Full Freeview on the Winter Hill (Bolton, England) transmitter
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The symbol shows the location of the Winter Hill (Bolton, England) transmitter which serves 2,690,000 homes. The bright green areas shown where the signal from this transmitter is strong, dark green areas are poorer signals. Those parts shown in yellow may have interference on the same frequency from other masts.
Are there any planned engineering works or unexpected transmitter faults on the Winter Hill (Bolton, England) mast?
Winter Hill transmitter - Winter Hill transmitter: Possible effect on TV reception week commencing 04/11/2024 Pixelation or flickering on some or all channels 
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Digital television services are broadcast on a multiplexes (or Mux) where many stations occupy a single broadcast frequency, as shown below.
DTG-8 64QAM 8K 3/4 27.1Mb/s DVB-T MPEG2
DTG-12 QSPK 8K 3/4 8.0Mb/s DVB-T MPEG2
DTG-2 16QAM 2K 3/4 18.1Mb/s DVB-T MPEG2
H/V: aerial position (horizontal or vertical)
Which Freeview channels does the Winter Hill transmitter broadcast?
If you have any kind of Freeview fault, follow this Freeview reset procedure first.Digital television services are broadcast on a multiplexes (or Mux) where many stations occupy a single broadcast frequency, as shown below.
| Mux | H/V | Frequency | Height | Mode | Watts |
| PSB1 BBCA | H max | C32 (562.0MHz) | 726m | DTG- | 100,000W |
 1 BBC One (SD) North West, 2 BBC Two England, 9 BBC Four, 23 BBC Three, 201 CBBC, 202 CBeebies, 231 BBC News, 232 BBC Parliament, plus 17 others | |||||
| PSB2 D3+4 | H max | C34 (578.0MHz) | 726m | DTG- | 100,000W |
 3 ITV 1 (SD) (Granada), 4 Channel 4 (SD) North ads, 5 Channel 5, 6 ITV 2, 10 ITV3, 13 E4, 14 Film4, 15 Channel 4 +1 North ads, 18 More4, 26 ITV4, 28 ITVBe, 30 E4 +1, 35 ITV1 +1 (Granada), 71 That’s 60s, | |||||
| PSB3 BBCB | H max | C35- (585.8MHz) | 726m | DTG- | 100,000W |
 46 5SELECT, 101 BBC One HD North West, 102 BBC Two HD England, 103 ITV 1 HD (ITV Granada), 104 Channel 4 HD North ads, 105 Channel 5 HD, 106 BBC Four HD, 107 BBC Three HD, 204 CBBC HD, 205 CBeebies HD, plus 1 others | |||||
| COM4 SDN | H max | C29 (538.0MHz) | 726m | DTG-8 | 100,000W |
 20 U&Drama, 21 5USA, 29 ITV2 +1, 32 5STAR, 33 5Action, 38 Channel 5 +1, 41 Legend, 42 GREAT! action, 57 U&Dave ja vu, 58 ITV3 +1, 59 ITV4 +1, 64 Blaze, 67 TRUE CRIME, 68 TRUE CRIME XTRA, 81 Blaze +1, 83 Together TV, 91 WildEarth, 93 ITVBe +1, 209 Ketchup TV, 210 Ketchup Too, 211 YAAAS!, 251 Al Jazeera English, 255 FRANCE 24 (in English), 265 Rok Sky +1, plus 29 others | |||||
| COM5 ArqA | H max | C31 (554.0MHz) | 726m | DTG-8 | 100,000W |
 11 Sky Mix, 17 Really, 19 U&Dave, 31 E4 Extra, 36 Sky Arts, 40 Quest Red, 43 Food Network, 47 Film4 +1, 48 Challenge, 49 4seven, 60 U&Drama +1, 65 That's TV 2, 70 Quest +1, 74 &UYesterday +1, 76 That's TV 2 MCR, 233 Sky News, plus 13 others | |||||
| COM6 ArqB | H max | C37 (602.0MHz) | 726m | DTG-8 | 100,000W |
 12 Quest, 25 U&W, 27 U&Yesterday, 34 GREAT! movies, 39 DMAX, 44 HGTV, 52 GREAT! christmas, 56 That's TV (UK), 63 GREAT! romance mix, 73 HobbyMaker, 75 That's 90s, 82 Talking Pictures TV, 84 PBS America, 235 Al Jazeera Eng, plus 18 others | |||||
| LM | H -20dB | C40 (626.0MHz) | 572m | DTG-12 | 1,000W |
 from 1st October 2014: 7 That's Manchester, | |||||
| LL | H -17dB | C24 (498.0MHz) | 572m | DTG-12 | 2,000W |
 from 30th June 2014: 7 Bay TV Liverpool, | |||||
| LPR | H -20dB | C56 (754.0MHz) | 572m | DTG-12 | 1,000W |
 from 1st October 2014: 7 That's Lancashire, | |||||
| GIM | H -20dB | C57 (762.0MHz) | 572m | DTG-2 | 1,000W |
 Now 90s, Spotlight TV, Clubland TV, Country Music Entertainment , Classic Hits MCR, 77 That's 60s MCR, 78 TCC, 80 That's 80s, 86 That's 90s MCR, 88 TV Warehouse+1, | |||||
DTG-12 QSPK 8K 3/4 8.0Mb/s DVB-T MPEG2
DTG-2 16QAM 2K 3/4 18.1Mb/s DVB-T MPEG2
H/V: aerial position (horizontal or vertical)
Which BBC and ITV regional news can I watch from the Winter Hill transmitter?
