Indoor antenna + non-cable DVR recs

[LTCProductions]

Hi folks, I'm looking into getting an indoor TV antenna and a non-cable DVR to enjoy the classic diginets. Anyone have any recommendations?

[TSMIV]

I hope you are close to the transmitters.

[GentlemanJim]

Originally Posted by LTCProductions

Anyone have any recommendations?

Where I live I am within 2 miles of our broadcaster's zone, with direct line of sight to their antennas. So, the $35 "FREE HDTV" indoor antenna sold most places works fine for me. I did get the antenna that has an AC powered "booster" inline between the antenna proper and the antenna input on the TV.

But, if you are not within a mile or two of your community's nest of broadcasters, I strongly encourage you to splurge a little, and buy the Antenna designed for outdoor installation. Even if you just end up installing the outdoor antenna inside your attic, it will give you much better reception than the cheapies.

Many of the diginets are classified as "Low Power" stations, and can be challenging to pull in at a cross-town distance

The Bible for low power reception is rabbitears.info
Giving you more information about your local stations than you care to know. Use the Signal Search Map menu, set the target for your local area, and then click on "go" under the map, and you should get a list of all channels available to you.

Compare by clicking on the stations call letters, AND THEN select "Techical Data", for specifics on each station. Compare the Effective Radiated Power (ERP) for the stations to see how many watts they are pushing ...figure should be in KW, (KiloWatts)

Compare the broadcast wattage for one of your major network affiliates, to the power these diginets stations are using, and you'll see why they are so much harder to tune into

The local CBS affiliate where I live is broadcasting at 250,000 watts (250 kw), for example, compared to my local diginet channel for Comet TV which is broadcasting at only 3,000 watts (3kw)

Hope this info was useful

[Coffeecup]

I can't give you much help. We had antennas 40+ years ago when we could use nothing else. Cable came on and I am hooked. I would like a dvr where I wouldn't have to pay cable but I don't spend much on life and I do love my tv.