In countries all around the world and in the USA as well, paying monthly fees to the official operators for services of broadcasting is a burden for many people. And it is true no one likes paying hundreds of dollars a year for something they could set up on their own, but people are either lazy or not aware of the option. Setting up a TV antenna is pretty simple as long as you know what channels do you want, what type of antenna, and how to do it.
A thing that a lot of people would be worried about is the picture quality – believe us as most of the networks are HD broadcasting you have nothing to be concerned about. Honestly, there is a high chance that you will get an even better picture quality as the signal you will be picking up won’t be compressed. So cut the talk, let’s see what you should look at when picking a TV antenna and how to put it up!
Advice On How To Choose The Right TV Antenna For You
First of all, you will need to see what channels are available for broadcasting and what do you want to watch. There are websites such as TV Fool who are as simple to use as typing your address and zip code into and seeing what channels do you want to watch. Though the table of stations can look complicated at first sight – it is not at all. Just take extra caution as probably the cable stations are listed as well, and you don’t want those (for those you have to pay).
After you have done that it is up to you to decide what channels suit you and what do you want to watch. Write down all the channels offered, check out the content, and decide by that. Be sure to see for each channel if you the antenna that would be an indoor one is enough, or you will have to put one on the roof. The second option is kind of tougher, but still not hard (keep in mind that an outdoor one is much more visible).
What is awesome is that now there are multiple types of antennas and you can put up an HD antenna to get the best 4K quality you always wanted. Now, after you have figured out what channels do you want the next step is checking the regulations. In the USA the FCC doesn’t restrict both homeowners and renters to put up an antenna. Still, we would advise you to double-check everything and see if some principle doesn’t maybe override the FCC’s one.
What Antenna Will I Need
Now, we talked about the TV Fool table of stations. Well, the stations that are bolded in green are the ones that can easily be transmitted via an indoor antenna, the ones in yellow are fine to go with the attic, but for the red ones you are going to mount one on your roof. And while more expensive and visible, the roof one will always provide a better signal than the indoor one. Still, indoor antennas are much easier to put up as they are flat and you can simply put an antenna on the window.
Be sure to check the direction the TV signal is coming from and put your antenna that way. As of the antenna that would put up in an attic, that is fine, and you are probably going to get a better signal than if it was in your living room, but the roof one remains the best. Now, if your location for some reason doesn’t receive the TV signal well enough, you can by an amplifier or a rotator as those devices solve the problem.
Summary
At the end of the day, it is up to you to choose whether you will be setting up a TV antenna or not. We recommend it because it is more effective and cheaper. Remember, if at first, it doesn’t catch the signal don’t give up move it a bit see what works the best and find the clearest area. Building or trees in front can easily bounce off the signal, so it never reaches your antenna. Why not, buy an antenna, have some fun setting it up and enjoy the beautiful free picture you will be receiving 24/7!
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