Over the air antenna
 

So we finally cut the cord and got rid of cable and went to sling tv. The picture quality is fantastic but I miss the local channels. Does anyone use an over the air antenna now and how does it work? What brand do you have? I also have an aluminum roof and heard that that could effect signal quality. Thanks in advance for the replies.

My guess is that you'll get channel 9 in Manchester, 8 & 13 from Portland Maine. They're pretty cheap to buy.

http://www.antennasdirect.com/blog/antenna-work-live/

Over the Air DVR Option
 

Just to throw this out there, for those who want a DVR for local channels and that is holding them back from cutting the cord, ChannelMaster makes a good one that has no ongoing fee:

www.channelmaster.com

Product Specific:
https://www.channelmaster.com/Stream...7600bdl1tb.htm

For $178 with a 1TB drive, it's a great way to keep DVR functionality while not paying cable rates!

We cut the cable a couple months back and now use a little Roku unit to get Sling, Netflix, and other things, as well as NewsOn (free) for Maine and Boston news. For some reason, WMUR doesn't play nicely with NewsOn, but for what it's worth (very little, IMO) we can stream WMUR news from the web on our computers.

To verify my understanding...

The cord being cut is cable TV with cable (or other) internet being retained for Sling, Hulu etc., yes?

Did the same in the spring, streaming Directv Now via Roku - which includes local ABC, NBC, FOX, and CBS affiliates out of Boston +WMUR all in HD plus get free DVR - although it is limited to 20 hours.

They DO NOT include the independent channels or PBS. No loss to me I don't care about either.


You may want to compare Sling vs Directv Now. Sling is cheaper up front but lacks quite a bit too.

Correct.

Can even be done over 4G LTE wireless although it does chew data pretty quickly.

Eyes we still have Internet and have Ruku and sling tv but I can't seem to get local channels or Fox News. Was wondering if anyone on the lake was using an over the air antenna and to what success

Mountains block any signals for local channels. Basic dishtv plus metrocast grandfathered price works. Unsure what will be next when contracts run out


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We bought this one:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Works great and adjusts easily as well.

If you go to this website you can enter your location and get real information about how various antennas will receive
TV stations in your area.

https://nocable.org/

For Winni it is basically

indoor antenna: no reception
indoor amplified antenna: A couple of possible stations
outdoor antenna: fair to poor reception for a few stations
outdoor long range antenna: likely to receive a few

None of the antennas types are rated good reception from Winni.

YouTube TV includes local channels as well as a DVR capability. You can stream from 3 devices at a time.

https://tv.youtube.com/welcome/

I got that 3 months ago. From on the hill in West Alton I get Maine channels 6, 8 and 13 including sub-channels.

At what point do the cable TV companies lose enough revenue that they must raise thier internet rates to make it work?

Very soon I imagine. I'm locked in for another 18 months with comcast for internet, and it'll probably go way up.

Channels
 

I have an old piece of crap antenna on Rattlesnake that I rescued from the dump. Channels 9,11,21,31 and 41 with sub channels. Best of all FREE!

A big thanks to everyone who has chimed in with a response / answer / or sensible question. I too would also like to cut the cable tv cord, so this thread is interesting to see what other folks are doing or suggesting.

My son has been gently suggesting to cut the cord, but admittedly I've been to lazy to do the research and a little afraid of making a mistake and getting sucked into something else I will dislike even more and have to crawl back to comcast.

Tackleman, have you looked at NewsOn? You should find it (for free) on your Roku.

I'll try that the next time I'm up. Thanks for the help everyone.

Tablo DVR
 

If you do manage to get local channels you can use a Tablo DVR to stream those channels to any TV that has a streaming receiver attached or internal. I used to use DirecTV on the island. I now have a Tablo DVR at my central MA winter home where I get over 40 channels via an attic antenna into the Tablo. The Tablo is connected to the internet and I can stream from MA to the island (app installed on island Apple TV or any android device). So on the island, I get all broadcast channels (and DVR recorded shows) via DSL stream from my MA home, free except the cost of internet at both locations (which I would have regardless). Also, the Tablo DVR interface is as good or better than the DirecTV software, which prior I had thought was the best.

Also, I did try the new Channel Master DVR (I had an older one), but was very disappointed in the interface and performance.

Thanks for the information. I ordered an over the air antenna today.

I've had a Tablo for a couple years now and it's great! I can access it from anywhere via a phone app, Roku, or Firestick and watch either recorded shows or live TV. It can record up to 4 simultaneous shows and/or play back up to 6 streams (haven't ever found a need to check this).

I particularly like that I can watch my "home" news and weather programs.

What type of antenna are you using? How many stations are you receiving?

My recommendation is a 4-bay bowtie antenna like the Channel Master 4221.

From my cottage on Cape Cod, I have no trouble receiving Boston / Providence stations up to 52 miles away. Keep in mind, southern Massachusetts is pretty flat so your mileage will definitely vary.

channel list
 

I tried 3x antennas before I stopped, from $30 to $149, 2x amped indoor and 1x outdoor. Some channels are sporadic but I get the same results from all 4.

These four always :

Call Sign Affiliate Channel

WCSH-HD NBC 06.1
Justice Justice Network 06.2
Antenna Antenna TV 06.3
Quest Quest 06.4

These come in but are flaky :

WGME-HD CBS 13.1 (never clear)
TBD-TV TBD 13.2 (rarely clear)
ASN-TV Stadium 13.3 (early AM or late PM only)

I aim out from Gilford, any direction doesn't matter as either Rattlesnake or mountains are in the way. So whatever antenna doesn't really matter. For a test from outside Boston I get ~ 40 stations on the $30 Walmart special and ~ 45 from the better $99 indoor amped. So I think it's much more where you are vs. which one you buy.

I tried multiple amplified interior and one non-amplified texterior antennas and none gave me anything worth watching. This is on Moultonborough Neck.

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