"We Can Rebuild It. We Have the Technology"

My friends know that I have spent the past year experimenting with various over-the-air antennas for our HDTV.

We decided to cut our cable TV subscription last year, but I didn’t want to give up watching my favorite shows. I had used antennas to pull in digital programming in the past, so I’ve been experimenting to find the best way to get over-the-air channels.

Many people don’t know that you can get dozens of over-the-air channels (25 approximately) in the Omaha area. What that means is, you can enjoy free programming from networks like ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox, the CW, and PBS. It only requires a TV and an antenna. And, in many cases, these digital channels are in high definition (HD).

Many of the "HD antennas" sold today use classic designs (for example, some of the better set-top antennas today are classic "hoop and rabbit ear" and "bow tie" antennas that have been "rebranded"), and while there can be subtle design differences, antennas are pulling in UHF/VHF bands like they did 40 years ago.

A month or so ago I discovered an old TV antenna in the attic of our 1950s-era home. My initial curiosity was piqued when I discovered the end of a piece of old twin-lead cable protruding from the wall in the upper reaches of our hall closet.

I recognized the wire from my days as a kid, when we used antennas to get TV broadcasts, and the leads on the flat twin-lead were held onto TVs back then by a set of screws. 

I hadn't ever traversed into our attic (which is more of a glorified "crouch space.”) But when I opened up the access door in the ceiling by our bathroom, I was met with a large antenna, which I figure is 40 to 50 years old. It was also aimed toward the TV towers located in north-central Omaha.

So, I went back into our linen closet, stripped the ends of the old twin-lead wire, and connected them to a 300-ohm-to-75-ohm snap-on transformer. Basically, it converts the signal from the twin-lead cable into coaxial cable, for use with today's TV sets.

 

When I hooked it up to our TV, I didn't get any additional HD and digital channels from the set-top antenna units I had previously used, but the digital and HD channels were -- on the whole -- very stable in extreme weather conditions.

Digital and hi-definition signals don't suffer from the myriad of issues that old analog signals did back in yesteryear, but stormy weather can cause moments of pixelation.

I was very impressed over the intervening days and weeks, and I started reading various online forums and blog posts by TV enthusiasts about finding old attic antennas and "resurrecting" them for use with their HDTVs in their home.

(Here is an example of one such homeowner.)

People recommended replacing the old twin-lead wire with RG6 coaxial cable (which is what cable and satellite companies use to hook up various services to your home). It is sturdier and higher-bandwidth than the old RG59 cable companies used in the past, and can transmit more data faster.

In addition, they recommended a "continuous run" of cable (no extenders or splitters) to preserve signal quality.

Today, in order to get rid of the old brown, twin-lead cable, we attached a different kind of transformer. In order to run coaxial cable directly from your TV to the antenna in the attic, you have to get a matching transformer that connects directly to the connections on the antenna.

I wasn't keen about rewiring the antenna, but when I closely inspected the old twin-lead wire in the attic last week, I realized the brown insulation was cracking and splitting (even though the encased copper wire looked okay). 

That meant likely signal loss. And I wanted to make sure the ancient aluminum beast in my attic was able to provide maximum reception.

So...today my dad and I removed the old twin-lead from the antenna terminals, added on a new matching transformer ($1.97) to the wingnut connection points, and ran 50 feet of brand-new RG6 quad-shielded coaxial cable ($15.48) from the antenna to the TV.

The job required a drill, flashlight, mask (to block attic dust) and a tape measure (to run the new cable through the walls to the back of the TV).

Other than being super messy (we have mounds of rock wool insulation in our attic), it went pretty fast. In the picture below, you can see the new gray coaxial cable attached to the black matching transformer. 

The signal is much stronger with the new cabling, and all 25 local channels we should receive (according to antennaweb.org) we now do receive (an improvement of four channels over the previous configuration).

Obviously, you don't need an attic or roof mount antenna to enjoy local channels over-the-air. The signals are strong in the Omaha area, and a simple pair of rabbit ears will get you most everything.

(I'll review several otherantenna models in the coming weeks).

But it is kind of fun to bring new life to an antenna that has sat unused for decades.

What's fun about using something so old is that you realize just how many historic events this antenna might have witnessed when it was first installed years ago.

Special thanks to my dad for aiding in the rewiring and routing today!

Read yesterday's blog post: CBS Takes Big Brother "Over the Top"