TV Antenna Booster | Scam or Real Deal?

This digital antenna thing is a scam, antennas are designed to pick up a certain frequency range be it UHF or VHF the digital signal as no bearing on that. I have an old large UHF box antenna in the attic pointed south where all the stations I care about are, I get 56 channels, perfect picture, some of those stations are 60 miles away. I do have a signal amplifier at the antenna and it does make a difference in clearing up some of the weaker stations. But don't buy into that digital antenna scam. Another factor is the quality of the tuner in the TV, I have a cheap Roku in the bedroom and it will not pick up some of the stations that the Sony does in the living room even thou it much closer to the antenna in the attic.

HELP🤪ok

HELP😭I Have a directional and multi-directional on a splitter input to 1 tv WHAT AMPLIFIER Auto adjustments i need

you cant watch the channel you like because of president osama bama ben laben, he decided that the analog transmisson, the kind used since the begining of time, were no longer usable so that every tv owner at that time would have to buy a converter to watch their tv again. what an asshole - i remember they were pushing this new format with lies like this, " oh yeah, digital so much better and it uses less power because the signal goes strait for your anttena " at least when it was analog you could still watch your channel, maybe a little fuzzy, but now day to day weather will stop the formation of a visual pixilation, also aircraft, cars driving by with loud music, cars driving by, trains going by, cell phone recieving a ping using a pc within 50 foot radius, getting up, walking by, probably even slight fart and there goes the signal.💩💩💩

I've tried two reputable amp types and have found that you can pull in stations that don't show up without the amp. Problem I've had is these amps don't last very long. Not sure it's quality due to voltage and current sensitivities (due to lightning emfs) or maybe power surges. If i get another, because I certainly get a lot more channels, I'll try a surge protector on the power side and an in-line filter on the antenna sig.

funny I can turn my amplifier down and the signal goes out , so something is working !

I bought one and don't think it really matters.

Some of the info in this video as regards External TV antenna size and direction and distances is good, but the information about TV signal amplifiers (booster) is largely inaccurate and incorrectly presented and should be ignored. A good quality masthead amplifier correctly installed in a weak signal area will usually significantly improve the stability of the digital TV signal received at the TV. Local installer advice on what antenna and amplifier suits your location is the way to go. (33 years experience installing TV antennas) cheers Phil

So I ve been conned buying my TV signal booster..Thanks..Mine made no difference , it made it worse

My $8 Walmart Booster Works Great...Only 5 volts, Which can Be Measured With A Multi Meter...

That's not true the amphiers do work

I have to laugh at some of these comments claiming they're picking up a hundred or more channels. What they fail to see is a lot of TV transmitters have multiple sub channels. I've seen as many as 9 sub channels on the same carrier coming from the same station. LOL!

I concur! BIG misconception. Having been in communications field for 50 years, I can tell you there is NO such thing as an HDMI antenna nor an antenna that claims it will work any farther than 70 miles. Do NOT believe these claims. Antennas are strictly dumb devices and they're designed the same as they were 50 years ago. The curvature of the earth defines how far an antenna will pick up a signal. Do NOT believe in these phony claims of antennas that claim 100 mile range or more. The average range of a TV antenna is at best, 70 miles and even then, if the station transmission signal strength is too low, you won't pick it up. BEWARE of these little crappy antennas. The longer an antenna boom is in length, the more signal strength it will pick up. If the seller is claiming 150 or more miles, don't waste your money.

Pure horseshit...antenna boosters do work. I've installed line amps and brought in more channels on many antennas. Tx and Rx boost using a linear amp on a ham and CB radio does the same with a more amplified result.
Conclusion: video gets an F

Really good information

Great sir 🙏

Wrong information

I learned from my days on Ham and CB radio that there isn't a shortcut to a quality antenna setup. The best antenna is a yagi style antenna on the roof of a building. It might be overkill if you're close to the broadcast towers, but their isn't an antenna indoors that is going to do better than an outdoor one.

While you are right in that a signal booster can't help with very poor signals,
it can help in most homes, especially if you are splitting the signal to feed more than 1 tv.
I could only get 7 channels without a booster. I tried an indoor "electronic" antenna and it was useless. With a signal booster, I get 14 tv channels.
So NO not a waste of money for many people.
Maybe they just don't help in your particular situation.
Cheers

Sir, you don't know what you are talking about. Without a booster we get about 10 channels. With a booster we get more than 60!

Well to start off I will say you have no clue about the rural and fringe areas trying to receive a signal. I live in a valley surrounded by mountains. Without the preamplifier i have a weak to not enough signal for the tv tuner to show, but with a preamp i'm able to get some channels to a normal signal strength and some that were too weak to come in are now showing due to the preamp. If you don't live in a rural area then don't make assumptions as to what works best. Sure if you live close to town and a bunch of towers, then you probably don't need a preamp but for the rest of us in the rural areas, don't post things you have no clue about. Your video could have discouraged someone to try an OTA antenna and are still stuck now with cable or satellite TV. To sum it up, PREAMPS are not a scam!!!!!!!

