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TV antennas
started by arcticcatmatt
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April 7th 2009 at 9:41 AM
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arcticcatmatt
Spleen Splitter
arcticcatmatt leaving after work for 3 days of shotgun season back home!
Updated This afternoon at 12:16 PM
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14004 Posts 
Group: Moderators
Member Since: November 25th 2001
Location: Berkshire, NY, USA
Current Sled: 96/97 ZRT 600
2008-2009 Miles: 450
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I had our cable turned off a week or so ago and I am not toying with other options.
I do not have an HDtv but I do have the converter box. It appears that everyone is still broadcasting analog till June.
Anyways, I got an antenna from my sister that is pretty crappy, it was missing 5 large "limbs" because a tree fell on it. I bought 20 feet of pipe and attached it to my fence so it is 20 feet in the air (didn't put it on my roof because I have a metal roof and I read online that if you have a metal roof you have to mount the antenna more than 10 feet above it to avoid interference).
I ran maybe 170 feet of coaxial cable from the antenna to my hub in the basement. I only get 2 channels and they are VERY bad quality. I have no booster in place and I rotated the antenna only to have it fade in and out.
I have been reading on tvfool.com and some other tv antenna websites but it can get very confusing as to what setup I got to have in order to get some channels.
Does anyone have experience in this? If I can tune in NBC/CBS/ABC pretty clear.. we will stay with the cable shut off.
I am just worried that I am going to go buy more crap and have it not work and I wasted my money.
Also, what is FTA sat. dishes?
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Site Supporter
Group: Site Supporters
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April 7th 2009 at 9:44 AM
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dtmmil
Senior Member
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3180 Posts 
Group: Members
Member Since: January 27th 2007
Location: Hawley, MN, USA
Current Sled: 99 xc700
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I know almost nothing about what you want to do, but any money you are spending on that ant. is wasted at this point isn't it. June is not that far away.
Clutched
Jetted, boyesen reed petals, boost bottle, 98xc carbs slides, 1371 needles, gutted air box
Homeade 7 1/2" riser
Homeade suspension drop brackets
shortened and blackened windshield
powermadd handguards
144 conversion, tracks usa extensions, custom tunnel extension and rear bumper, IQ flap, 1.25" track
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April 7th 2009 at 9:58 AM
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arcticcatmatt
Spleen Splitter
arcticcatmatt leaving after work for 3 days of shotgun season back home!
Updated This afternoon at 12:16 PM
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14004 Posts
Group: Moderators
Member Since: November 25th 2001
Location: Berkshire, NY, USA
Current Sled: 96/97 ZRT 600
2008-2009 Miles: 450
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^ Why is it wasted? It will still work in June just fine. I have the converter box that converts the digital signal to analog for my tv.
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April 7th 2009 at 10:01 AM
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dtmmil
Senior Member
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3180 Posts
Group: Members
Member Since: January 27th 2007
Location: Hawley, MN, USA
Current Sled: 99 xc700
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I misread, I thought it said you did not have the box, sorry man. Can I ask why not cable?
Clutched
Jetted, boyesen reed petals, boost bottle, 98xc carbs slides, 1371 needles, gutted air box
Homeade 7 1/2" riser
Homeade suspension drop brackets
shortened and blackened windshield
powermadd handguards
144 conversion, tracks usa extensions, custom tunnel extension and rear bumper, IQ flap, 1.25" track
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April 7th 2009 at 10:23 AM
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700RMK136
Drift Digger
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128 Posts 
Group: Members
Member Since: February 9th 2007
Location: Willmar, MN, USA
Current Sled: 2002 RMK 700 136
2008-2009 Miles: 315 :(
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Have you tried the rabbit ear type antenna?
2002 RMK 700
3" Riser
94 XLT 2" paddles
8,000 miles and going strong
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April 7th 2009 at 10:37 AM
[ Modified April 7th 2009 at 10:39 AM
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Mustangnut6788
Thunderstruck
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736 Posts 
Group: Members
Member Since: January 29th 2006
Location: NE, OH, USA
Current Sled: 99 Thundercat
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First of all I think you are going to need to be a lot higher up than 20ft. I've been using farmervision since I was a kid and can usually pick up abc/cbs/nbc/fox/cw/pbs. Try to keep it as close to your house as possible. Your also fighting a loosing battle with that antenna if it has those "limbs" missing. There are different configurations on antennas for different purposes. You will want to find one that picks up UHF and VHF. Don't bother with the rabbit ears. Unless you live real close to the source the reception isn't that good. How about posting a picture up of yours for us.
