# Terk HDTVa Indoor Amplified HD Antenna



## Rob052067 (Nov 20, 2008)

I live within the city limits of Columbus, OH, about 8 miles from downtown. I just wanted to pass along my experience with two indoor antennas:

I recently swapped out this antenna:
"GE 24775 Quantum Indoor HDTV Antenna"
http://www.amazon.com/24775-Quantum-Indoor-HDTV-Antenna/dp/B000W8XQJC/ref=pd_sxp_grid_pt_2_0

...for this one:
"Terk HDTVa Indoor Amplified High-Definition Antenna"
http://www.amazon.com/Terk-Amplifie...1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1231216800&sr=8-1

I've found across-the-board improvements in signal strength by 10-20% on each channel with the Terk (ie: 66% now 76% on one distant channel and 80% now 100% on one nearby channel).

Both models are amplified (ie: you need to plug them in to electrical outlet for best signals). The Terk has a thicker cable (ie: coaxial), but not sure if that makes any difference.

*Additional info for newbies like me:* It's very easy to attach an antenna cable to the back of your Dish receiver, and pretty simple process to run the local channel scan. And, yes, you do need to subscribe to locals from Dish if you want the OTA channels to appear in the guide with programming info.

Even if Dish already offers HD-Locals in your area, by adding an OTA, you'll have access to your local channels on a 3rd tuner and the ability to record 3 different programs at once (ie: two over satellite and one over the air). The other benefit to the OTA is to have a backup tuner in case severe weather interrupts the satellite signal (which is pretty rare). The only drawback is that the OTA signal is less compressed and takes up more hard drive space on the DVR than satellite signals.


----------



## BattleZone (Nov 13, 2007)

I'm glad you've found it to work for you, but in general, Terk antennas are high-fashion junk, giving you low performance at high prices.

I use a $13 bowtie external antenna that is about 12"x18" tall, and even if I used it indoors, it would destroy Terk's best antenna.

Terk is the "Monster Cable" of antennas.


----------



## hdaddikt (Jul 2, 2005)

I gave up on my indoor antenna. I found them more trouble than they are worth. So I took my Silver Sensor and mounted it under my eaves and ran 30' of RG6 to a flat-coax under the window cable, then to my 622.
The difference was amazing! Locals bang in at the 80 to 100 range all the time.
This may not be good enough for fringe areas, or where there are a lot of obstacles but it is worth a try.

Inline coax or commercial grade line amplifiers are handy for extra long cable runs and feeding multiple splitters, and that's about it. That's their real forte. The ones provided with an indoor antenna are marginal at best IMO.

Monster cable does work as well as any other cable, it is just way over-priced. Not sure you could say the same about Terk. They just don't work that well in my experience.


----------



## Rob052067 (Nov 20, 2008)

IIP said:


> I'm glad you've found it to work for you, but in general, Terk antennas are high-fashion junk, giving you low performance at high prices.
> 
> I use a $13 bowtie external antenna that is about 12"x18" tall, and even if I used it indoors, it would destroy Terk's best antenna.
> 
> Terk is the "Monster Cable" of antennas.


I haven't tried any with a bowtie style UHF antenna. The first one I tried was an non-amplified RCA model (about $15) with rabbit ears and a standard round UHF antenna. It only picked up about 1/2 the local channels, and not with very high signal strengths.

I was using the GE model noted above for several months. It did OK, but most of the signal strengths were in the mid-70's, and I'd get signal breakup whenever it wasn't the clearest of skies. It still came in real handy last fall during a carriage dispute between TWC and the owner of my local CW affiliate. Since the station was pulled from TWC and Dish doesn't provide HD locals yet here, it was nice to still be able to get Smallville and Supernatural in HD via the OTA.

So far, this Terk model is doing great. It may not be so good for distant suburbs, but it seems to be doing very well in the city limits. I doubt there's many indoor models that do any good in the burbs or in rural areas.


----------



## butters (Sep 25, 2007)

I have the aforementioned Terk temporarily set up in my walkout basement with hundreds of trees between me and the tower farm 32 miles away and I get 65 to 85 signals and no dropouts except on windy days. I was actually quite surprised at how well it did considering the distance and antenna placement.


----------



## arxaw (Jul 13, 2003)

Rob052067 said:


> ...So far, this Terk model is doing great. It may not be so good for distant suburbs, but it seems to be doing very well in the city limits...


So does *this antenna*. It's highly rated in tests and a fraction of the cost of a terk. And yes, a fatter (RG6) coax should have less signal loss than a thin coax. That doesn't mean the antennas are equal, though.

The terk you bought is one of their better ones. Most all of them are overpriced and most are junk. Retailers like and promote them because of their high profit margins.


