Well this was my first setup, as you can see under my name.

-son-in-law gave me a HDTV 47"/1.2m
-i had to have DTV
-bought a BEV (Bell ExpressVu) HTDV box because it has a port for
on the back specifically for an DTV ant.
-Source for an ant. ofcourse it will work trust me, yes inside TOO---no
-returned source inside ant. for big outside unit--no signal-returned
-kept mounting pole
-Sals on Kingston rd for a proper ant. (CM4228)
-Sals again mounting brackets for ant. got more mounting pole
-Source for HD cables HMDI, of course the best--no difference-returned
-HEY good signal, need to turn the ant. for others
-Source for CM looking roter ($50 off sale, line up with other Scottish people)
-lots out there, and pixelation on some
-Sals again ordered CM signal booster (back-order took time, worth it)
-watched the World Cup final in HDTV off an ant.

tips,
-RG-6 cable right up to the tv,
-your going to go outside if you want the channels,
-it's gota turn,
-your going up,down,up,down, plan-plan-plan would have saved me time

regret, i would buy an indepent receiver, i don't have to sub. to Bell for HDTV, but the option is there, sometimes the receiver wants to the sat. signal before letting me watch OTA-digital, this can be a pain if the sat. is down, like a storm or overcast.
-get the proper stuff to start.
-look around for other ant's and see where there pointed, and ask..

after putting my AP-8780 pre-amp up on my mast and some tweaking, here's what I get after a 3-way splitter and the uhf side of a uhf/vhf splitter to the tuner built into my SanyoTV. Results are pretty close on the EVu 9200

02-1 WGRZ-HD 90%
02-2 Weather
04-1 WIVB-HD 90%
04-2 Radar
04-3 WNLO-SD
05-1 CBLT-DT 85%
07-1 WKBW-HD 90%
07-2 WNGS-SD
09-1 CFTO HD 75%
23-1 WIVB-HD 70%
23-2 Radar
23-3 WNLO-SD
25-1 CBLFT-D 60%
26-1 WNYB-DT 65%
29-1 WUTV-HD 80%
29-2 WUTV-SD
43-1 WNED-HD 80%
43-2 WNED-SD
43-3 WNED-Th
57-1 CITYHD 65%
66-1 CKXT-DT 60%

WGRZ is still very suseptable to weather. Just after i finished at 5 pm this afternoon, i was sitting and patting myself on the back when i noticed 02-1 with minor blocking and a few freeze-ups. I kept watching and it cleared up just in time for them to show live weather shots of the heavy downpour Buffalo was getting. During that rain, NBC's signal droppped and bounced around 30-60%, but went right back up to 85-90 in a few minutes.

Overall, pretty happy with it. I put the pre-amp on the UPS with the TV, so it won't be affected by the power glitches we seem to get regularly here.

Good strong signal from Buffalo that is what you need.

The Toronto signal being closer to the Cn tower wont or should not dropout like Buffalo which is from a much futher distance.

I am South (say 200m) of 401 and Meadowvale. Lots of trees on lot (old 50x211 lot) so I guess indoor antenna is out? Would I have to put the antenna over the trees? What kind of antenna would I need then?

Using a Jeway HiTV computer tuner, (phillips based).

Thanx in advance.

ya u'd get CBC and a few others at the most with an indoor antenna. You don't have to put the antenna over the trees, but any height you can get is going to help. If you got a decent outdoor antenna like a 4221 or 4228, and put it on your roof, you'd probably get decent results.

How tall is your roof compared to the trees, are there trees directly between your house and the CN Tower, and your house and Buffalo direction?

Trees are taller than my house. In fact, my house is pretty much under the canopy of all the trees. Back of the house faces west (or west in terms of toronto), maybe antenna from the balcony? It may get more clear shot of cn tower

here is a link to the crude picture I cut off googlemaps and tried to circle... you can tell why I am not an graphic artist

pink line is more or less property line, green is the actual house

and here is the kicker... My Home theatre is at the FRONT of the house...

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b142/sdifox/Oblique/Test1.jpg

yep your gonna need a good antenna and or good preamp and or tower for decent reception.

to start i'd buy a 4228 or 4221 get it on your roof or balcony and see what you get. From there, then u may have to buy a preamp or tower.

First I stripped a rg-6 (stripped about 1 foot) and just stuck the other end into the computer, get none of the local but pickup WNLO (I think that is the channel) from Buffalo. Then I put in a stupid rabbit antenna from Rat Shack and I get CBC (clear), PBS (Stuttering), Channel 4 from NY (seems ok) but for the stragest reason no CFTO TV (at least not stable, it's a slide show), which is the closerst to me, albait not in the same direction as CN Tower (more westward).

Next I'll try getting a LONG RG-6 cable, maybe another antenna.

I am not really all that interested in getting a long cable through my house, maybe I'll just stick an array antenna in my attic, towards the back of the house.

Never thought that I would be using an antenna ever again :)

u actually picked up WNLO with nothin but 1' of RG6 sticking out of your tuner?

thats funny.

The cable is about 6 foot, but only 1 foot is stripped. I hang the stripped end on the ceiling fan (formed a hook) and stuck the other end on the rabbit ears. I get PBS HD (all 3 pbs), WNLO and CBC all stable. No City, No CTV... that is just weird.

