hmmm.. tough item to find.

there's one on ebay (in Vaughan)

Thanks, I'm already watching that one. Maybe I'll luck out and find one that already has the "broomstick mod". :D

Ask the guys to sell you one with buy it now ... he offer me a $20US for one shipped to montreal (+taxes) so it's a fair price and you don't have to wait.

Thanks, I'm already watching that one. Maybe I'll luck out and find one that already has the "broomstick mod". :D

I saw the terk HDTVi for $30 at Sayal Electronics Vic park and Gordon Baker.

www.sayal.com

Sayal's website database says they have 193 in stock for online orders.

I picked up a Terk HDTVi at Sayal today - they have quite a few in stock. Will try it out tonight.

Correct me if I'm wrong...is it not the middle "fin" part that picks up UHF (higher frequency)? And the antennae to pick up UHF (1-13). But HDT is onyl sent in the UHF range, so antennas don't need to be extraced?

And is this thing supposed to be point right at my signal source (CN Tower)?

Yes, the delta-shaped fins are a log periodic UHF array that you point directly at the station. The extendable rabbit ears are for VHF and should go horizontally outwards from the antenna, not upwards or on an angle like in this photo, and again the delta-shaped array is pointed at the station so that the VHF signal is arriving at the rabbit ears equally. Also when you are watching a VHF channel you should try to lengthen/shorten the 2 rabbit ears equally to see if reception gets better.

http://akamaipix.crutchfield.com/products/2004/209/l209hdtvi-f_DG.jpeg

Thanks stampeder.

Happy to help - let us know how it works out. :)

But HDT is onyl sent in the UHF range, so antennas don't need to be extraced?

It is true that most if not all DTV transmitters are currently in UHF, but after the analog shutdown (2009 in the US), many stations will be be moving their DTV signals to their VHF channels.

Also when you are watching a VHF channel you should try to lengthen/shorten the 2 rabbit ears equally to see if reception gets better.

The sites HDTV Primer (http://www.hdtvprimer.com/ANTENNAS/RabbitEars.html#Getting) and KYTS (http://www.kyes.com/antenna/rabbitear.html) suggest the length you should use for each VHF station. They each suggest different lengths, so you will have to use trial and error to find the best lengths, but they should give you a good indication.

From my reception woes with the Terk, I can only assume that the way it's aimed is fairly important...whereas my $4 antenna is more omnidirectional and easier to set up.

I really haven't had much luck with the Terk, but it could be because I just haveb't foud the sweet spot yet. I have nothing close to line of sight to the Tower, so I have no idea just which way the best signal is bouncing to get to me.

Does this idea hold water? Shouldn't I undoubtedly be getting a better signal with a $35 Terk than with a generic $4 cheapie?

Well, there's always an exception to the rules, and in this case you found one! :)

Your Terk ZSS Clone is much, much more directional than the generic cheapie you've got. That is the issue. The cheap antenna is picking up ambient signals that are multipathing through your residence. Usually that is what you don't want to happen, because you only want the good, strong, unbounced signals.

So, in your particular case the lousy antenna is able to get at least something while the good antenna is waiting to be pointed around to find the sweet spot. You've ended up with better-than-nothing reception but I encourage you to keep looking for the ZSS's sweet spot. If at long last you have tried and cannot find a sweet spot, you are out of luck for an indoor OTA antenna unless you are satisfied with the cheapie one's performance.

From my reception woes with the Terk, I can only assume that the way it's aimed is fairly important...whereas my $4 antenna is more omnidirectional and easier to set up.

I really haven't had much luck with the Terk, but it could be because I just haveb't foud the sweet spot yet. I have nothing close to line of sight to the Tower, so I have no idea just which way the best signal is bouncing to get to me.

Does this idea hold water? Shouldn't I undoubtedly be getting a better signal with a $35 Terk than with a generic $4 cheapie?

Does your $4 cheapie have rabbit ears for VHF reception? It is also possible that signal combiner in the Terk is attenuating the UHF reception.

Yes, it has rabbit ears. I'm now at King/Dufferin and the $4 jobbie gets me ~6-7 HD channels. The Terk gets me one or two.

The Terk's rabbit ears seem to be completely useless as I have yet to pick up a single VHF station with it. I'd expect the UHF antenna to do a better job than the small coat hanger-looking part of the $4 antenna...but it doesn't.

So...completely different location and similar results: Terk seems to be a large paper weight. I'm just two miles from the CN Tower, am *nearly* line of sight and was expecting to get much better repeption than this. Maybe I'll just have to take the plunge and go with a stealthy outdoor amplified antenna. :confused:

Or for all I know, maybe I need to use an attenuator due to my signals being *too* strong. :confused: :confused: That might explain why a cheaper/probably weaker antenna could pick up more stations. Ugh....it's all a crap shoot.

Bought Philips Silver Sensor on EBay. Can pickup 3 HD channels in Maple - CBC, CTV and CityTV, 83% signal strenth by antenna sitting on the shelf. I am happy with my CAD11 investment. :p

Well im new too the whole HDTV Tuners scene, Im planing to purchase a HDTV Tuner for My HTPC, but what i would like to know is what kind of Recepition quality will i get by useing the ATI HDTV Wonder Indoor Antenna
http://www.thg.ru/video/20040919/images/antenna.jpg

Im living in the Toronto/Central GTA region (Mississauga) North off Winston Churchill and Eglinton.

If the reception quality isnt all that good are there any other indoor or outdoor antenna anyone can recommend. Can you also tell me where i can purchase them and how much thy will approx. cost.

Im living in a house the only reason im going for an indoor antenna is to avoid a hassel to setting it up on the roof, but if nothing can be done then thats what i'll have too do. Just too let you know my room has a window facing east and one facing north (2nd floor). South of my house has nothing its empty land for over 600m +. Also my house is slightly raised above the ground. so basically my room is around 8-10m above the ground.

South of my house has nothing its empty land for over 600m +. Also my house is slightly raised above the ground. so basically my room is around 8-10m above the ground.

Put a small antenna OUTSIDE (cm 4221) and you will get everything.

lynx, that ATI model is a Zenith Silver Sensor clone, so everything you need to know about it is in this thread. There are 2 threads in the Reception Results sub-forum dealing with Toronto, depending on whether you want to use an Indoor or Outdoor antenna. Also click on the links in this post if you haven't seen them already:

But, the most important thing I discovered was the quality of the tuner, not so much the antenna.

It is true that a tuner with the latest and greatest chipset can make a huge difference when it comes to reception. Your choice of antenna should be based on your location. Small indoor antennas (such as the Silver Sensor) are fine when you are close to the broadcast tower (how close depends on how powerful the transmitter is) and there aren't any significant obstructions. Moving the antenna outside will reduce the number of obstructions and a larger antenna is required to pull in stations that are further away or otherwise weaker.

Hi I've been reading the forums for 2 days, and I'm totally impressed with the dedication and friendlyness of this forum

Total Props!!

I've been searching the forums but have not found a result yet - Does anyone know where to buy a ZSS (or clone) in Vancouver,,

I have a condo facing the mountains (Broadway and Spruce) and I'm anxious to post some results!!

Thanks in advance

- Cheers
~Kevin