Cable TV vs Free Antena TV

I just ordered an antenna on Amazon to see what channels I can get here in Vegas.

 

I think you will be surprised how much you will get, and the high quality. Sometimes it takes some trial and error to find the right location. If your house has coax in every room, you might be able to do what I did. I placed mine on bedroom window where we do not have a tv. Then plugged into the cable/coax that goes to a central location,then spilts out all the other rooms. Works great.

 

If you don't have coax to all your rooms, you can use an antenna-DVR, such as a Tablo. It will send out your recordings or live programming via your WiFi to all your TVs.

 

Can I just get individual antennas for each TV?

 

Yes, you can. Some people like the DVRs to record shows, but it's all up to you. Also, the Tablos are good if you have a single antenna on the roof that you want to split between multiple TVs. Tablo is not the only option, it's just the one I chose for our family. Easy to use, flexible, lots of options.

 

Great! We called Directv and they lowered our bill from 200 to $45 for the basic package for the next 5 months. After that, it goes up to $100 for another year then we can terminate without incurring cancellation fees ($20 per month of remaining months).

 

Good for you! Just the threat of cordcutting can save money!

 

Sure, you can do that.

I would suggest getting one at first and test it on each TV in case it is located such that you can not get good signal.

 

That is a cool little device! I'm a long time Tivo user and on the surface Tablo seems to be a serious competitor and may do a few tricks Tivo doesn't. I'll have to do more research on some of the finer details but having the built in ability to access access all content through any home network connected device is a HUGE draw! I currently have a centrally located media rack that feeds most of the TV's in the house but there are a few I haven't run feeds to. I'll have to really research and compare but its possible that converting to Tablo could be easier and possibly more cost effective than connecting the remaining TV's.

 

Installed the antenna and I get about 30 channels in HD. Granted there are no channels like Food Network, TLC, etc., I’m happy that there’s the local Fox, ABC, NBC and CBS and it’s pretty clear to me.
Will supplement this with Hulu when Directv is up. This should save me 1200-1800 a year

 

The reception by putting the antenna on the roof is twice as good as in a room. I tried the room first and was OK but when we mounted on roof it was perfect, It helps that I am NW vegas and have clear shot to towers in the SE part of Vegas.The guy says it is a little tougher on the strip and towards the Henderson area. I am VERY happy with no cox tv. I wish I could cut them out of the internet bill but research says it is best bang for buck in my area. I like old westerns and have plenty of options there. Plus as others have said you get all the major channels.

PS When mounting on roof they just ran the cord to the junction box on the house. Left cox on the one cable to the internet room (router) and ran one line from one room to another to get all 4 TV's hooked up.

 

I'm surprised that any developments still allow antennas on the roof anymore. Around here, at least, they are almost universally verboten.

 

A digital tv signal is not blocked by wood of other building materials, so if you have an attic put the antenna there. Also digital signals work very well close to the ground.. They are a line of sight signal.

 

I prefer streaming cable via AppleTV. I currently have Spectrum. I save on needing to rent boxes and it includes premium channels and allows access to all network apps/sites.

 

It is against the law to ban TV antennas.

https://www.fcc.gov/media/over-air-reception-devices-rule

 

Hmmmm ... I'm unaware of this.

On the lease I signed when I moved in there is a "... nor erect any antennas upon the roof" clause in there, and one neighbor, who has "cut the cord" wants to put up an antenna but says a "deed restriction" prevents it.

I do know that there are no visible antennas anywhere in the immediate neighborhood and I sure can't remember seeing any antennas anywhere in the area. I always assumed it was restrictive covenants and/or HOA rules and such.

You do see satellite dishes on the sides of houses around here, but I don't recall seeing any on the roof of any detatched home around here.

 

I might have

Either way... try just putting in different windows. Outside might not matter.

 

Digital signal is the same as analog signal. The difference is in the data being transmitted. I've never heard of it having the characteristics you describe (as opposed to analog). I would be surprised if it were true from what I understand but I'm open to the possibility of being wrong. Do you have any source for this?

 

The law (actually, I think it's an FCC regulation under the law) does not allow restrictive covenants to enforce "no antenna" rules, even if they are part of a HOA.

With that said, an antenna in an attic can be just as effective in many cases.

 

I live ~42 miles south of Kansas City, and I get 52 channels over the air with an antenna in the attic. I added a pre-amp to it and it works great. The antenna is an RCA ANT751R which I got for about $50 from Lowe's IIRC. You can see a live scan of what I'm able to receive here: https://m.rabbitears.info/index.php?request=tvdx_grid&tid=1049E0F5&tno=0

For the Las Vegas area, this site is also helpful: https://www.rabbitears.info/market.php?mktid=51

And this site will tell you what you can receive at your house: https://www.tvfool.com/

Las Vegas has a lot of VHF stations, so that could be tricky for folks in the fringe areas. But with no tall trees in the way, perhaps it's not all that bad. In my area, foliage on trees can affect reception in the Spring, Summer and Fall.

If anybody needs recommendations on antennas or pre-amp's or any other TV-related stuff, I'm happy to help- it's a hobby of mine (And somewhat related to my job).