I bought a converter box; do I need a new antenna?

Question

I just bought the RCA converter box from WalMart. It's working but I've had to reprogram the channels so many times because I don't get good reception. (I didn't get it before, so I'm not too surprised) I'm so tired of pixelation. Should I get a new antenna? If it doesn't work too well, I can always return it...Do I need something to boost the signal? What should I do??

Answer 1

You probably need a rooftop directional antenna.  Look up websites for your local news stations and some have a link to antennaweb.com or something like that - that tells you what kind of antenna you need for the stations you can get at your location.

Answer 2

To the dude above me -

If you don't need an antenna to use a DTV box , please tell me how it receives it's signal without one ?

Don't be foolish.

You will need some sort of digital compliant antenna that is capable of receiveing a strong enough signal to run the DTV box without pixellating.

You may also require a booster as well , but I would just try upgrading the antenna first and if it still happens you can then buy a booster.

NOTE:

Your DTV box should have the ability to tell you how good the current signal is that you are trying to get to work. (providing you bought a half-decent one)

Have a read of the owner's manual and it should tell you how to access this.

Hope this helps you out.

Answer 3

The transition hasn't begun even though they're are digital signals floating around. You have to remember that most tv signals are still on analog. Come 2009 when the switch becomes mandatory and the digital signal is permanent i'm sure this problem will no longer be an issue, just give it time. by the way these converter boxes don't require an antenna that's the point of switching from analog to digital. If you return yours you're just going to have to buy one again come 09, sure it may be cheaper by then but it's going to be much harder to find one.

Answer 4

you need an hdtv and tena or an out door antena if you still have any coupon from the ntia wait for the DTVPAL available in june 16th

Features:

Digital to Analog Converter with built-in Digital Tuner

Analog pass-through of NTSC analog signals to the TV

Allows Analog TVs to receive digital over-the-air broadcasts

Provides dramatically better picture and sound quality than analog over-the-air

Digital tuner enables reception of several channels of programming simultaneously, "multicasting" from participating stations, including news, weather, traffic and even digital music

Digital tuner delivers interactive capability and data services such as enhanced closed captioning.

On-screen Setup Wizard for easy customer installation

Electronic Program Guide (EPG) with instant access to up to seven days of program listings and information

Program search

Parental Controls

Closed caption support

(VCR) Event Timer: See below for details

Remote control with built-in aspect ratio and channel guide access.

MSRP $39.99 - FREE with $40 NTIA Coupon

Setup Wizard :

Scans OTA channels

Uses the customer’s zip code to confirm the time zone

Front Panel Feature :

Green power LED

Rear Panel Connections :

1 VHF/UHF antenna input for over-the-air analog and digital broadcasts

Detachable 5V power supply

A/V Connections :

1 set of female RCA connectors for stereo left and right audio and composite video

1 F-type connector with user-selectable Channel 3 or 4 NTSC RF output

Specifications :

ATSC Tuner Range :

Channels 2-6 VHF Low: 54MHz to 88MHz

Channels 7-13 VHF High: 174 MHz to 216MHz

Channels 14-69 UHF: 470MHz to 806MHz

RF Input :

75 ohm for VHF and UHF Antenna

RF Output :

NTSC, 75ohm Channel 3 or 4

Composite Video Output :

RCA Connection

Audio Outputs :

RCA Stereo Left/Right

Dimensions (approx.) :

H: 1.3” x W: 5.9” x D: 4.2”

Weight (approx.): 1.0 lbs.

Color: black

Accessories :

Infrared remote control with batteries

Owner’s Manual

RF Cable included

Event Timer:



The DISH Network DTVPal is the only CECB that we know of that will have this feature.

The DTVPal is expected to be capable of allowing the user to set event timers. This feature is useful when used with a VCR or a DVD recorder for recording programs in the future. An event timer will change the channel on the converter box at a predetermined time.

Events can be created in different ways such as choosing a program from the program guide, browsing the channel banner, using an event search, or by time, date and channel.

Events can be created, edited, or deleted by selecting them from a list of timers. Timers can be scheduled to occur daily, weekly or Mon-Fri and they can be set to repeat.