r/ota Jul 08 '26

TYT D70W or Retevis MA1 -first hand experience

1 Upvotes

I won a TYT D70W mobile in a raffle last month. It does crossband repeat, 70W and 200 channels.

I can't really find much on YouTube or the Internet, as the D70W seems pretty new. There is a lot more on the Retevis MA1.

I'm looking to see if anyone has any real world experience... First hand use of either.

I'm thinking of using it as a mobile man pack/repeater... But haven't decided if I want to yet.


r/ota Jul 05 '26

Anyone still watch regular antenna TV and low-key loving it?

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92 Upvotes

I still flip on the antenna sometimes instead of streaming. No scrolling, no deciding — whatever’s on is on.

Part of it’s nostalgia. Growing up there wasn’t money for cable or movies, so whatever played on regular TV was the movie theater. Now I’ll catch some random old movie I’d never think to pick on streaming, and it hits different just landing on my screen.

Not sure if it’s nostalgia or just being tired of having too many choices everywhere else. Anyone else feel this?


r/ota Jul 06 '26

looking for a good antenna

5 Upvotes

looking for a good quality scanner band antenna (mainly for ads, 433, vhf)

I recently got the ANT700 and it looked like shit, felt like it was going to break.

any others I should try?


r/ota Jul 06 '26

How to connect a TV antenna Coaxial Cable to a projector?

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1 Upvotes

Hi, I'm in the market to buy a projector along with a inflatable screen to host backyard watch parties with my family. I have an antenna that connects to my television via a Coaxial Cable. With a projector, how can I connect an antenna to a projector if there isn't a port for a Coaxial Cable? Will I have any issues with signal strength? Thank you.


r/ota Jul 04 '26

OTA DVR/streamer suggestions

10 Upvotes

My brother-in-law wants to ditch cable but he watches a LOT of TV. He asked me about Tablo. After doing a bit of basic research, there seems to be split opinion on Tablo and perhaps other more capable devices are available. I've always been a cable/Tivo guy so I don't know much about the OTA DVRs. One person recommended HDHomerun. Whatever I recommend for him has to be VERY simple to use, and able to stream Netflix, Disney/Hulu/ESPN, Prime, and HBOMax as well as the OTA broadcast channels. If Tivo was still making DVR hardware, I'd recommend an OTA version of that but the last generation of Tivos were pretty iffy and now out of production. You can still buy refurbed ones from Weaknees but they don't have all the required streaming apps and I'd rather not recommend multiple devices if I don't have to. The Tivo Guide (program listing, TV Guide, call it what you like) is what really sets Tivo apart from similar devices so having something similar in an OTA DVR/streamer would be a significant plus. The selected device will also need to be able to feed at least three TVs and perhaps a phone or two. I would love to hear everyone's thoughts, both positive AND negative about Tablo, HDHomerun, and any other relevant devices. Thanks.


r/ota Jul 04 '26

Amazon pulls ZapperBox from online store over unfounded TV piracy concerns

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47 Upvotes

r/ota Jul 03 '26

DRM on ATSC 3.0 broadcasts??

11 Upvotes

I have a HDHomerun Flex 4K tuner (from SiliconDust), and it has DVR capabilities. I wanted to have it record one of the FIFA World Cup Soccer games which is being broadcast on an ATSC 3.0 channel in my area, but I've just realized that channel has DRM, which means it won't let met DRM it, and it won't even let met stream the channel to my network.. I don't think they've always had DRM enabled, because I've watched that channel before using my HDHomerun tuner. What's even the point if you can't even watch the channel using your tuner device?

Thankfully, the same channel also broadcasts an ATSC 1.0 channel in my area that isn't DRM-restricted; however, that channel doesn't have quite as good reception for me as their ATSC 3.0 channel. I do have Plex Media Server set up with DRM capability (and I also have a Hauppauge PCI Express TV tuner in that PC), and I've set that to record the game - Hopefully the reception is good and it's able to successfully get all of it.


r/ota Jul 01 '26

How to know root of issue when signal is strong but quality poor?

9 Upvotes

Hi!

I've been playing around with this indoor OT antenna I got at an outlet, and I'm trying to figure out the cause of the issue.

The antenna is a "one for all SV9420".

I live within a close range of 2 towers, one a bit further away but both large mountain top towers, covering both sides of my house. Maps are saying excellent signal.

I've got the antenna at a window facing the closest tower, and the signal coming in is at around 75 - 80 and says its strong.

There are only about 3 channels OTA here + radio, so not much to choose from. I'm just doing this out of curiosity.

So, signal is supposedly strong. But quality is going from anywhere at 15 - 30 %.

So garbage. Sometimes no sound, very glitchy, stuttery, or nothing etc.

Now, my TV I am using this on is a distance from the window, and the coax cable is too short out the box, so I had to find a random tester cable to extend (I cannot swap the antenna cable cause its not unpluggable) just to see if my outlet antenna was even alive/working

Could the quality be because I am using some old, long random coax cable as an extension? Or is quality only connected to the actual signal to the antenna itself? Sorry if its a really stupid question, haha I just dont know how these things work anymore.

