12 volt TV and digital antennas

We want to buy a 12 volt digital TV, probably a Skyworth and a digital antenna.* Any comments.* We are the anchoring out type and like the TV maintly for news and weather on local stations.

we bought a Phillips antenna at Walmart about $65.00 also a "converter box" for the signal at Radio Shack another $45.00 or so it works surprisingly well for local stations. Sorry I don't have more details but it is all on the boat.
Steve W

So glad someone posted this thread. We are looking into this as well.

Steve, was the converter box for an analog tv? I'm thinking with HDTV you'd just need the antenna, right?

Sorry, it was my wife's project I just set it up, she bought the antenna first, it wouldn't work, someone told her to buy a "converter box" the people at R.S. knew what she was talking about, I put it in line and it started playing fine.
*Next time I'm on the boat I'll try to remember to get the model ##s
Steve W*

We put a new HDTV in the boat a little over a year ago with the Blu Ray player thinking we would mostly watch movies. I tied into our existing dated exterior antenna. We have reprogrammed the channels at different slips we have been in and currently get about 20 channels, many are digital. If the wind blows hard and the boat rocks the picture "freezes" momentarily. It works great at the slip- not sure that it would work at al traveling. Course we just plug in "Captain Ron" anytime we travel anyway.

Hay--quick response for this "newbe"* I'm looking at roadtrucker.com web site at these Skyworths and their antennas.* Seems like a good site.* They have all types of 12 volt stuff and good advice.*

I'll be buying a digital so I won't need the converter box.* I am trying to avoid the expensive digital antenna that the big box marine store sells here in town and wondering how the lesser price ones work (with boat on anchor).

Thanks for the input.

Annapolis Jim wrote:

We want to buy a 12 volt digital TV, probably a Skyworth and a digital antenna.* Any comments.* We are the anchoring out type and like the TV maintly for news and weather on local stations.

Click to expand...

I bought and installed the Skyworth 19" TV/DVD player.* It works fine.



There is no such thing as a "digital antenna", regardless or what manufacturers put on the box or in their advertising.* If you already have an omnidirectional amplified TV antenna on your boat, it will work just fine for digital broadcasts.

An antenna is an antenna.* It picks up radio frequency waves and delivers them the to the receiver.* It does not know or care what the content of the signal is.

Your best bet for an antenna on a boat is an omnidirectional (picks up in all directions) antenna.* While a directional antenna can be pointed at the stations for a stronger signal, boats inherently move and a directional antenna would have to be reoriented every time the boat moves.* If it's anchored, that could be continuously.

Get an antenna with a built in signal amplifier and be sure it can operater on 12 volts DC.* Marine stores carry suitable TV antennas.

*


-- Edited by rwidman on Friday 17th of September 2010 07:48:59 AM

Rocky wrote:

So glad someone posted this thread. We are looking into this as well.

Steve, was the converter box for an analog tv? I'm thinking with HDTV you'd just need the antenna, right?

Click to expand...

With a digital TV you just need an antenna.

*

Hay--thanks to all on the TV/digital info.* Huge help, especially on the antenna.* I think we wore out the Capt'n Ron CD and will have to get a new one after we get set up, not to mention the boat drinks.*

I'll have to have my son show me how to download a pic of our new-to-us*trawler, "Leilani" for this web site.* A/J

Can't speak for the TV but there are no digital antennas. Any that are sold to you as such are simply marketing ploys to get you to pay more. Digital TV is broadcast over UHF and you need an antenna that will pick up UHF. PLUS some are broadcasting over VHF still, so ideally you will want an antenna that is UHF/VHF capable. An added plus for an antenna is a booster if you are in a fringe area or plan to do a lot of traveling. The booster will bring in the weaker signals. With digital you either have a signal or you don't so weaker signals will not come in at all. Chuck