OTA New York City

[Peter000]

I'm in Brooklyn and have a rabbit ears/UHF/VHF antenna connected up to my S3. I'm getting most of the channels fine, with an 85-95% signal strenth. I'm having problems with a couple of key channels though that are supposed to be on the same line as the ones I'm getting... CBS (2.1) and WNET (13.1). On these i get a signal bouncing between 0-30. Are these channels on a different line or something than all the others? I haven't found a way to "fine tune" frequencies on the S3... is there a way to do that? Would that help?

I'd like to cancel Cable altogether and just go with OTA, but unless I at least get CBS (which would give me all of the major Networks), I'm not willing to do that.

Thanks for any assistance!

[minckster]

Manhattan here - canceled cable. 13-1 is a problem for me too, usually in the low 60s, while 2-1 is my best channel, in the 80s. If I change the antenna's location, I can get 13-1 better, but I suppose you've already tried moving or rotating the antenna. I'm fairly certain both channels are broadcast from the Empire State Building.

Two ideas:

For PBS, you can try 21-x (Long Island) or 50-x (New Jersey), as they both come in strong here. 21-3 even started broadcasting Thirteen World, renaming it WLIW World, when 13-3 switched to Spanish language programming. These PBS stations are not broadcast from the ESB.

For CBS, you could try a cheap indoor antenna ($25-$30), place it for optimal reception for channel 2-1, and then use a cable splitter in reverse to combine it with your other antenna's signal. I tried two antennas once, and the S3 didn't get confused, but the second antenna didn't help either. I don't know if it made any difference but I made sure both antennas had the same length cable. I read about this idea in an AVS forum and I'm not sure how kosher the whole idea is.

[minckster]

I should have mentioned that it took maybe an hour to find the optimal location for the antenna - with tiny differences having large effects on reception. Be patient and imaginative! The S3 makes a helpful sound in its signal meter, so you don't have to watch the screen while trying locations. In case you don't hear the sound, I only get it through HDMI or RCA, not optical-out.

Imaginative? To my surprise, my best reception was from atop my fridge, which is way inside the interior of my apartment. I picked the second best location, which hides the antenna behind the woofer.

[Raj]

I used to get WNET-DT pretty good from Wayne, NJ from the fourth floor of my apartment building. I got WCBS-DT pretty good too.

I am not sure whether they are on the ESB or not.

Using NJN for PBS would work only if you enjoy widescreen/HD programming in prime time. They only activate the HD sub channel from 8PM to midnight.

[Peter000]

Thanks for the tips, guys. I don't have many options on where to place the antenna at the moment. I'm not as concerned about WNET as I am about CBS. I'll try some of the solutions mentioned as soon as I can, I guess.

[Peter000]

Upddate: I bought a new amplified indoor antenna. I had no reason to expect it to work, but I took a chance anyway. I was pleasantly surprised! It got about 30% better signal on the channels I already have, and got CBS in with a fair signal (around 60, but rock stable). The picture looks fantastic. The only channel I don't get and really want is the PBS station, and I can live without that.

I think I'm going to try no cable over the summer (after sweeps). I'll miss some of the cable only stations, like USA and Bravo (for Rescue Me) but I figure I can download the series I miss from Unbox or Apple and still be ahead money-wise.

Here's the antenna I ended up with:

http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/B0007MXZB2.01._SCLZZZZZZZ_AA280_.jpg

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0007MXZB2/002-9814145-2364818

[Stylin]

Hope this thread isn't completely dead.
Just got my S3 and am not getting ANY ota channels. I have my cable line split into the S3 cable and antenna ports. I get gray screen on the ota channels, but hink the pblem may be that I am not inputting the correct channels.
Care to share what your ota channel list is? Thks

[MScottC]

Hope this thread isn't completely dead.
Just got my S3 and am not getting ANY ota channels. I have my cable line split into the S3 cable and antenna ports. I get gray screen on the ota channels, but hink the pblem may be that I am not inputting the correct channels.
Care to share what your ota channel list is? Thks
There is no reason to split your cable... feed it all into the "Cable" input. The "Antenna" input is just for an OTA antenna either indoor or outdoor.

[tootal2]

Upddate: I bought a new amplified indoor antenna. I had no reason to expect it to work, but I took a chance anyway. I was pleasantly surprised! It got about 30% better signal on the channels I already have, and got CBS in with a fair signal (around 60, but rock stable). The picture looks fantastic. The only channel I don't get and really want is the PBS station, and I can live without that.

I think I'm going to try no cable over the summer (after sweeps). I'll miss some of the cable only stations, like USA and Bravo (for Rescue Me) but I figure I can download the series I miss from Unbox or Apple and still be ahead money-wise.

Here's the antenna I ended up with:

http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/P/B0007MXZB2.01._SCLZZZZZZZ_AA280_.jpg

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0007MXZB2/002-9814145-2364818


I have that same antenna. But i use the Winegard SS-3000 now. It does a little better the the terk hdtva. Its about 27" long so it was not easy to find a place to put it. Also it seems to have a very good low noise amp.

http://www.hdtvantennalabs.com/antennas/Winegard-SS-3000.html

[Stylin]

Ahhh! Thank you! No wonder I'm not receiving the channels :eek:
I don't remember when, but could've sworn I read on here that an additional/split cable would work as a powerful antenna. Guess I misunderstood.
Ok off to go pull up the rabbit ears to see what channels I can get.

What I am wondering is how come when the cable line is plugged into my dvd or tv I get channels, but not wih S3?

Thanks again for your help

[kb7oeb]

You may be able to find those channels doing a channel scan but what you really need is cable cards.

[TheGreenHornet]

I am in the Philly suburbs and use the Terk 55 antenna. I tried the previous Terk antenna in this thread but returned it. It was too big and bulky and could not be hidden very well. Do a search on Crutchfield or Amazon for the Terk 55 antenna. It is over 4 feet long and it is an overkill for my townhouse but it can be hidden out of site on my window sill. My front window faces away from the digital signals about 10 miles away. The best part of this antenna is that all the network Philly stations are a complete lock with two (ABC & CBS) are about 97% signal. OTA IS THE WAY!