Use an Antenna Amplifier? This Mistake Causes it to Fail 

📡 Do you have reception problems? Consider an antenna recommendation from me 👉 antennamanpa.com/antenna-recommendations.html

We got our 100ft Coax cable from Radio shack shortly before they closed for good. 100ft for 19.99 was pretty good and we know it's solid core because we unfortunately had Tree pruner's that had been hired by our landlord chainsaw through our antenna cable. Thankfully the lost 18 ft didn't matter much, we just recrimped on the connector and screwed it back into the antenna and kept going.

The quad shielded cable not only makes a difference with the amp, but also cuts nearby interference as well.

I'm using a winegard booster w/my Winegard ya7000c attic mount..On the 19th, we watched Charlie Brown Christmas OTA on Philly PBS12 .. & my eyes nearly popped out of my head w/ the crisp, clear, intense ,vivid , bursting colors my Samsung gets OTA. Since 1965 & the 56th year I saw it was like I had never seen it b4!! Unreal!! Commercial free & I didn't move an inch struck w/visual awe for 24 minutes straight . Cable never delivered like this.

Thanks for the tip, Tyler! I just bought a Channelmaster amplifier last week for my grandmother and was going to install it very soon, so I'll be sure to do it right! Merry Christmas to you and everyone!

Merry Christmas buddy!

I use an old radio shack amp I found at Goodwill over 10 years ago, and it still works with an indoor flat antenna 40 miles from the signal.

Thanks man! I’ll have too check my cables, I’ve had to replace my pre-amp twice in the last decade. It’ll be a pain to replace them but if it ever goes out again I’ll replace the cables.

Merry Christmas! , thanks for all the videos

I use the Channel Master 7777HD on High Boost with the Channel Master Deluxe Outdoor Balun and 100 ft of RG6 Triple Shielded Coaxial on a Medium size Yagi antenna 20 feet in the air. I now have great reception with a drop out or interference once in a while. I do unplug my Amp if I leave home for an extended period of time. Hopefully it will last a while, time will tell....

As an installer, I always use dielectric grease and weatherproof fittings on all outdoor connections. Also, I leave a drip loop where the drop cable connects to the ground block upon entry into the home. Then, I put a small cut in the outer jacket at the bottom of the loop to allow any water that gets in the cable to drain, and keep the connection from corroding. I've replaced water damaged corroded fittings many times over the last 30 years...

I have found the Walmart Onn amplifier to be quite reliable. However, the ac adapter that powers the amplifier is NOT.

I'm so happy that I live in CT, where a good antenna is all I need, and no preamp.

Very good advice about the copper cable! Alternately to a pre-amp antenna, one can buy a very good quality antenna without some sort of built in amp, and then add a separate amp in the cable run elsewhere. That's what we do. Running 3 TVs off one excellent antenna with a high quality amp/splitter.

Another awesome video!! Thank you!!

Tyler you are so right purchased a channel master indoor amplified antenna and had to take off amplifier what a difference. Wish I bought the one not amplified. Thank you for your videos 😊

Can't thank you enough for helping me cut the cord! I'm saving $140.00 a month. Your tip's are absolutely essential for cord cutting.

Am using the cable that was installed with a dish. Presumably good stuff as they would not want to suffer callbacks.

Cool, thanks for the info. I pick up 32 channels now with an indoor antenna and never need to move it or the directional metal rabbit ears either. Merry Christmas to you all

Awesome advice.

Thank you for the information Antenna Man!!👍👍😎

Thanks. I just ordered a new R6 cable on Amazon. I had to read very carefully because several descriptions mention copper but where not solid copper centre conducter. Your Amazon links are ok. But shopping on Amazon in Canada we don't have the same products. Or we have to order from the U.S and pay the exchange rate and extra shipping costs.

I used the solid copper RG6 quad shield you recommended from Amazon. Works well for me but took a little practice to put my own F connectors on it. Ideal linearX tool kit from Lowes got the job done.

Great advice

All The Best For Your RU-vid Channel.

