Foo - OK, I REALLY need some help with this TV antenna.... I mean really... pleeeease

There is a TV channel called Qubo. Is supposedly transmitting from around 60 miles Melbourne FL (I'm in Orlando), on the digital channel "56.2".

I "discover" this channel by accident when trying to improve my TV reception in the living room, I combined 3 cheap indoor antennas, hooked them up to an amplifier and voila, I discover Qubo after the first "channel scan".

It's a kids channel and my kido's LOVE it. But reception is very poor and the picture stops all the time.

Being a DIY'rselfer, I tried to do a "coat hanger" antenna like this guy shows on this video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWQhlmJTMzw).

I ended up with kinda a monstrosity (pics will follow tomorrow) that picks up most channels but no Qubo. I have 42 effin' elements in different sizes. As I added different sized elements, different channels started to show up.

As of now, I'm still having trouble with the ones in the 40-50 range... And of course, Qubo on 56.2

I KNOW there are some really bored engineers out there. If you could please figure out what size do I need to cut the elements for better reception of the 56.2 I would appreciate it lots lots lots.

I don't even know what is the Mhz I'm hunting for... but I desperately want to receive this Qubo channel.

A little update.... according to this page (http://www.csgnetwork.com/tvfreqtable.html), the channel "56" is supposed to be in between 722-728Mhz and is in the UHF band.

Also, this page (http://uhfhdtvantenna.blogspot.com/) has something very similar to what I'm trying to do, except that I don't have the tinfoil.

Drive around looking for a house that still has the old style TV antenna still mounted. Ask them if they are using it and offer to take it down for them "as a safety issue not to attract lightning."

I have one of those in my attic (thanks to HOA rules) from pre-cable days. Too much trouble to remove it, so it stayed - and good during hurricaines as cable is the last to be repaired since the electrical they lease the poles from needs to be done first.

Last year, had a digitation problem that took Brighthouse several trips to resolve. Turns out, the tuner on the old CRT in the bedroom was backfeeding electrical current into the cable system, actually shocking the technician when he was troubleshooting. Apparently, that is a major problem as backfeed can affect neighbor's reception and they have no idea where coming from until the problem house calls in a service request.

On a fluke, with the bedroom line disconnected resolving the cable issue, connected it to the antenna (and one of thosse 'free' converter boxes). Amazingly, I was pulling in stations from Daytona, Melbourne, everywhere - when in the analog days would only pull in ch2. Didn't check for 56.2 as was amazed that pulling in so many. Since bought a new TV and back on cable, but keeping the antenna as hurricaine backup.

You want a big-@ss antenna on the roof. Easily 10x the signal strength of puny indoor units. Mount it ass high as possible and aimed at the tower that's broadcasting your show. They have remote-controlled ones so that you can spin it around to get optimum reception for each of your favourite stations.

You want a big-@ss antenna on the roof. Easily 10x the signal strength of puny indoor units. Mount it ass high as possible and aimed at the tower that's broadcasting your show. They have remote-controlled ones so that you can spin it around to get optimum reception for each of your favourite stations.

Relatively speaking? :rolleyes:

Clearly you need to stop playing with the TV antennae and so what you do best... I think we all know what that is.

Yes on the roof-mounted ant.

But at my house I just use an amplified ant. with the gain turned all the way up. Not sure if the gain cranked is necessary, though...

Clearly you need to stop playing with the TV antennae and so what you do best... I think we all know what that is.


Hey, he is trying to tune in tokyo, as it were.

Hey, he is trying to tune in tokyo, as it were.

He is trying to breed often enough to start a cult is what he's doing.

What if he's asking our help to build a transmitter?

I will be worried when he takes apart a speakandspell and an old pushbutton wired phone.

I will be worried when he takes apart a speakandspell and an old pushbutton wired phone.

Who knows... maybe he already has.

have you consider streaming live over the interwebz?

Have you played with the antenna location and orientation? One place I lived, with the antenna in one spot I picked up two channels. If I moved it across the room and turned it about 70 degrees I got three different channels.

check craiglist for a db8 and stick it on the roof. http://www.antennasdirect.com/store/DB8-Antenna-Refurbished.html

Sorry that I owe you the pics. You would love to have a look at the mess I have on the table right now. Not the kitchen table tho. As you might guess, the pregnant cohabitant has lay down some rules and boundaries... anyway, the den's table is the current project and experimentation area...

I had no progress today. I stayed up all night last night doing research and was too tired to get anything done today. Plus it was raining so no chance of playing with the antenna on the roof (I know somebody is gonna twist that statement).

There are 2 current contraptions being tested. One is bolted to the bedroom's ceiling where pregnant cohabitant is sleeping, hence no pics atm. The 2nd one is small and unimpressive, but will picture it later. You will see!

After my research, it seems my best for getting that Qubo channel from Melbourne is to make a directional Yagi antenna pointed that way. As soon as I find out how to build the thing (measurements and stuff) I shall try that.