RF engineer here. Antenna "boosters" are possible, but likely chance is any that you buy off of amazon/ebay are scams. What matters is not necessarily the signal strength, but the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). A really good low-noise amplifier CAN improve how many channels you receive if and only if the amplifier is better than the one already built into your HDTV. Likely chance is, the amplifier in your HDTV is better than a 20$ piece of junk you would find on the internet, but this is definitely possible.

They work. You are WRONG!

A little info about coax: Because coax is used at a temperature above absolute zero (your body temperature is 310 degrees Kelvin), thermal noise is generated by the coax. To receive a signal that the TV can decipher, there has to be a sufficient signal to noise ratio. In a long run of coax, the signal diminishes, but the thermal noise doesn't. Thus, the signal to noise ratio is also diminished. The antenna terminals have the lowest noise in the system. Everything past the antenna adds its own noise the the signal. While the preamp will amplify the signal and noise and add a litle noise of its oun, the important thing is the signal/noise ratio. Lets assume some arbitrary units for this thought experiment. The signal is 5 and the noise is 1. Lets assume the preamp has 20 db of gain so the amplifier outputs a signal 100 times stronger so we now have a signal of 500 and the noise is 100 plus the noise the amplifier adds which we will asy is 5. So, the noise leaving the preamp is now 105. Lets assume we have have 300 feet of RG11 coax with a 20db loss. So, now the signal is back to 5 and the noise is down to 1.05, but the coax adds 1 unit of noise, so we end up with a signal to noise ratio of 5 to 2.05, not as good as the 5 to 1 at the antenna, but the TV can still make it work. Now, without the preamp, The signal becomes 0,05, the noise becomes 0.01 plus the 1 from the coax so we are now backwards with our signal to nolse ratio of 0.05 to1.01! The signal will be buried deep in the noise and no amount of amplification at this point will make things better. The result is simple, a preamp allows you to use a longer coax cable. Will a preamp help your situation? If you can move a portable TV to be very close to the antenna, maybe take it up to the roof and use a short jumper cable to the antenna, and you get the stations you want there but not where you want to relax and enjoy TV, then your problem is loss in the coax which a preamp will probably fix. However, you will probably lose a bar on your strength display, and if you only have one bar up on the roof, then the preamp is a gamble. The next thing is more signal to the preamp to improve the ratio. That means a better antenna or moving the antenna. Now we get into should I/could I territory and only you can answer that. At this point, you need quality gear. Beware of marketing hype. Most of these shady sellers know you have no recourse if it doesn't work. They have your money and you have the experience. However, many sellers are fools and don't know their wares won't work for you, but you still get the experience.

A little info about coax: Because coax is used at a temperature above absolute zero (your body temperature is 310 degrees Kelvin), thermal noise is generated by the coax. To receive a signal that the TV can decipher, there has to be a sufficient signal to noise ratio. In a long run of coax, the signal diminishes, but the thermal noise doesn't. Thus, the signal to noise ratio is also diminished. The antenna terminals have the lowest noise in the system. Everything past the antenna adds its own noise the the signal. While the preamp will amplify the signal and noise and add a litle noise of its oun, the important thing is the signal/noise ratio. Lets assume some arbitrary units for this thought experiment. The signal is 5 and the noise is 1. Lets assume the preamp has 20 db of gain so the amplifier outputs a signal 100 times stronger so we now have a signal of 500 and the noise is 100 plus the noise the amplifier adds which we will asy is 5. So, the noise leaving the preamp is now 105. Lets assume we have have 300 feet of RG11 coax with a 20db loss. So, now the signal is back to 5 and the noise is down to 1.05, but the coax adds 1 unit of noise, so we end up with a signal to noise ratio of 5 to 2.05, not as good as the 5 to 1 at the antenna, but the TV can still make it work. Now, without the preamp, The signal becomes 0,05, the noise becomes 0.01 plus the 1 from the coax so we are now backwards with our signal to nolse ratio of 0.05 to1.01! The signal will be buried deep in the noise and no amount of amplification at this point will make things better. The result is simple, a preamp allows you to use a longer coax cable. Will a preamp help your situation? If you can move a portable TV to be very close to the antenna, maybe take it up to the roof and use a short jumper cable to the antenna, and you get the stations you want there but not where you want to relax and enjoy TV, then your problem is loss in the coax which a preamp will probably fix. However, you will probably lose a bar on your strength display, and if you only have one bar up on the roof, then the preamp is a gamble. The next thing is more signal to the preamp to improve the ratio. That means a better antenna or moving the antenna. Now we get into should I/could I territory and only you can answer that. At this point, you need quality gear. Beware of marketing hype. Most of these shady sellers know you have no recourse if it doesn't work. They have your money and you have the experience. However, many sellers are fools and don't know their wares won't work for you, but you still get the experience.

In your video you explain that the amplifier boosts the signal that is reaching the antenna. Then you proceed to say they are a waste of money. Your own science discredited you. You contradicted yourself. 👎🏻

Oldschool rabbit ears work far better then any boosted indoor antenna and the over complex "digital" antennas. Majority of these new antennas are a scam.

