# Forum Home Renovation Television, Computers & Phones  TV Reception

## bubsy21

Hi maybe there is someone who can help me.We live in Eildon Vic and no matter what we do our reception is crap.I have rg6 cable and f connectors.Was wondering if i raise the antenna would that make a difference.Help
Frank

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## rrobor

No one can answer that. I may have told this before, if so sorry. A friend was installing an antenna in a bad area, he had a length of cable and an antenna. He was walking around the roof trying to get a better signal with someone inside shouting "better , worse" etc. Well he slipped on the roof and dropped the antenna. It landed in the garden amongst some cabages and he heard "That it, put it there. If you have done the best you can and its still poor, think about a masthead amplifier. But if your picture is shadows and ghosts then thats not much use. Your last resort is get a satelite dish, you now get all channels on that plus the basic package

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## Naf

How is the reception at your neighbours? If theirs is OK then it's you equipment, if theirs is crap then it's the location. 
Nathan

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## president_ltd

there are many factors --
 1. the antenna itself - is it in good condition?  is it a "high gain" antenna?  is it right for digital TV which isn't UHF+VHF any more?
 2. is the antenna high enough?  facing the best transmitter?
 3. do you need an amplifier to boost the signal?
 4. are you splitting the signal too many ways? 
for #1 if you know what the antenna is, you can perhaps answer that.  if its a case of "it was on the house when we bought it 15 years ago" then you may want a better (read: new) antenna.
if its missing some elements or they are bent or its wonky then that perhaps helps answer that too. 
for #2 just look at where its facing.  don't need to be too scientific here, just compare it to houses around you and approx. height of them.
have a chat to a friendly neighbour about their tv reception and compare. 
#3 is perhaps the easiest to achieve if you are far away from the transmitter.  but while an amplifier may be the answer remember that an amplifier not only amplifies the signal but the noise also - so it may be that there are better antenna options as a first step before an amplifier 
for #4 may be that an amplifier is the answer - or an amplified splitter.  
best of luck.  
cheers.

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## rrobor

Sorry but do not use a splitter amplifier, use a masthead amplifier. A masthead amplifier is used because noise can be introduced or increases along a cable so the amplifier needs to be as close to the signal as possible. You can tandem amplifiers in series. As I stated the school at Dunblane scotland where a tradgedy happened had 3 amplifiers in series but the signal was clean but weak Naf is correct, check around your place, if everybody has a 40 ft mast and you have a  Tandy special then sorry you have no hope.
________________________________ First indisputable Scottish truth of life. “You’ll get yours Jimmy”

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## president_ltd

> Sorry but do not use a splitter amplifier, use a masthead amplifier. A masthead amplifier is used because noise can be introduced or increases along a cable so the amplifier needs to be as close to the signal as possible.

  while perhaps true your advice is by no means universal rrobor. 
in SE Melb suburbs and with a signal going into 4 devices here, an amplified splitter works just fine for me and saves the cost of retrofitting a masthead amp.

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## rrobor

Now I really dont want to start an arguement  on this , but we are talking two different animals
 A splitter amp takes a signal that is adequate and distributes it several ways, basically keeping each output at, or just above that of the antenna. A splitter amp is an internal unit and should not be fitted outside. A masthead amp is used when the signal is poor. It is fitted outside as close to the signal as you can get to minimise noise because amplifiers are unselective. Where you are you can see the transmoitter so have no issue with signal strength, what you are doing is stopping the requirment for multiple antennas. He is fighting for signal. And yes in my day Ive fitted thousands
_____________________________________ First indisputable Scottish truth of life. “You’ll get yours Jimmy”

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