I installed a Winegard mast-mounted preamp several years ago (6-7) and it still works good. I'm inner city near to Broadcast Stations but have a 90' cable run and inner city noise. I only get a few stations (3-4) without preamp but all of them (50+) with it.

Antenna man saved me thousands of dollars on cable bills. I didn’t cheap out because I looked at it as and investment. I have 118 channels to choose from thanks to antenna man.

I also watch Michael Saves-a good adjunct channel to yours,Tyler. From your videos,I have learned that my rabbit ears in the window has MORE distortion with an amp than not-I use a distribution amp to feed my HDHomerun and Tivo box. That does not produce the distortion that a direct amp does. Old Cable distribution amp but works fine on ATSC. When you cut the cord,cable company does not account for those,just the boxes .

Thanks for the video. In my family situation, the local OTA's do not provide the programming we enjoy, and, there is no channel guide to let us know what is coming on next. We do have an outside antenna set up (over 10 years installed) as a backup in case cable service is interrupted for a long time (we have bad weather around here).

Thanks for the info

Tyler, I agree with you about buying quality antennas and coax! I don't believe in cutting corners.

Thanks for the video

The truth has been spoken. Subscribing time now.

Tyler, I installed a Televes Dat Boss mix LR on a 20ft mast at my home and was impressed with it's reception. I used solid copper RG6, It's been up about 3 months and the other day we had a thunderstorm and the electricity flickered. I immediately lost signal on my OTA channels, the antenna mast is grounded and the coax is run through a ground block as well. When the weather cleared, I bypassed the ground block with a RG6 extension adapter, and my signal returned on the stronger channels, but weak channels were pixilated. I replaced the ground block the next day and to my surprise lost all signal. I then went to the Televes power supply (still showing a green light) and bypassed it as i had the ground block, I got my strong channels back. Puzzled I tested the power supply and found it producing 14.4 volts DC on the antenna connector. I reconnected it and again lost all signal. I then unplugged it from the AC power and my strong channels returned. I'm guessing the amplifier is shot. Given what I've done would you agree or suggest another test to run? and if the amplifier is dead is this type of failure covered by Televes warranty or am I on the hook?

I installed the monster inside by desk and surprisingly it worked like a champ.

Great video. Do you know a reliable website to download or generate a XmlTV?. I have a HD homerum duo with EMBY premier, but the only Guide Data Sources is made by EMBY but not accurate, some channels are not what is on list. Can you please help me?

Took your advice with a televes pre amp and quad core cable amd channel master antena , iam picking up 20 30 channels from newyork state up to ontario at about 205 miles even in bad weather i get 8 to10 channels.

I got weak signals due to cheap coaxial wire as you mentioned in the video.butbthe problem is I cannot replace the wire because it goes through the wall.and it stuck.(cannot pull).when I measure the voltage it drops about 5v .is there any way to in crease the voltage.?

I went with the rolls royce of cables 15 years ago, and got RG-11 with solid copper conductor.

You are right again!

When i set up my aerial outside, i just unscrewed the cable from the cable company going into my house and screwed that into the aerial. It goes through the attic to the wall jacks in three rooms in my house. Are you saying in order to use a signal booster with my aerial i have to rip out all that coax and replace it with new cable? Is there a preamp that won't get "fried" with regular existing cable company coax?

Solid copper may be better for the DC to preamps but not necessarily for the antenna signal. I suspect more preamp failures are because of quality and not low voltage.

And here I was thinking you'd say it was something like forgetting to properly weather seal the connectors.

Tyler, I purchased the Channel Master amplifier you recommended and was surprised the the coax between the power supply and TV is TIIIIIINY!! Doesn’t that affect the reception? Thanks again.

I agree with you 1000 percent!!! A good antenna or group of antennas in my case!!! PS: remember the good ground. Here is a question, what are the skip issues with ATSC ver 3 signal ??? And when will a good basic converter box with HDMI outlet for ver 3 will show up???

good info i never knew that about cheap cable wires

SUBSCRIBED !!!!!

