Antennacraft� Colorstar C490 HDTV/VHF/UHF/FM Antenna

Comments about Antennacraft® Colorstar C490 HDTV/VHF/UHF/FM Antenna:

I'm very knowledgeable at installing antennas. So I spent quite a few hours of my evening installing this antenna, only to find that when I went back in my house to test it out, turned on the TV, I could only receive UHF and not VHF. This is the same problem another reviewer mentioned. I spent most of my time trying to diagnose the problem, but I realized everything was correctly installed. I folded it back up, and it's going back to the store. I'll have to find something else. If the product wasn't defective, I'd probably like it. The UHF portion seemed to work great... if only I could receive VHF and FM as was the reason I purchased this. You can view an actual picture of my installed antenna below.

Comments about Antennacraft® Colorstar C490 HDTV/VHF/UHF/FM Antenna:

*I live in the signal shadow of a mountain that is one mile away. I live 20 miles from Atlanta.
*This replaced another smaller RCA 70 mile antenna mounted on the same antenna tripod in the attic.
*This thing is pretty directional and generally if you are within 10 degrees to the left or right of a station you can still get it.
*I don't use amplifiers much since if the power goes out and it has no power, I can't watch any stations anymore.

I tested one station on high VHF that already came in okay where I live, and once I replaced the other antenna, I saw 45% signal increase to 93%! And a 30% increase on most other UHF stations. I was even getting high UHF stations that didn't exist on the channel list without an amplifier.

*Remember, if you are having issues with the antenna, it might also be your TV. I used to use an Insignia TV and it needed more than 40% signal to display a picture. A Sony Bravia TV I use now can pick up 25% signal and is more sensitive in general.*

Comments about Antennacraft® Colorstar C490 HDTV/VHF/UHF/FM Antenna:

I live in a moderate-density area (Santa Clara - 95051), and use HDHomerun TV recievers. My signal reception appeared to degrade over the summer. I attempted to improve conditions by replacing the classic outdoor "fishbone" antenna with a newer, larger, but similar design unit (Antennacraft Colorstar C490 HDTV/VHF/UHF/FM Antenna). I also added a 10db antenna amp (Bidirectional Cable TV Amplifier, Model: 15-2505). The antenna was mounted on a pole about five feed above the top of a two story house. But no matter how I positioned the antenna, there was always one channel for which reception was poor, and would at times not be tunable. I decided to give one of the newer design HDTV-specific antennas ( RadioShack Amplified Outdoor HDTV Antenna, Model: 1500257). The smaller form factor is a huge win. Was able to install this in my attic, not out in the elements. Directionality and positioning of the coax cable connecting the antenna to the recievers was key, but in final position, I get the reception improvement I needed to pull in all channels on my list. It was a pleasant surprise to get the best results from the smaller, more convenient antenna (with a built-in signal strength amp) as opposed to the large, unwieldy fishbone antenna and separate signal booster.

Comments about Antennacraft® Colorstar C490 HDTV/VHF/UHF/FM Antenna:

We live 20 miles outside of town, but in a valley. we had to have the 100 mile radius antenna just to pick up the 5 local channels. we've had it since the mandatory switch to HD and for 3 yrs the tines keep breaking off and need a new one already.

Comments about Antennacraft® Colorstar C490 HDTV/VHF/UHF/FM Antenna:

After fighting with 3 other styles of antenna over the course of 3 years, this is the ONLY one that worked! Rabbit ears, nope. Notebook size wall-mount HDTV antenna with signal booster, nope. "High gain" Antenna-Pro's antenna with signal amplifier, nope. THIS antenna, YEEESSS!!!We live exactly 40 miles from our broadcast TV station antennas in Houston and this antenna gets them all crystal clear! No signal amplifier needed!Go to antennaweb.org to determine the broadcast station antennas in your area and how far and what direction they are from your home!Antenna is mounted in Attic about 15~20 ft. above the ground through thickly wooded neighborhood and attic rafters and performs perfectly! Couldn't be happier!One other note, this thing is rather huge!! It measured 12.5 feet long with a 7 foot wingspan at the largest dipoles at rear.