All I know if that if I persevere, I shall succeed. Thou shall all be amazed when I finish constructing the Rube's HangerMeister 2011 (TM). It's gonna be a mix of Rabit Ear/Yagi designs and it's gonna have like 2000 hangers in it.

I had no progress today. I stayed up all night last night doing research and was too tired to get anything done today. Plus it was raining so no chance of playing with the antenna on the roof (I know somebody is gonna twist that statement).
Uh, Rube, we didn't mean to put a regular antenna on the roof. I think we all meant to get an antenna that is made specifically go to on the roof.

Forget the damn television.Take the kids out and play some street-hockey.

Uh, Rube, we didn't mean to put a regular antenna on the roof. I think we all meant to get an antenna that is made specifically go to on the roof.

No, we meant strip down, wrap yourself in tin foil (however you see fit - princess lea bikini is acceptable), shove one end of a coaxial cable up your ass, attach the other to the tv, climb on the roof, and dance until your reception comes in. Then find that pose and hold it until your kids outgrow Qubo.

.....or untill the lightning zaps his wick.

Yeah, but that'll only improve the reception with all that extra energy running through the system.

Forget the damn television.Take the kids out and play some street-hockey.

That would be difficult because we have no ice on the street. Plus not being Canucks we would probably suck at it even more than at receiving TV signals.

Again, no luck today, I was to tired. But I shall not give in until I get that Qubo channel!

You play street hockey with a ball, and no ice.

I'm down in St. Pete and I get all three of the local Ion/Qubo channels, for me 66.1. 66.2 and 66.3. With Qubo being in the middle. The only real problem that I have is that I have a tendency to "loose" certain channels depending on the weather or sunspot activity. Or even after watching a channel for several hours to have it suddenly and without warning drop it's signal on me.

That and it doesn't hurt that most of the station's transmitters are to the southeast of me and one or two are to the north of me.

Add to that that I live in an apartment so erecting an external antenna is a no-no, and that I am living on a fixed income I can't afford either cable or satellite service. So my only option is an indoor antenna.

I also find that some days besides changing the the orientation of my antenna, that I also have to move it to a different location. I have also found that even though the "logical" place to put an antenna i.e. on or near the TV set doesn't work, and that I have to locate it in my bedroom.

It would have been nice if Congress and the FCC had given more thought to what the common man would have to go through to watch over the air TV service. I'd called one time to complain about all the reception problems that I have had and the gal that I spoke with actually had the nerve to tell me that I would have to learn to live without TV or some channels.

Ain't that a kick in the ass?

But no kids, and I love Qubo.

That would be difficult because we have no ice on the street.
Oh, Ruben....

Do you think we have ice-covered streets in the winter, Ruben?

...
But no kids, and I love Qubo.

Well.. yeah I really like the Qubo channel too, by myself.


Oh, Ruben....

Do you think we have ice-covered streets in the winter, Ruben?

Oh yes... everything above FL is ice country... in fact even north FL is considered a frozen thundra by Rube' standards.

Success!

http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/nn53/RubenX_Longwood/Other/kubo1.jpg

Had to put several small antennas outside, with a signal amplifier, but is very good now. Here are the promised pics:

http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/nn53/RubenX_Longwood/Other/bowtie2.jpg
The Centipede - A big "bowtie" array.

http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/nn53/RubenX_Longwood/Other/bowtie1.jpg
Centipede again.

http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/nn53/RubenX_Longwood/Other/small-bowtie.jpg
Smaller 4-bay bowtie used during research.

http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/nn53/RubenX_Longwood/Other/yagi.jpg
Failed yagi lies on the ground.

http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/nn53/RubenX_Longwood/Other/kubo2.jpg
I believe I can get it even better but so far, no glitches with the 50%~ signal strength. Heck I'm getting Qubo better than some local channels.

It would have been nice if Congress and the FCC had given more thought to what the common man would have to go through to watch over the air TV service.

I apologize if this was posted twice...

Have you looked at the FCC OTARD rules? You can do a lot more than most people think they can, even in apartments and neighborhoods with CC&Rs. Go the FCC web site and search for "OTARD" which means over the air reception devices rule. I tried to post a link, but it looks like they have screwed up their website and I'm unable to post a link to the actual page. Old links posted on forums don't work, I had to go directly to the FCC web site and do a search. Basically in almost all cases you can put up an outside antenna even if CC&Rs or HOAs or landlords "prohibit" it.

Edit: The link seems to work now: http://transition.fcc.gov/mb/facts/otard.html

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But no kids, and I love Qubo.

I like Qubo too! 321 Penguins, Jacob two two, and Jane and the Dragon. :)

Wow, I've forgotten about this project. I'm still at 50%-58% reception on qubo by using 4 dipole antennas hanging from the ceiling @ the porch. They all get joined in 4-way splitter combiner and amplified. Then split again and cables go to the 4 tvs in the house. All tvs have the same level of reception now and it's been working pretty good.

I still wanna make it better but this is on hold for now. Rube have too many projects and little free time.

From the looks at the abandoned roof antenna and dent in the ground next to it,I would also stick to an indoor antenna(unless you can fly now).