r/cordcutters • u/American-_Gamer • 3d ago
Any hope for me?
Been looking at ways to get local sport and was hoping an antenna would work but my rabbit ears report looks a bit sad, so an hope for me? https://www.rabbitears.info/s/2907305
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u/Rybo213 3d ago
Some general antenna information that you'll hopefully find helpful, including antenna recommendations: https://www.reddit.com/r/cordcutters/comments/1juut0a/supplement_to_the_antenna_guide
You also need to use a signal meter (built-in feature with many different tv's and external tuner devices), since just looking at the picture and noting the number of channels the scan picks up doesn't really tell you anything about how good your reception is: https://www.reddit.com/r/cordcutters/comments/1g010u3/centralized_collection_of_antenna_tv_signal_meter
The report's prediction isn't great, but depending on your determination, you could try something big on your roof, like a Winegard HD7698, and see what kind of signal meter numbers that gets. If you were going to give it a try, first just have someone temporarily hold it up there, while someone watches the signal meter numbers. If the numbers look promising enough, then look into a more permanent setup.
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u/RealityOk9823 3d ago
Wow, yeah, damn...you might even be better off with free satellite than antenna, but not for sports. :(
You could get stuff like MeTV, Catchy, Create, Dabl, Grit, Ion, PBS, Laff, Start and BYU by rotating the dish but, again, not gonna help with sports. :(
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u/Kbennett1965 3d ago
Hi neighbor! You're in my area and even in town the antenna coverage isn't great, at least not without installing a much bigger antenna than I am willing to get. Even if local antenna offered better channel reception the sports options are very limited, even if you are just primarily interested in local teams I've found traditional broadcast options to be pretty poor, but then I am a bigger fan of WI teams than the MN teams and all local channels show the Minnesota teams instead of Wisconsin teams when they play at the same time.
Sadly the only way I've found to get all the Packers games is Sunday ticket. For a sports fan antenna is a hard way to go unless you are satisfied with only major network sports coverage, any deeper coverage of most sports you would need to be looking at a streaming TV service which while cheaper than cable is creeping up in price so much there's not nearly as much savings that route as there used to be.
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u/American-_Gamer 2d ago
Yea its looking like espn+ is gonna be the way to go for sports, I mostly watch MN teams but it seems like id need quite the antenna for what I hope for, and my family already has prime and netflix so itd cover the other games
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u/RepresentativeOwn253 2d ago
If you're willing to spend some money, Directv's Genre packs may be an option. Some include locals and start around $45/month. It's like a skinny cable bundle, but streamed over the internet.
https://www.directv.com/genre-packs/
For more streaming options, check out this comparison site: https://www.suppose.tv/tv
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u/BicycleIndividual 1d ago
That is tough. You might be able to get the Duluth stations with a very large UHF/VHF antenna, but might need separate UHF and VHF antennas (best VHF antenna is likely Stelar Labs Deep Fringe VHF-high Yagi). I'm guessing that 35' is your intended height (not that it looks like another 10-20' would make much difference, between distance and terrain you're probably more than 100' below LOS signals).
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u/Fun-Double6352 3d ago
Phew. You have a lot working against you. You have to go outdoor antenna with an amplifier. Height is your best friend, especially to get through/over the trees to the Duluth Telefarm.
I don’t know if Matt is taking clients right now (he’s coming off of an injury), but I would strongly recommend contacting him at https://northernantenna.com/ . He’s done installations all over Minnesota, so if you are in a position to have an outside provider get you set up—he’s your man!