Comments about Antennacraft® Colorstar C490 HDTV/VHF/UHF/FM Antenna:

Ordered this along with an amplifier, the amp got here in a few days. The antenna hasn't even been shipped. I would have bought it at the local radio shack but it was $20.00 higher. I thought at least if I ordered online they would bring to me. Guess I was wrong. So my rating is if you need it better look somewhere else.

Comments about Antennacraft® Colorstar C490 HDTV/VHF/UHF/FM Antenna:

This antenna is perfect for my location. BTW, I'm having trouble getting my local ABC affiliate WLOS 13 over the air which is 97 miles from my house, but I get from time to time. But I've picked up a distant channel that's 272 miles from where I live which is a PBS/UNC-TV station from Wilmington, NC WUNJ 39. I've picked up every station in my market except my ABC station in my market. But I've picked up some Augusta, GA stations, I've also picked up Columbia, SC stations. Even some stations in Atlanta, GA too. At night, I've picked up some of all of the big 4 networks from Charlotte, NC. This is a groovy product. I reconment this for everybody who live in deep fringe areas like I live in. I could get average of 30 channels my highest channels I've picked up days ago was 60 over the air channels. I've enjoyed subchannels like ThisTV and MeTV. This is the best antenna ever made!

Comments about Antennacraft® Colorstar C490 HDTV/VHF/UHF/FM Antenna:

Great reception. Good price. TV stations are 80+ miles away. Instructions a bit hard to follow - could use more/better pictures. Very happy.

Comments about Antennacraft® Colorstar C490 HDTV/VHF/UHF/FM Antenna:

Make sure your tv has a internal RF converter if not you need one for your signal to make sence to your TV,why because my TV even doe it was a flat screan it was to old and it those not have and internal rf converter newer then 2008 yes, most of them.

Comments about Antennacraft® Colorstar C490 HDTV/VHF/UHF/FM Antenna:

After trying several antennas, both indoor and outdoor, I am now getting New Orleans stations, which are 80 miles away! It is in my attic and attached to a gain amplifier and a converter box and is pointed towards New Orleans, although sometimes I get a Mobile station, which is in the opposite direction. I am about 5 miles from the Gulf of Mexico and there is an airport about 2 miles away.

Installation: The antenna is bulky, but not heavy. I hung it from the rafters in my attic with cord/string in two places towards the middle of the antenna. Then, to make small direction adjustments, I attached three pieces of cord to the antenna, one at the front, one in the middle, and one at the back and slipped them through the hole in the corner of the ceiling where the cable enters the room. This way, I can pull on the cords to adjust the antenna a little. I hung the cord in the middle over the rafter so I can raise and lower the antenna. The other two cords help me change directions. There is just a little room in the attic for the antenna, so I can only make small adjustments. I keep the cords in place by wrapping around a few screws. It doesn't look bad since it is behind a door.

Instructions: The instructions were terrible, but there are only 4 main pieces, and it still only took an hour to put it together and install it. (Add another 1/2 hour for attaching the adjustment cords, which I did on a different day.) First, I spent a few days looking at the instructions before I attempted installation. (Yep, I'm a girl. Learned a lot of things I never wanted to know when putting my house back together after Hurricane Katrina.)

The store clerk had warned me not to put the antenna together before trying to get it in the attic, which was good advice. Later I realized I could have attached the pieces together before putting it in the attic without opening all the rods, but it would have been much bulkier that way, as it is 12 ft long, and I never would have gotten it up there by myself.

All I can say about putting it together is that if you have two pieces in your hand and it makes no sense, turn one of the pieces around. When you get the pieces going in the right direction, the instructions suddenly make sense. Remember the U-shaped bolts have to go one under the other if you are going to put it on a mast. I don't think mine lined up well enough to attach a mast, so I'm glad I didn't have to do that part.

Scanning: I have scanned for stations a few times over the past few days at different times of the day, and it has continued to pick up new stations, but all stations do not work all the time (except for the 3 local stations which always work great). I can make small adjustments to the position of the antenna with the cords, then scan again.

Do you really need this antenna?: If you live in a big city with a lot of stations, you probably don't need this antenna. I was getting the 3 local stations just fine with an inexpensive ($20) antenna. I used that same inexpensive antenna when I lived in Long Beach within view of the Gulf of Mexico and I got all these same stations I am finally getting now. It could be that the water helped the signal, but it is surprising how much difference 6-7 miles can make in getting or not getting a signal.