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HDTV Antenna Alignment Over-The-Air (OTA), Broadcast, Aerial, Terrestrial, Roof, Attic In the good old days, antenna alignment was as easy as turning to a channel on the TV and then rotating the antenna until you had the best picture. But now, you have to scan for digital channels, and you have to be receiving them, to scan for them. Sadly, in terms of antenna alignment, the good old days are gone. Antenna alignment is a little bit different in the days of digital signal. So, how do you align an antenna? There are two ways to align an OTA antenna when looking for the digital signal of today's TV's. The first way is with a compass. The second way is with a digital signal meter. Since a compass is far less expensive and easier to come by, I will describe this method of determining the direction by azimuth. To find out where to point your antenna (pointing or alignment of your antenna makes all the difference in reception) you must first find out where you are (direction and distance) in relation to the local digital broadcasts. Instructions and help using TVFool Following are the directions for using AntennaWeb. Step 1. Visit www.antennaweb.org to determine the antenna type to use and who is broadcasting in your area. Select "Digital Channels Only" to get the digital channel results. Print out the results. Notice that on the right side of the printout are compass readings. These are the direction to the source from your location. They are all at different locations and different directions. Use the compass azimuth readings on the page to find your pointing direction. For example: When I check for the direction from my location near St. Louis, I get the information below. (This is an edited version for instructional purposes.) The three columns on the right are:Compass azimuth (direction), miles from the transmitter, and the channel assignment, in that order. Make note of the channel assignments at the far right. After pointing your antenna, you will want to have your receiver or TV to search for channels. If doing a manual search, those numbers are the channels that you are searching. (i.e. for CBS, VHF channel 4, the digital signal is actually arriving via UHF channel 56.) KMOV-DT 4.1 CBS ST. LOUIS MO 121° 30.0 56 KDNL-DT 30.1 ABC ST. LOUIS MO 117° 26.9 31 KPLR-DT 11.1 CW ST. LOUIS MO 118° 27.3 26 KSDK-DT 5.1 NBC ST. LOUIS MO 119° 27.2 35 KTVI-DT 2.1 FOX ST. LOUIS MO 125° 26.5 43 KETC-DT 9.1 PBS ST. LOUIS MO 133° 27.8 39 KNLC-DT 24.1 FMN ST. LOUIS MO 156° 30.1 14 WRBU-DT 46.1 MNT E. ST. LOUIS IL 149° 29.9 47 One way to determine where to point is to take the lowest azimuth number (117°) and the highest (156°) and determine the center point, approximately 137°. Use your compass to find 137°, and point your antenna in that direction. Depending on your antenna and the resulting signal, you may get some or all the above listed channels. If you are having trouble with some channels, you might want to decide which channels you are most interested in and focus on those. For example, from the above list, I would prefer to have all but the last two if that would help with the others. In this case, I would no longer consider the 156° or the 149° readings. So, I am finding the "center" between 117° and 133°. Now I'm looking for 125°, instead of 137° used previously. Pointing my antenna at 125°, I should increase my signal for the six channels I was most interested in, while possibly sacrificing the two that don't interest me. After aligning the antenna, you then must go to your receiver or TV's user menu. You will find a menu option to automatically search for digital channels. You must do this before anything will come from your antenna. In some cases, you may be able to manually search individual channels to add them to your lineup if they weren't found on the auto search function. NOTES:
To rate this meter, I would give it 2 WOWS out of 5. This meter has a very poor design regarding the power button that gets turned on when the unit gets bumped or handled. This increases the severity of the already poor battery life. In addition, the LCD screen is nearly impossible to read through the case. When purchasing a meter, SMS viewing should be high on your priority list. You may find TV Fool to be a good option for assistance. While the site looks intimidating at first, it is very simple and helpful. Just click the start here button and input your address. The report that is generated has a circular map indicating the direction and distance from your home to the transmitters. This is particularly helpful if you don't have a compass. I suggest following this link for instructions and assistance: http://www.dtvusaforum.com/45628-post2.html Hope this helps! Highdef Jeff
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You have a right to an antenna! The rule prohibits most
restrictions that: (1) unreasonably delay or prevent installation, maintenance
or use; (2) unreasonably increase the cost of installation, maintenance or use;
or (3) preclude reception of an acceptable quality signal. Over-the-Air Reception Devices Rule Send questions or comments about this web site.Copyright © 2009 WOWVision! Ministries Last modified: 01/16/10
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Please be aware that there are no absolutes in over-the-air
reception of local digital broadcasts. There are "hot" spots of
signal and areas of dead signal, sometimes even within the same
attic space. So, first, don't give up and try other placement
options, and second, it is possible that you just won't get some
stations. 
