I really believe that anyone giving this a negative or low review of this product never bothered to find out what type of antenna they needed for their specific location. There is a web site created specifically for this purpose [..]. I followed the instructions on the site, ordered the appropriate antenna, aimed my antenna in the direction suggested, and low and behold I'm at a 98 signal strength (out of 100). Great success with this product. Antennas Direct DB4 Multi-Directional HDTV Antenna
The DB4 was the strongest antenna I have tried. It is also the only one that receives every digital station at nearly 40 miles from the Kansas City stations, (and my signal meter pegged.) I was even able to pick up a few out of area stations I was not expecting. The build quality is better than anything else I have seen.
I have recommended the DB4 to several friends who are also having similar success. It would be hard to screw up HD reception with a DB4, but I would not use an antenna as strong is this if you live less than 5 miles from the transmitters as you may encounter multipath interference.
Also keep in mind, even a great antenna can not make up for line of sight obstacles such as buildings and hills, and no antenna will it solve installation errors with, poor connections, splitters, long cable runs, low elevation or faulty tuners.
Our home is located down in a valley where it is impossible to get any local stations in - period - so please bare that in mind as you read our review. Usually, homes around us have either digital cable or satellite service. We have found the multi directional HDTV antenna does pick up stations clearly for the most part. However, for reasons we can't figure out at this time the signals come and go every so often - even on cloudless days. But, you get what you pay for. We are happy to be free of the cable bill of $65 a month for very basic cable or the ridiculous service we had with a horrible satellite company who robbed us blind with poor quality service. Thankfully, we have netflix when the antenna can't pick up the stations. We would, however, recommend purchase of this mutli directional HDTV antenna. We've tried others in the past and have gotten no signal whatsoever - so this is a great improvement. We would estimate a clear signal/sharp picture 90% of the time. I'm sure in time we'll figure out how to keep the sharp picture constant - save during bad storms when signals are expected to be lost.
This antenna is hands down, awesome. The J-bar and butterfly screws that are included give it a secure hold on just about any surface (brick, concrete, wood). For portability sake, I have the DB4 drilled into a cinder block, for ease of lining up the signals. Use a compass! Don't guess. You'll quickly see that this antenna does exactly what your money pays for and more.
If you are trying to decide between an indoor antenna and outdoor. Look no further. Outdoor is much more reliable ... when it rains or snows, this one has never failed me. Don't be fooled by amplifiers, you don't need it with the DB4 if you have outdoor access and 50-75ft of cable distance.
I spent more time fretting over which antenna to buy than I should have. The fact is that digital TV (DTV) and HDTV are simply a UHF broadcast. ANY UHF antenna should provide some signal. The reason for purchasing a high gain antenna (such as the DB4) is that with digital, a good signal means a perfect picture. A poor signal means no picture. There is no fuzzy middle ground.
Here is a summary of the tips I gathered while researching antennas. The more closely you follow these steps, the better your results will be.
1) Go to www.antennaweb.org and click on "Choose and antenna" to determine the distance and direction of the channels you want to get.
2) If possible, mount the antenna on the roof. Attic mounting will result in 40 - 50% signal loss.
3) Orient the antenna as accurately as possible. If you have one, use a compass and the heading you got from antennaweb.org. UHF is directional, so the more accurate the direction, the better the signal.
4) Use RG-6 (Satellite) coax cable and keep the run as short as practical. The same length of RG-59 (CATV) cable will result in much more signal loss.
That said, here's what was working against me. 1) I am a fairly distant 40 miles from all of the transmitters. 2) I didn't feel like messing around on the roof, so I mounted the antenna in the attic. If interested, my antenna mount consisted of a scrap piece of conduit and a spare conduit strap. Total cost should be less than $4. On the plus side, I did aim the antenna as best as possible and I had a fairly short length (32 feet) of RG-6.
My unscientific analysis was to look at the signal strength meter function of the digital TV converter box. It is simply a scale from 0 to 100. To my surprise, the signal strength was in the 90's for all of the channels. That is better than expected.
Basically, this is a very good antenna. Just remember that the better the installation job, the better your reception will be. - Outdoor Antenna - Tv Antenna - Hd Antenna - Attic Antenna'
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