About 20 years ago, I was living in an apartment in Maine, about 150 miles from Boston. Usually, but not always, I was able to watch Boston TV stations, and got excellent reception. Of course, that seems impossible over such a distance. I didn’t have any special equipment: just a Sony black-and-white TV, circa 1975, with those old-fashioned VHF and UHF dials. No antenna, except for the telescoping antenna built into the TV. How was this possible? For what it’s worth, the people in the apartment next door had cable, but I didn’t. Could I have somehow tapped into their cable? I lived in several other apartments in the same town, but got the mysterious TV reception only in this one.
It’s possible that you were picking up a skipped signal. In other words the signal bounced off the atmosphere. It’s also possible that you were picking up signal bleed off the cable line. If you want a high tech answer post your question on the antenna forum of http://www.dbsforums.com. Those guys are antenna experts!
Labdude, I have experienced skipped signals from time to time, usually during extreme weather conditions. But the experience I’m describing lasted for a year, with only occasional lapses. So, probably not a skipped signal, I think. Thanks for the reference to the antenna forum.
I don’t think reception of tv signals from 150 miles away is unusual. But the quality sucks. “Excellent” reception means something else was happening. A cable leak is possible, I guess. But only Boston channels leaking out seems very unlikely. I’m not an expert, but I would like to ask a few questions.
What were the channel numbers involved? Were there any Boston stations that you could not get? Cable systems often deliver tv stations to different channels than they broadcast on. Did yours? Did you recieve anything on a different channel than it claimed to be broadcast on? Did you recieve any channels not offered on cable or not broadcast at all nearby? How high was your apartment? And how high were the other homes were you didn’t get the reception?
Do you still live nearby? It would be very interesting to take a handheld tv and stand outside your old apartment and walk around to define the area of reception.
This actually happened to me too while I was on Fishers Island, NY just last weekend. I was watching TV at about 11:00 pm and got Boston channel’s 5 and 7. It was great seeing local news while away from home, but it did not last through the night and in the day time barely anything came in but scrambled CT news. This is weird because the Boston channels came in perfectly (while available) but the CT channels never came in well at all and CT is a short ferry ride away (appx. 5 miles).
You say this was years ago?
You were probably picking it up off the cable.
When someone amplifies signal as much as is necessary in a cable system all sorts of new problems show up.
I serviced TVs back in the 70s when cable came to our town. Lots of times apartment dwellers could recieve it off their neighbors hookup.
The end of each line had to be terminated.A termination is a impedance matching resistor screwed into the connection to simulate a the input impedance of a tv. If the resistor was not there the signal could escape. Sounds like a good deal except a tv can recieve multiple signals. If the cable and tv are transmitting and recieving the same signal,say on channel 6,the result is two signals being recieved at different times.This results in ghosts. Thats when you see an image twice right next to each other.Irritating especially when you just sold a $300. antenna system.The problem is the fault of the cable company. There is a FCC law that forbids interfearing with transmitted signal.
The signal can be coming from blocks away.
I live in Asheville North Carolina and I frequently watch Fox 21 from Greenville South Carolina which is over 60 miles away and across many a mountain. Comes in clear as a bell, and I don’t even have an antenna.
Of course, it helps a lot that they have a transponder about two miles from my house broadcasting on channel 14 for the Asheville area. Is it possible that some Boston stations have transponders set up to broadcast to the rest of New England.
The television in my car picks up stations in South Bend, Indiana all the time. Land wise Thats further than 150 miles, (I’m in Milwaukee, Wisconsin) but I’m guessing that the signal is skipping off Lake Michigan. Odd thing though, I can’t get any stations from Michigan or Chicago.
Yes atmospheric conditions can to some strange things.
This time of year especially with summer storms.
We live in the country so we don’t have cable.
I can tell when it is going to storm by the way the TV is acting.
We have recieved Rochester Minnesota before. We are 60 miles from the Missouri border. Sometimes it is better than out “Local” stations.We get most of out programming from the Quad Cities.
There have been times that we can’t get channel 8 QC but channel 9 Cedar Rapids will come booming in.I have a directional antenna and it is not aimed toward CR.
When I was working for a PBS station in Charleston, Illinois (about an hour south of Champaign), we used to occassionally get letters from people who lived a ways off and got our signal. Some people make quite the hobby out of trying to find the furthest off signals they could using only mundane equipment (no fancy receiving equipment). I think the furthest off we heard from was someone in midstate Wisconsin, but he only was able to get it clearly for a few hours, not the periods of time you’re talking about. Still, we’re talking a distance of some 600+ miles here.
I meant 300 miles, not 600. My error.
I think it really all depends on location and get this sun spots. I used to live in the South Suburbs of Chicago and routinely got Champaign / Springfield TV. I also clearly got South Bend, IN TV.
I noticed in years when sunspots were heavy I picked up Corpus Christi TX and once even Saint John’s Newfoundlnd.
When I moved to the NW suburbs I easily got Grand Rapids TV during the summer.
When I lived in Metro DC I could get Richmond TV at night (Esp Ch12) but couldn’t get Baltimore.
This was more common due to a few factors. Number one most TV stations in Chicago don’t sign off. I noticed that when I was younger when WTTW(PBS) signed off of Ch 11 boom it was replaced by KPLR of St Louis.
Now the stronger signals stay.
Also I have always had better “DXing” with the TVs that have channel knobs. Now a days many TVs black (or Blue) out stations that aren’t there. They simply don’t show the static.
Aren’t there a variety of solar flares & storms going on right now? Yes, there are. Put 2+2 together, children. 
One summer in KC we got the Branson Mo TV station for about a week. It started out fuzzy, got very clear for 2 days, then slowly fuzzed out again. This was with just a set of rabbit ears on the TV. Am unsure of the mileage to the transmitter, but think it’s about 175 miles.