Terk HDTVa Indoor Amplified High-Definition Antenna for Off-Air HDTV Reception
by Terk
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Terk HDTVa Indoor Amplified High-Definition Antenna for Off-Air HDTV Reception
Customer Review: Ok reception, but inferior to the DB2
Summary: 3 Stars
When dealing with antennas, I realize that everyone's situation is unique, but below is my experience.
I live in Austin, TX about 12 miles north of most of the main towers. The antenna is in my 2nd story attic.
Most of the stations in my area are on UHF, but one continues broadcasting in VHF (as of January, 2011) so I thought I needed an antenna that did both UHF/VHF. For that reason, I picked up this Terk HDTVa Terk HDTVa Indoor Amplified High-Definition Antenna for Off-Air HDTV Reception (which does both UHF/VHF) first and was disappointed with its results, both on UHF & VHF. The signal was decent, but definitely not flawless. In addition, I found two things about this design sub-par. First, with the VHF antennae extended, the unit takes up a lot of space, even in an attic. It's also very unstable when fully extended. Secondly, the stated need for it to be plugged in regardless of whether you are using the amplification or not makes for a slightly inconvenient installation. Finally, I noticed that the power adapter when plugged in was exceedingly hot, so hot that it was uncomfortable to hold in my hand. Long-term, that just does not seem safe to me.
To make a long story short, I tried the antenna for a day and then ordered the Antennas Direct DB2 Multi Directional HDTV Antenna to replace it. It immediately improved my reception on UHF and surprisingly, on the one VHF station as well. The antenna was placed in the exact same spot as the HDTVa, and below are the signal comparison results for each antenna.
++Terk HDTVa antenna++
Channel -> Signal Strength / Signal Quality
54.1 -> 61/83
42.1 -> 65/91
24.1 -> 80/100
18.1 -> 72/94
36.1 -> 78/95
7.1 -> 54/75 [VHF]
++Antennas Direct DB2 antenna++
Channel -> Signal Strength / Signal Quality
54.1 -> 91/100
42.1 -> 84/100
24.1 -> 94/100
18.1 -> 95/90
36.1 -> 96/95
7.1 -> 91/100 [VHF]
In summary, the DB2 was 15-30% better on every channel and also does not require power for amplification like the HDTVa does. It is a hands-down winner.
Customer Review: Functional, but it has stupid design flaws
Summary: 3 Stars
I got this antenna because I live midway between Ft. Lauderdale and West Palm Beach, and so all the HDTV broadcast stations are either 20 or 30 miles away. This antenna did a good job at receiving most of these channels, although I can't pull in a reliable ABC station. In short, the antenna works, although I don't know how well it works relative to other antennas. The Pinnacle HDTV-USB tuner I use this antenna will came with a simple, collapsable antenna, and even that thing is good enough to pick up some stations 20 miles away. The Terk did better, but that comes with a fairly high cost.
My gripe is with the design of this antenna. The antenna cable comes out of the bottom of the base of the unit, and it can either be bent to exit the base either from the front or the back of the base. Problem is, the cable is fairly stiff, the antenna is fairly light, and the base has a small footprint. Put that all together, and you have a wobbly antenna caused by the cable pushing the antenna off the flat place you've set it upon.
Worse, though, is that the amplified signal is a AC transformer that plugs into a little black box that attaches to the end of the antenna cable. For me, this is a bad situation. I'm trying to use this antenna with a laptop, and now I've got to mess with two wires -- the antenna cable + the AC transformer electric line. Why didn't Terk just include the circuitry that amplifies the signal inside the antenna base, and have the electricity flow directly into the base? This would make it easier to use. If you plan on installing this antenna in one place to an immoveable TV set, then my gripe probably doesn't pertain much to you and your situation. But if you plan on moving your antenna around, like me, then these design issues make it unpleasant to use the Terk amplified antenna.
I'm curious to know whether the amplification makes much of a difference. I think I'll try buying the Terk non-amplified antenna (that has the same shape and design as this one) and see what happens.
To sum up, this antenna is probably as good as any other, but only buy it if you're not going to need to move it around at all.
Customer Review: HD clarity is awesome, but no better than $14 rabbit ears
Summary: 2 Stars
I bought a new flatscreen and two friends told me about free HD channels. I didn't really get what they were talking about, but one insisted that I specifically needed an HDTV antenna. The other claimed that it was all marketing and regular rabbit ears would do the trick. I'll cut to the punchline, rabbit ears work exactly the same as this fancier, more expensive Terk HDTVa antenna.