Here are a couple questions you may want to look into:
How far is the nearest broadcasting site? (In miles)
What elevation is the broadcasting site?
What elevation are you in relationship to the broadcasting site?
I live about 35 minutes NE of downtown Cleveland and I have a pretty good selection of channels. I can't see spending the $50 a month when half the time there isn't much on anyhow. So I see your rationale.
What's in my toy box:
1999 Arctic Cat Thundercat 1000
1988 Mustang GT 5.0L / 1993 Mustang Coupe / 1993 Mustang GT 5.0L
2000 F-150
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April 7th 2009 at 10:49 AM
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srx_600
www.snowmobilehotspots.com
srx_600 if its gonna be this warm i would rather have it be summer...
Updated Yesterday at 8:28 PM
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2295 Posts
Group: Members
Member Since: April 29th 2007
Location: South Dakota, USA
Current Sled: 2003 RMK 700 151
2008-2009 Miles: 1200
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If you are sticking with the antenna why not look into like a $50 one? It would be an investment at first but would pay for itself after 2 months of use for sure.
Like this one maybe?
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April 7th 2009 at 10:51 AM
[ Modified April 7th 2009 at 10:55 AM
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arcticcatmatt
Spleen Splitter
arcticcatmatt leaving after work for 3 days of shotgun season back home!
Updated This afternoon at 12:16 PM
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14004 Posts
Group: Moderators
Member Since: November 25th 2001
Location: Berkshire, NY, USA
Current Sled: 96/97 ZRT 600
2008-2009 Miles: 450
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^ I am looking at all options. That one is weak. mustangnut- I will take a picture tonight. Nearest stations are 20-30 miles away. www.tvfool.com seems to lay it out there pretty good. I am going to play with that to see what I need to do. Quote originally posted by dtmmil Can I ask why not cable? $50 bucks a month I do not want to spend when 1. I never watch TV 2. When I do, its the news and/or cbs/nbc/abc
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April 7th 2009 at 11:29 AM
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hardmikke6996
Junior Member
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170 Posts
Group: Members
Member Since: January 29th 2009
Location: sherburn, mn
Current Sled: 94 polaris 580 xlt sp
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ok i have done alot of these for friends, first put it on ur roof as high as u can get 20 feet should be enough, limit the amount of coaxial it just will weaken the signal, and try to get a booster it will help. when you mount it on ur roof u need 2 ppl one to adjust it and one to tell you weak or strong for the picture.
let me know how it turns out.
get up boy cause u catching one in the FACE
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April 7th 2009 at 11:31 AM
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Quinlan
Department of Corrections
Quinlan is a little disappointed that he received HMK Highmark 4 boots instead of the Highmark Pros as he had anticipated...
Updated Over an hour ago
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9718 Posts
Group: Moderators
Member Since: December 8th 2003
Location: Fargo, ND, USA
Current Sled: 06 SP 440/700, 98 ZR 600
2008-2009 Miles: 365
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I'm not sure if it's a problem in your area, but back home people have been bitching about those converter boxes. At our farm, we used to pick up 5 stations...with the box we are only picking up maybe 2 on a good day. The closer you are to a broadcasting station, the better off they are. For us, our farm is 50 miles from the nearest station.
2006 Arctic Cat SnoPro 440/700 EFI
1998 Arctic Cat ZR 600 EFI Custom
1996 Ski-Doo FormulaIII 600
A mountain lion roaming the prairie found a bull, killed it and ate the entire bull. With a heavy belly, unable to walk, the lion laid in the tall grass moaning and roaring. Soon a hunter, attracted by the roaring, shot and killed the lion.
Moral: When you're full of bull, keep your mouth shut!
