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S.F. Bay Area OTA HDTV reception (1 Viewer)

Thomas W

Agent
Joined
Jul 29, 2001
Messages
42
I know this may be an old subject to some but I'm thinking of getting a Toshiba DTS3000 HDTV set top receiver to try and pull in some OTA HDTV progams using a roof top antenna. Does anyone out there have any experience with doing this in the Bay Area, more specifically the Palo Alto area? Are you able to get any HDTV channels OTA? How stable is the reception? I would hate to invest the money and trouble to mount the antenna just to find out that I can't receive anything! Any comments/expeience would be very helpful. Thanks
 

Dmitry

Supporting Actor
Joined
Nov 30, 1998
Messages
742
Thomas,

my friend who lives in Cupertino is able to pull in all SF HDTV programming. He has the Sony 34" HD set with built-in tuner, so I don't know if there's any difference between that and the Toshiba set top receiver. Being that Palo Alto is closer to SF and doesn't have hills potentially shielding the signal I'd expect you to have no difficulties either. I believe he has a Channel Master 3678 antenna.
 

Thomas W

Agent
Joined
Jul 29, 2001
Messages
42
Thanks Dmitry. I'll start putting together my OTA system and see what happens. I appreciate the information.
 

Dmitry

Supporting Actor
Joined
Nov 30, 1998
Messages
742
Thomas, I just remembered that he had this guy set it up for him: Dick's Antennas. He wasn't very expensive and he knows the Bay Area pretty well. I'd give him a call and he may be able to tell you over the phone what kind of reception you might expect.
 

Frank_S

Supporting Actor
Joined
Oct 28, 1999
Messages
565
Thomas, I own the DST-3000(since Feb. 2001) and use a simple Radio Shack Double Bow-tie antenna($15) to pull in all the local channels. It is in my upstairs bedroom pointed towards Sutro Tower.
I would recommend buying the DST-3000 from a place that will give you 30 days to return it. The Good Guys sells them and has a 30 day return policy.
Take it home and buy a RS Double Bow-tie and move the antenna around while you listen to the signal strength signal tone(you can crank the volume up on your TV). If you are successful, you may not need a large rooftop antenna. :)
 

Chris Sigua

Stunt Coordinator
Joined
Feb 16, 2001
Messages
57
I think RS has discontinued the Double-bowtie antenna though you may still find them in some stores.
 

Thomas W

Agent
Joined
Jul 29, 2001
Messages
42
Frank,

Thanks for the info. It's good to know that you're getting HDTV reception without having to use a roof top antenna. That's the part I was dreading the most! I'll give it a try.

While we're talking about this, how is your overall reception in terms of stability of the signal? Can you get all of the channels that are broadcasting HDTV?
 

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