You came in loud and clear I'm lucky I tuned you in.

You must work for the cable company. I've lived in a fringe area my whole life. I use an amplifier to boost the weak signals in my area. With the booster I receive over 20 channels but can't get anything at all without it. I'm a professional contractor and my antenna is rooftop mounted and aimed properly. I even have a signal meter, it's not rocket science. I run the amplifier indoors, I have the type that is meant to be installed near the tv, it is 50 feet from the antenna. It does not have to be installed that close to the antenna in many situations. This video is full of bad information.

This is Wrong. Boosters are a must

Used antennas in the Army you can boost any signal this guy does not know what he is talking about

I live in a apartment building and having a hard time getting channels... I tried two different antennas and the same..

This guy is full of s*** if I didn't have a TV signal amplifier most of my channels won't even work.

Real.

I have a rca amplifier on my home made indoor antenna and does a good job but won't get all the channels I'm supposed to get dont know what else to do

BULLSHIT - BOOSTERS GIVE YOU MORE CHANNELS NO BOOST MUCH LESS - MAKE SENSE IDIOT?

I get more channels using a booster

Experience/actually trying something out speaks louder than words! People who use a preamp or amplifier say it works! and you cant change their mind when they've seen the results.I have learned to experiment instead of listening to every opinion about antennas online....and I do tend to believe those who have tried it out for themselves. To me that is the only way to know what works best for the individual.Unfortunately there is no perfect situation/antenna/set up that fits everybody or a right or wrong answer.....you have to see what works for you.We dont all live in the same area with towers near us.And no particular antenna or set up is perfect for everybody. But the amplifiers do work for some people/some situations.

Say what ???? My antenna, without using its external amplifier, only gives me about 8 channels. With the amplifier included, it then gives me about 20 channels. By adding a 15db RF amplifier, I then get about 37 channels. Overall, this takes me from picking up only local channels when NOT using the two amplifiers, all the way up to picking up channels that are over 100 miles away when I am actually using the two amplifiers. The only reason I did not boost the RF signals any more than what I have up to this date, is because the local channel signals become over amplified, and as a result are distorted enough to be rejected by the TV.

I️ use channel master for long distance channels that are more than 90 miles away. Don’t count for a fact all what this guy say. You have to research and try yourself becouse every case is different.

I lost my channel 13 after rescanning because channel 5 moved frequency

Amplifiers do increase the signal and pick up more stations. I’ve done it before.

Funny if I plug my antenna to power, the picture signal is much better...

This has many lies. First, i will say what he got right. 1, moving your antenna higher can help, but sometimes, in mountainous areas, it can actually hurt it. 2, If there is no signal, you will not be able to receive the signal. 3, those "150 mile range" antennas are lies, due to the curvature of the earth, you can only reasonably get a signal up to 75 miles with a full power TV station, unless under very specific circumstances where sometimes the signal can travel that far. Id also like to add that even just moving your antenna outside and facing it towards the TV towers will greatly improve signal. With that said, in my experience, amplifies work very well, with out one i can only get about 18 channels from towers only up to 25 miles away, even with a high quality antenna. With the preamplifier, i can get most of the Washington DC channels, or some of the Altoona or Harrisburg channels, depending on which way i put the antenna. Although theoretically boosters dont do much with the perfect setup, in the real world, they help a lot.Also id like to point out a difference between "Amplifiers" and "Preamplifiers." Amplifiers are normally installed at the TV and amplify the signal, although they dont really help much. A preamplifier is normally installed at the Antenna, and can help a lot, especially if you have long cable runs, low quality cable, or bad TV tuners.

I'm not going to call anyone a liar or wrong but here is my two cents. Flying radio controlled quadcopters using real time video captured by an on onboard camera. The video signal is fed to a power amplified wireless transmitter and broadcast at, most commonly, 5.8ghz. I use video goggles having dual wireless video receivers which are made to operate withing the 5.8 spectrum. Each receiver has its own antenna but there are no amplifiers/boosters on the receiving end. What is important for both the transmitting (tx) and receiving (rx) ends are the antenna's. There are plenty of variations particularly in the 5.8ghz band, I guess because it's the most prevalent among rc hobbyists. In short, the differences in quality of manufacturing (precision) and design (clover, mushroom, pagoda, patch, flat panel, helical.....either linear or polarized, omni or directional, etc etc etc) are the basis of variability for the antenna. Antenna's also have gain values. In general the higher the gain the more narrow "slice" of air is visable to the antenna but with greater ability to do so. The quality (sensitivity rating) of the receiver also impacts the range. Higher sensitivity rx can function with a weaker signal. This seems to help make sense why a booster applied to an ota antenna provides an improvement.

I live an a apartment building and using a rabbit ears to get channels and some times fade in and out..

My UK shopping people can't buy Annual income nothing look they need your commuter and laptop size show your Internet connection. Freeview TV and Box.