Just an FYI. Signals through a cable aren't carried primarily through the entire wire, but on the surface. It's called the skin effect. It's not so much the composition of the coating. In the case of copper over steel, the problem actually comes when the copper coating is damaged, something quite easy to do. It degrades quickly after that leading to the problems described. I would only use solid copper just for that reason. It's a little more expensive but WILL help protect your equipment. The DC voltage does use the entire conductor, but again does degrade with any damage to the surface.

We are seniors with a rooftop antenna that is not all that great. Can we get Ultra Mini 1 amplifiers and just attach to the tv?

Hi Tyler, I set up new Clearstream 4K, pointed it toward signal sources. Brand new LG did auto tuning for an antenna setup. Picked up all my local channels. ABC clear as can be. But NBC and CBS no signal. Re-ram the auto-tune. Then I received great signals from NBC, CBS but not ABC. Re-ran auto-tune again, back to solid ABC but no NBC or CBS. So weird! Help! Thx!

Your Comment on Solid -core Coax with Cu -COPPER makes sense - alot of CATV companies have used Steel Wire with Copper Cladding for years!!! I heard it does degrade-- but how much?? I was told always use the GE silicone paste Lube for Coax Connections!!!??

Now I know what happened to the indoor antenna had to change the booster out was wondering why we kept losing reception

Does the amplifier have to be mounted outside close to the antenna ? I have a nice outdoor antenna with a rotor that I had professionally installed in 2007 (still analog signals then), and it has worked great. Not sure the exact make of the antenna, but the rotor is a Channel Master, so the antenna might be as well... I think my installer (who is now deceased) purchased them from our local Radio Shack that is no longer in business. But the amplifier went bad several years ago, and I had to replace it... it was a Windgard LNA-200 Boost XT. The major issue I have is that I now have new metal roof, so it can be slippery to get up on, and kind of steep near the chimney were the antenna is mounted, and my ladder isn't tall enough to get to the antenna from the side of the house where the chimney is located. It would be so much easier to have the amplifier in my basement where the coax cables run. I purchased an extra one to have on hand in case the amplifier goes bad again. Or maybe there is a better amplifier that can be mounted inside like I would like ?

The quality of coax will effect signal loss, but won't damage a preamp. The amount of current the preamp uses is insignificant.

Where can I buy the best RG-11 cable?

my house is wired with rg59 cable. to replace it would involve removing drywall to replace the cable. removing lots of drywall. What is so bad about using the existing rg59 cable i already have?

Thanks for the advice on using solid copper core coax... Unrelated question, have you done a antenna review on the set of Rabbit Ears in the background of all your videos?🤔

Would a 50-foot RG11 cable provide sufficient signal quality without the need for an amplifier?

Do you know of an antenna that will have the ability to turn to get the best signal?

I'm trying to find a pair of rabbit ears I can plug a coax cable into. I have tons of it leftover from Comcast, and I'd love to keep using the cables.

How to improve the DAB signal, do you have a good setup for this. My car has a stock setup with DAB radio, adding an amplifier does not work at all, my guess is that the roof mounted antenna has amplifier and now there is 2. FM seems to work but not dab, and i dont know how good the FM signal is, but it does not matter, as FM is not longer used in Norway, funny how DAB is always a problem while driving, the newer systen has more stuff, but lack in the important thing, a working radio. so even the best setup will possible not be inough but better. i know a bigger antenna is possible the way to go, but i think there is only 3 made, because i cant find moore then that,a glass antenna + a couple of roof antennas thats it.

If I get the RCA Indoor Antenna with the super long dipole rods for lo-VHF reception, I have thought about getting a Cable Matters RG6 Quadshield Coax Cable and a gold-plated F-type coupler from the same brand. On top of this, I would turn the amplifier on that antenna off since I only live 9 to 10 miles away from the broadcast towers in my area. I'm aware that cable also has copper clad steel, but it's still thick and it's around 18 AWG. There, I think I would be fine as long as I have the amplifier turned off.

