How Does HDTV Terrestrial Broadcast Work?

I apologize for being such a blockhead about this, but I have paid little to no attention to HDTV until now. I will probably take the plunge (even though it still seems to lack all the consumer features I want) soon. I want to use an antenna and get it off the air, I am 35 miles "as the crow flies" from NYC. Is HDTV broadcast in the same frequency band as SDTV or does it use a different band? Is anyone else out there getting their HDTV off the air. If so any recommendations on antennas, antenna cable, etc. would be appreciated.

 

Tony,

HDTV is broadcast over the air via UHF. Any terrestrial UHF antenna should work just fine. The only concern with cable is that UHF is obviously higher than VHF so it's a bit harder to send it down a long line due to the capacitance of the cable attenuating the signal. If you can get good UHF you should get good HDTV.

 

In some areas, there are HD channels on the VHF spectrum as well (most are in the UHF band though). There's a lot of factors involved in good HD reception such as tuner sensitivity, type of antenna, where it's mounted, and terrain. Check out the Local HDTV Info and Reception forum here:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/

I'm sure there's a lot of other folks from your area who have already chimed in about what type of antennae work well and whether they can get away with table top, attic mount, or roof top mounting. I would imagine a good antenna in your attic will do the trick though.

 

No attic, will be on the roof. Thanks for the links.

 

Here's another site to check out that will help you determine the availability, direction and frequency of channels in your area, plus your likely antenna requirement needs.

http://www.antennaweb.org/aw/welcome.aspx