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Old 02-08-2019, 05:14 PM   #1
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THOR #11784
TV Antenna Replacement Advice Needed

2018 Thor Vegas 24.1
Currently have factory installed Winegard manual rotation TV antenna installed. Thinking about upgrading but wondering if it's worth it. Thinking there may be an upgraded Winegard that would be an easy install. Or would a completely new system would be worth the cost and trouble. Money not a huge issue (after all, RV improvements are off budget, just don't tell wife &#128513 and do want bang for the buck. We do watch a lot of TV and enjoy the local channels, especially for local news and weather. Suggestions, comments, questions, etc. appreciated!

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Old 02-08-2019, 05:40 PM   #2
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The thought of messing with anything "up there" makes my skin crawl. I have no leaks and don't want to open any avenues. Does the one you have get good reception or are you just looking to spend money?
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Old 02-08-2019, 05:50 PM   #3
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About the only "upgrade" you can get to replace the standard Winegard batwing antenna is the Winegard auto signal finding antenna.

https://www.amazon.com/Winegard-Auto...ard+rv+antenna

There is also an add-on you can get to attach to the batwing that is supposed to help it pull in UHF channels better; called the Wingman.

https://www.amazon.com/Winegard-RV-W...negard+wingman
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Old 02-08-2019, 05:52 PM   #4
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Which antenna do you have? The crank up batwing? (If so there is a HDTV replacement kit (Camping World) that you can get to just replace the top (and not mess with the roof.) I would think that a 2018 wouldn't have the batwing.

If you already have an HDTV antenna I can't really help as I haven't looked for anything better than that (ours still has the crank up batwing).

If you watch a lot of TV you might want to sign up for a streaming service--then you don't need a TV antenna at all (just decent WiFi/internet bandwidth).
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Old 02-08-2019, 05:57 PM   #5
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No such thing as an "HDTV Antenna". There is VHF and UHF. The antenna just cares about the carrier wave, not the modulation or digital encoding.
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Old 02-08-2019, 05:59 PM   #6
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Originally Posted by Tfryman View Post
No such thing as an "HDTV Antenna". There is VHF and UHF. The antenna just cares about the carrier wave, not the modulation or digital encoding.
True but they are marketed as such.
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Old 02-08-2019, 06:01 PM   #7
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Testing has shown that the Kingjack is inferior to the Winegard Sensar batwing antenna.
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Old 02-08-2019, 08:03 PM   #8
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A few years ago, I did a test with the Vegas sitting in the driveway of my house. I had a batwing std. ant. with a wingman attached. I could pick up a max of 12 chann's without rotating to pick up other chann's. I then installed a Wingard Rayzar which bolts onto the same arm as the batwing IIRC and picked up 19 chann's. YMMV.

It does get some intermittent interference at night sometimes. Not sure if it is someone in the campground using a ham radio or other powerful trans. I think I ran across a deal on the Rayzar and thought it would be worth a try since it was advertised as being able to pick up from both sides. Not sure if that is so or not. It does pick up more chann's than before without have to rotate it.
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Old 02-09-2019, 01:44 PM   #9
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Originally Posted by JamieGeek View Post
Which antenna do you have? The crank up batwing? (If so there is a HDTV replacement kit (Camping World) that you can get to just replace the top (and not mess with the roof.) I would think that a 2018 wouldn't have the batwing.

If you already have an HDTV antenna I can't really help as I haven't looked for anything better than that (ours still has the crank up batwing).

If you watch a lot of TV you might want to sign up for a streaming service--then you don't need a TV antenna at all (just decent WiFi/internet bandwidth).
It does not crank up, only rotates. It does a half way decent job, it's just we do watch alot of TV. We do have Frontier with the Quantum DVR's and we do stream from them and Netflix. It's just the simplicity of instantly creating some noise and then easily surfing we enjoy after sightseeing.
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Old 02-09-2019, 01:47 PM   #10
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Thanks to everyone for the opinions, especially about don't mess up their if you don't have. Since it will cost nothing to do nothing and it works fairly well, I think I will do something else that's needed. ��
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Old 02-11-2019, 03:55 PM   #11
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Originally Posted by The Gritz Carlton View Post
The thought of messing with anything "up there" makes my skin crawl. I have no leaks and don't want to open any avenues. Does the one you have get good reception or are you just looking to spend money?

Hmmm...can't remember who posted this but it sounds like good advice!!!
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Old 02-13-2019, 09:28 PM   #12
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King Antenna

Hi, I ordered this antenna and installation was painless. Removed the old batwing and installed the KING OA8300 Jack Replacement Head HDTV Directional Over-the-Air Antenna - White. Works great and no DICOR applied. Make sure before you lower your antenna the inside arrows are aligned to ensure the new antenna lays flat on the RV roof. r-David
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Old 02-13-2019, 09:48 PM   #13
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Originally Posted by DMDSKI View Post
Hi, I ordered this antenna and installation was painless. Removed the old batwing and installed the KING OA8300 Jack Replacement Head HDTV Directional Over-the-Air Antenna - White. Works great and no DICOR applied. Make sure before you lower your antenna the inside arrows are aligned to ensure the new antenna lays flat on the RV roof. r-David
He doesn't have the batwing Sensar antenna, he has the Winegard Rayzar z1 which is essentially the same as the KingJack roof mount antenna.
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Old 02-14-2019, 07:11 PM   #14
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Originally Posted by 16ACE27 View Post
He doesn't have the batwing Sensar antenna, he has the Winegard Rayzar z1 which is essentially the same as the KingJack roof mount antenna.
Yep, that certainly looks like it. Since it does a fairly decent job and I'm not sure how much better an upgraded antenna would perform and since I don't want to "mess with UP there" I think I'll just stick with the one that came with the RV.
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Old 02-15-2019, 12:14 AM   #15
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After taking our batwing antenna off going under our telephone drop, I replaced it with this one, KING Jack HDTV Directional Antenna & Signal Meter, but had to order a base plate to cover the holes of the other antenna.
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Old 02-15-2019, 01:00 PM   #16
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RVMichael View Post
Yep, that certainly looks like it. Since it does a fairly decent job and I'm not sure how much better an upgraded antenna would perform and since I don't want to "mess with UP there" I think I'll just stick with the one that came with the RV.

Good choice. I think mine has the "Rayzar" or whatever it's called...doesn't crank up or down, just rotates. Looks like an F-35. Works excellent. I'm 25 miles from downtown where most transmissions are, coach sits under a full metal carport an picks up a couple dozen channels including all the local ones. I've never had issues with reception...even with the lunch stops at lots of rest areas. If it works, leave it alone.
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Old 02-15-2019, 01:15 PM   #17
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Originally Posted by The Gritz Carlton View Post
Good choice. I think mine has the "Rayzar" or whatever it's called...doesn't crank up or down, just rotates. Looks like an F-35. Works excellent. I'm 25 miles from downtown where most transmissions are, coach sits under a full metal carport an picks up a couple dozen channels including all the local ones. I've never had issues with reception...even with the lunch stops at lots of rest areas. If it works, leave it alone.
At most of the state parks, at least 2 or 3 channels come in. Exceptions are when the state park is pretty far from a major city. Manatee Springs, Stephen Foster Culture Center and a few others. just to make sure I can get a TV fix, I've downloaded a couple of hundred TV programs and movies to micro chips I can swap out in my tablet and mirror to my TV's.
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