Mohu Leaf Omni-directional OTA Antenna - Page 4 - Canadian TV, Computing and Home Theatre Forums

antennanovice · 2012-07-08, 09:14 AM

I got the Mohu Plus I ordered yesterday.

The order was placed online at their site monday July 2, and it arrived friday July 7, so that is 5 days for the free shipping that they stat is 5-8 days.

"Free Shipping - 5-8 Business Days"

It arrived in my mailbox in what looked like a personal pan pizza box.
I wonder if it comes in a pepperoni version,

?

I put it in my room upstairs to test it first. I had originally been able to just barely get channel 43.2 from here with the dipole antenna, and not quite get it with the bow tie I have in Mom's room (so it should definitely work there).

After moving it around a bit (back and forth by +/-6" sliding on a set of pushpins, I was able to get a solid 64% signal on 43.2. I didn't try too many places on the wall, or adjust it vertically, so either it got very lucky with the placement, or this is not the optimal location yet.

Anyway, I didn't want it permanently attached here as it is for Mom's room, and I don't want to get too attached to it.

I compared it to the signal that I got with the ClearStream II antenna that I had setup in my room as an option for receiving that channel when mom comes home from the nursing home.

The ClearStream II was giving me a solid 57% signal on 43.2. It was in a better location. It is in the back of the closet in my room, next to the outside wall, pointing toward the station. That antenna is larger and has a reflector, but no amplifier. It also has a longer cable (about 5 times longer) to reach to the closet, so there will be some loss in the cable.

I think if the cable lengths were equal, the ClearStream II would just barely be higher than the Mohu Plus. Perhaps with tweaking, I could get the ClearStream II to be higher, as it is more directional, but the best location for it is too far from the TV to see the strength meter while I adjust it.

The Mohu Plus came with a 6' cable with an inline amplifier block near the end that plugs into the TV. That has a USB mini jack on it for power. A standard cable (USB mini to standard size USB) came with it. One side plugs into the TV's USB port (near where the coax screws in). The other side (mini) plugs into the inline amplifier block.

It also came with a USB power adapter for the wall, that can be used if the TV does not have a USB port handy. I suppose it can also be used if an extension cable is added to the setup to allow it to be further from the TV.

One note on the design, If they had put connectors between the power block for the amplifier and the actual antenna cable, it could still be powered by the TV and a longer cable could be inserted in between. I can see this being an issue If I wanted to put a long extension on the antenna, as there must be an outlet within 6-8 feet of the mounting location.

Overall, this seems to be a very good amplified antenna. It is NOT omni-directional, but it has enough lobes to let you move it around a bit and put the station you have the most problems with into one of them. The wall I have it on places the station about 80 degrees off normal to the plane of the antenna. The other stations in the area are about 80 degrees off normal to the other side of the antenna, but they are much stronger, so a propperly bent paper clip jammed into the TV's cable inlet would pick them up.

In this location, I get 22.1 (RF channel 13, 210-216 MHz) at 93%, so the antenna will work with VHF high. channel 28.1 (RF channel 11, 198-204 MHz) only gets up to 36% but intermittent burst signals, not good enough to watch. I might be able to pull this one in better if I re-oriented the antenna, but It is not worth the effort here, since I get the same network content on a UHF channel that comes in solid at over 90%.

With the Mohu Plus:
[RF 7] 7.0 (analog, snowy, but clear sound)
[RF 50] 16.[1,2] 65% solid
[RF 13] 22.1 91% solid
[RF 11] 28.1 33-40% varying with occasional dropouts and pixelation
[RF 43] 43.[1,2,3,4] 63% solid
[RF 41] 44.[1,2,3] 92% solid
[RF 45] 56.[1,2,3] 97% solid

With the ClearStream II (pointed at 43 through a wall on third floor of my house):
[RF 50] 16.[1,2] 61% solid
[RF 13] 22.1 91-93% solid
[RF 43] 43.[1,2,3,4] 56% solid
[RF 41] 44.[1,2,3] 95% solid
[RF 45] 56.[1,2,3] 95% solid
Note: 16 is on the backside through the reflector on the ClearStream II.

