Audiovox AF1 AM/FM Amplified Stereo Antenna Review

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(More customer reviews)I bought the Terk antenna in an attempt to pick up some AM and FM radio stations I was struggling with on my new bookshelf stereo system. Perhpas because of my apartment building, or the quality of the stereo, the antenna didn't offer me much success in picking up stations any better than the factory-provided antenna. I did notice improvement in the static (or lack of it) on stations that were already tuning in fairly well (they went from great to excellent), but the stations that were tuning in "poorly" got no better with the Terk antenna. Overall, it was probably not worth the money paid.

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Terk AF-9330 AM/FM Indoor Amplified Tower Antenna Review

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(More customer reviews)I was hoping to improve reception on a few stations , so I decided to replace the twin lead dipole (passive) antenna that came with my new tuner with the Terk Tower. I have the AM Advantage loop and that works fairly well, so I figured this powered antenna would be a lot better.
Well, bad reasoning. On FM, it doesn't work NEARLY as well as a 32" piece of plain old wire on any of my radio recievers. In some cases, stations that could be tuned reasonably well with *nothing at all* attached to the FM inputs, and no internal antenna, could no longer be received with the Terk Tower attached.
Those that could be tuned with the antenna attached had grotesque distortion. This despite turning the gain adjustment dial in either direction. It was functioning, as at low levels of gain, the station dropped off completely, and definitely changed as you moved it. So it wasn't just broken. I could get barely acceptable reception on a few stations with micro-fine adjustments of the dial. But even at best all stations had all sorts of fuzz and dropouts. You could turn it up enough to swamp the receiver ACG circuit, but the distortion never goes away as you turn it down the point of losing lock completely.
On AM, it doesn't make it worse, but it doesn't help, either. On all the weak stations I have tried, I simply can't tell the difference in the results. Once again, fiddling with the gain control changes it, but at maximum boost, it's pretty much what I was getting with the the teeny little loop antenna that bolts to the back of the tuner. At lower gain settings you just can't hear the station at all.
For all intents and purposes, it just doesn't seem to work, I tried it on 4 different tuners/radios in 4 different places in my house, and in every case it made the FM reception MUCH worse than the stock antennas, and AM reception no better than the stock or internal antennas. I'm probably going to break it open and try attaching different lengths of wire in place of the stock antenna, and see if that helps. But I get the impression that the booster amplifer just isn't up to the task of passing 107.7 MHz., and introduces too much distortion at FM freqencies. It almost has to be - because a plain old wire that length is MUCH better.
Even though it was pretty inexpensive, I was very disappointed with this antenna. You'll get FAR better reception with a bent coat hanger. And that's free with your dry cleaning.
(addendum - I finally broke my antenna open, and now it's clear why it doesn't work on AM any better than a stock antenna. It's because inside the tower, for AM, is a small, unamplified, loop antenna! It's not even connected to the circuitry. Which begs the question of why turning the dial affects the AM performance. I speculate that the AM loop and the FM amplifier are interfering with each other - and that the AM is getting into the FM amp, causing modulation at the FM subcarrier frequency, hence, really fuzzy FM reception - and also dragging energy out of the AM loop more or less depending on the FM amp setting. BTW, the FM antenna is a piece of bare copper wire running the length of the antenna. Short answer is still the same - it's junk, don't waste your money)

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Belkin PureAV AV48001 HDTV/VHF/ UHF/FM Amplified Indoor Antenna Review

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(More customer reviews)Bought this a week ago and it's the biggest waste of money. Tried it on my 10 year old analog set with a converter box,listed 9 stations I could get, yet none came in. Also tried it on my new HDTV with digital tuner not one staion picked up.Trying to see if I can return this.

