Customer Reviews

Winegard RV-WING Wingman Sensor Antenna Upgrade

5 star:		(28)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(14)

 

 

Wow, shocked at the first 3 reviews!! This product works for me, This item was a breeze to install (about 4 minutes) It also brought in 5 more channels than I got before and improved the reception of 4 channels. I now get 29 DTV Channels! This antenna works better than the Turk Antenna I purchased on Amazon. I picked this antenna up at my local RV parts store ($22.00) Also i'm in the middle of a Forest about 25 miles from Boston Ma.

I'm not sure where these '0ne star' folks live but I suspect they are way-out in the boonies. Before mounting the Wingman on my RV antenna I was able to receive all the local Sacramento, CA stations just fine. But I travel where there are poor reception areas. So I installed the Wingman. After installation, parked in the drive way, I now also get many of the San Francisco stations 80+ air miles away.

Installation. The guy with issues on installation should have looked at where his antenna was located first before buying and item that won't fit in the space available. That's not a Winegard issue, thats a failure to plan ahead before buying. I INSTALLED MINE IN LESS THAN 10 MINUTES.

GOOD JOB WINEGARD. YES I RECOMMEND THIS UNIT.

The Wingman is an add-on to an existing Winegard RV TV antenna that, as I understand it, increases it's gain in the UHF band where most TV stations, since the change to digital, are located.

Installation was very simple and did not involve any wiring. I used the signal strength meter software in my digital TV to read the strength of a channel before and after the installation and found that there was, in fact, an improvement.

The extra weight of the wingman (it is light, but it does add some weight) makes it just a little harder to crank up my antenna from the stored position, a small price to pay for improved TV reception.

The installation was as simple as it gets. Of course you will need a ladder. Either one attached to your RV or a stand alone ladder that you can get to the top of your RV where your existing Winegard Antenna is located. You must remove the (4) four rubber feet (cushions)from the bottom of your exising Winegard RV Antenna. Place your New Wingman Sensor upgrade on the bottom of your existing antenna by matching the (4) four (male) ends... located on top of your new Winegard Sensor Antenna Upgrade to the (female) ends (where you removed the rubber feet (cushions)of your existing Winegard antenna. Then take the (4) four plastic screws and "PUSH" them up through the (4) four holes of the New Wingman and into the (4) four holes of the existing Winegard Antenna! Your finished!

P.S. The (4) black screws are made to be "PUSHED" through the holes... if you attempt to screw them tight with a screw driver (like I originally attempted) the screws just turn and will not tighten up!

Now realize that your antenna was just changed from a basic omni-directional antenna (not as good for clear High Def receiption) to a directional antenna. So you will find that as you stop at different RV camp sites... you will have to turn your Television ON and then rotate your Antenna until you get a clear HD or Analog channel... then have your Television scan for new stations in your new location. We went from Central Missouri to Eastern Tennessee and we increased our available television stations by 30% to 50% depending on the terrain. Of course if you use satellite or cable where you stop... then you Winegard Antenna isn't needed!

Easy to install (no tools) and it doubled (from 10 to 20 channels) our HD reception. Had I not experienced it myself, I would have not believed it. From purchased, to shipping to packing to install, everything you would hope for in an online purchase.

We added this upgrade to our RV Winegard Antenna and tested it in the same location before having it. We get 3 times the channels and no cutting out during a show. The picture is better than our cable TV picture at home. This is the best RV add-on that we have purchased. The price is very fair also. Free TV is hard to beat!

Purchased this as a cheap way to try and improve reception. Had one digital station that would cut in and out at times. Station is now very stable and picked up one more analog station. Two other analogs come in much clearer. Gave this a four as there maybe something better, just don't know what it is. :) Installs in minutes. Takes longer to read the instructions.

Hey this add-on isn't magic or the best thing since sliced bread (what was the best thing BEFORE sliced Bread?), but it really helps with marginal signal. I beleive that those who have posted poor reviews just haven't been in the proper conditions to see this add-on antenna improve their signal appreciably. Well there is no better proof than hard data and here it is. [....]
When you go to this link you will see a bunch of pitures taken by a radio tech who hooked this product up to a spectrum analyzer and measured the signal improvement. So if you don't know how to read the pictures, just know that the bottom line is, that this product does indeed improve signal enough that if you otherwise wouldn't be able to get a station, you would be able to with this add-on. It was proof enough for me and I bought one and installed it. I haven't had much opportunity to test it yet, but am confident it was worth the [...]

I put the Wingman accessory on my Batwing and got more than the "up to" 100% improvement advertised, which included one station I have at the high end of the VHF spectrum, channel 13, even though Winegard doesn't claim this antenna to help VHF channels, but only UHF channels.

Before I got the Wingman, I originally had one antenna, but had added the second antenna with slightly better results, then able to get all stations by rotating the lower antenna between two stations (I added one antenna on the same pole three feet below the other antenna.) The problem was, when I moved it to get one station, I'd lose one or two others. The Wingman produced dramatically better results than that, with just one antenna, and I only have to move it slightly for one hard-to-get-station.