Specifics:
* I live on Capital Hill in Seattle, WA
* I've a Panasonic 780p 42" TV
* the TV scans for digital channels once the antenna is hooked up
* I tried the Terk HDTVa first, it worked great
* Next I tried the $14 Terk TV-1 passive TV antenna, it worked exactly the same
* I believe I get around 25 free digital channels - things like ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox, religous channels, PBS, Hispanic channels -- these are numbered like 4-1, 5-1, 9-1, 9-2, 9-3
If you don't do the digital scan thing (it's a setting in the menu of the TV) then you won't see the glory of digital TV. It's basically regular TV with a better-than-cable picture. And there are all sorts of extra channels out there (PBS has about 3 or 4 channels) of stuff you can't see with regular TV. I don't watch TV much, but it's good for Thanksgiving football and for the days you have the flu and need to tune in and tune out. Mostly I was intrigued with whether the HDTV antenna stuff was marketing or truth. After this a/b test it appears to be pure marketing.
Added benefit - the HDTV antennas are techie looking. I suppose "cool" by some male standards but I personally love the simplicity of the rabbit ears, which are hidden behind the profile of my TV so you never see them. Oh - and no need for the funny looking round wire thingy they send with this unit. That's for UHF and that is caveman stuff at this point.
I recommend you try:
Terk Technology TV-1 Passive Indoor TV Antenna
... or just hook up your current antenna, have your TV scan for digital channels (it's got to be a new TV for this feature) and see what you get. Okay, I've spent way too much time thinking and typing about a TV signal I will rarely use. See you at the movies!
Customer Review: Solid Antenna
Summary: 5 Stars
I am pointing the antenna out a second story open office window along Pacific Coast Highway pointing southeast toward San Diego and Tijuana Mexico probably 70 miles, basically over water, to the broadcast antennas.
I tried a couple amplified rabbit ears that I already had, which worked OK. The old (and discontinued) Magnavox MANT300 worked pretty well. The Philips MANT510 did not work as well - although its specifications say it has higher gain, and it is a newer product, it simply did not pick up the signal for me like the old MANT310.
The rabbit ears are a bit touchy, and need some adjustment from time to time, or if they get bumped, so I decided to try the Terk. I just set up the Terk HDTVa indoor amplified antenna, Terk HDTVa Indoor Amplified High-Definition Antenna for Off-Air HDTV Reception and it works great and seems to be less touchy. It fits nicely in the location I have it in (on a metal file cabinet by the window), and doesn't seem to require any fiddling with, once it is pointed in the right direction.
From what I have tried and what I have read, each person has a unique circumstance, given distance, atmospheric conditions, hills, objects and buildings that bounce signals around. So, no one antenna is the "best." You just have to try a few. In my situation, having to get signals 70 miles away, I believe the amplified antenna is a benefit.
With my glass window open (and just a nylon screen) my signal strength for KPBS digital right now is 92. If I close the window glass, the signal drops to 72. If I shut the blinds, the signal goes down to 62. So, you can see how little things really affect the signal. (If I turn off the amplification, it goes from 92 to 87.) I get 27 watchable channels, although some are analogs which will go away in February 09. Some analogs are from Mexico and will probably not go away.
The Terk is bigger in person than it appears in the photo. It is about 9" high, and the array makes the top about 13.5" wide, and 15.5" deep, but not a problem in my situation.
Customer Review: Got almost everything I wanted with this antenna
Summary: 4 Stars
I am 38 miles north of the main TV transmitters for Chicago and I have no attic mounting option and only a first floor exposure. This indoor antenna was one of my few choices to try to get all the major local stations over the air. Setup was quick and easy and I got the highest number of stations inserting the UHF antenna parallel to the ground (mounted as shown in the Amazon photos for this antenna). Aiming through a window I was able to get 31 stations with the signals ranging from 84 to 98 out of 100. The antenna is very directional at this distance so you have about a 10-20 degree sweet spot where the signal is strong enough for regular viewing. My only disappointments are 1.) The antenna tips easily due to a high center of gravity coupled with a narrow base and the way it is cabled into the base bottom 2.) The foldable rabbit ear antennas provided on the back of the base for VHF frequencies were not able to pull in a viewable signal for the only Chicago CBS station, so I am missing one major station from my channel list. I tried various angles and lengths for this foldable VHF antenna, but I was not able to get any readable signal, so if you need longer range VHF reception you may be out of luck with this antenna. For UHF the amplifier makes all the difference at this kind of distance, so don't even consider an antenna without one if you are over 15-20 miles from the desired stations or are in a low spot. Be sure to research the frequencies used by your local channels before you buy an antenna. I knew I needed VHF for only CBS and that all the other stations I wanted use UHF, so I gave this antenna a go since it provides both amplified VHF and UHF coverage. In my case it turns out my CBS station pumps out a weaker signal than most of the other stations in Chicago and this Terk antenna's VHF antenna element just isn't sensitive enough to pull in such a signal at 38 miles. Overall I have to give this antenna high marks (4 stars) for what it can do at such a distance just 4-5 feet off the ground and through a window facing south. If I only needed UHF stations I would rate this antenna 5 stars with no major reservations.