|
Post by MonkeyMan on Apr 27, 2015 17:06:48 GMT -5
Got home to discover channel 2 is still holding steady!
|
|
Sandbagger
Administrator/The Boss
Posts: 6,247
|
Post by Sandbagger on Apr 27, 2015 18:06:44 GMT -5
I never questioned your interest in channel 2, after seeing it was part of the MeTV network. That was all I needed to hear. That's why I never suggested that you forget about it and just be happy watching the rest of them. It's just a bummer that this happens to be the channel with marginal/Intermittent signal quality Maybe I should write to them and ask very nicely that they jack up the power? Tell them they need to go to the pump house, if they want to be seen at the CB shop.....
|
|
|
Post by MonkeyMan on Apr 28, 2015 7:07:06 GMT -5
Maybe I should write to them and ask very nicely that they jack up the power? Tell them they need to go to the pump house, if they want to be seen at the CB shop..... Multi-path is cutting their lips off!
|
|
|
Post by MonkeyMan on Apr 28, 2015 7:11:40 GMT -5
As of this morning we're still holding steady with signal level @ 90-92 and quality @ 77-79. If I power down the cordless phone quality swings into the lower 80's.
That's over 36 hours holding steady, but I'm not calling it a "win" just yet...
|
|
|
Post by MonkeyMan on Apr 28, 2015 7:16:09 GMT -5
|
|
|
Post by cbrown on Apr 28, 2015 8:37:54 GMT -5
For years I was begging my cable company to remove MTV from my service.
|
|
Sandbagger
Administrator/The Boss
Posts: 6,247
|
Post by Sandbagger on Apr 28, 2015 9:59:06 GMT -5
As of this morning we're still holding steady with signal level @ 90-92 and quality @ 77-79. If I power down the cordless phone quality swings into the lower 80's. That's over 36 hours holding steady, but I'm not calling it a "win" just yet... I wouldn't. Murphy isn't finished with you just yet.......
|
|
|
Post by MonkeyMan on Apr 28, 2015 11:17:44 GMT -5
For years I was begging my cable company to remove MTV from my service. A few years back I dropped down a tier on my Dish account because of the garbage on MTV. I didn't know it at the time but that was the first step towards "cutting the cord".
|
|
Sandbagger
Administrator/The Boss
Posts: 6,247
|
Post by Sandbagger on Apr 28, 2015 12:29:15 GMT -5
For years I was begging my cable company to remove MTV from my service. A few years back I dropped down a tier on my Dish account because of the garbage on MTV. I didn't know it at the time but that was the first step towards "cutting the cord". Well, the good news on that front is that the the cable/sat providers are becoming acutely aware of the migration away from high dollar services, and the movement to "cut the cord". This is forcing those operators to re-think their business models, and may force price reductions to keep subscribers. I casually broached the subject of cutting "back" the cord (can't cut completely since I get my internet via cable) with the wife, and she's not too keen on it. But I wasn't prepared to make a quantitative argument in terms of exact dollars saved. I'll revisit it again when I have more data and can make a better case.
|
|
|
Post by MonkeyMan on Apr 28, 2015 13:31:28 GMT -5
A few years back I dropped down a tier on my Dish account because of the garbage on MTV. I didn't know it at the time but that was the first step towards "cutting the cord". Well, the good news on that front is that the the cable/sat providers are becoming acutely aware of the migration away from high dollar services, and the movement to "cut the cord". This is forcing those operators to re-think their business models, and may force price reductions to keep subscribers. I casually broached the subject of cutting "back" the cord (can't cut completely since I get my internet via cable) with the wife, and she's not too keen on it. But I wasn't prepared to make a quantitative argument in terms of exact dollars saved. I'll revisit it again when I have more data and can make a better case. Yes, you must have a solid presentation before going to management with it. We stepped down gradually. First we dropped a tier on Dish, then added Netflix, then the Roku with Plex (which is wonderful albeit complicated) installed, then a full year of beta testing with the antenna before I jumped. The wife was on board, but the kids weren't thrilled with the idea. They've since come around after seeing what's available and they're actually enjoying some of the ol' timey shows dad used to watch as a kid.