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April 7th 2009 at 11:36 AM
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dtmmil
Senior Member
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3180 Posts
Group: Members
Member Since: January 27th 2007
Location: Hawley, MN, USA
Current Sled: 99 xc700
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Same as Quinlan, my inlaws got one, and lost one channel, and the others got worse, they live less than 25 miles from theirs.
Clutched
Jetted, boyesen reed petals, boost bottle, 98xc carbs slides, 1371 needles, gutted air box
Homeade 7 1/2" riser
Homeade suspension drop brackets
shortened and blackened windshield
powermadd handguards
144 conversion, tracks usa extensions, custom tunnel extension and rear bumper, IQ flap, 1.25" track
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April 7th 2009 at 11:36 AM
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erick
Alternate Realities
erick pretty much excited that it's Friday, though there are no plans for the weekend yet!
Updated This morning at 11:45 AM
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11495 Posts 
Group: Administrators
Member Since: April 10th 2001
Location: Strathcona, MN, USA
Current Sled: IQr 800 & RMK 800
2008-2009 Miles: 800
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Quote originally posted by arcticcatmatt
$50 bucks a month I do not want to spend when
1. I never watch TV
2. When I do, its the news and/or cbs/nbc/abc
Reason enough not to have TV at all. I never watch TV either. If my roommate didn't want cable TV, I wouldn't pay for it. I find news online and I can watch my Family Guy on Hulu.
Don't waste your time and money on this antenna bull crap, just drop the idea of TV all together.
Breaking free from the thoughts in my mind
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April 7th 2009 at 11:43 AM
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arcticcatmatt
Spleen Splitter
arcticcatmatt leaving after work for 3 days of shotgun season back home!
Updated This afternoon at 12:16 PM
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14004 Posts
Group: Moderators
Member Since: November 25th 2001
Location: Berkshire, NY, USA
Current Sled: 96/97 ZRT 600
2008-2009 Miles: 450
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^ The female in the house says that isn't going to happen  but I am with you 100%
I just went to sears, best buy, radioshack. No selection, worthless information. So I will keep looking into it tonight as to what I need. The website says I need a blue or violet rated antenna and a booster. I don't mind buying the stuff but if it doesn't work I am screwed. I want to buy it from somewhere I can return it to.
It is NOT going on my roof. I have read too many bad things online about trying to have an antenna and a metal roof. The only success stories were over 10 foot higher than the roof. Putting my antenna on a 20 foot pole on my fence put it as high as the roof of my house.
I know I am going to need a vhf/uhf antenna that has a rotor and a booster.
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April 7th 2009 at 11:44 AM
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MACHZRider
"!nmad !rettilps neelps pu deeps"
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447 Posts
Group: Members
Member Since: November 17th 2007
Location: West Chester, PA, USA
Current Sled: 2002 Arctic Cat ZL600 EFI
2008-2009 Miles: 712
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Matt- I have an antenna thingy from radio shack it has a built in amplifier thing. I hook it up to your tv and you get the main local channels clear. You can tune it and mess with it to get a good pic. I'll try to get the model. It is packed away right now but we used it when we moved last year.
edit: it was 15-1880 from radio shack. works great and is cheap. I dont think they make it anymore but if you can find one get one. They had good reviews too.
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April 7th 2009 at 12:12 PM
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TRICKPaint
Paint that's good for your cranium
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2509 Posts
Group: Members
Member Since: May 25th 2006
Location: Mount Vernon, OH, USA
Current Sled: '05 Renegade 600 HO-SDI
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Quote originally posted by arcticcatmatt
^ I am looking at all options. That one is weak.
mustangnut- I will take a picture tonight. Nearest stations are 20-30 miles away. www.tvfool.com seems to lay it out there pretty good. I am going to play with that to see what I need to do.
Quote originally posted by dtmmil
Can I ask why not cable?
$50 bucks a month I do not want to spend when
1. I never watch TV
2. When I do, its the news and/or cbs/nbc/abc
I have been 6 months w/out satelite or local and really have not missed it, and like you say; "it's saving me @ $40.00 a month for basic satelite."
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April 7th 2009 at 12:19 PM
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arcticcatmatt
Spleen Splitter
arcticcatmatt leaving after work for 3 days of shotgun season back home!
