Antique, Used, and/or Mystery Antennas! - Page 7 - Canadian TV, Computing and Home Theatre Forums

stampeder · 2009-07-21, 09:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DarkNovaNick

it looks like these VHF/UHF antennas I have actually are quite good

Nope, you cannot make that kind of assumption. His testing is based on very accurate modeling and physical data. Your VHF-HI antenna is fairly predictable, but that UHF model is a bit of a mystery in that while it may have the gain figure Xauto guessed, it may or may not have it across the UHF band. In those graphs you can see some antennas have consistently high gain across the UHF band while others have peaks and valleys.

You need to test for yourself to see if/how you get your desired stations.

Xauto · 2009-07-22, 08:09 AM

I agree with stampeder. They are a wild guess. If they do not work out for you. You will need an antenna for deep fringe.

jeremfg · 2009-07-24, 07:20 PM

Maybe you could tell me wich antenna I have, since I have no idea...

Here are some pictures of it:

http://img43.imageshack.us/my.php?image=antenna1v.jpg
http://img43.imageshack.us/my.php?image=antenna2.jpg
http://img43.imageshack.us/my.php?image=antenna3.jpg

Edit :

It was bought in a small specialized store in Quebec a little over 15 years ago if I'm not mistaken.

And since the rotor that we always have been using is for the channel master brand, I'd place my suspiscion on this manufacturer. Chances are that this small store sells parts of the same brand!

Legacy2009 · 2009-07-28, 12:30 AM

In my neighbourhood I have seen quite a few squarish antennas on roofs. It's hard to tell the size, but I would guess they are at least 12"x12" square (or maybe sligthly rectangular), semi transparent (some kind of mesh material I think) and they seem to be curved (can't tell if it's parabolic but the curvature is noticeable especially at the corners).

There was also another one, even smaller, but this was diamond shaped (ie the points of the square were pointed up/down, left/right), made of a white opaque material.

All of these were on roof mounted tripods. They are not in the bowtie, yagi, or Gray-Hoverman families. In my area, CN tower is due south, Buffalo is south/southeast. These antennas were all pointed in a southerly direction.

Has anyone else seen these? Any idea what they are?

If the weather's ok I'll try and head out to snap a few pics, that should make it easier to visualize.

stampeder · 2009-07-28, 02:33 AM

Legacy2009 without photos I can only guess, but I'll bet you're seeing old Look TV antennas: http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=50206

They operated on a much different frequency band than OTA. Photos will help us determine if that's what you're seeing.

Legacy2009 · 2009-07-28, 08:16 AM

Thanks stampeder

The curved Look antennas are definitely what I saw, at least that's one of the two types. I see that they operate at over 2 GHz, kind of like satellite. I guess that explains their small size and curvature.

I will try to get a photo of the other type soon.

stampeder · 2009-07-29, 10:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jeremfg

Maybe you could tell me wich antenna I have, since I have no idea...

Sorry I took so long to respond - I am happy to tell you that it is a Delhi VU-935 or 936 combo VHF/FM/UHF antenna, but without the VU-8PZ UHF booster kit.

Are you using it every day, and are you happy with it?

Legacy2009 · 2009-07-29, 11:14 PM

This is probably the Look antenna, as stampeder pointed out. Probably at least a dozen nearby, usually clusters of 2 or 3. Word must have spread from neighbour to neighbour. Reading from the Look TV website, it seems priced similarly to basic cable, but they indicate a low resolution, less than DVD. Can't imagine why someone would pay for that, although it seemed there were more channels than basic cable. The website might be out of date too. Anyway, the houses in my area are fairly new, these antennas can't be that old.