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Terk FM-50 Indoor/Outdoor Dual-Drive Amplified FM Antenna (Terk FM50) Review

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(More customer reviews)I have a Yamaha HTR-5750 receiver which I was using with a Radio Shack FM amplified antenna. I had tried various ways of improving my FM reception including the classic 300 ohm twin lead folded dipole antenna. The rabbit ear setup helped but still did not yield satisfactory results. I still had difficulties receiving some nearby FM stations that were considered moderate strength stations.
I installed the TERK FM-50 inside my home hiding it behind a curtain valance. I did use the amplifier mode and was able to receive all of the FM radio sources listed on the web at the "radio-locator" service, some as far away as 30 miles.I was able to receive all of the radio stations in stereo mode with no evidence of noise. Previously I was unable to receive some of the stations even in non-stereo mode and several of the stations had objectionable noise content in the stereo mode. The stations range from very strong to very weak. I was able to pull one station rated as very weak from 22 miles.
Given my experience, I would highly recommend the TERK FM-50. It was a very simple installation. Since the actual antenna is protected by an outside casing, I was able to use the assembly in contact with drapery material with no significant degradation in performance. I appreciated the technical performance of the antenna and my wife appreciated the fact that I was able to completely hide it.


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Terk Technology HDTVi VHF/UHF HDTV Indoor Antenna Review

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(More customer reviews)To start, your antenna is only as good as the signal that is reaching your home! The HDTVi does a great job on receiving UHF signals, a very good job on VHF signals. From alot of reviews of antennas, it would appear people are clueless on HDTV reception. For your local reception, I'd check out the forum at the following address. They have information and experience going back a couple years on HDTV reception in many cities. So before trying to wrestle with antennas, first make sure you aren't searching for nothing. When I started, I couldn't find ABC not because of the antenna, but because the station was transmitting for four days! http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?s=7e85bb49c56fa3787e7ed73e6ec7473d&forumid=45
I tried 5 antennas, an old one, the HDTVi, the Terk TV5, Radio Shack amplified antenna (15-1880), and Philips' amplified antenna (SCA050). The best reception was received on the Radio Shack, however, the amplifier needed to be higher for reception of CBS while it had to be lower for FOX or FOX wouldn't come in. This was bothersome. I was also able to get a weak NBC signal unlike any other antenna I had, but the signal just wasn't strong enough. The TV5 had mediocre coverage. It was able to get UHF decently, but it was fighting to get upper and lower VHF. The Philips and HDTVi had similar reception, but the HDTVi wasn't amplified which meant I would have more options regarding moving the antenna around, such as placing in the attic without worrying about plugging it in.
Ultimately, as far as UHF was concerned, each antenna had similar results. It was in VHF that the antennas were a bit different. As far as ranking the antennas for reception:
1) Radio Shack's 15-1880 Best
2) Terk HDTVi Very good
3) Philips SCA050 Very good
4) Terk TV5 Decent
The Terk HDTV wins out because of the lower price, the fact that it is unamplified, had very good reception, and took up the least space. One last comment would regard the coax cable you use. I tried using some coax (about 30 feet) just laying around to hook up the receiver to the antenna. The signal just wouldn't carry the distance. When I used a much higher quality coax that came with the installation of my sat dish, the signal came in loud and clear.
If possible, I'd recommend get a few antennas at the same time and make sure you can return them, most stores have 30 day policies. Plan on spending a week on gaining the best reception with the best antenna for your home.

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With over 1,000 stations in more than 200 markets broadcasting digital television as of 2003, 9 out of 10 households can now receive free high-definition (HDTV) signals when using the right antenna in conjunction with an integrated HDTV (or with a set-top box and an HD-ready television). Most antennas are large and unwieldy and need to be mounted outdoors or in a cramped attic. This is not an option if you live in an apartment or condo, or if you don't want the hassle of installing an antenna yourself. The solution? A quality indoor antenna that can pick up all local HDTV channels; one that will look great next to your television, and one that is easy to install: Terk's HDTVi indoor antenna.At the time of its release, the HDTVi was (and may yet be) the only indoor HDTV antenna optimized for both UHF and VHF reception, channels 2 to 69. The HDTVi elegantly solves the aesthetic challenge of integrating a log-periodic-type element assembly in an indoor antenna. It's tuned for optimum HDTV reception with a unique design that uses log-periodic elements and dipoles for receiving both UHF and VHF HDTV broadcasts, bringing you more stations than lesser antennas.You can easily route the antenna's output cable in 2 directions (front or back) for flexible cable management, and the antenna connects easily to your set-top box or television (integrated HDTV--with built-in ATSC tuner--required for direct connection).Its high gain picks up distant stations and its high back-to-front ratio rejects unwanted signals. You can mount the UHF antenna element vertically or horizontally, as experience dictates.What's in the Box Antenna with integrated 75-ohm cable, instruction manual, and warranty information.

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