Updated This afternoon at 12:16 PM
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14004 Posts
Group: Moderators
Member Since: November 25th 2001
Location: Berkshire, NY, USA
Current Sled: 96/97 ZRT 600
2008-2009 Miles: 450
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Quote originally posted by MACHZRider
Matt- I have an antenna thingy from radio shack it has a built in amplifier thing. I hook it up to your tv and you get the main local channels clear. You can tune it and mess with it to get a good pic. I'll try to get the model. It is packed away right now but we used it when we moved last year.
edit: it was 15-1880 from radio shack. works great and is cheap. I dont think they make it anymore but if you can find one get one. They had good reviews too.
I live too far away for those types according to antennaweb.org I pretty much have to have a blue or violet rated antenna
This one "qualifies" and has GREAT reviews everywhere I look. I might be able to put this one 10 feet above my roof http://www.amazon.com/Terk-HDTVO-HDtv-An...B0009W9WHQ
Trying to figure out where to buy it so I can return it if it is crap.
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April 7th 2009 at 1:15 PM
[ Modified April 7th 2009 at 1:50 PM
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build your own its cheap works great and gets great reception. i built my own cuz i did not want to pay over 100 bucks for cable. between digital and analog i get over 40 channels ill take some pics and post back in a few i actually found this video on the net and thought wth ill give it a try and was really surprised when it worked. so i upgraded it a bit and used wire and ring terminals instead of the coat hanger wire inbetween and it works even better. http://www.metacafe.com/watch/762088/coa...t_amazing/
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April 7th 2009 at 1:31 PM
[ Modified April 7th 2009 at 1:39 PM
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sno700
Screw the yankees
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531 Posts
Group: Members
Member Since: February 6th 2008
Location: Redwood Falls, MN
Current Sled: 03 Edge X 700
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Wow if i lost my satelite t.v. for one day id go nucking futs. As a matter a fact i got sportscenter on right now as im typing this
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April 7th 2009 at 6:41 PM
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adam411
Advanced Member
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1669 Posts 
Group: Members
Member Since: September 7th 2006
Location: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Current Sled: 2003 Polaris 500 XCSP
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Sorry, Know nothing on antennas, but Im pretty good with the FTA's.
-FTA satellite television is very easy and cheap to run. If you go with the True Free-To-Air tv, then you will only get I think 5-10 channels. I recommend a viewsat FTA receiver. You can get a viewsat recevier on the net for not too expensive, near $100 or so. Then once you get your dish set up to the right settings you can pay $50 a year for site subscriptions or you can find them for free. What the site subscription does is when the satellite gets knocked out by dish network or whoever, they find you new keys which allow you to keep watching at $50 a year instead of $50 a month. With this you will get 300+ channels which include; nbc,ppv,gsn,discovery and so on.
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April 7th 2009 at 7:28 PM
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arcticcatmatt
Spleen Splitter
arcticcatmatt leaving after work for 3 days of shotgun season back home!
Updated This afternoon at 12:16 PM
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14004 Posts
Group: Moderators
Member Since: November 25th 2001
Location: Berkshire, NY, USA
Current Sled: 96/97 ZRT 600
2008-2009 Miles: 450
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Quote originally posted by Bobinwi
build your own its cheap works great and gets great reception. i built my own cuz i did not want to pay over 100 bucks for cable. between digital and analog i get over 40 channels ill take some pics and post back in a few
i actually found this video on the net and thought wth ill give it a try and was really surprised when it worked. so i upgraded it a bit and used wire and ring terminals instead of the coat hanger wire inbetween and it works even better.
http://www.metacafe.com/watch/762088/coa...t_amazing/
Nice. How far away are you from the transmissions? go to www.antennaweb.org and post your list
here is what I get for my house
Right now I only get the channel that is in the red but that is only after I just bought a booster. I got a booster tonight and it did not do much to the crappy cbs/nbc I got before in the low vhf channels. They were still snow filled. BUT I just plugged in the digital coverter box and on 34.1 I have CRYSTAL clear CBS. Amazing! But it is only one channel. I dont get anything else. I was going to buy that antenna I posted above tonight.. but now I am going to make what you have and see what happens. Only a few bucks to try it out. I am thinking I am too far away.