The other is the diamond shaped one. I apologize for the poor pic quality. I was far away and at maximum zoom. I didn't want to be seen taking photos too close as my presence would have looked suspicious. This is essentially the back of the antenna. Kind of like a diamond shaped traffic sign, except it has some thickness. (probably something inside a plastic housing)

markdd · 2009-07-29, 11:51 PM

The bottom diamond shaped antenna is a WiFi or WiBro (proprietary version of WiMAX), or it could be fixed WiMAX too (802.16d) antenna for high speed Internet access. You Ottawa based guys can see lots of WiMAX antennas for the Base Station Equipment on top of some of the Nortel buildings on Carling Ave, (long rectangular, white color). A few years ago you may have even seen me along Moodie Dr. with an outdoor style WiMAX antenna on a tripod doing range & signal strength measurements.

Legacy2009 · 2009-07-30, 12:18 PM

Thanks markdd, I had a feeling that these things were kind of small for TV reception. Oddly enough, I had never heard of wireless internet as a service in this area. I looked up the WiBro Canada website and it says Copyright 2005, there's no info on service plans etc. I guess the guy who has this antenna is with someone else. I am in the GTA north of Toronto.

RustyHD · 2009-07-30, 12:37 PM

Both antennas are Look TV. The diamond antenna is used when signal is stronger.

Sponge1971 · 2009-08-22, 12:16 PM

Hi eh,

Trying to determine wether this monstrosity will provide good quality DigitalOTA.
It's erected in Welland, Ontario.

My father-in-law has this setup:
His best guess is it's about 30 years old.

He thinks the two bottom antennas are for FM?
Can anybody expand on this?

Is this an UHF loop?

Any idea what type of rotor this is?
It still turns

UPDATE! just looked at the control box. It's a 'Superior Antenna Rotator', by Superior Electronics out of Montreal. The model number is not obvious, but it does say the warranty expires in "APR 1974". There is also a sticker "Installed by Welland Tower and Antenna Service"

The plan is to capture DigitalOTA and feed it into a Toshiba DVD-Recorder D-R6, which is S-video connected to a Sony FD Trinitron Wega KV-32FS100 oldschool 4:3 TV.
Apparently the DVR has ATSC capability and The Net seems to indicate using a DVR is a workable instead of getting a converter box to feed 4:3 TVs.
Any Comments on that?

I'm trying to help him out 'on the cheep'. I gave him the DVR. But, if we can keep the old gear and make it work, that'll help his pension.
Although, I have kinda convinced him that we absolutley must replace the cable with new RG-6. (unless Yous suggest something different).

I tinkered with the DVR tuner vs just the TV tuner and there doesn't seem to be a difference. with the antenna pointed N.NE-ish (Toronto-ish) he's getting channels: 5, 9, 11veryfuzy, 19fuzy, 25, 41fuzy, 47fuzy, 55fuzy. The thing is that, there's no 'extra' channles coming in when the DVR ATSC is being used, which makes me think this antenna is just for hi/lo VHF, and it's not feeding anything only the DVR can decode.
-so-
I'm thinking we need to rip all three of those antennas off and get a 'modern' VHF/UHF (long wide tail with the UHF scoop at the front, 10-15' long 1980's type antenna) mounted onto that pole. New Coax, keep the dino-rotator (for now) and go with the DVR-TV hookup.
-or-
keep the VHF unit and bolt on an UHF unit (but which is most cost effective and more astetic?)
Comments?

Secondly, I was thinking (last night when it was still dark...assuming his antenna was the 'modern style') we had to get the fancy new flat square HD antennas. My Antenna shop, in Oshawa, has the CM 4885hd (or whatever) 8bay square unit (you know what it is)...and they say it's the be-all-end-all.
Any comments on that? Go square or go traditional -or- keep the old junk?

Thanks for your guidance and direction!

Regards,
Eric

stampeder · 2009-08-22, 11:48 PM

Sponge1971, those are all VHF/FM antennas, so none of the UHF stations will come in. The top one looks like a Radio Shack model.

He could replace the top one with something like a Winegard HD7698P, which is designed for channels 7 through 69, and then just scrap or sell the other antennas and the cross boom supporting them.

In your photo what is the direction each of the three antennas is pointing?

300ohm · 2009-08-23, 12:00 AM

Quote:

Apparently the DVR has ATSC capability and The Net seems to indicate using a DVR is a workable instead of getting a converter box to feed 4:3 TVs.
Any Comments on that?

