Sorry, I got nostalgic about UM...
Back to the antenna question. If you are a sat installer, it would do you good to learn more about terrestrial antennas and their application.
Call your sat distributor or Winegard directly if you need more info than this, there are usually some salty old DXers that can offer you a more detailed education in a pretty brief conversation.
The basics are get the correct antenna with enough size and elements to get proper signal strength, antennaweb.org is a good resource for determining the correct antenna.
Mount the antenna where it has a nice high and unobstructed vantage point, or as much as is possible for the site.
And be sure to use compression fittings and high quality splitters and grounding blocks if you aren't already.
An RF meter is expensive, but is a good investment IMHO.
OK, here's my suggested setup to you, components and all.
Sorry if this seems like a Winegard push, but that's what I use and am familiar with.
Channel Master would have equivelent models.
Select the antenna from
www.antennaweb.orgI recommend one of the Winegard PlatinumHD models because the 75ohm transformers for F-connector use are included and you can just use the coax and connectors you already have. You mentioned a location 30 miles from the Empire State building, the HD7210 Ghost Killer may be a good choice if you have tall buildings on other angles beside and behind the house because they can cause significant RF reflections (ghosting). Ghosting in the actual picture isn't an issue with digital TV, but the reflections that cause them on NTSC are an issue with acquiring a healthy signal to feed the ATSC tuners.
Confirm the recommendation with your local distributor, who definitely has a better idea of NYC issues than I would.
AVOID the cute little plastic ones that bolt to the sat mount arm unless you get a hearty recommendation from a pro that knows your area very well. These are popular because they look nicer, not because they are better. The big aluminum jungle jim look is they way to go IMO.
Next, select a mast mounted preamp:
Winegard AP-8700 is a good choice if the run to distribution is short, which it sounds like it is. If it were a 2 or 3 story, or if the distribution were on the other side of the house, I would use AP-8780 which has more kick on the UHF side to accomadate the longer run.
Back at distribution, use your favorite RF amp (ex. Winegard DA-1118) and high quality 8 way splitter to get the amplified signal out to the wallplates.
Another option, more popular these days, is to use a preassambled 6 to 8 output amplified RF module for your favorite structured wiring system that does all this for you.
I would use the OnQ 363468-02, which is a 2x6 Enhanced (amplified) video module, because I always put OnQ can(s) at distribution.
The additional input could be used for modulated CCTV feeds or something down the road and is supposed to be automatically gain matched to the other (antenna) input.
Good luck.