Our switch to DTV

We don't have cable. We don't want cable. We don't even want the hassle of "reception cable". We have been trying with all our might to get into the DTV mode. I have to say that when DTV works, it works brilliantly and I love the extra channels, especially the PBS ones, we get with the DTV reception. We live in a house that is surrounded by very tall trees. We have so many trees in our back yard that we cannot grow grass. Well, this has some interesting effects on the DTV signal when it is windy outside. It doesn't even have to be a strong wind. Gentle breezes, swaying the trees, will mess with the signal so that we get a pixelated picture and the sound cuts out. I bought a DTV antenna (around $60 on Amazon) that did get some nice reviews and this has helped somewhat. But, the picture still has issues in rather idyllic Summer conditions - you know the one where we glory in the cool breeze, usually from the North.

So, where does that leave us. Well, we are going to hold out as long as we can, but I fear that the reception cable may be in our future. We love our trees too much to do any clear cutting to get a better DTV signal and I do not like the thought of a rooftop antenna. We'll see. Maybe I can try an attic-mounted one in the near future. I could even build one of those if I had the wherewithall to follow the directions I have seen on the internet from time to time.

I do know, for a fact, that we will not invest in a basic cable package that goes beyond the reception or broadcast cable deal that the local cable outlet has. I will give up TV altogether before we do that.

Comments

  1. MelissaJune 12, 2009 at 10:13 AM

    I'm impressed you can get a signal at all with all the trees! Wow. We did the antennae thing until we moved back here and the reception was so terrible that I think we could only get one fuzzy channel. So we got the lowest cable package available, which is only about 10-12 channels, and is $8 a month (TWC is having a special for basic $5/mo for a year right now). I hear ya on cable though - we refuse to get anything more than that. I don't want to pay for hundreds of channels of garbage and commercials.

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  2. Mark DudleyJune 12, 2009 at 11:57 AM

    It took some research and fiddling, but we do get decent DTV reception. Some channels are better than others. I think we may follow your path to the lowest cable package available...but we'll do it kicking and screaming the whole time. Thanks for the comment, Melissa.

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