Nothing but static over the air. Signal meter shows strong signal, but only get static.

The problem could be with the antenna you got versus the location you live. Indoor antennas are very range limited. Non-amplified models range about 25 miles, while amplified models make about 50-60 miles. Also, you must consider where you live. If you live in an area of heavy building concentration, signal may be limited. Home construction matters as well. Frame houses pass signal better than brick or concrete block homes. Upstairs locations fare far better than basement family rooms.

"In" gets the signal from the antenna, "Out" sends the amplified signal to the receiver.

The more tvs you have hooked up to the same antenna, the lower the signal strength. Therefore you should get an antenna amplifier or get a new antenna with a stronger signal.

Unless this a new TV with ATSC (digital) tuning built in, you will need a digital adapter for off-the-air reception. Older TV sets have analog tuners, and analog broadcasting ended in June 2009. Wal-Mart and Radio Shack carry the adapters, as do other retailers. Your antenna connects to the adapter, and the adapter sends the converted signal to the TV on channel 3 or 4.

With digital broadcasting, a strong signal is necessary. Unlike the analog days, when a weak signal just meant a fuzzy picture, a weak digital signal will cause pixellation (blockiness) or freezing of the picture, or may not even be detected by the tuner. Depending on how far you are from the station's transmitter, you may find that rabbit-ears may not work too well. You may need an amplified antenna or even one outside to get best performance.

Here is how you should have it connected.
1- Antenna (rabbit ears or whatever)
2- Converter box
3- Television

When you turn on the TV and the converter box, go to channel 3 on the TV. You should see the converter box signal there. If you do not see it try channel 4. Bring up the convert box menu and go through the AUTO SEARCH, not manual search. Now your box will search all the frequencies and add any stations that are in your area. Make sure you change channels with the converter box, not the tv. An antenna on the roof will still provide somewhat better range, but even rabbit ears will likely pick up something. If you still get no channels you could be too far away, digital signals have a shorter range than analog signals. You can check your local TV stations website or call to see if they are broadcasting digital yet.

Call the station to see if they are testing their signal. Also check the signal strenght: turn to channel WGEM and usung the signal meter in the converter box check to see if you have a strong signal. If signal is week change the direction of the antenna or get a signal amplifier; especially if you live more than 10 miles from their broadcast tower.

You'll need a better antenna. All the TV can do is show you the signal strength at the antenna input. If it's too low, only changing the antenna can help. This could mean simply adjusting the antenna position. You might need to replace the antenna with something larger or with a built-in amplifier. In severe cases, you might need to install an outdoor antenna to get a useable signal. With digital broadcasting it's all-or-nothing. A weak signal will either go undetected by the tuner or cause a blocky freezing (pixellated) display.

I understand you have;
Toshiba 36" analog tv,
Tivax converter box,
RCA Digital Flat amplified antenna.

You want to get signal over the air;
Connect the antenna to the Tivax converter box.
Connect the Tivax Converter box to the input for the TV.

Turn on the antenna, Converter box and TV. You should get a menu on the tv screen. Follow the instructions and SCAN in the channels in your area by using the converter box remote.

You can see your channels by going to www.tvfool.com and entering your information.

Ok first I can save you some money. Take your "HDTV" antenna back. There is nothing different about the antennas needed receive analog and digital signals. If you got reception without your converter box, use the same antenna with your converter box.

Next let's see if there is a problem with the box. Hook up a television with the antenna. How many stations do you get? Now hook up the same television & antenna, but this time put the converter box between the antenna & the TV. Do not turn on the box. Now how many stations do you get? If the number is different, the box is not allowing the antenna signal to pass through. That is bad. You want your signal to pass through the box so you can still pick up stations that don't broadcast digitally. Some areas of the country will not be covered by digital stations from all major broadcasters when the changeover happens in Feb.

My suspicion is either you did not have the antenna hooked up to the converter box when you searched for channels OR you are in an area that is not yet broadcasting digitally.

I hope this helps you solve your problem. Thank you for using FixYa and feel free to add more questions here by using comments.