Nope, the specs on it are "181 Channel NTSC Tuner", no ATSC. http://www.toshiba.ca/web/pdf/2007/DAV/DR6.pdf
You would still need a converter box.

Xauto · 2009-08-23, 10:28 AM

Sponge1971: That rectangle under the dipole is an impedance matching section.

2009-07-24, 07:20 PM	#93
jeremfg Rookie Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Saint-Alphonse de Granby, Québec, Canada Posts: 5	Which VHF/UHF Combo is this? Maybe you could tell me wich antenna I have, since I have no idea... Here are some pictures of it: http://img43.imageshack.us/my.php?image=antenna1v.jpg http://img43.imageshack.us/my.php?image=antenna2.jpg http://img43.imageshack.us/my.php?image=antenna3.jpg Edit : It was bought in a small specialized store in Quebec a little over 15 years ago if I'm not mistaken. And since the rotor that we always have been using is for the channel master brand, I'd place my suspiscion on this manufacturer. Chances are that this small store sells parts of the same brand! Last edited by jeremfg; 2009-07-24 at 09:48 PM. Reason: More information

2009-07-28, 12:30 AM	#94
Legacy2009 Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 66	Small squarish antennas In my neighbourhood I have seen quite a few squarish antennas on roofs. It's hard to tell the size, but I would guess they are at least 12"x12" square (or maybe sligthly rectangular), semi transparent (some kind of mesh material I think) and they seem to be curved (can't tell if it's parabolic but the curvature is noticeable especially at the corners). There was also another one, even smaller, but this was diamond shaped (ie the points of the square were pointed up/down, left/right), made of a white opaque material. All of these were on roof mounted tripods. They are not in the bowtie, yagi, or Gray-Hoverman families. In my area, CN tower is due south, Buffalo is south/southeast. These antennas were all pointed in a southerly direction. Has anyone else seen these? Any idea what they are? If the weather's ok I'll try and head out to snap a few pics, that should make it easier to visualize.

2009-07-29, 11:14 PM	#98
Legacy2009 Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 66	Here are the photos of the antennas I've seen around my area This is probably the Look antenna, as stampeder pointed out. Probably at least a dozen nearby, usually clusters of 2 or 3. Word must have spread from neighbour to neighbour. Reading from the Look TV website, it seems priced similarly to basic cable, but they indicate a low resolution, less than DVD. Can't imagine why someone would pay for that, although it seemed there were more channels than basic cable. The website might be out of date too. Anyway, the houses in my area are fairly new, these antennas can't be that old. The other is the diamond shaped one. I apologize for the poor pic quality. I was far away and at maximum zoom. I didn't want to be seen taking photos too close as my presence would have looked suspicious. This is essentially the back of the antenna. Kind of like a diamond shaped traffic sign, except it has some thickness. (probably something inside a plastic housing)