Tomorrow I am going to watch HD Hockey on my 92" screen :) And record it too... good thing I got 1.6TB of HDD space...

not really able to picture what your describing, but if it works for u great.

although if you have the money for a 90" TV and 1500GB hardrive, wouldn't a decent antenna system (200-300$) be peanuts to you?

not really able to picture what your describing, but if it works for u great.

although if you have the money for a 90" TV and 1500GB hardrive, wouldn't a decent antenna system (200-300$) be peanuts to you?


Still investigating the antenna front. Maybe I'll build a db2 type antenna and try that. I can't string cable through my house (no conduits) so I am trying to avoid going external if I can get away with it. Like I said, at most I can stick an antenna into the attic towards the rear of the house.

Antenna on roof would be a waste of time because of canopy.

92" shot with an Optoma HD6800 (1280x768 DLP, Costco model for HS72, special for 2000 +tax), fed through my computer, which happens to have 1.6TB of drive space. I've wanted a projector for 10 years now... and the computer is replacing an Athlon 700 from 1999.

Hmmm so basically being in Scarborough in a condo (upper 20+ floors) with windows facing north, and balcony east, there isn't much to get, even with a (http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2430413&CatId=1782) sitting on the balcony? Or have I oversimplified things? :)

This would be out of the question since i don't have line of sight to anything remotely southwest (http://www.amazon.com/Terk-Technology-HDTVi-Indoor-Antenna/dp/B0001FV36E)

More searching... sounds intriguing, but I don't necessarily want to have to find the sweetspot on top of the kitchen counter or something :)

:SuperCM, how long is the coax cable connecting the antenna? If you can put a nice long one (~25 feet) you can take your antenna for a walk around your flat until you find a "sweet spot" in which your reception is at its best. This can take only an hour or two. Some people keep a tall bar stool around for putting the antenna on.

The 2 antennae sticking out from the sides are VHF aerials, so if you are watching a VHF station you must fold them out completely horizontally and then either extend or push in the aerials until you get the best picture. The UHF portion is the big triangle part and it is very directional, so when you are watching a UHF station you have to point the triangle in the direction from which the station is broadcasting.

Some of the GTA folks can probably even tell you which exact directions to use for each station based on where you are, and you might find that info already in posts in the 2 GTA threads.

No go, as there are no taller buildings for dozens of blocks to the north BUT maybe I can reflect off the building a few clicks to the east... hmmm

If you are blocked by much taller building you might have a problem. If they are taller buildings to your north you might be able to use a outdoor antenna and point it north to get the reflected signals.

Perhaps a gamble on the Philips PHDTV3 Silver Sensor... at least I can return it... (http://accessories.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?c=ca&l=en&cs=CADHS1&sku=A0616974)

The search continues...

I got WNYO 49-1 MNT & blank screen on 49-2 last night for the first time since they did the soap opera test. It didn't seem as strong. It would occasionally lockup or breakup. Maybe it'll be better if the rain ever clears up?

...there isn't much to get, even with a (http://www.tigerdirect.ca/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=2430413&CatId=1782) sitting on the balcony?A Channel Master 4228 or 4221 should be your first choice for such an antenna if you were facing in a direction that allows reception.

A Channel Master 4228 or 4221 should be your first choice for such an antenna if you were facing in a direction that allows reception.

Well I'm in the opposite corner. My only hope would be deflection from a eastward building. I fully understand the 4228 usage (done so much searching and reading today). Of course, I also found it difficult to get here (also per searches). I wouldn't mind paying a tiny premium for a clone. I just got a Terk HDTVi to play with. We'll see how that goes :)

Thanks for replying... there doesn't go a thread here without your valued input I see!

Got it! Using a Terk HDTVi coupled on a 25' line... pointed out the east window/balcony.

Receives:
WGRZ-HD
WGRZ-SD
CBLT-DT
CITY-HD
CKXT-DT

and almost all VHF channels are fuzzy. Not much lateral movement if I want to keep the digital channels so I'll try a preamp on those channels that ghost and not multipath.

Else, I see...
5, 11, 12, 18, 19, 22, 23, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 36, 41, 44, 47, 49, 51, 52, 54, 57, 69

With this discovery, I may unload/refund the cheap Terk and get a 'real' antenna like the Channel Master (or in a pinch... AntennasDirect Terrestrial or Lacrosse). One small problem... I'm not sure how to run the wire to the outside! Patio door somehow? Hmmm. Maybe I'll just lean it against the interior glass?

Good price for a Winegard SS-3000 SharpShooter. Ordered it for $78 CAD (plus shipping). I'll give this a try before going postal with the Channel Master. Damn this is addicting.

I'm having trouble with city tv-dt.
My internal atsc tuner locks on and remaps it to 57-1, and I get 85-95% signal. No picture! never a picture, nothing but black screen. Are they actually broadcasting?

I get great signal lock on all the other local DT stations, all of the Buffalo stations including 49-1. I even get decent levels from Rochester 35%.

I'm in Ajax, close to the lake. I have a DB8, Delhi amp, CM rotator, connected to a Panasonic Viera 37" Plasma with internal tuner.
The internal Tuner is great, it gives a solid lock and picture at anything over 25-27%, so at 85%...

G.

It's not the station. I'm in Whitby and watch CityHD just about every day.