CLEARSTREAM4 Antenna
So, you got your HDTV Converter box, hooked it up and...Where are all the channels??? As I've said before, surprise! A lot of the channels switched to UHF in the digital conversion. And, somehow, even if you already had a VHF/UHF antenna, it's not doing the job. I told you in the previous post about a super antenna for both indoor and outdoor, that's reasonablly priced--the Antennas Direct DB2 Multi Directional HDTV Antenna
.But there's even a BETTER antenna for you, if you can spring for a little more money and can place it outdoors (it doesn't work well indoors). It's the CLEARSTREAM4 Antenna
and is far superior to it's competitors in it's price range. But don't take my word on it. Read what others have to say:
From Savage, MN
"I've been using a DB4 antenna for about a year and a half, and it was OK. It was connected to a 4-port amp, which outputs to a pair of HDHomeRuns. Out of the ~15 HD stations in my area, I could get a good signal on ~4 of them at a time (depending on how the antenna was pointed), marginal on 3-4, and the rest were totally unusable. I finally got tired of this, and was about to purchase a DB8, when I noticed this little beauty. I figured I couldn't go too far wrong, and ordered it. After 5 minutes for assembly and 5 minutes to mount it in the attic (just guessed which direction to point it -- the wide beam on this antenna is wonderful), 13 of the 15 stations get near-perfect reception (>90% signal, >90% SNR); the other two are good (>70% on both). WOW - what an improvement, especially for an antenna that is only slightly larger than the DB4!"
**
From Kansas City
"Absolutely the best antenna for DTV reception on the market! I upgraded from a DB4 in hopes of getting reception out of market and it easily locked in all the local stations at a distance of 40 miles, But I was blown away at how well it captured many stations from a town over 100 miles away. I live on a hill so that obviously helps and your mileage may vary, but I never had as much consistent long range reception with any other antenna. Another plus, it's no larger than a DB4.
One tip: The position of the binding posts used to attach the buss bars do not leave much room to tighten the wing nuts, so connect both sets of tapered loops with the buss bars, first, before assembling the rest of the antenna. That should make things easier."
**
From CA United States
"I have been very pleased with this antenna. I am ~43 miles from the TV towers in LA. I did have to mount this antenna on my roof, above the roof line of neighboring houses, but the signal I receive is great. I simply used the previously installed cable coax from the cable company, and hooked it up to the C4, and am able to get a perfect signal on three TVs in my home. So that's three 2-way splitters, ~100' of coax cable, and no pre-amp is necessary. Compared to the large traditional outdoor tv antennas that for my location would need to have a 5-10' boom length, the C4 is quite small. I was able to get 58 digital channels after doing the auto channel search on my digital converter box. And I can now enjoy FREE HD quality TV. I ordered and received the C4 from Amazon, but some of the metal parts arrived bent out of the box. I was able to assemble it anyway, and luckily they didn't seem to be critical to its function. With the advent of free digital TV, this is absolutely the way to go. There is no more of the fuzzy analog signal with digital. Ditch your cable TV provider and get rid of expensive monthly cable fees, get free HD TV with an antenna, and then you can always watch shows that aren't broadcast for free on the internet (Hulu.com, etc.)"
**
From Unknown
"I am no expert on antennas but I read quite a few reviews before I purchased this and I'm very happy with it. The stations I was hoping to receive were right around the 60 mile range with one about 70 miles. I am able to pick up all of the stations I was hoping for using just this antenna. I mounted it outside on the edge of my house and ran 50' of coax to my digital tv with no amplification. I have it pointed at the channels in the 60 mile range but am still somewhat able to pickup channels in another direction that are about 40 miles out. So it is still somewhat directional. The one minus I will note is the assembly. It took me around 30 minutes and the directions are a little hard to follow. Other than that I highly recommend it."
**
From Inland Empire, CA
"I took a chance and bought the clearstream 4 after reading some limited reviews saying how consistantly it locked onto fringe signals. I installed it this morning and now I am getting all the available channels but one - Ch13 - and I couldn't be happier. I can't say that the signal strength is higher than before, but so far it is much more consistant over all the channels.
Another major plus is that this antenna is less than 10 lbs and is a fraction of the size of my old Channel Master. This lets me put it up and take it down without any help which was a major selling point with my wife.
Some people posted assembly problems but I found it relatively easy due to the use of wing nuts - no tools required. All parts were finished well and fit nicely with the exception of one set of almost hidden wing nuts that did require some thinking on how to get them on and off. But overall assembly is a snap.
This is an excellent product and I highly recommend it!"
**
From Dallas TX
"I know nothing about electronics (girly girl)and got this up and running in an hour.
You will need the J mount (more on that in a sec) unless you plan to strap it to something in your attic. We have a 2 story home. I looked up the closest towest online and it was 182-185 degrees - google mapped my home, attached it to the main input cable in the attic, checked it on the TV, and voila - HDTV signal. Note this antenna is meant to be pointed in a specific direction (clearer picture), it's not an omnidirectional.
We live about 35 miles from the towers - north of Dallas. We get about 40 channels (the HDTV and EDTV ones are mostly with a "-1" suffix, like 33-1) but only about 20 are worthwhile unless you like the Spanish channels. All the channels are very clear.
The J mount as noted comes with the worst mounting harware and no wood screws. Ignore the directions. The antenna picture onthe box shows it with the J mount but you will have to buy it separately. I also bought and needed the 75' cable amazon bundles it with for $20.
I called the cable company (Grande) today to cancel and they miraculously decided they could offer me $50 off my cable bill ongoing to stay one. I told them unless it was free like it is now - no way."
CLEARSTREAM4 Antenna
OR
Antennas Direct DB2 Multi Directional HDTV Antenna
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