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DTV Mapping Tool Helps Antenna Setup, Sales
Shows homeowners range of HD signals, maps out antenna position for installers.
If you are doing any DTV antenna installations, make sure to bookmark the FCC DTV Mapping Tool Web site.
The government Web site helps properly find HD signal strength. It's an amazing tool in several respects.
It helps determine how to properly aim the DTV antenna for the best over-the-air (OTA) HD reception. And it shows the homeowner how difficult it could be to receive all the HD signals they want without a properly aligned antenna.
The Web site brings up a map of the U.S. When you enter your zip code, it brings up all the available HD signals in that area. When you click on the individual call letters of the stations you want, it brings up the direction of the signal.
In my hometown of Sturbridge, Mass., for example, the mapping tool tells me that HD reception might be a crap shoot. There are 13 available HD channels to my home, which is tucked in a tree-filled valley about 60 miles outside of Boston. Only one station, WUNI, has a strong signal strength (3 bars). Most of the signals come from the Northeast (from Boston), while others come from the West (from Springfield, Mass.)
Integrators should consider this Web site as a sales tool, and ask customers what HD stations they want to receive OTA. It will show the customer the value of having the antenna professionally installed. If the reception is really bad, as in my case, it will guide you to offer satellite or cable.
From an installation standpoint, print out the final map after you have selected all the stations and give it to the technician as a guide for the job.
By the way, I should move if I want to watch OTA HD.
The government Web site helps properly find HD signal strength. It's an amazing tool in several respects.
It helps determine how to properly aim the DTV antenna for the best over-the-air (OTA) HD reception. And it shows the homeowner how difficult it could be to receive all the HD signals they want without a properly aligned antenna.
How it Works
The Web site brings up a map of the U.S. When you enter your zip code, it brings up all the available HD signals in that area. When you click on the individual call letters of the stations you want, it brings up the direction of the signal.
In my hometown of Sturbridge, Mass., for example, the mapping tool tells me that HD reception might be a crap shoot. There are 13 available HD channels to my home, which is tucked in a tree-filled valley about 60 miles outside of Boston. Only one station, WUNI, has a strong signal strength (3 bars). Most of the signals come from the Northeast (from Boston), while others come from the West (from Springfield, Mass.)
Integrators should consider this Web site as a sales tool, and ask customers what HD stations they want to receive OTA. It will show the customer the value of having the antenna professionally installed. If the reception is really bad, as in my case, it will guide you to offer satellite or cable.
From an installation standpoint, print out the final map after you have selected all the stations and give it to the technician as a guide for the job.
By the way, I should move if I want to watch OTA HD.
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About the Author
Jason Knott, Editor, CE Pro
Jason has covered low-voltage electronics as an editor since 1990. He joined EH Publishing in 2000, and before that served as publisher and editor of Security Sales, a leading magazine for the security industry. He served as chairman of the Security Industry Association’s Education Committee from 2000-2004 and sat on the board of that association from 1998-2002. He is also a former board member of the Alarm Industry Research and Educational Foundation. He is currently a member of the CEDIA Education Action Team for Electronic Systems Business. Jason graduated from the University of Southern California.
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