|
|
Sandbagger
Administrator/The Boss
Posts: 6,247
|
Post by Sandbagger on Apr 28, 2015 19:35:01 GMT -5
Well, the good news on that front is that the the cable/sat providers are becoming acutely aware of the migration away from high dollar services, and the movement to "cut the cord". This is forcing those operators to re-think their business models, and may force price reductions to keep subscribers. I casually broached the subject of cutting "back" the cord (can't cut completely since I get my internet via cable) with the wife, and she's not too keen on it. But I wasn't prepared to make a quantitative argument in terms of exact dollars saved. I'll revisit it again when I have more data and can make a better case. Yes, you must have a solid presentation before going to management with it. We stepped down gradually. First we dropped a tier on Dish, then added Netflix, then the Roku with Plex (which is wonderful albeit complicated) installed, then a full year of beta testing with the antenna before I jumped. The wife was on board, but the kids weren't thrilled with the idea. They've since come around after seeing what's available and they're actually enjoying some of the ol' timey shows dad used to watch as a kid. I don't get anything more than the basic package on cable, no premiums. But I get charged extra for enabling HD content and the HDMI port on the box. I also pay extra for the DVR. The thing is, 98% of what we watch is network programming, with an occasional foray into the "on-demand" arena. My daughter also likes to catch college softball. I subscribed to Netflix, but so far, I've only seen one or two movies on it, so that's actually more money burned. So if I can get the network content (easy!) with HD and DVR (also easy, but will require a one-time investment, and hopefully the service won't go belly-up in the future), and still have a means to get those sports feeds, I can make a good case to chop $50+ a month for the cable services.
|
|
|
Post by MonkeyMan on Apr 29, 2015 7:53:50 GMT -5
As of this morning we are still holding steady with channel 2! I noted again the washing machine caused some degradation in signal quality last night while it was running, the dryer may have something to do with that too as it ran as well. It was still watchable, but definitely not ideal.
|
|
|
Post by MonkeyMan on Apr 30, 2015 20:09:18 GMT -5
Still holding steady. I believe the slight turn of the antenna helped, but moving the preamp injector is what did the trick. Now I wait for all the leaves.
|
|
Sandbagger
Administrator/The Boss
Posts: 6,247
|
Post by Sandbagger on May 1, 2015 10:57:12 GMT -5
Still holding steady. I believe the slight turn of the antenna helped, but moving the preamp injector is what did the trick. Now I wait for all the leaves. You might want to think about stretching and warming up that arm to pat yourself on the back. If it stays good for several days straight, that's a good sign.
|
|
|
Post by MonkeyMan on May 1, 2015 12:37:43 GMT -5
Still holding steady. I believe the slight turn of the antenna helped, but moving the preamp injector is what did the trick. Now I wait for all the leaves. You might want to think about stretching and warming up that arm to pat yourself on the back. If it stays good for several days straight, that's a good sign. It's been all week. I'm still considering a higher gain antenna though. Because it is turned away from Roxborough to get channel 2 I lost channel 12 completely. Not such a big deal because I can get PBS programs on the Roku, and I also receive NJTV channel 23, but going through all the menus on the Roku is a PIA and channel 23 is not alaways reliable. Plus more channels is more better. One thing that does worry me with a higher gain antenna is overload as I'm already at 100% signal level on several channels. Sure, I could add a variable attenuator but constantly adjusting that would be a pain and surely an added level of confusion the wife wouldn't appreciate.
|
|
|
Post by MonkeyMan on May 1, 2015 19:50:36 GMT -5
Just turned it on and quality was in the 40's, then I realized the coffee maker was still plugged in.
