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From: sdyer@bbncc5.UUCP (Steve Dyer)
Newsgroups: net.video
Subject: re: vcr tuner question (actually, outdoor antennas)
Message-ID: <527@bbncc5.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 24-Aug-85 11:29:35 EDT
Article-I.D.: bbncc5.527
Posted: Sat Aug 24 11:29:35 1985
Date-Received: Tue, 27-Aug-85 00:59:54 EDT
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Organization: Bolt Beranek and Newman, Cambridge, MA
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> I have recently purchased a Toshiba VCR. I have found that the
> fringe reception capability of the VCR is inferior to that of my
> Panasonic TV, and this is important since I live in the boonies,
> have no hope of access to cable, and went to pains to locate a TV
> which could pick up most of the staions in my area.
>
> Does anybody have any opinions on the folowing remedies:
>     (3) improve my antenna system (I have fancy rabbit ears now)
> 	      with an outdoor antenna, or perhaps an antenna pre-amp

You cannot believe the difference in picture quality an outdoor antenna
will make!  This is especially true for the 'boonies', but it also holds
true for urban areas like mine.  A properly oriented outdoor antenna will
make a marginal TV tuner look good, and a state-of-the-art tuner look
fantastic.  Once I installed the antenna, I fed it to my fancy Proton
system, but also pulled some coax to feed a cheapo Radio Shack color TV I
was using as a second set.  The improvement in both was impressive, but the
Radio Shack appeared like a new, much more expensive, TV.  The cost/benefit
ratio for outdoor antennas is far far smaller than any other improvement you
could make to your system.

As for signal amplifiers, I don't have too much experience with them.  I would
probably urge you to get an outdoor antenna before you considered an indoor
amplifier to use with rabbit ears.  Remember, amplifiers amplify everything,
including noise, so you want the best possibly signal quality before you
amplify anything.  I guess real fanatics amplify the signal up at the antenna
mast to minimize the contribution of noise pickup through the down-lead to
your TV.
-- 
/Steve Dyer
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