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Old 11-14-2014, 01:16 PM   #1
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Replacing the Crank-up Winegard with New Omnidirectionl Model

I would like to replace the crank-up Winegard TV antenna that came with my 2014 International 23D. The 2015s come with the Winegard RoadStar Omnidirectional TV/FM Antenna.

Does anyone know what is involved in making the switch?
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Old 11-14-2014, 01:30 PM   #2
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I would suggest calling customer service at Winegard.

We had to replace our antenna once, and they were wonderful to deal with, basically walked Doug thru it over the telephone.

Good luck, and post a picture!


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Old 11-18-2014, 12:29 PM   #3
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I'm not sure the Omni directional are all that good. Some with 2015 models are complaining about the reception with this new antenna. You might be better off adding the Winegard UHF enhancer or install the Jack head replacement.
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Old 11-18-2014, 02:50 PM   #4
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This was part of my "Phase 2" this last year.

New mount for the thermostat for the AC and the new Jack antenna terminal:




I put a new JACK rotating antenna up on the roof and ran the antenna wire back down through the fridge vent and into the back of this antenna terminal. There is also 12v access that allows power to the base of the antenna to power the signal strength meter.


And the little wing antenna up on the roof. The antenna can rotate about 350 degrees and the signal meter will show the strongest level of signal. This antenna is designed solely for digital signals, analog need not apply. When I first powered up the flatscreen on the antenna it found about 20 channels, many of which I didn't even know existed.




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Old 11-18-2014, 03:43 PM   #5
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Ditto! The only thing I do with Wingard antennas is remove them when I replace them with the Jack units. They are always taking up valuable roof real estate that should otherwise be used for solar panels. That includes the crank-up type, the large 'flying saucer' original Roadstar found on the Interstates and the newer, smaller Roadstar Plus that Airstream started using on the 2015 models.

The Jack will out perform them all!!!
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Old 11-18-2014, 08:34 PM   #6
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Replacing the Crank-up Winegard with New Omnidirectionl Model

Quote:
Originally Posted by aquinob View Post




I put a new JACK rotating antenna up on the roof and ran the antenna wire back down through the fridge vent and into the back of this antenna terminal.
IMG]

When you ran the wire down through the fridge vent, did you simply drill a hole through the back of the vent and seal the hole up around the wire? If do, what did you use to seal it up?


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Old 11-20-2014, 07:04 AM   #7
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Just wondering......

Do you not have an existing co-ax cable already on the roof?


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Old 11-20-2014, 07:08 AM   #8
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Nope, no existing coax at all. Great thought though.


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Old 11-20-2014, 06:17 PM   #9
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Nope, no existing coax at all. Great thought though.


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Guess they didn't watch much TV in the 70's.........
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Old 11-20-2014, 06:25 PM   #10
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For the record digital/analog is simply the manner of signal modulation. Any antenna compatible with the frequency being tuned (VHF/UHF) will receive both equally well.
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Old 11-20-2014, 07:15 PM   #11
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Thanks for the info everyone. Lots to think about.
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Old 11-20-2014, 08:21 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by KYAirstream View Post
When you ran the wire down through the fridge vent, did you simply drill a hole through the back of the vent and seal the hole up around the wire? If do, what did you use to seal it up?


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Went across the roof, up through the bottom of the vent and through the screen and then down. No need to really seal it that way, it doesn't penetrate any new openings. There was no original coax on mine, though there was a connector that went from outside to inside that they must have used for cable hookup to a tv.

Very happy with the performance, you have a dial on the inside that lets you point the antenna and gives you a relative signal strength via LED's.

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Old 11-20-2014, 08:43 PM   #13
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I don't know Jack!

I'm Checking these out on the internet. It appears they come in both complete replacement antennas or just the head unit that utilizes the existing crank up mechanism. Is this true? There also seems to be big price variations from one place to another. Any comments on that?

Ken
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Old 11-20-2014, 08:53 PM   #14
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I had virtually no luck with my crank up antenna on my 2013 Flying Cloud. I have since purchased a 2015 Cloud but have not had to opportunity to test out the new style antenna. Reading this thread to get reports on it.
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Old 11-20-2014, 09:27 PM   #15
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I had virtually no luck with my crank up antenna on my 2013 Flying Cloud. I have since purchased a 2015 Cloud but have not had to opportunity to test out the new style antenna. Reading this thread to get reports on it.