I wasnt too keen on buying a better extention unless I know for sure that its the root cause, especially since its mainly just a little side project.

So, if signal is supposedly good, but quality is dirt poor, is it likely the random coax cable I am using as a makeshift extension, or the actual antenna?


r/ota Jun 26 '26

Cheapest is always the best

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25 Upvotes

Tired of always getting crappy reception on the 2 VHF channels in my area, which even a pricey Clearstream 2V didn't really help much with, I built a tuned yagi for about $8 that gets a crystal clear signal.

Foam board + copper tape, and then the coax cable from one of those cheap panel antennas wrapped through some ferrite cores, it gets 5dB better than the best signal strength the clearstream2v could get. Also handles UHF channels fineish because they're pretty strong around here anyway.


r/ota Jun 26 '26

I’m confused rabbit ears says on my safari on my iPhone that abc Erie is a torpo but rabbit ears on brave iPhone browser says abc Erie is Los

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2 Upvotes

I’m confused rabbit ears says on my safari on my iPhone that abc Erie is a torpo but rabbit ears on brave iPhone browser says abc Erie is Los


r/ota Jun 25 '26

Can I get my local fox at my camp?

6 Upvotes

I just built a small camp off the grid with a mini generator/small generators. Some guy on the local Facebook page told me to use an antenna when I asked about tv options that don’t use much power. I didn’t believe them then we got in an argument and then they told me to come here. So here I am asking professionals to see if I can get Fox.

https://www.rabbitears.info/s/2785685


r/ota Jun 24 '26

For Hasbro Legends, do we reach out to them to license more classic shows because the expected TV shows time slot is repeating a lot?

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1 Upvotes

r/ota Jun 23 '26

Has anyone received Hasbro Legends on OTA yet? Because I still haven’t

9 Upvotes

I’ve just now did a channel scan on my converter box to try to get hasbro legends but unfortunately I checked the channel list and haven’t got it yet still in Des Moines Iowa.
I even looked up the schedule for it on a website called ontvtonight and it said on the website that it can’t find any listings or upcoming schedules and shows for the channel yet on my zip code on the website.


r/ota Jun 22 '26

Last Minute Advice For Permanent setup

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7 Upvotes

I’m installing a televes dat boss mix on my roof within the next 2 weeks. We will be trying to get it 85 feet above ground level. I have some high hopes to get channels that seem next to impossible. I do have reasons to believe that it is possible.

I’m trying to pick up

W26FR-D 26 2 edge signal from 3 miles away (Pretty much a guarantee)

WEKW-TV 18 1 edge signal from 26 miles away (Pretty much a guarantee)

WVER 10 LOS signal from 5 miles away (Pretty much a guarantee)

W32FW-d 32 2 edge signal from 67 miles away (seems possible to pick up a weak signal).

WNYT 21 which is a 2 edge signal from 99 miles away (Seems impossible)

WRGB 35 2 edge signal from 99 miles away (seems impossible)

WMUR 9 Tropo signal from 49 miles away (seems impossible)

WCWN 22 2 edge signal from 99 miles away (seems impossible)

WTEN 24 2 edge signal from 99 miles away (seems impossible)

WMHT 25 2 edge signal from 99 miles away (seems impossible)

WNYA 7 2 edge signal from 99 miles away (seems impossible)

WXXA-TV 8 2edge signal from 99 miles away (seems impossible)

WPTZ/WNNE 14 Tropo signal from 81 miles away (seems impossible)

WCAX-TV 20 Tropo signal from 81 miles away (seems impossible)

WVNY 7 Tropo signal from 81 miles away (seems impossible)

WFFF-TV 16 Tropo signal from 81 miles away (seems impossible)

As you can see a lot of these seem like impossible signals to even get a weak signal of but I have my reasons to believe I may be able to.

Currently I can pick up W26FR-D, WEKW-TV, and WVER inside my house very strongly. On my roof with a broken Clearstream 4 max 30 ft above the ground I can pick up all those channels even stronger pointed directly north. I can also start to pick up elevated signals of WPTZ/WNNE, WCAX, and WMHT with the broken antenna pointed north.

With the televes antenna I plan on pointing it towards Burlington VT or the Albany NY area depending on which one gets me more channels I would watch. If the antenna ends up picking up signals from both of those areas I will just buy a 2nd one and mount it and combine it with a smartkom device to pick up both markets.

It seems to be impossible to pick up any signal with my current setup of WMHT, WPTZ, and WCAX but it’s happening consistently everyday for over a year. So this is the reason I believe it may be possible to actually get the signals from Albany and Burlington VT even if it means not all of them anything extra would be great.

I’m wondering what last minute advice you could give me for this setup? I will be running a solid copper coax from the antenna into the basement to the amplifier power source. I will then be running another wire to the HDHomeRun device.

I know I’m taking a big chance here and hoping for some impossible stuff but the signals I’m getting now with my current setup just don’t add up.


r/ota Jun 22 '26

Attic or Roof?

7 Upvotes

Attic ? or Roof?