THE RESULTS

Before I installed the Wingman, I had serious trouble with four out of six network station groups (14 Channels in all) at times checkering. Three of them even dropping off from time to time. One was really bad, sometime going blank for days at a time. I have converter boxes that show both "signal power" and "signal quality" bar graphs separately. The "signal quality" bar seems to be the more critical. After installing Wingman, I am getting 100% "signal power" on all stations, and 100% "signal quality" in all my station groups, all the time, EXCEPT ONE "problem station," which is 45 miles away, at 515 MHz, and broadcasts a very weak signal.

THE PROBLEM STATION

For this "problem station" I now always get 100% power, but the "signal quality" bar still changes between 30% and 100% depending on many factors, like weather, the minimum hovering around 30% (sometimes jumping up higher during commercials.) Regardless, I can still always get a clear perfect picture, with slight adjustments.

When selecting that "problem station," from time to time, it sometimes helps to move the antenna, within a few degrees, one way or the other, to maintain reception without without occassional checkering, (which sometimes means keeping the "signal quality" reading stable, that is, keeping it from constantly changing, which is more important than simply gaining a higher quality reading.) It seems, the channel's precise broadcast location seems to change within a few degrees from one angle to the other, depending on the time of day and the program, but once adjusted, I don't need to again for that program, or even until the next day.

The problem may not be the antenna at all, because my signal bars often show 100% (or near 100%) quality and power, but still an occassional line of checkering running across the screen, but other times no problem at all.

Before Wingman was installed, I had to aim the antenna precisely at that "problem station." When I did that, if I got any reception at all, it would be unable to receive one or two other stations, which required a different antenna position.

After the Wingman was installed, like I said, I sometimes still do have to reach out my door and rotate the antenna a few degrees to fine tune the "problem station," but I always get good reception, and that adjustment doesn't effect the other stations. This is important in my household, because we often have more than one TV on at the same time, receiving different channels.

In order to rotate the antenna easily, I tightened the mounting clamp just snug enough to be sturdy against a wind but still able to rotate without moving the weight-anchored base. I then put a pole/rod grounding clamp (found in any hardware store with electrical supplies) on the pole under the antenna, to keep the antenna from creeping downward on the pole, from back and forth adjustments.

THE LOCATION

This is a very mountainous area. Three of the stations are 40-50 miles away, including that problem station. Another tower is 13.5 miles away in almost the opposite direction. There is no "clear view" of the towers. Close structures and steep hills severely block my antenna in every direction. So this is no small feat for such a small simple-looking antenna. I live in an apartment complex with only six feet of a "front garden." I chose the Winegard Sensar because it is aesthetically acceptable to the landlord, and blends in nicely with the other tenant's satellite tripods (on a six-foot x 1" conduit pole, mounted on a square piece of plywood base with a flange to hold the pole, with patio block for ballast.)

I have the signal split up six ways all over the apartment for recorders, computers, TVs, all on atsc converters (Sansonic) and get full power. another advantage of the Sensar Batwing is that it's size and simple shape makes it easy to rotate, if necessary.

THE PRE-AMPLIFIER

I do not have a built-in amplifier on my batwing antenna, but I do have a standalone "pre-amplifier" (see my review of this amplifier the Winegard 8275, giving 29 db gain for both VHF and UHF, see my review on the amplifier for details. It was done before I moved to another apartment location.) Nonetheless, the antenna is the heart of the system. If you don't get catch enough of a signal there, an amplifier can't do much more for you. It has to have something to amplify.

After I attached the Wingman to the antenna, I moved the pre-amplifier indoors with no reduction in signal. In fact, it actually improved slightly.

THIS WINGMAN DOESN'T FIT ALL WINEGARD SENSAR BATWINGS

Make sure you have the right Sensar model to use with this Wingman. Calling Winegard tech support is a good idea, before you buy.

There are two GS-1000 models (I think the one I am using is the Sensar II.) I am using is the one that is 8 inches wide in the middle at the pole mount. I believe this Wingman will only fit this model (unless there is another model of Wingman,) but the Wingman can also be used on the built-in amplified version of what I have. My metal batwings are almost 5 inches wide, and has a middle body that is an elongated football-shaped, looking from the side (see the Amazon ad picture.) Not to be confuse with the newer model of Sensar Batwing antenna, that has narrower batwings (about 4 inches) and has an elongated teardrop-shaped center, looking from the side (I think that is the Sensar III.)

WHAT IT IS

The Wingman is made in U.S.A.
The Wingman has no wiring connections or moving parts, just scientifically-spaced and scientifically-sized metal bars mounted on a plastic framework. The bars reflect/deflect radio waves of the right amplitude to the batwing antenna.

FOR THE NAYSAYERS

The only thing I can say to the 1-star Amazon raters is, maybe it's not the antenna, or maybe nothing will help them get over-the-air. It could be one of many things that frustrates OTA reception, things in the home system, things outside in the yard/neighborhood, and things regionally.

For instance, when I lived in Vermont, we were living within 1000-2000 feet of two broadcast towers, and we could not get anything but a "granite" screen. The radiation just was too great. We could not even get those close broadcast towers, because they were too close and blew each other away. We had no choice, and had to go with cable. In fact, cable TV was pioneered in Manhattan where people lived right next to the broadcast towers. The tall buildings made reception impossible.

Easy installation with an existing Sensar antenna. When used with a digital to analog converter box it provides adequate picture reception.