OTA Antenna quality vs cable/sat?

[shobe]

How is the quality of HD through Cable/Satellite compared to local HD through Antenna?

I mean does a Antenna even provide HD? And what is with stores using the label of "HD Antenna"? Is it just a gimmick lie? Is any antenna able to provide HD Locals?

[mjones73]

Most cities broadcast digital stations in SD and HD resolutions over the air now, they are all required to stop broadcasting in analog in 2009. OTA digital and HD stations are broadcast on the same frequencies as analog stations, there is no such thing as an HD antenna, it's just marketing BS. The proper UHF and/or VHF antenna for your area is all you need to receive digital stations.

In most cases OTA offers the best PQ available, specially if your cable company is bandwidth starved and has to further compress your locals before broadcasting them. Check antennaweb.org for a list of local stations broadcasting digitally in your area.

[Kent]

Speaking specifically about just "Local" channels, over the air antenna is the only option for me to get them in "high definition".
I have wonderful HDTV with my satellite provider for their programs such as Discovery HD, ESPNHD ect. , but my local channels are only provided in standard definition by the satellite signal. For that reason, I dropped their local channel package.
The quality of "over the air/antenna reception" is great. Probably as good as it gets. The local tv stations broadcast both sd and hd depending on how the program you are watching is presented. Most pro sports and many of the popular tv shows are recorded with high definition cameras, therefore you get to see it displayed as such. SD appears on your tv set on the 4:3 ratio where a HDTV broadcast fills the entire wide screen usually refered to as the 16:9 ratio.
The antenna I use is a 35 year old VHF/UHF type that has the V shaped 7 foot wide reflectors on it's rear end and the collectors are 12 inch or so wide elements on the front of it. It was made long before HDTV was ever though of. I feed my tv's with good quality RG-6 coaxial cables with the standard F type connectors. I get 85 to 100 % signal strength indications on the tv digital tuners depending on the particular tv station I am viewing. This antenna is mounted in my attic and I'm about 15 to 20 miles away from the various broadcast towers.
I hope this answers your questions, or opens new ones you might have. I've tried to explain it as simple as I know how.
The folks on this message board are great and willing to help, so if you have other questions feel free to fire away.

[Telstar]

Coincidentally, here's a recent article on the subject of OTA Antennas.

"Many HD viewers are hitting the roof -- and we mean that literally -- by installing rooftop antennas that can capture the HD and standard definition signals of their local stations. (Some people can even get local signals with an indoor antenna costing less than $20.)"

Does Your HDTV Have a Tuner?
You will need a high-def tuner to display the antenna's HD signals. Most late model sets come with a tuner inside, but not all. (And many older models don't have tuners inside.) So before you buy an antenna, check out your set's manual to see if it has a tuner. If it doesn't, you'll need to buy a separate HD tuner to capture the signals; prices are around $200 or less.

5 Tips to Buying an HDTV Antenna (http://www.tvpredictions.com/hdantenna022607.htm)

HD Ready TV - (also called an "HDTV monitor") has the high-resolution display, but must be connected to a separate HDTV tuner to receive digital broadcasts.

HD Compatible TV - (also called an "integrated HDTV") combines an HD-capable display and an HDTV tuner in one package. The tuner can usually receive both digital and analog over-the-air broadcasts.

:)

[shobe]

Ok, I went through reading the info you guys wrote, and I did find out that:

I Have a Built-In HDTV Tuner for my TV

My location is 27-29 miles away from the local stations. I guess the UHF would be the best option.

So what type of Antenna would best fit me, possibly indoor?

And what is the difference between digital and analog? Sorry I'm stupid when it comes to this type of stuff :worker: :sobbing:

[mjones73]

You can't link to antennaweb, please cut and paste your digital only results.

At 27-29 miles out, most likely you will need something outdoors.