TV & Home Theater

[sg4him]

I bought a (high powered) long distance antenna and had someone put it on my roof. I only pick up 4 PBS channels because the tower is over 70 miles away. Im in Hemet, CA and the tower is in LA. What can I do? Radio Shack suggested putting  the antenna on a 30 ft pole. What should I do? 

Thank you.

[bobberuchi]

The issue is probably where you are located and the terrain arround you.

The broadcast signal has to be generally a line of sight

Where I live it kind of stinks as there is a ridge of hills between me and the location of the transmitters.

Do a google search for Antenna Web  and the first hit should be an org for antenna web.

at this site you can enter your address and it will show you what you should be able to receive.  There is an option for including it on a 30 foot tower. I can only receive 3 channels from my house.  A friend of mine who lives about 5 miles west and actually further away from the towers can get 20 channels.

[bobberuchi]

I just did it wtih putting the point in the center of Hemet and it only gets 2 channels.

Putting it to the east side of Hemet you can get 139 channels from 31 stations

And what the person at radio shack said to do may be the answer.  But then again you may need a higher tower

You can even move the marker around and put it right on your house if you can find it.

[Mariah-BBY Retired: Social Media Specialist]

Hi sg4him, 

Cutting the cord with cable can be rough still in some parts of the country. Did you take a peek into our Antenna Guide? 

I fully recommend the use of the Free FCC Site to determine what you should be getting at your home. You can find detailed directions on how to use in the Antenna Guide above. Please know it’s the Federal Communication Commission’s standard to recommend an outdoor antenna that’s 30 feet above ground level. Most times that does the trick, however due to your geographical area the higher may be better!

I hope that helps you get pointed in the correct direction! Also if you have other questions about cutting the cord with cable our Geek Squad wrote an amazing blog series about it.

Kindly,