I don't consider myself unique in saying that paying 30-50$ for basic cable is a freaking Joke! The channel selection is awful, the picture quality is less than desirable, it may require an external tuner and have I mentioned yet that you pay 30-50$ A MONTH!!
The great news for individuals living in or around the Chicago land area is that you no longer have to shell out money to the big cable guys to enjoy much of what can be found on Basic Cable. Digital Television (DTV) is now offered in a majority of metropolitan areas throughout the United States. DTV is transmitted over the air meaning that the signal is delivered to your set top box using those good old Bunny/Rabbit Ears. While the Rabbit Ears may be good for some individuals there is no replacement for displacement. A good rule of thumb is the larger the antenna the more reliable the picture quality. It's also best to mount your antenna at the highest point in your room &/or house.
Living in Plainfield IL places me roughly ~35 from the TV Towers in Chicago pumping out 20-30 DTV (Digital TV Stations). Knowing that 99% of the channels I wish to receive will be coming from Chicago allows me to purchase antennas that are tunned to receive a signal from a single location. Using Uni-Directional antennas may provide a cleaner more consistent signal since they will ignore reflected or bounced signals. Many individuals that tune into DTV programing may experience periodic signal loss or jitter which may be caused by the antenna receiving reflected signals.
Gear
- ClearStream5 (High Gain Digital VHF Antenna) ($120)– I already purchased a great Uni-Directional UHF antenna but needed an Antenna to pickup ABC & CBS which both are broadcasted in VHF in Chicago. I was also looking for an antenna that was compact in size since it will be mounted in my attic. The ClearStream5 fit the bill with a compact design, high gain over the upper VHF spectrum (Channels 7-12), and included a VHF + UHF combiner. The ClearStream5 has a rated reception range of 65+ miles making it a perfect match for my location.
- 43XG (Uni-Directional UHF Antenna) ($70) – 98% of all DTV stations being broadcasted in the Chicago land area in UHF. Having a tuned directional UHF antenna is ideal since all signals are coming from down town Chicago. The 43XG has a reception range of 15-60 miles.
- Radioshack 15-1170 In-Line Signal Amplifier ($40) – The In-Line amplifier is perfect for long runs of coax. In my case I have a 100' run of Coax from the attic to the basement where my 6 way coax splitter rests. It's also a great idea to amplify the single prior to being distributed throughout your house since there is signal loss associated with splitting the signal.
- 6 Way Low-Loss Coax Splitter ($8)
- 100' of Coax Cable ($18)
Both of the antennas are mounted to a single dowel rod attached to a single beam in my attic. Installing them in my attic reduces the effective range of the antennas from 30-40%. This is why it was important to purchase antennas that were rated up to 60+ miles. The total cost of the entire setup not including labor is 256$. If you are doing this on your own you are looking at a full day project. A majority of the time will be spent running cable from the top of your roof or your attic to the coax distribution box.
Channel Listing
- CBS (VHF)
- NBC (UHF) [2 Sub Channels]
- ABC (VHF) [2 Sub Channels]
- WGN (UHF) [1 Sub Channel]
- PBS|WTTW (UHF) [3 Sub Channels]
- WYCCDT (UHF) [2 Sub Channel]
- WCIUDT2 (UHF)
- WCIUDT (UHF) [5 Sub Channels]
- FOX (UHF)
- WWTODT (UHF) [4 Sub Channels]
- WCPXDT (UHF) [3 Sub Channels]
- WSNSDT (UHF) [1 Sub Channel]
- WCIUDT3 (UHF)
- WPWRDT (UHF)
- WYINDT (UHF) [1 Sub Channel]
- WXFTDT (UHF) [1 Sub Channel]
- WJYSDT (UHF) [1 Sub Channel]