Terk HDtv Antenna Amplified
See it at Amazon.com for $69.99Average Customer Rating
(4.0 out of 5)
Amazon Customer Reviews
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(5 out of 5)Great HDTV antenna
I wasn't sure if I need a big antenna or not...the most distant station is 35 miles away...but one of the stations I wanted to receive shows in the Blue (on the antenna wheel) on [...]. The Terk HDTVo shows it can handle signals out to the Blue area...so I bought it. Took me all of 30 minutes to attach it to my Dish Satellite mast (mounted it just a bit lower than the actual dish on my roof) and run the RG6 to my old Cable TV hook up outside the house. I let my Dish 811 receiver do a channel scan and every local station that is available in my area was captured. I clicked to each station and all but one of them comes in at 89-92 on the scale of 100. I have one weak channel which hovers between 69 and 72...but the picture is perfect. I can now watch HD channels for free with this great little antenna. I had considered the Wingard Square shooter and the Sensor 2200...but neither of those claimed to get a signal from the mid/far range (blue on the little antenna wheel on the box). The Terk delivered on it's range..in fact..the station that is the weakest is actually closer than the channel that I was worried about (I think the issue may be one channel is using less broadcasting wattage and it may be a bit off axis from the dead-center of the antenna). The only caution I can give with this antenna is, it is very directional. That means...all your TV station transmitters have to be in a very narrow corridor for this antenna to grab them all. I'd guess if they were spread more than 20 degrees you may have trouble getting a strong signal on all the stations. I'm not done tinkering with the antenna yet. I may try and put a short extension on my dish mast and boost this antenna above the actual Dish to see if I can't increase the signal strength on the weakest channel.
Terk claims..the higher you go with this antenna..the better the signal.
(4 out of 5)HDTVO
Had my doubts on this antenna (due to it's size)as my home shows to to be 40 miles from the transmitter on www.antennaweb.org. I received this unit and mounted it on my existing dish network mast in about 15-20 min no problems. The antenna comes with it's own mast simuliar to that of a dish so I simply clamped it underneath my dish. This antenna is a directional antenna so using the coordinates of the transmitters provided on antennaweb.org I proceded to point the antenna to the proper direction using a compass I picked up at Wal-Mart. I used diplexors to combine the antenna and satellite signal into one cable that runs to my living room dishnetwork receiver. I was suprised to find that the antenna received great signal strength! I had a signal strength of high 80's on most channels with one channel at 72. Due to the fact that I used diplexors I also bought a Terk inline amplifer that doesn't plug into the wall to help boost signal strenth. The amp made no difference in signal strength so I would advise to invest in a powered amp if you need more signal. I am satisfied and happy with this antenna which again is mounted outsided on my dish mast which is on my roof (not in the attic), using diplexors (which actually inhibit signal strenth) and pointed to the exact coordinates which are found on antennaweb.org (transmitter distance 40 miles and all in the same direction). The dish is discreet on the roof so it keeps the neighbors and home owners association happy.
(1 out of 5)Didn't work for me
Let me start by noting that antennas are finnicky devices. What works in one location may not work at all in another location.
I am located in a Baltimore suburb 9.2 miles from most of my local broadcasters' transmitters, and most of these transmitters are within one mile of one another, except for the PBS station which is 180 degrees from the other antennas (behind me as opposed to in front of me) but only about 1 mile away. I have been using a Terk HDTVS which has been giving me adequate, though not perfect, results (still get some dropping out once in a while). I also have tried a Terk HDTVLP (Sharpshooter) indoor antenna which has given me surprising results: it has difficulty picking up the Baltimore broadcasts but easily picks up the Washington, DC, broadcasts some 50 miles away.
Unfortunately, this Terk HDTVO antenna has been the poorest performer of the bunch. I have been able to pick up a few of the Baltimore stations, but not the PBS station that is in the opposite direction but only a mile away, and none of the DC stations when pointed in that direction.
All of my DTV channels are broadcast UHF, so I expect my next attempt will be a classic bay antenna such as the Channel Master 4228. In fact, having experimented with several of these modern style Terk antennas, I'm not exactly satisfied with any of their results, and I'd recommend purchasing a classic wire antenna. Do a little research because one size does not fit all when it comes to antennas. There are alot of resources on the web, and here are a couple I recommend: http://www.hdtvprimer.com/ANTENNAS/types.html
http://www.antennaweb.org/
(4 out of 5)Terk HDtv Antenna Deliver's
This antenna was easy to set up. Had it up in about 20 minutes. I live about 50 miles from the tower antennas and the range on this antenna is excellent! HD channels come in very clear.
(5 out of 5)Most satisfied ......
This product performs as advertised.Very simple to install; put mine in the attic and patched the coax directly into an input jack of my DirecTV HDDVR. It tripled the number of HD channels I can receive now, and reception is outstsnding!!