|
|
Sandbagger
Administrator/The Boss
Posts: 6,247
|
Post by Sandbagger on May 1, 2015 20:07:47 GMT -5
You might want to think about stretching and warming up that arm to pat yourself on the back. If it stays good for several days straight, that's a good sign. It's been all week. I'm still considering a higher gain antenna though. Because it is turned away from Roxborough to get channel 2 I lost channel 12 completely. Not such a big deal because I can get PBS programs on the Roku, and I also receive NJTV channel 23, but going through all the menus on the Roku is a PIA and channel 23 is not alaways reliable. Plus more channels is more better. One thing that does worry me with a higher gain antenna is overload as I'm already at 100% signal level on several channels. Sure, I could add a variable attenuator but constantly adjusting that would be a pain and surely an added level of confusion the wife wouldn't appreciate. Hopefully your TV's AGC can handle the extra signal. But if not you can alway pad down the signal. It may sound couterproductive, but having a stronger signal, padded down will have a better signal/noise ratio than the original antenna. You can proobably eliminate the pre-amp as well.
|
|
|
Post by MonkeyMan on May 1, 2015 20:36:08 GMT -5
Just had a thought. The antenna for channel 2 is mounted on the chimney and it's only inches away from the metal chimney cap. Think the cap could be catching some signal and causing the probable multipath issues?
|
|
Sandbagger
Administrator/The Boss
Posts: 6,247
|
Post by Sandbagger on May 1, 2015 21:12:22 GMT -5
It's been all week. I'm still considering a higher gain antenna though. Because it is turned away from Roxborough to get channel 2 I lost channel 12 completely. Not such a big deal because I can get PBS programs on the Roku, and I also receive NJTV channel 23, but going through all the menus on the Roku is a PIA and channel 23 is not alaways reliable. Plus more channels is more better. One thing that does worry me with a higher gain antenna is overload as I'm already at 100% signal level on several channels. Sure, I could add a variable attenuator but constantly adjusting that would be a pain and surely an added level of confusion the wife wouldn't appreciate. Hopefully your TV's AGC can handle the extra signal. But if not you can alway pad down the signal. It may sound couterproductive, but having a stronger signal, padded down will have a better signal/noise ratio than the original antenna. You can proobably eliminate the pre-amp as well. Raise it up 10 feet. Height is might.....:-)
|
|
|
Post by MonkeyMan on May 2, 2015 11:30:40 GMT -5
I only have 5 ft. of mast! It may be able to go another foot, but that's it. And I ain't wresting with that thing to swap out a mast.
|
|
Sandbagger
Administrator/The Boss
Posts: 6,247
|
Post by Sandbagger on May 2, 2015 20:03:55 GMT -5
I only have 5 ft. of mast! It may be able to go another foot, but that's it. And I ain't wresting with that thing to swap out a mast. It can't be as big as a CB antenna, so stop cryin' and start raising........
|
|
|
Post by MonkeyMan on May 3, 2015 11:05:26 GMT -5
I only have 5 ft. of mast! It may be able to go another foot, but that's it. And I ain't wresting with that thing to swap out a mast. It can't be as big as a CB antenna, so stop cryin' and start raising........ Oo, I could use the IMAX as a mast...
|
|
Sandbagger
Administrator/The Boss
Posts: 6,247
|
Post by Sandbagger on May 3, 2015 21:04:55 GMT -5
It can't be as big as a CB antenna, so stop cryin' and start raising........ Oo, I could use the IMAX as a mast... You wouldn't be the first one to do that.......
|
|
|
Post by MonkeyMan on May 5, 2015 12:08:08 GMT -5
I noticed the last couple nights something a bit odd with channel 2.1. With a steady 90-91 signal level and steady 77-79 quality level I'm getting brief, intermittent pixelation every 10-30 seconds. Coincidentally it's not happening on 2.2, 2.3 or 2.4 but they're all SD whereas 2.1 is HD. Nothing major, and it's really not that distracting, I just thought it odd is all.