reworked ClearStream II data (reflector removed, cable now same length as Mohu, in about the same location and orientation that the Mohu was):
[RF 50] 16.[1,2] 40% solid
[RF 13] 22.1 88% solid
[RF 11] 28.1 89% varying with occasional dropouts and pixelaion
[RF 43] 43.[1,2,3,4] 59% solid
[RF 41] 44.[1,2,3] 88% solid
[RF 45] 56.[1,2,3] 97% solid
Note: If I play with the angle to the wall a little, I can give up a bit on 43 to make up some signal on 16, but even without the reflector, the ClearStream II is too directional to get good signal on both like the Mohu Plus does, and that is without trying to change its angle to the wall, it just lays flat on the wall.

Here is the TV fool report for the house:

http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...4bba115789b187

Note that we are on the side of a hill, and while 16 is line of site out the side windows, 43 is up and across the hill, 31, 32, 24 are apparently unreachable without a tall tower as they are through the hill. Mom's location is on top of a hill, so she will most likely do better than I do here. I will post results from there once I get the antenna installed in her room.

Overall, with or without the reflector, the ClearStream II, it does worse than the Mohu Plus, and cost me more. Although the ClearStream II was fairly close without the reflector. The one bonus of the ClearStream II was better reception on 28, but only if the reflector is removed. I expect that I could do better on 28 with a little tilting or sliding of the Mohu Plus. It is most likely in one of the nulls between lobes now, or in the big nulls off the edges.

And that concludes today's antenna comparison from my house. Next up... comparison of the Rad Shack bow tie performance vs the Mohu Plus.

antennanovice · 2012-07-11, 06:23 AM

Disappointing results at the nursing home.

First, no numeric display of signal strength to give a good comparison.

Second, the mohu plus actually did not appear to do as well as the Radio Shack single bowtie at picking up 43.

It was hard to tell since signal strength was varying over time, but I asked Mom the next day and she said the signal cut out more often after I put the leaf plus in.

I will have to take the bowtie back and swap them next time.

I tried various spots on the wall, but could not find a better one than just below where the bowtie had been.

I even tried a different wall (90 degree rotation), and got no better reception.

ota_canuck · 2012-07-11, 09:37 AM

Just a thought: The nursing home may have various forms of monitoring equipment that could cause interferences.

BOUVAL · 2012-07-11, 12:18 PM

Antennanovice,

The best spot for an indoor antenna is 2 feet under the ceiling and 2 feet from the wall. Facing a window if possible.
.

antennanovice · 2012-07-11, 10:27 PM

yes, they very well could have monitoring equipment that interferes with reception, but it should also affect the bowtie.

The current position is about 1.5 feet down from ceiling, and 2 ft from wall, facing 90 degrees from all windows.

I tried the wall facing the window, but reception was worse.

I could try a longer cable to let me get near the window (wrong side of the building), but would need an outlet to power the amp near the window, and I don't see one.

rays · 2012-09-06, 02:31 PM

Installed the Mohu Leaf Plus yesterday and did a scan using EyeTV. Its mounted on the SE wall, about 2' from the ceiling and 6" from the wall. I was using a knock-off silver sensor before:

2-1: 83%
2-2: 81%
4-1: 70% (currently having dropout issues)
5-1: 90%
9-1: 85%
10-1: 67% (currently having dropout issues)
11-1: 68% (currently having dropout issues)
17-1: 84%
17-2: 85%
17-3: 85%
19-1: 86%
23-1: 87%
25-1: 90%
36-1: 81%
40-1: 84%
41-1: 87%
41-2: 88%
47-1: 83%
57-1: 85%

Stations I currently have signal issues with were fine last night when I first scanned. I was sad to see I didn't pick up FOX, but was happy I got NBC... I didn't get either with the SS.

All in all I'm happy with the switch, I get about 5 more stations, and get them with more reliability and repointing.