In truth, there is only one way to get a comparison of two different antennas. That is to have them in the exact same place with the exact same connections, amplifiers and TV set and at the same time. The antenna on your 2013, may have not been working for you for so many different reasons, that it is not possible to even make an educated guess if the antenna itself was the problem. I do not doubt that one antenna can out perform another. However before the antenna is declared to be the weak link, there are many other factors to be checked out. The fact that you are going to have a whole new trailer and all the circuitry is different, means that even if it works much better, you can not safely say, the antenna is what is making the results better.

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Old 11-20-2014, 09:28 PM   #16
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Big mistake to swap for the "new" Frisbee Omni-directional as provided by AS ... as the newer style antenna seems to be 1/2 or less sensitive compared to the crank up - with no way to aim ... The Omni allowed for the ducting location in the same relative area as well as re-location of the factory solar panels.

...observations based upon the exact same model AS (2013 International Eddie Bauer w/flat roof & crank up / 2015 International Eddie Bauer w/ "humped" roof and Omni), exact same television (swapped between units), parked in the exact same location, exact same orientation, trying to tune in the exact same stations, with the same weather pattern - all with very poor results by the Omni antenna. Evaluation based on the lesser number of stations tuned in by the Omni-directional television antenna.
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Old 11-21-2014, 04:50 AM   #17
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I would imagine the crank up antenna may have more gain than even the smaller jack if it can be rotated to point to the strongest signal. But the jack has a built in signal amplifier to bring in the weaker signals.

The model I got was around 100 bucks, on Amazon warehouse deals back in the Spring. It came complete with the base and the parts for the rotation part and the connection plate for the wall. There was no old antenna on my trailer, so this was the best option for me. AFAIK, there are no more analog signals for over the air tv so the large size of the old antennas doesnt help much any more, digital signals don't need a large antenna. I'm happy with the reception, but I don't have a comparison to go on since we have cable at home. HTH
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Old 11-21-2014, 09:20 AM   #18
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I would imagine the crank up antenna may have more gain than even the smaller jack if it can be rotated to point to the strongest signal. But the jack has a built in signal amplifier to bring in the weaker signals.

The model I got was around 100 bucks, on Amazon warehouse deals back in the Spring. It came complete with the base and the parts for the rotation part and the connection plate for the wall. There was no old antenna on my trailer, so this was the best option for me. AFAIK, there are no more analog signals for over the air tv so the large size of the old antennas doesn't help much any more, digital signals don't need a large antenna. I'm happy with the reception, but I don't have a comparison to go on since we have cable at home. HTH
The problem is that the amplifier on a omni directional antenna will also amplify any interfering signal and electrical noise coming from any direction.

Since RVs are meant for getting away from it all, they probably shouldn't have TV in the first place. However it's way too late to deal with that problem.

So if we have TV we might as well make it usable. An omni-directional antenna is the worst possible solution for a TV located in fringe areas. I'm assuming that is where most of us hope to camp. So yes it may appear to work fine. But due to the design of digital TV systems, you don't know what you are missing unless you compare reception to a neighbor with a properly adjusted directional antenna. Unlike analog TV where you see fuzzy distorted images when tuned to a weak signal, until a digital TV detects a usable signal level, the screen remains blank. You will never know what you missed.

When you have a directional antenna pointed in the proper direction the signal will be significantly stronger than with a omni-directional antenna and conversely when pointed away from the station the directional antenna will be significantly weaker. Therefor with a directional antenna on a digital TV, it is very helpful to know in advance what direction the various signals are coming from. However with a omni directional antenna it doesn't matter, but you will not see the marginal signals that require the gain of the directional antenna.

A properly designed direction antenna does not just just block signals from undesired directions. It also captures more energy from the desired direction and provides more energy to the TV receiver. Unfortunately, to take significant advantage of this, the antenna needs to be physically bigger. That is why home TV antennas are often very large. If you really want the best off the air TV signal, bring along a home TV antenna and set it up next to the trailer.

Obviously the best solution for real TV addicts is Dish Network with their service plan you can turn on and off when you use you RV.

~~

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Old 11-21-2014, 10:55 AM   #19
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I installed this about a year ago, and its works as advertised. It essentially replaces the booster. I had to do a bit of opening enlargement, but once that was done, the hookup and installation went fast.

In some campgrounds, I've doubled the receivable TV stations, using the previous standard Winegard booster.

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Old 11-21-2014, 10:59 AM   #20
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I installed this about a year ago, and its works as advertised. It essentially replaces the booster. I had to do a bit of opening enlargement, but once that was done, the hookup and installation went fast.

In some campgrounds, I've doubled the receivable TV stations, using the previous standard Winegard booster.

SensarPro TV Signal Strength Meter
Does the channel sensing work OK? That is my biggest issue is trying to aim the antenna. Any wiring changes?
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