|
|
Sandbagger
Administrator/The Boss
Posts: 6,247
|
Post by Sandbagger on May 5, 2015 12:31:24 GMT -5
I noticed the last couple nights something a bit odd with channel 2.1. With a steady 90-91 signal level and steady 77-79 quality level I'm getting brief, intermittent pixelation every 10-30 seconds. Coincidentally it's not happening on 2.2, 2.3 or 2.4 but they're all SD whereas 2.1 is HD. Nothing major, and it's really not that distracting, I just thought it odd is all. I had a problem like that at work. A fairly regular short duration period where the picture would break up. Turns out the nearby rotating radar dish was the culprit. Don't know if you have any type of pulse-type radiation in the area.....
|
|
|
Post by MonkeyMan on May 5, 2015 16:24:59 GMT -5
I noticed the last couple nights something a bit odd with channel 2.1. With a steady 90-91 signal level and steady 77-79 quality level I'm getting brief, intermittent pixelation every 10-30 seconds. Coincidentally it's not happening on 2.2, 2.3 or 2.4 but they're all SD whereas 2.1 is HD. Nothing major, and it's really not that distracting, I just thought it odd is all. I had a problem like that at work. A fairly regular short duration period where the picture would break up. Turns out the nearby rotating radar dish was the culprit. Don't know if you have any type of pulse-type radiation in the area..... Nothing I can pick up on the AM radio. I'm guessing it is so brief the "meter" on the tuner is too slow in its reaction to detect it. Cripes, I better let this one go and enjoy what I have for now.
|
|
|
Post by BBB on May 6, 2015 7:25:21 GMT -5
I've noticed that mine (and others) cellular phones, when in 10' proximity of any modern TV or cable box, causes interference when the phone is transmitting. You might say, "but I wasn't on the cell phone". Most of these smart phones "ping" the tower from time to time on their own whether it's to check for emails, IM's, update apps, ect. My Fios TV box will intermittently blank out if a cell phone is transmitting near it.
|
|
|
Post by cbrown on May 6, 2015 8:47:09 GMT -5
I've noticed that mine (and others) cellular phones, when in 10' proximity of any modern TV or cable box, causes interference when the phone is transmitting. You might say, "but I wasn't on the cell phone". Most of these smart phones "ping" the tower from time to time on their own whether it's to check for emails, IM's, update apps, ect. My Fios TV box will intermittently blank out if a cell phone is transmitting near it. Great point! I had a pair of cheap unshielded computer speakers and anytime someone with an iPhone came near them the speakers would randomly make weird noises.
|
|
|
Post by MonkeyMan on May 6, 2015 9:19:40 GMT -5
I've noticed that mine (and others) cellular phones, when in 10' proximity of any modern TV or cable box, causes interference when the phone is transmitting. You might say, "but I wasn't on the cell phone". Most of these smart phones "ping" the tower from time to time on their own whether it's to check for emails, IM's, update apps, ect. My Fios TV box will intermittently blank out if a cell phone is transmitting near it. Hey, good advice! The wifey and I we're watching Taxi last night on channel 2 and it was doing it more than it had the two nights before, difference was she was tapping away on that damned phone 10 ft away from the tuner box. Tonight I'll shut down both our phones and see if there's any difference.
|
|
Sandbagger
Administrator/The Boss
Posts: 6,247
|
Post by Sandbagger on May 6, 2015 11:19:48 GMT -5
I've noticed that mine (and others) cellular phones, when in 10' proximity of any modern TV or cable box, causes interference when the phone is transmitting. You might say, "but I wasn't on the cell phone". Most of these smart phones "ping" the tower from time to time on their own whether it's to check for emails, IM's, update apps, ect. My Fios TV box will intermittently blank out if a cell phone is transmitting near it. Hey, good advice! The wifey and I we're watching Taxi last night on channel 2 and it was doing it more than it had the two nights before, difference was she was tapping away on that damned phone 10 ft away from the tuner box. Tonight I'll shut down both our phones and see if there's any difference. Good call! The "modern" cell phone uses digital data bursts, which anyone who understands RF knows, is rich in harmonic content. My phone gets into computer speakers, other radio receivers etc. It can certainly play havoc on a DTV setup, if the phone is too close.
|
|