General DTV Reception Tips

• Get a good antenna. Relatively speaking, antennas are not expensive. A good conventional mast-mounted antenna from Home Depot, Lowe's, Radio Shack, or Sears (to name a few) can cost well below $100. This is cheap compared to the cost of the television or hi-fi equipment and will allow you to receive the best looking television (DTV and HDTV) available at any price. Most can be mounted in an attic for excellent reception.
• There is nothing special about HDTV or DTV antennas. There is no need to buy a special "HDTV" or "DTV" antenna. The signals are sent over the same frequencies as analog stations. Most "HDTV" antennas are simply marketing hype. Conventional or regular good antennas are best.
• Point the antenna at the transmitting towers. This one might be obvious, but it is crucial. The WPMI-DT 47 tower is located in Baldwin county of Alabama near the Wilcox Road exit just South of I-10. The GPS coordinates are, (30-36'40"N) and (87-36'27"W). The antenna is at a height of 1830' and we broadcast at a power rating of 1 million watts ERP. So viewers in Mobile, Fairhope, Daphne should aim roughly east, viewers in South Baldwin county should aim roughly north to northeast, viewers in North Baldwin county should aim roughly south to southeast and Florida viewer should aim roughly west, west-northwest, etc.
• Mount the antenna as high as possible. Antenna reception improves with height. Getting the antenna above obstructions and interference is important. Sometimes raising an antenna a foot or so will improve reception remarkably. Any antenna improves with height - some have used rabbit ears sitting in their attic with great success. Even in an attic, putting the antenna as high as possible should help.
• Outdoor mounting is best. Still, many find that attic mounting is perfectly acceptable. Long distance from the transmitting towers might make outdoor mounting a necessity. Getting the antenna above the roofline is also helpful in difficult reception areas. Federal Law specifically allows homeowners to place reasonably sized antennas on their property, regardless of homeowners association restrictions. Click here for information on the federal law.
• Make sure the cabling and connectors are of good quality and in good shape. Low quality or inappropriate cable between the antenna and the receiver can seriously degrade the signal quality and make an otherwise good antenna worthless. In general, RG6 quad-shield coaxial cable with good connectors is an excellent choice. Usually, RG6 and RG59 are also fine. Be sure that there are no nicks or cuts in the cable or its shielding and that it is not folded anywhere along its length. The connectors must make solid connections.
• Good analog reception indicates good digital reception. In general, if you get good reception (no serious ghosting and not much snow) of analog stations (e.g., channels 3, 5, 10, 15 and 44), your DTV reception should be excellent. When installing your antenna, try getting the best reception from the analog stations first.

*some material provided courtesy of AtlantaDTV.org