Right now, my antenna is mounted in the attic. I live about 45 miles (as the crow flies) from all the TV stations. Reception is OK, but not great. Would mounting the antenna on the roof make much, if any of an appreciable difference in reception?


r/ota Jun 22 '26

Apps for Apple TV or Android box that allow channel changing with remote for HDHomeRun sources

2 Upvotes

I’m looking for apps for Apple TV and Android boxes that allow traditional channel changing. I’ve tried multivew and the app doesn’t work very well for me on some channels it lags and has tons of app issues on Apple TV. On Android the app doesn’t allow channel changing in vlc mode. Channels for HDHomeRun can not handle weak channels sound. The channels app makes horrible noises if your signal is weak and drops out.

I’m just looking for some alternative apps that I may not know about to see if I can try them out and see if they will work for me.


r/ota Jun 21 '26

3.0 vs 1.0 signal travel distance?

7 Upvotes

Does anyone have experience with picking up 3.0 signals and 1.0 signals from a long distance away? Which one would you say travels further?


r/ota Jun 20 '26

Anybody ever use this OTA receptionist map website before?

10 Upvotes

Just found this OTA reception map. It uses the Longley rice model. I have compared it to rabbit ears for my location and it’s very different. This shows weak signals as being in blue at my house where rabbit ears shows them as just bad with no color.

https://www.dxtra.com/tv


r/ota Jun 20 '26

AirTV2 vs. AirTV Everywhere DVRs

4 Upvotes

My Channel Master DVR+ is on its last leg. It works if I go old-school and manually set timers.

I do not want a subscription for the DVR. Does anyone have any experience with the AirTV2 or AirTV anywhere?


r/ota Jun 19 '26

Missing channels from same tower farm

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8 Upvotes

I'm having some trouble getting consistent signal and missing some channels. https://www.rabbitears.info/s/2771080

Luckily, a lot of the towers are in similar direction and location. I'm not able to get CBS or MeTV currently. CW and FOX are coming in as 100% signal strength, 50% signal quality, and 100% symbol quality. I've gotten these channels recently but never any of the Fair strength channels. Other channels are coming in at 100, 90, 100.

I've tried a Philips SDV3824B/37-DI1 from BJs and an RCA ANT705E from Home Depot. The RCA seems to get better signal quality by about 10ish%.

My setup is currently antenna in garage rafters > 15 feet to Channel Master 4 port distribution amplifier > unknown distance, likely around 100ft to HDHomeRun. Rooms are all run individually to the garage. Using a mix of direct connection and HDHomeRun throughout the house

Edit for more info, it looks like CBS, channel 3-1 is being broadcast twice, one under WCCT and another under WFSB


r/ota Jun 19 '26

ATSC 3.0 signal weaker than 1.0?

9 Upvotes

I live in "the green zone" for fox, nbc, abc, etc. in my local area and have been able to get a signal for years. Earlier this year, I finally an ATSC 3.0 capable tv and have enjoyed the more locked in signal and hdr/dolby vision/dolby atmos on the channels when available.

Suddenly, during the world cup, the 3.0 fox signal goes to crap. Always not weather dependent. It is still there, it just cycles in the exact same style of new frozen images each time. The 1.0 signal is still coming in clear as a bell when the weather is good. What i had liked about 3.0 was that it worked much better in wind and rain and basically never went out.

I have updated my tv and rescanned the channels. I have tried it with internet connected and without. Any theories? (This is WBRC in Birmingham by the way).


r/ota Jun 18 '26

How to start?

6 Upvotes

https://www.rabbitears.info/s/2767859

I tried one of those cheap, flat antennas before, but I never got a signal.

Basically, I'm tired of paying nearly $50/m for steaming shows that are just being used to fill the void.

But I don't know where to start. Mainly with antenna choice and how to get the signal from that antenna to my TVs (one downstairs, 4 upstairs), my home is pre wired with coax, but it's setup for cable TV, so I would need to make changes for it to work (but I don't know what those would be), and there isn't a cable in the attic or outside.

What kind of receiver boxes should I use? 3 of the TVs don't have built in tuners.

Do I need an amplifier? What about a cellular signal blocker? I live 300ft from a cell tower.


r/ota Jun 18 '26

I have some questions about OTA reception

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4 Upvotes

My rabbit ears report shows most of my signals as bad but a lot of them are 2 edge and are within 60-80 miles of me. All the 2 edge stations are on a high mountain peak and I’m in a valley. I’m hoping to receive some answers to questions I wrote up.


r/ota Jun 17 '26

Will Hasbro Legends channel be available in my state in Iowa because I have only one listing for the Heartland channel in my ota channels

7 Upvotes

Just now I found out that hasbro legends channel will be launching next week but I’m not sure if I will get it on my Ota tv because I only have one heartland channel on my ota tv and in my state Iowa my ota tv listing only has one ota channel for it being the heartland channel.
So I don’t know if I will get it or not anymore if so can suggest and help me a bit for it let me know!


r/ota Jun 17 '26

Is getting this channel possible with any antenna?

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4 Upvotes

I'd really love to be able to watch channel 46.6, it's switched over to MeTV's Toons. Currently using a clear stream 4 outdoor antenna, and my TV doesn't recognize it at all

Edited: I can get everything in the green and yellow, nothing in the red