I'm confused about amplifiers and powered splitters. I have an outside roof antenna (ClearStream 2V by this channel's advice) and it is directly connected to my TV with about 30' of cable - nothing in between; one solid piece of cable (I drilled a hole in the side of my house for it). Anyone know of a reason I need any type of power? If I'm not getting channels, I don't know about it. I get the ones on the channel line up (provided by WiFi modem) and I don't have cable, so I'm just assuming I'm good to go. I don't mind investing in something if I need to. The towers can't be further than 60 miles because that's where the Gulf of Mexico is, so they have to be closer than that.

Copper Is My Favorite Metal With Silver, Copper Is Important, The Other Metals That They Use, The Cheaper Ones Just Work Like A Resistor For Your Amplifier And Thats Why They Don`t Carry The Signal And They Make Burn Up, How Many Times I Have Found Coaxial Cables With Burned Central Wire, Ohh, MANY! Even The Big Coaxial Cabled With 3 Sheets Of Shielding ! SUBSCRIBED, Very Good Video, Learned A New Things :L)

Thinner center conductor means higher resistance, which of course affects current. Overdriving causes the power supply to fail at the regulator for these, like a 7805. BUY ON QUALITY, NOT ON PRICE! I'm repeating that mantra just for my own OCD.

I have a question some days I can pull in 150-200 channels easily then other days I’m lucky if I can get 30-35. I’m using a Winegard FL-55YR FlatWave Amplified Razor Thin HDTV Indoor Antenna . I’m not moving the antenna it’s taped to a window not doing a new rescan just turning on the tv some days 100-150 channels other days only 30-35 all on sunny clear days. What could cause this?

I can confirm that this is true. A few years ago to catch long-range signals I set up two separate long range antennas one for UHF and one for VHF. The key decision I made was investing in a solid copper wire along with two long-range antennas. At the time, I was worried about two issues. One, the run of the wire was going to be quite long and two, how I was going to mix the two antennas into one line. So I decided to go with a pre-amplifier that had an option to input both a VHF and VHF signal into one line. So after I set it up, it worked fine for a while but after a year or so, the signal started to weaken. I would have dropouts of signals that didn't make sense. Sew-in watching this channel, I wondered if maybe I was over amplifying the signal which was causing issues. So as an experiment, I removed the preamplifier and attached each antenna to their own line and basically just connected them with a basic splitter at the end of each run to see what kind of signal I would get. I was amazed to see that even with the long distance of the stations and long-run of the cables, I actually got better signals without the preamplifier. I think the key ingredient is putting your money into good antennas and good cable just like the video points out. So count me as a testimonial that what he is saying in this video is true. Make sure you buy the solid copper wire and not the copper clad wire.

We live in the country. We have an antenna to get regular TV locally. And working good , now picture disfigures inadvertently.?

I have to agree with some of the other commentary. Not sure how the quality of the central core can kill an amplifier if the voltage is steady. My Simple CEO cables are high quality copper clad steel. No problems with them so far.

Are there indoor boosters? Mine is good but sometimes pixels.

how does the power go to the amplifier do you need to plug it into a wall socket .

So, how much current does a signal amplifier draw? I'm having a hard time imagining that it draws enough that the difference between steel and copper on an 18 gauge conductor is critical.

How do you stream OTA stations? I hear sling does that.

Question: How far left and right does an antenna receive signals? All my current towers are 11.5-12 miles away grouped with farthest 2 being 3.5 miles from each other. @ 22 degrees difference on a compass. I’ve had the same 2 med -large? antennas on the same @ 25 foot mast since I bought the house in 1996 with the same RCA MODEL VH121 amp @ 15 feet from the antennas inside the house. The main changes I’m thinking about are deleting an antenna and/or upgrade the fittings. The antennas are connected by @ 3 foot two wire jumper and then one simple coax adapter and a splitter in the attic after the amp. Yearly when it gets cold especially at night I have one major local channel which goes from Great to none intermittently and that tower is in the middle of the others which have good signal… good for where I live. I can turn the lower antenna slightly and the signal comes back or just unplug and replug the amp in and it comes back strong but after a while it goes out again. No rhyme or reason except worse at night when the cold air is denser. Normally I only have to move it once but this year it just won’t stay set. Summer time is rarely a problem in Florida but when it gets hot again i have to move the lower antenna slightly again back to where it was. @ 2-4 inches till it settles on a stable signal. The smart tv shows the best signal for that one channel at 34% and quality at 100 but then will drop to nothing. Everything else stays @ 60-75 % I get 51 channels but only watch 28 but the 13-4 has star trek so it HAS to work….. BTW The only internet I have is on my phone using a cell booster and another antenna @ 35 feet from the tv antennas facing away from them. I also have no hardline phone. My house is OFF the grid.

