OK, according to titan TV, it looks like I have around 9 Digital OTA channels, of which two or three have HD content. What do I need to pull these in? Obvious to me is the need for: A) HDTV Antannae B) Some way to get the antannae feed to the TV Is step "B" where a DTV box comes in? What is the least expensive way to go? Is there a good indoor HD antannae that anyone would recommend? I have a Toshiba HDTV that has DVI & component video inputs. Thanks!
I'm sure there will be plenty of more qualified people responding to this, but I'll just give you some basics. Unless you have a built in Digital tuner, you need at least an OTA set top box. I can't recommend a particular antenna, just don't be fooled by the HDTV classification. The same antennas will work for analog and digital. That's not to say that some aren't better than others, but the differences don't have to do with analog vs. digital. Sorry if I wasn't a lot of help, but the bottom line is, yes, all you need (basically) is an antenna and a STB.
Putting up my rooftop antenna was probably the most satisfying project I've done on my own. I'm not exactly sure why...maybe because the payoff was rock solid HD reception? Anyways, if you can get away with an indoor antenna then that's definitely the simplest route, but mounting an antenna outside will boost your signal considerably (I think around 50%). The most difficult part of the project was actually sinking an eight foot ground rod into my notoriously rocky property, but even that was a cinch with the proper tools. I have the Samsung SIR-T151 for a tuner. Pretty barebones, but it does the trick. You can get these pretty cheap now - under 200.00 off eBay I think.
BTW, if an indoor antenna works for you and you want something a little fancier, I have a Jensen TV940 remote control indoor antenna I've been trying to get rid of for some time.
I tried several indoor antennas but none were that great and most are too expensive. The best all-around antenna I found was a Channel Master 4221 low profile 4xbowtie outdoor model for UHF reception, cost half what the indoor antennas cost - around $25. You could use it in an attic too, but indoors has too many reflections off walls and when someone walks near the antenna or you turn on/off lights can cause dropouts, putting it outdoor even just on your back porch elminates those issues. When I started OTA HDTV reception over 2 years ago that was the only option. But nowadays most cable systems carry many of the local HD channels plus many more cable/satellite-only HD channels like Discovery-HD, ESPN-HD, HBO-HD, Showtime-HD, etc. - the advantage of cable is you don't have make the big cash outlay ($200-400) for an OTA HD STB plus antenna.
