly be more than the basic convertor itself.
Are you looking for just the local TO stations? Or are you lookin for Buffalo and Hamilton as well?
Have you read thru the "How Much would you pay for OTA Thread" at all?

Boxes and indoor antennas are a little more expensive in Cdn$. A decent indoor antenna $60+ and the boxes are about that same price range. So $120+ is about the starting point. If you have a balcony, big window or a good place that has line of site to broadcast towers, then you could go with a flat RCA antenna or a TERK 55 antenna from the source and use it with a Tivax converter box. That should get you all of the Toronto stations and some Buffalo stations.

Honest to god I have tried many indoor antennas and I found one
that is small and perfect for indoors and almost performs as good
as a Channel master 4 bay. Google the Phillips Mant940 antenna
and grab it, the best way to point it is flat like lying on a table
with the curvy side pointing at the transmitters. A window would
be awesome with height. This indoor antenna outperformed any
indoor antenna I have ever seen. It's only like 30 bucks too.
I live on Dundas and dixie 2 stories high with obstructions and
have gotten most Buffalo stations with this , Fox is always strong
and even Sometimes Ion and MYTV, since you are 9 stories you
should do well with this antenna.

MajorTom:
Yes i have looked at that thread which is why i mentioned how much i was quoted and thought it was a bit steep. I guess the more channels i get the better :)

OTA Canuck:
I just looked at The Source but they dont have the Terk55.

OnTheRoofTop:
Okay i'll look into the Philips Mant940.

Thanks alot for the input guys. Much appreciated.

I had little to no issue during the winter months, but since the weather has gotten warmer everyday begining at around 11am to noon I lose WGRZ, WIVB, WKBW, WNYB. They do reappear in the afternoon begining at 5:45 to 6PM.

I currently have a attic install of a modified CM4221HD with a CM7777 preamp. Any suggestions on what may be happening.

My location is Port Credit (Lakeshore/Broadview)

iceman2g: I wouldn't be surprised if the lake is playing a role here. It's still near freezing, while the air above has been sitting around 16c the last few days...

LiveWir3, here are the steps you need to take to determine what antenna and/or other gear is best for you:

http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showpost.php?p=1076613&postcount=72

You'll find appropriate threads in the main OTA Forum on ATSC boxes of different varieties. If you need to find out where to buy OTA gear look in the stickied OTA threads in here:

http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=164

I suggest an outdoor setup if you can. Personally attic setups can be really finnicky, depending on roofing material.

Everything is coming in fine except WGRZ which lately has been okay, but skippy at night. This is without a preamp right now too.

Sorry for double post. This is also for reference for my GH thread in Antenna development, as I didn't want to make the post too long.

Got the amp fixed. Needed a good drying out for several days, tested it again and bingo. Put it 30 feet downstream and covered it with tarp for precaution. Got the channels back, WGRZ still problematic, no ION.

I posted a thread here on building a GH if anyone's interested in assisting me.
http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?goto=newpost&t=122596

Setup: EagleStar 6305 4bay 4221 clone, CM7777 preamp (30ft downstream) and 150ft RG6.

TVFOOL: http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/6857/radarall.png

40% Needed for solid lock, 35% PSIP but flashy.

Recieving
WIVB-DT 4.1 (RF39) 73%
CBLT-DT 5.1 (RF20) 72%
WKBW-DT 7.1 (RF38) 77%
CFTO-DT 9.1 (RF40) 69%
CHCH-DT 11.1 (RF18) 65%
WNED-HD 17.1 (RF43) 76%
WNED-SD 17.2 (RF43) 76%
WNED-TH 17.3 (RF43) 76%
WNLO-DT 23.1 (RF32) 68%
CBLFT-DT 25.1 (RF24) 64%
WNYB-SD 26.1 (RF26) 58%
WNYB-HD 26.2 (RF26) 58%
WUTV-HD 29.1 (RF14) 70%
CITS-DT 36.1 (RF35) 42%
CIII-DT 41.1 (RF65) 40%
CJMT-DT (OMNI 2) 44.1 (RF44) 78%
WNYO-HD 49.1 (RF49) 82%
CITY-HD 57.1 (RF53) 48%
CFMT-DT (OMNI 1) 64.1 (RF64) 46%
CKXT-DT 66.1 (RF66) 40%

Troublesome*
WGRZ-HD 2.1 (RF33) 33-45%
WGRZ-US 2.2 (RF33) 33-45%
WGRZ-RT 2.3 (RF33) 33-45%

Not Recieving*
WPXJ-DT (ION) (RF23) 15-20%
WPXJ-DT2 (qubo) (RF23) 15-20%
WPXJ-DT3 (IONLife) (RF23) 15-20%

*tropo usually adds 15-20% depending on strength to these, oddly the regulars remain unchanged.

Good to hear you got the pre-amp running again. But, you shouldn't need to cover it with a tarp. When installed properly (with the access door/coax ends facing down) the unit is essentially waterproof.

I was getting ION again on Sunday but last night it was gone.