New TV Antenna

I think simple is the key ! most people think best as simple. Put it up ( if that ) turn it on kinda aim it and it just works. Best antenna for distance is the batwing/wingman , but , it does require re -aiming at times, and correct more precise aiming in the beginning. It's what I use.
But for the average not technical guy who just wants to sit down and watch the ball game Jack or Weingard equipment is probably a better choice . Less distance but not as picky. " best" in their mind JMO

First: When it comes to antenna Height is Might.
Now, 3 antennas

Winegard Roadstar: This is a "Flying saucer design, Omni directional it is all but useless and always has been in RV parks, Now if you are parked in the middle of a circle of towers say 5 miles across,, Good choice, but how many RV parks meet that condition: (Hint, zero comes to mind)

Jack: Directional but fairly wide beam, One side of that collection of towers say 20 miles out Great antenna, 70 miles out, not so good


Batwing (II, III, IV) or II/III with wingman)

The II and III are very good VHF antennas, only fair at UHF, add the Wingman and they are now good at UHF as well, the IV, is good at both VHF and UHF, though the difference between adding a wingman and upgrading to the IV, not likely worth it (about 100 difference)

When I added the wingman I saw about a 3DB increase (Double the power) which would translate to a 1.5 (Well 1.414) increase in range..

I then added the Sensar Pro indoor module.. This unit has several functions, Made a BIG difference in what I can and can not see... As I type I'm watching a show where I think if I had not the PRO module and the wingman... I'd not pick up the station.

Sensar Pro description.

This is a standard size wall plate, like the standard selector switch/power supply/splitter in many RV's and in fact replaces it (it can also be added BEFORE a box of many buttons,, (Matrix switch) I do not recommend any other device be so added)

The box has 4 short cables out the back, labeled with Female (jacks) not plugs (The standard cable end is a PLUG or male even if the male part is the center wire on the coax).

The top button rotates through the modes
Bottom buttons are used for manual input of stuff.

First mode "OFF" (if replacing a wall plate this is the "Park Cable" select setting.
SCAN: Looks for digital carriers, bottom window displays the strongest one found, top window how strong it is.
Display: the bottom two buttons rotate up or down through all the carriers it found, display as above.
SELECT: the bottom buttons let you choose a channel, any of the channels 2 through what is it, 69 now days (I remember when it was 83) Even if no carrier was detected, This works well with apps on your phone like Antenna Helper to help you find a station you were not pointed toward in the first scan.

GAIN: Adjusts the Sensar Pro's internal 2nd pre-amp, zero to 20, appears 10 is Unity (Same as the original wall plate)

Volume: IF you wind up with the box in a place where you can not easily see it while turning the antenna, it has a BEEPER that reads the top window. I do not know if it is more frequent beeps or louder beeps since I mounted my unit where I can see it but it provides audio feedback of signal strength when needed.

Made a BIG difference when I cranked it up to 20 on the gain window at one park.

Also, the OP mentions "low profile"... This is a flat statement and you can see proof anywhere you look... There in NO Substitution for Height... period.

In the RV, lifting the antenna up and away from the metal structure of the roof, air conditioners, noisy LED's in the coach, etc., often make all the difference. The higher the better..

One simply cannot compare a Batwing, Jack, or frankly any other directional RV antenna against an Omni-directional antenna. They have no gain, and are fraught with problems receiving multi-path (echo) from buildings, water tanks, canyon ducting, etc.. I could fill the page with examples of problem objects that render these antennas useless.

I was at our new, less than a year old TV station this week in San Antonio, walked in and asked who installed an omni RV antenna in the roof next to my $300,000 tower with $600 antennas OTA antennas on it, and got an earful about some hair-brained idea someone had.. The install was beautiful but received only one station in one of the largest cities in the nation. I have plenty of experience with these things on ENG News trucks too and feel well qualified to say they are useless in any service. If you can use one at the house, it does what you need and never moves, great. But it's by far the worst idea for RV service.

Ummmm....I have have to admit, my tests were not done with sensitive electronic equipment but only my own two squinting eyeballs.....but with that being said, the TV's in front and back are the same brand and model. The bat wing has been the industry standard for decades...so what else can be said.

I think that SCVJeff has done a couple of tests with various antenna and has determined that the WineGard Batwing and Sensar are the best, Wingman included.

His tests were done with some high grade equipment and I haven't read any others here that have the equipment or education that is on a par with his.

Just my feelings but read his posts and then decide.

Wen't from a working batwing to the new Jack and get more stations in all the remote places where reception was the poorest.

I won't disagree with all those in the know but I do have my original Bat Wing ant on my front TV and the rear TV has a ommni directional Road star......while I don't watch a lot of OTA TV, in my driveway, the Road star does just as well as the Bat Wing maybe a tad better. Its no hassle at all with the Road star, no raising, no tuning...just start searching for channels.

The hype about the Jack antenna comes from the fact that it doesn't have to be aimed so it seems easier for those people who can't figure out how to point their Batwing in the direction of the TV station. The Jack antenna does not perform nearly as well as a properly pointed Batwing, but it performs much better than a Batwing pointed in the wrong direction!

X10 on the original batwing being the best.

I have found that reception with the new digital flat screen TV's vary dramatically from TV to TV. Which has nothing to do with the RV antenna.

I thought I was having problems with the antenna also.

Then Just by coincidence I bought anothe flat screen TV and parked in the same spot the second TV got perfect reception and 10 more channels than the first one I bought. We started swapping TV's in the CG one night to prove a point and each TV had it's own level of reception......had nothing to do with the antenna.