In areas of poor television reception, it can often be necessary to fit a masthead amplifier on the antenna mast to increase the signal levels being sent to the receiver inside the house.
A masthead amplifier is provided power using the existing television antenna cable - usually around 24V AC is sent up the coax to this little box on the mast.
IKUSI Masthead Television Reception Amplifier
ONLY FOR USE WITH TERRESTRIAL TELEVISION SYSTEMS - NOT SUITABLE FOR SATELLITE USE
This masthead amplifier requires a power source (See also the HILLS PS5 Power Supply I am advertising) It will not work without a power supply!
This masthead amplifier can accept two antenna inputs, one for VHF channels and the other input for UHF channels.
Gain or level control (internal to the box) is independently adjustable for each antenna.
The masthead amplifier provides useful gain (amplification) up to around 850Mhz but could also be used for other "receive only" equipment such as scanners.
It must be understood that a masthead amplifier cannot perform miracles, if the antenna signal is just far too weak and buried in noise then you are only going to get an amplified television signal but ALSO amplified noise.
Also if the television signal is far too low, it doesn't matter what you use to amplify it - the result will be unsatisfactory.
The brand IKUSI sounds Japanese but in fact the case has stamped into it "MADE IN SPAIN" and inside the equipment, the adjustment "pots" are branded Piher Spain (high quality manufacturer in Spain and part of the Amphenol group of companies)
High impact, UV resistant casing and although a minimal amount of weatherproof strips are installed, these could be improved upon when you instal the amplifier. In fact it is strongly suggested that once mounted and the gain adjustments made, seal the lid of this amplifier with something like a silicon based sealant.
So what's inside the little box?
On the top side of the printed circuit are discrete passive components, mainly coils and the coax connection points.
Underneath the board are all SMD components, including 2x transistors but I cannot find any ID info on the casing
Output: Single output for the main coaxial feed down to the house (already existing cable)
Inputs: Separate inputs are available from a VHF antenna and a UHF antenna
Unlatch the lid (easy) and access to the two gain controls is very easy
TESTING:
All working fine with no issues, removed from a "live" installation due to satellite service upgrade.