I have seen Countless times.. Using Amps in the Wrong way Most Don't know or Don't care to know Difference from an antenna Pre-Amp Or an amped splinter brick Or how and why at times you can destroy a Signal Using or using improperly amps/pre-amps and multi-spliter- amps You should do a vid about that Pros and cons etc

After thinking for years that $10 antenna amplifiers were a scam, I bought one and it brought in local stations that were too weak for my TV. I understand basic electrical and broadcasting concepts, but I can't wrap my mind around how multiple frequencies can be simultaneously boosted. I thought the process was like a signal repeater and could not possibly be done by a tiny cheap amplifier. The one I got is powered by USB. Can you explain briefly how the hell this miracle of technology works?

I use a 100ft cable that came with a satellite dish I bought years ago. I usually can get pretty good reception, but recently my Channel Master amp quit working. I was losing signals I didn't think I should be losing. (I figured they were changing something on their tower) I couldn't find the same one to replace it, so I bought one on ebay, that had the Channel Master model number. Reception isn't as good as it once was, so maybe I will change the cable and see if it helps. I haven't had cable or satellite for several years.

I'm trying to understand why I unhook the cable antenna in from outside that already gets 10 tv channel hook up my antenna amplifier from radio shack its an archer cat. # 15-24 I hook it up I get "0" channels . Possible someone else used it as I got it off ebay and ruined it an put it back in the box and sold it. I re checked the connections . the outside mask mount is in on one end out on other end . the other end in the house is pretty straight forward and marked to tv leaves the other one for in from amplifier/ antenna . So my question is can you do a show/video on using a digital volt meter to show how to check each component. and show what to replace in side the mask amp when biggest cause is thunder/lighting storms. NO any one that can get the schematic on that biggest seller radio shack they sold for at least 4 decades

the real copper core wire also lasts longer. I have customers who use the cladded crap for internet connections and they fail after 2 or 3 years. Signal runs on top of the cable, not thru it, so when the cladding comes off it hugely affects performance for cable lines or Ethernet. It costs a lot more but the solid copper wires are just so much better. You can get 30 years from solid copper core vs

I use a amplifier with my antennas and I don't have any problems. All my TV's are hooked up to indoor antennas and I get lots of good channels and not drop outs of a channel. I live in New York City and I am surprised I get so many channels (80) on my TV's. I also stream as well. I cut my cable channels off because they kept raising the price and a lot of the channels are garbage.

Cable TV/antenna amplifiers can have other uses. I use them with a radio scanner.

I'm getting rid of Dish after 25 years and going back to antenna but I have had some trouble finding the right one for me. I'd like one with a rotator on it if possible so I can turn it different directions when needed. Also I have towers 60 miles east of me and 80 miles west so I would need something with long range. Can anyone recommend one for me?

Would really like to see FM antenna recommendations…

Hi Tyler. Just wondering how a copper cladded centre conductor on a coaxial cable can cause a masthead amplifier to "burn out" as you state at the 1:38 mark in your video? "Burn out" in electronics implies the components are going to overheat and and thus literally burn up. Now any tech worth his / her salt will know that steel is less conductive than copper (resistivity being the factor here), but RF engineers working with receiving transmission lines (in this case a RG6 or RG11 coaxial cable) will be aware of the "skin effect" hereby the HF FR signal current actually travels on the surface of the conductor rather than in the centre. Of course this doesn't apply to d.c. and low frequency a.c. like 50/60Hz. In a typical masthead amplifier the current used to supply power to the amplifier is in the order of tens of milliamperes and as such the voltage drop from the power injector to the amplifier mounted on the antenna is insignificant in a typical installation under 100 metres in length. If anything I'd be more worried about the quality of the fit off of the connectors and ensuring the weather proof rubber boots over the connectors installed outside is sound and of good quality.

