The performance of antenna amplifiers used for terrestrial DTV reception

Measurements were made on currently available commercial antenna-mounted amplifiers to ascertain their effects on DTV reception. Data regarding amplifier gain and noise figure is presented, followed by data illustrating the effects of intermodulation within the tested amplifiers as shown by the change in the D/U interference ratio of a control DTV receiver, and ending with observations regarding amplifier environmental sensitivity. Also presented are the inconsistencies between the performance of commercially available amplifiers, advertised to the public for use with television, and the performance claims made by the manufacturers of such amplifiers.