TV antenna reviews ??

[moparlvr4406]

What is the best **reasonably priced** antenna ??
looking for the under 200.00 range if possible
the trick is it will be mounted on the front deck about 2 feet ahead of the windshield...I have no arch.
or am I wasting my time and $$$ having to mount it that low and not having 360* of potential pickup of the signal ?
I posted a thread about the Shakespeare Seawatch 3020 with no response but it is a new offering from them.
any input :huh:

 

[DavHJ]

A friend of mine baught a flat digital TV antenna from radio shack he made a pocket on the inside of his biminy and just stuck it in there ran the wire down the bow to the TV he says it works great.
He doesn't have an arch either.

Dave

 

[moparlvr4406]

Any other ideas ??
this one might be a little too hillbilly even for ME ...but thanks for the input :thumbsup:

 

[sdarc]

Alot will depend on how close you are to the towers. When I had mine the boat it was hit or miss. Now it's at home and works much better. Closer to towers. The difference in height from deck to arch (if you had one) is not that great to help with signal. I had mine hanging off the piling at the dock with no increase in reception.

 

[magstang1]

Hillbilly, pssssshhh... I can beat that!

I installed a TV / DVD combo in my boat with a built in digital tuner. I also ran the coax to the rear of my boat so when at the marina I can plug in shore power and Cable TV at the same time. We have only recently started spending evenings on the hook so I never had a need for the TV to work while away from the dock.

I was cleaning out the garage the other day and noticed a set of rabbit ears on the old garage tv. TV in the trash, rabbit ears to the boat.

I plugged the antenna in to the outlet and clamped the antenna to the rear bimini pole with a small spring clamp so we could eat breakfast and watch the morning news. I think I got 25 channels and they were crystal clear.

I certainly don't consider this a permanent solution but I will probably only use the antenna a couple times per year. For me, I can't justify a $200 antenna. This method takes 60 seconds to set up and take down and uses almost zero storage space. Try a few things before you shell out some boat clams. You might be surprised.

 

[gerryb]

No recommendation but I'll throw out a suggestion: try a portable antenna on a TV to gauge picture quality and transmit power from your tower before investing in a more expensive solution that you may not be happy with. I have found few boaters that are happy with the over the air signal unless you are very close to a tower or metro area.

 

[moparlvr4406]

Good advise..will try