The simplest antenna for digital TV

Analog television is becoming a thing of the past, so to maintain the ability to watch TV shows, a transition to DVB-T2 television broadcasting is required. To do this, you need to use a specialized antenna, which can be made with your own hands from available materials, which is what I will do.

Required materials and tools

To make an antenna you will need:

• a piece of television coaxial cable 20 cm;
  
• HF connector (transition from F type connector to TV plug);
  
• F type connector.

You will also need a simple set of tools that everyone can find. It is enough to have a tape measure or ruler, a sharp knife, wire cutters or pliers.

Determining the broadcast frequency in the city

Before you begin assembling the antenna, you must first find out the frequency of digital television broadcasting in the region. Since I live in Russia, for this I go to the official website of digital television of the Russian Federation. On it I look for the tab “CETV coverage map» and select your locality. On the map that opens, you need to find the nearest repeater and click on it with the cursor.
In the window that appears, click on the “more details” link.As a result, detailed information on the digital television parameters of this repeater will open. In my case, there are two packages of TV channels RTRS-1 and RTRS-2. I'm interested in the direct frequency in megahertz. Available packages are broadcast at 754 and 778 MHz.
Based on these data, it is necessary to calculate the actual length of the working part of the antenna in centimeters. A simple formula is used for this. It is necessary to divide 7500 for each frequency. In my case, 7500/754=9.94 cm and 7500/778=9.6 cm.
Thus, in order for the antenna to be able to normally receive both frequencies, it will be enough to make it 10 cm long. Naturally, residents of other cities will get a different result, but regardless of this, the immediate manufacturing process is completely identical.

Direct production

To make an antenna you don’t have to buy anything, since in most cases all the necessary materials are already available, as they were used to ensure the operation of analog television. First you need to take a piece of coaxial cable about 20 cm long. One end of it is stripped to secure the F connector. To do this, remove the top insulation approximately 3 cm from the edge to expose the cable shield. The bare winding, together with the protruding foil, is bent to the opposite end from the working edge.
After this, stepping back 3 mm from the resulting cut edge of the top insulation, you need to cut the cable to the central copper core. After this, the F type connector is screwed on. The copper core of the wire protruding in its center is cut so that its tail extends beyond the connector by no more than 1 cm.
Now the RF connector is screwed onto the F connector, which is then connected to the TV plug.

Having stepped back about 3-4 cm from the edge of the F connector, in the opposite direction, you need to put a mark on the coaxial cable. As much as was calculated by the formula is measured from it, and the wire is cut. I cut after 10 cm.

According to the previously set mark, you need to cut through the top insulation to the screen winding. It is removed, revealing the inner insulating layer.



The existing screen winding is removed because it will not be needed, as it creates a barrier to signal pickup. The antenna itself is bent at 90 degrees at the step between single and double insulation.

Now the antenna can be screwed directly into the connector on the TV or set-top box if DVB-T2 is not supported by it.

If the repeater is close enough, the signal is picked up clearly enough to watch TV without interference. If the picture ripples and slows down, then the antenna will have to be taken outside. To do this, use a coaxial cable of the required length, and a couple of additional adapters.

Setting up and searching for channels

Setting up the TV is very simple. Everything happens automatically. We choose to search for just digital or digital and analogue channels.

We start the search and wait for a while.

We caught about a dozen channels.

Feasibility of using an antenna

Making an antenna will only help if the TV supports the DVB-T2 digital television reception function. Outdated models do not have this capability, so they require the purchase of a specialized set-top box, which usually already comes with an antenna.
It is also important to check for a nearby repeater before production. The effective range of such an antenna cannot exceed 6-15 km.This is only subject to good visibility of the tower without high-rise buildings and other obstacles located in the path of the waves. If the distance is greater, then the use of an additional amplifier will be required, which ultimately also comes down to the purchase of a specialized TV set-top box.

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