Update: Here is the TV Fool data for my location: http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...e77906caad9f3e

2012-07-08, 09:14 AM	#46
antennanovice Rookie Join Date: Jul 2012 Posts: 7	I got the mohu plus I got the Mohu Plus I ordered yesterday. The order was placed online at their site monday July 2, and it arrived friday July 7, so that is 5 days for the free shipping that they stat is 5-8 days. "Free Shipping - 5-8 Business Days" It arrived in my mailbox in what looked like a personal pan pizza box. I wonder if it comes in a pepperoni version, ? I put it in my room upstairs to test it first. I had originally been able to just barely get channel 43.2 from here with the dipole antenna, and not quite get it with the bow tie I have in Mom's room (so it should definitely work there). After moving it around a bit (back and forth by +/-6" sliding on a set of pushpins, I was able to get a solid 64% signal on 43.2. I didn't try too many places on the wall, or adjust it vertically, so either it got very lucky with the placement, or this is not the optimal location yet. Anyway, I didn't want it permanently attached here as it is for Mom's room, and I don't want to get too attached to it. I compared it to the signal that I got with the ClearStream II antenna that I had setup in my room as an option for receiving that channel when mom comes home from the nursing home. The ClearStream II was giving me a solid 57% signal on 43.2. It was in a better location. It is in the back of the closet in my room, next to the outside wall, pointing toward the station. That antenna is larger and has a reflector, but no amplifier. It also has a longer cable (about 5 times longer) to reach to the closet, so there will be some loss in the cable. I think if the cable lengths were equal, the ClearStream II would just barely be higher than the Mohu Plus. Perhaps with tweaking, I could get the ClearStream II to be higher, as it is more directional, but the best location for it is too far from the TV to see the strength meter while I adjust it. The Mohu Plus came with a 6' cable with an inline amplifier block near the end that plugs into the TV. That has a USB mini jack on it for power. A standard cable (USB mini to standard size USB) came with it. One side plugs into the TV's USB port (near where the coax screws in). The other side (mini) plugs into the inline amplifier block. It also came with a USB power adapter for the wall, that can be used if the TV does not have a USB port handy. I suppose it can also be used if an extension cable is added to the setup to allow it to be further from the TV. One note on the design, If they had put connectors between the power block for the amplifier and the actual antenna cable, it could still be powered by the TV and a longer cable could be inserted in between. I can see this being an issue If I wanted to put a long extension on the antenna, as there must be an outlet within 6-8 feet of the mounting location. Overall, this seems to be a very good amplified antenna. It is NOT omni-directional, but it has enough lobes to let you move it around a bit and put the station you have the most problems with into one of them. The wall I have it on places the station about 80 degrees off normal to the plane of the antenna. The other stations in the area are about 80 degrees off normal to the other side of the antenna, but they are much stronger, so a propperly bent paper clip jammed into the TV's cable inlet would pick them up. In this location, I get 22.1 (RF channel 13, 210-216 MHz) at 93%, so the antenna will work with VHF high. channel 28.1 (RF channel 11, 198-204 MHz) only gets up to 36% but intermittent burst signals, not good enough to watch. I might be able to pull this one in better if I re-oriented the antenna, but It is not worth the effort here, since I get the same network content on a UHF channel that comes in solid at over 90%. With the Mohu Plus: [RF 7] 7.0 (analog, snowy, but clear sound) [RF 50] 16.[1,2] 65% solid [RF 13] 22.1 91% solid [RF 11] 28.1 33-40% varying with occasional dropouts and pixelation [RF 43] 43.[1,2,3,4] 63% solid [RF 41] 44.[1,2,3] 92% solid [RF 45] 56.[1,2,3] 97% solid With the ClearStream II (pointed at 43 through a wall on third floor of my house): [RF 50] 16.[1,2] 61% solid [RF 13] 22.1 91-93% solid [RF 43] 43.[1,2,3,4] 56% solid [RF 41] 44.[1,2,3] 95% solid [RF 45] 56.[1,2,3] 95% solid Note: 16 is on the backside through the reflector on the ClearStream II. reworked ClearStream II data (reflector removed, cable now same length as Mohu, in about the same location and orientation that the Mohu was): [RF 50] 16.[1,2] 40% solid [RF 13] 22.1 88% solid [RF 11] 28.1 89% varying with occasional dropouts and pixelaion [RF 43] 43.[1,2,3,4] 59% solid [RF 41] 44.[1,2,3] 88% solid [RF 45] 56.[1,2,3] 97% solid Note: If I play with the angle to the wall a little, I can give up a bit on 43 to make up some signal on 16, but even without the reflector, the ClearStream II is too directional to get good signal on both like the Mohu Plus does, and that is without trying to change its angle to the wall, it just lays flat on the wall. Here is the TV fool report for the house: http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...4bba115789b187 Note that we are on the side of a hill, and while 16 is line of site out the side windows, 43 is up and across the hill, 31, 32, 24 are apparently unreachable without a tall tower as they are through the hill. Mom's location is on top of a hill, so she will most likely do better than I do here. I will post results from there once I get the antenna installed in her room. Overall, with or without the reflector, the ClearStream II, it does worse than the Mohu Plus, and cost me more. Although the ClearStream II was fairly close without the reflector. The one bonus of the ClearStream II was better reception on 28, but only if the reflector is removed. I expect that I could do better on 28 with a little tilting or sliding of the Mohu Plus. It is most likely in one of the nulls between lobes now, or in the big nulls off the edges. And that concludes today's antenna comparison from my house. Next up... comparison of the Rad Shack bow tie performance vs the Mohu Plus. Last edited by stampeder; 2012-07-08 at 01:10 PM. Reason: broken URL fixed