2009-08-22, 12:16 PM	#102
Sponge1971 Rookie Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Bowmanville, Ontario Posts: 10	30yr old antenna? Will it do DigitalOTA? Hi eh, Trying to determine wether this monstrosity will provide good quality DigitalOTA. It's erected in Welland, Ontario. My father-in-law has this setup: His best guess is it's about 30 years old. He thinks the two bottom antennas are for FM? Can anybody expand on this? Is this an UHF loop? Any idea what type of rotor this is? It still turns UPDATE! just looked at the control box. It's a 'Superior Antenna Rotator', by Superior Electronics out of Montreal. The model number is not obvious, but it does say the warranty expires in "APR 1974". There is also a sticker "Installed by Welland Tower and Antenna Service" The plan is to capture DigitalOTA and feed it into a Toshiba DVD-Recorder D-R6, which is S-video connected to a Sony FD Trinitron Wega KV-32FS100 oldschool 4:3 TV. Apparently the DVR has ATSC capability and The Net seems to indicate using a DVR is a workable instead of getting a converter box to feed 4:3 TVs. Any Comments on that? I'm trying to help him out 'on the cheep'. I gave him the DVR. But, if we can keep the old gear and make it work, that'll help his pension. Although, I have kinda convinced him that we absolutley must replace the cable with new RG-6. (unless Yous suggest something different). I tinkered with the DVR tuner vs just the TV tuner and there doesn't seem to be a difference. with the antenna pointed N.NE-ish (Toronto-ish) he's getting channels: 5, 9, 11veryfuzy, 19fuzy, 25, 41fuzy, 47fuzy, 55fuzy. The thing is that, there's no 'extra' channles coming in when the DVR ATSC is being used, which makes me think this antenna is just for hi/lo VHF, and it's not feeding anything only the DVR can decode. -so- I'm thinking we need to rip all three of those antennas off and get a 'modern' VHF/UHF (long wide tail with the UHF scoop at the front, 10-15' long 1980's type antenna) mounted onto that pole. New Coax, keep the dino-rotator (for now) and go with the DVR-TV hookup. -or- keep the VHF unit and bolt on an UHF unit (but which is most cost effective and more astetic?) Comments? Secondly, I was thinking (last night when it was still dark...assuming his antenna was the 'modern style') we had to get the fancy new flat square HD antennas. My Antenna shop, in Oshawa, has the CM 4885hd (or whatever) 8bay square unit (you know what it is)...and they say it's the be-all-end-all. Any comments on that? Go square or go traditional -or- keep the old junk? Thanks for your guidance and direction! Regards, Eric

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2009-07-22, 08:09 AM	#92
Xauto Join Date: Sep 2008 Posts: 487	I agree with stampeder. They are a wild guess. If they do not work out for you. You will need an antenna for deep fringe.

2009-07-28, 02:33 AM	#95
stampeder OTA Forum Moderator Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: North Delta, BC (96Av x 116St) Posts: 23,338	Legacy2009 without photos I can only guess, but I'll bet you're seeing old Look TV antennas: http://www.digitalhome.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=50206 They operated on a much different frequency band than OTA. Photos will help us determine if that's what you're seeing.

2009-07-28, 08:16 AM	#96
Legacy2009 Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 66	Thanks stampeder The curved Look antennas are definitely what I saw, at least that's one of the two types. I see that they operate at over 2 GHz, kind of like satellite. I guess that explains their small size and curvature. I will try to get a photo of the other type soon.

2009-07-29, 11:51 PM	#99
markdd Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Apex, NC Posts: 42	The bottom diamond shaped antenna is a WiFi or WiBro (proprietary version of WiMAX), or it could be fixed WiMAX too (802.16d) antenna for high speed Internet access. You Ottawa based guys can see lots of WiMAX antennas for the Base Station Equipment on top of some of the Nortel buildings on Carling Ave, (long rectangular, white color). A few years ago you may have even seen me along Moodie Dr. with an outdoor style WiMAX antenna on a tripod doing range & signal strength measurements.

2009-07-30, 12:18 PM	#100
Legacy2009 Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 66	Thanks markdd, I had a feeling that these things were kind of small for TV reception. Oddly enough, I had never heard of wireless internet as a service in this area. I looked up the WiBro Canada website and it says Copyright 2005, there's no info on service plans etc. I guess the guy who has this antenna is with someone else. I am in the GTA north of Toronto.

2009-07-30, 12:37 PM	#101
RustyHD Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Mississauga, Ontario Posts: 170	Both antennas are Look TV. The diamond antenna is used when signal is stronger.

2009-08-22, 11:48 PM	#103
stampeder OTA Forum Moderator Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: North Delta, BC (96Av x 116St) Posts: 23,338	Sponge1971, those are all VHF/FM antennas, so none of the UHF stations will come in. The top one looks like a Radio Shack model. He could replace the top one with something like a Winegard HD7698P, which is designed for channels 7 through 69, and then just scrap or sell the other antennas and the cross boom supporting them. In your photo what is the direction each of the three antennas is pointing?

2009-08-23, 10:28 AM	#105
Xauto Join Date: Sep 2008 Posts: 487	Sponge1971: That rectangle under the dipole is an impedance matching section.