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April 7th 2009 at 7:58 PM
[ Modified April 7th 2009 at 8:00 PM
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its kinda weird cuz i get more stations then than listed. i get all of the pbs stations ION network and a few others that are digital only. ok just looked closer at the list lol one thing it doesnt list is the number of stations. pbs is 36.1 but i get 36.1 - 36.9 included in those is weather and traffic for the Milwaukee county hwy cams. and ion has like 7 stations. but those are all in the digital range.
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April 7th 2009 at 8:03 PM
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Polaris650rxl
Average Member
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641 Posts
Group: Members
Member Since: February 16th 2009
Location: Little Lake, MI, USA
Current Sled: 02 XCSP 600
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Internet and PS3 is all i need to survive indoors. Family Guy and American Dad full episodes can be seen on tbs.com so im set:) My parents have like 400 channels and they sit there all day searching. Once in a while find a good movie on HBO but other than that not worth it. I spend 90% of my time outdoors anyways.
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April 7th 2009 at 8:13 PM
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xc600rmk
Friend of Fast
xc600rmk need info on the exciter!!
Updated Last Sunday at 12:00 PM
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2046 Posts
Group: Members
Member Since: March 27th 2007
Location: Albion, NY, USA
Current Sled: 04 Pro-X 600,98XC600rmk
2008-2009 Miles: 1,700ish
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i had cable shut off and tried the digital crap..... after 1mo its blows i went back to cable,for the price of cable its worth it to me not to have a headache
*04 Pro-X 600-A few mods,and go-fast parts.......136" x 1.25" this winter
*98 XC600 and some RMK add ons-The sons ride this winter
*98 XCR440 and some SKS add ons------SOLD :-(
*83 Polaris Star 250
*90 Yamaha Exciter---Wanna trade even up for an Indy Trail,Or any Indy of equal Value!!
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April 7th 2009 at 8:44 PM
[ Modified April 7th 2009 at 8:45 PM
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arcticcatmatt
Spleen Splitter
arcticcatmatt leaving after work for 3 days of shotgun season back home!
Updated This afternoon at 12:16 PM
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14004 Posts
Group: Moderators
Member Since: November 25th 2001
Location: Berkshire, NY, USA
Current Sled: 96/97 ZRT 600
2008-2009 Miles: 450
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Quote originally posted by Bobinwi its kinda weird cuz i get more stations then than listed. i get all of the pbs stations ION network and a few others that are digital only. ok just looked closer at the list lol one thing it doesnt list is the number of stations. pbs is 36.1 but i get 36.1 - 36.9 included in those is weather and traffic for the Milwaukee county hwy cams. and ion has like 7 stations. but those are all in the digital range. Wow. Yours are farther away than the ones I am trying to pick up here. I am going to build one of those tomorrow. I am going to **** myself it it works. May work even better with my amp. If it doesn't work, I will order up that terk antenna with the great reviews and put it 10 feet over my roof. If that doesn't work, I will return it and lose my shipping and just go with the 1 channel I am getting now haha. Thanks! I will post up my results when I get them. Where did you get the wire? I don't want to use a coat hanger. Lowes? Home depot? I also bet my 170 feet of coaxial cable I am running is hurting me!
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April 7th 2009 at 8:45 PM
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pigboy
banned
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3105 Posts
Group: Members
Member Since: December 23rd 2002
Location: hermantown, mn, USA
Current Sled: 1997 XLTsp
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Quote originally posted by Bobinwi
build your own its cheap works great and gets great reception. i built my own cuz i did not want to pay over 100 bucks for cable. between digital and analog i get over 40 channels ill take some pics and post back in a few
i actually found this video on the net and thought wth ill give it a try and was really surprised when it worked. so i upgraded it a bit and used wire and ring terminals instead of the coat hanger wire inbetween and it works even better.
http://www.metacafe.com/watch/762088/coa...t_amazing/
That is awesome! I'm going to give it a try and see what I come up with.
I droped cable a few years back and have no regrets. Even better, because my kids have prettly limited choices for shows so they find other ways to entertain themselves.
I reject your reality and substitute my own. 
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