2012-07-11, 09:37 AM	#48
ota_canuck Veteran Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Dunnville, Ontario on the Grand River, North shore Lake Erie Posts: 2,405	Just a thought: The nursing home may have various forms of monitoring equipment that could cause interferences. __________________ 3D SSH III with ZZ4 refl. http://imageshack.us/user/jmsdigital

2012-07-11, 12:18 PM	#49
BOUVAL Join Date: May 2011 Location: Vimont, Laval, Qc. Posts: 607	Antennanovice, The best spot for an indoor antenna is 2 feet under the ceiling and 2 feet from the wall. Facing a window if possible. . __________________ Mes photos: http://s1140.photobucket.com/albums/n574/BOUVAL-OTA/

2012-09-06, 02:31 PM	#51
rays Rookie Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 3	Installed the Mohu Leaf Plus yesterday and did a scan using EyeTV. Its mounted on the SE wall, about 2' from the ceiling and 6" from the wall. I was using a knock-off silver sensor before: 2-1: 83% 2-2: 81% 4-1: 70% (currently having dropout issues) 5-1: 90% 9-1: 85% 10-1: 67% (currently having dropout issues) 11-1: 68% (currently having dropout issues) 17-1: 84% 17-2: 85% 17-3: 85% 19-1: 86% 23-1: 87% 25-1: 90% 36-1: 81% 40-1: 84% 41-1: 87% 41-2: 88% 47-1: 83% 57-1: 85% Stations I currently have signal issues with were fine last night when I first scanned. I was sad to see I didn't pick up FOX, but was happy I got NBC... I didn't get either with the SS. All in all I'm happy with the switch, I get about 5 more stations, and get them with more reliability and repointing. Update: Here is the TV Fool data for my location: http://www.tvfool.com/?option=com_wr...e77906caad9f3e Last edited by rays; 2012-09-06 at 02:42 PM. Reason: added TVFool url

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2012-07-11, 06:23 AM	#47
antennanovice Rookie Join Date: Jul 2012 Posts: 7	Disappointing results at the nursing home. First, no numeric display of signal strength to give a good comparison. Second, the mohu plus actually did not appear to do as well as the Radio Shack single bowtie at picking up 43. It was hard to tell since signal strength was varying over time, but I asked Mom the next day and she said the signal cut out more often after I put the leaf plus in. I will have to take the bowtie back and swap them next time. I tried various spots on the wall, but could not find a better one than just below where the bowtie had been. I even tried a different wall (90 degree rotation), and got no better reception.

2012-07-11, 10:27 PM	#50
antennanovice Rookie Join Date: Jul 2012 Posts: 7	yes, they very well could have monitoring equipment that interferes with reception, but it should also affect the bowtie. The current position is about 1.5 feet down from ceiling, and 2 ft from wall, facing 90 degrees from all windows. I tried the wall facing the window, but reception was worse. I could try a longer cable to let me get near the window (wrong side of the building), but would need an outlet to power the amp near the window, and I don't see one.