Most amps are crappy. Look for one with a noise figure of less than 1db, mast mount it as close to the antenna feed point as close as possible. Use RG11 from the amp to the splitter. Its not that much more than RG6 but so much better..

I install up here in Canada. I have used RG6 and RG11 Coaxial Cable as a main feed line. The inside of the coaxial cable is copper clad steel. Yes you can buy copper. But the larger RG11 only comes copper clad. To this day have not had one burnt preamp. The reason I can tell, once the preamp goes bad the customer would not get TV Stations outside the 30 mile area. No one has phoned me, except one customer which his got hit by lighting. Steel can conduct electricity too. You would not measure not much loss. I will conduct an experiment and measure voltage on a 100 foot coaxial cable in copper clad steel the center conductor. Don’t expect to see a drop in voltage. Most preamps put out 18VDC. But getting back to preamp burnout using Copper clad steel. Not one to this day I installed for, has contacted me. My main selling preamp was the grey CM7777 with the 30 dB gain. Before CM changed the style and lowered gain to 26 dB.

How can I prevent rfi from fluorescent and or led lighting?

I personally don't use amplifiers because it adds problems and additional connections that causes more resistance. The more connections you have the more signal loss you have.

I use lrm400 coax its large and has low loss at vhf/uhf/hf frequencies and is expensive I’m a amateur radio operator

Dc does not care, and a lower voltage will not burn out an amp,it may reduce the gain a little.any RG 6 shielding is more important then the center copper capper clad works because of skin effect with any RF frequency.

Amplifiers usually are used on buidings that can't do either but using long coaxial cables to distrubuite singal. On 7-10 meters distance from antenna - tv, you simply buy a good antenna, a good RG6 or good quality RG59 cable, and you'll be able to peak all stations, without any problem. With good antenna, i mean decent quality aluminium antenna, not cheap crap.

I think quad shield is overrated they are so hard to get connectors on even ones made for it but copper it good

i have already know that , using an amplifier in a good signal what causes it's a phenomenon like weak or no signal at all by overloading the tuner in most cases or adding noise to the signal in many cases the noise ground is higher than the usable signal or pilot signal and doesn't matter the type of signal modulation 8VSB/COFDM etc in all signals occurs the same

That happened to me, I was using Channel Master Quad Shield CCS RG6 coax and my CM-7778 preamp burnt out along with the power inserter in 6 Months. Solid copper coax never occurred to me until later. CCS coax is fine with an indoor amplifier as the TV signals travel on the outer edge of the center conductor. But electricity travels through the core of the wire being lower in frequency and copper is better than steel conducting electricity. Some people swear by copper only coax and it that situation it’s fine but CCS coax is fine with indoor amplifiers as only TV signals are being boosted with no electricity being transferred in it.

Or if you have old cable ran already like for cable tv just splinter in and have it in every room

Hmm. I think we need some solid electrical analysis to back up what you are saying. Like, can you measure a voltage drop at the amplifier that would actually damage it due to under-voltage? BUT, I agree with the general statement "use a quality solid-copper cable". Also, cheap RG connectors and poorly crimped connectors are major failure points as well. DON'T CHEAP OUT on your antenna, amplifier, cable and connectors. Make a solid investment (NPI).

In years past rabbit ears or old time channel masters no one used. I won't get one station without amplifier.

Hey are you an electrical engineer? You know alot.

I doubt underpowering an amplifier could cause it to fail; over powering it with a higher then reccomend voltage on the power inverter however, will.

I use a amplifier. When I do I get 63 channels with no amp I only get 34.