----------



## FTA Michael (Jul 21, 2002)

In a word, ditto. My experience with Terk suggests that their stuff is pricy and not a strong performer. I always suggest that you either try to get by with inexpensive rabbit ears or do it right and add a more serious outdoor antenna.


----------



## reddice (Feb 18, 2003)

IIP said:


> I'm glad you've found it to work for you, but in general, Terk antennas are high-fashion junk, giving you low performance at high prices.


That is the kind of talk that made me waste money on that RadioShack UFO crud antenna. I switched back to my Terk HDTVi the non amplified version and I get the stations more reliably than with the other amplified RadioShack UFO. If you go on AVSForums and search for my posts. I am on the same username you will see how displeased I was with the UFO and I like the Terk much better. I might even get the amplified version but I will wait until after February.


----------



## arxaw (Jul 13, 2003)

reddice said:


> That is the kind of talk that made me waste money on that RadioShack UFO crud antenna


A lot of people want to think there's some new "digital" antenna available, that doesn't look like an antenna and magically works everywhere. This is not true.


----------



## hdaddikt (Jul 2, 2005)

I fussed with indoor antennae long enough (gave up on Terks some time ago) .. took my Silver Sensor and mounted in under the eaves just outside a nearby window. Ran the cable under the window with a 'flat' coax. The difference in gain was huge!
Unless you are talking about a quality amp used with a quality antenna for fringe, or a quality amp for multi-room distribution, most amps don't do diddly..and often amplify noise.


----------



## wreck (Oct 27, 2007)

The truth of the matter is *ALL *OTA antennas are a crap shoot! Everyone's situation is completely unique and what works great for some -- are positively useless to others. Location,terrain, distance from the antenna farm, etc. have more to do with one's reception than the brand of antenna they have. Having an amplified antenna too close to the tower will harm you as much as not enough amplification when you are further away.


----------



## dpd146 (Oct 1, 2005)

I use this antenna when I hook up my tv outside. It works good but I am looking for a more permanent solution. Has anyone used the indoor/outdoor antenna from monoprice.

http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=109&cp_id=10901&cs_id=1090102&p_id=4730&seq=1&format=2

This would be perfect for my setup but don't want to waste the money if it is junk.


----------



## sum_random_dork (Aug 21, 2008)

I have an antenna very close to that I purchased at Home Depot, it works great for me. I have a feeling they're the exact same antenna just under different brand names. I tried a few different antennas w/out any success. This one was super easy to mount and can be adjusted as needed quickly. I am about 30 miles or more from the towers with mountains, trees, powerlines, and an airport in between.


----------



## wreck (Oct 27, 2007)

dpd146 said:


> I use this antenna when I hook up my tv outside. It works good but I am looking for a more permanent solution. Has anyone used the indoor/outdoor antenna from monoprice.
> 
> http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=109&cp_id=10901&cs_id=1090102&p_id=4730&seq=1&format=2
> 
> This would be perfect for my setup but don't want to waste the money if it is junk.


I do use that model from Monoprice! It works very well for *me*. I'm in the suburbs in Dallas about 29 miles from the antenna farm. I use mine inside and it works best for me if I put it in a window sill.


----------



## dpd146 (Oct 1, 2005)

Sounds good. I will pick one up when they are back in stock. I am about 20 miles from towers and with the outside install it should be good to go.

Thanks


----------



## joshjr (Aug 2, 2008)

I used several indoor antenna's that did not work. Now I use a Channel Master Stealth Antenna with a pre-amp. It works great for towers about 35 miles away. Mounts to an old Satellite pole on the roof. Works great.


----------



## mesalum (Jan 29, 2009)

I just bought a house. I was playing around in the attic and found a Channel Master Stealth antenna mounted in the rafters. Upon hooking it up to the OTA tuner on the VIP211 I get 65-75 signal strength. It does a great job. It looks like the material used on the roof has a aluminum foil backing.



joshjr said:


> I used several indoor antenna's that did not work. Now I use a Channel Master Stealth Antenna with a pre-amp. It works great for towers about 35 miles away. Mounts to an old Satellite pole on the roof. Works great.


----------



## joshjr (Aug 2, 2008)

mesalum said:


> I just bought a house. I was playing around in the attic and found a Channel Master Stealth antenna mounted in the rafters. Upon hooking it up to the OTA tuner on the VIP211 I get 65-75 signal strength. It does a great job. It looks like the material used on the roof has a aluminum foil backing.


If you buy and install the pre-amp it will help your signal. There is a specific pre-amp for that model of antenna its a Channel Master 3039. After I put it in my signa increased by 30-40%.


----------