BBC North West Tonight 3.1m homes 11.8%
from Salford M50 2QH, 22km southeast (140°)
to BBC North West region - 92 masts.
ITV Granada Reports 3.1m homes 11.6%
from Salford M50 2EQ, 22km southeast (139°)
to ITV Granada region - 80 masts.
How will the Winter Hill (Bolton, England) transmission frequencies change over time?
| 1956-80s | 1984-97 | 1997-98 | 1998-2009 | 2009-13 | 2013-18 | 2013-17 | 20 Feb 2020 | ||
| VHF | C/D E | C/D E | C/D E | C/D E | C/D E T | W T | W T | ||
| C9 | ITVwaves | ||||||||
| C12 | BBCtvwaves | ||||||||
| C24 | _local | ||||||||
| C29 | SDN | ||||||||
| C31 | com7 | com7 | |||||||
| C32 | BBCA | ||||||||
| C34 | D3+4 | ||||||||
| C35 | BBCB | ||||||||
| C37 | com8 | com8 | |||||||
| C40 | LOCAL2 | ||||||||
| C48 | C5waves | C5waves | |||||||
| C49tv_off | ArqA | ArqA | |||||||
| C50tv_off | BBCA | BBCA | |||||||
| C54tv_off | -BBCB | -BBCB | -BBCB | ||||||
| C55tv_off | BBC1waves | BBC1waves | BBC1waves | ArqB | ArqB | ArqB | com7tv_off | ||
| C56tv_off | _local | _local | _local | LPR | |||||
| C57tv_off | GIM | GIM | GIM | GIM | |||||
| C58tv_off | SDN | SDN | SDN | ||||||
| C59tv_off | ITVwaves | ITVwaves | ITVwaves | D3+4 | D3+4 | D3+4 | |||
| C61 | ArqA | ||||||||
| C62 | BBC2waves | BBC2waves | BBC2waves | BBCA | |||||
| C65 | C4waves | C4waves | C4waves |
tv_off Being removed from Freeview (for 5G use) after November 2020 / June 2022 - more
Table shows multiplexes names see this article;
green background for transmission frequencies
Notes: + and - denote 166kHz offset; aerial group are shown as A B C/D E K W T
waves denotes analogue; digital switchover was 4 Nov 09 and 2 Dec 09.
How do the old analogue and currrent digital signal levels compare?
| Analogue 1-4 | 500kW | |
| SDN, ARQA, ARQB, BBCA, D3+4, BBCB | (-7dB) 100kW | |
| com7 | (-12.9dB) 25.7kW | |
| com8 | (-13.4dB) 22.6kW | |
| Analogue 5 | (-16dB) 12.5kW | |
| Mux 1*, Mux 2*, Mux A*, Mux B*, Mux C*, Mux D* | (-17dB) 10kW | |
| LL | (-24dB) 2kW | |
| GIM, LM, LPR | (-27dB) 1000W |
Local transmitter maps
Winter Hill Freeview Winter Hill DAB Winter Hill AM/FM Winter Hill TV region BBC North West GranadaWhich companies have run the Channel 3 services in the Winter Hill transmitter area
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Thursday, 18 December 2014
A
anthony5:06 PM
Michael, please report the problem on the Digital UK website. The problem started simultaneously for everyone in I think August, It was fixed but has returned and seems difficult to locate and fix probably due to the winter weather. I live in an area with a very high signal strength, the signal occasionally can be seen to fluctuate for a second on the TV's signal strength meter but because my signal is strong it usually doesn't show on screen, other people with lower signal strengths may not be so lucky. Sometime though the signal drops to zero causing pixilation or a no signal message. My wife is also intolerant of this fault so I record her programmes in SD. The problem affects everything on com7 and ruined the first part of the BBC proms season, fortunately it was fixed for a time and the rest of the season was ok.
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Friday, 19 December 2014
H
H J Hill4:49 PM
COM7 DROPOUTS - UPDATE
COM7 DROPOUTS - UPDATE
COM7 DROPOUTS - UPDATE
For newcomers: this affects the following: Freeview: 64, 71, 106,107,108,109, 110, 111, 134
BBC News HD: BBC Four HD: CBeebies HD: Ch4+1 HD: Ch4-seven HD: Aljazeera HD: Community HD
Jewellery Maker: Motors TV: Aljazeera Arabic (these 3 in Std Def)
Further to my post on p116 - Tue 9 December 2014 at 5:12pm:
I have had an update email from Arqiva today (Fri 19 Dec) at 16:07.
They know they have a problem but they cannot find what is causing it.
They are still working on it.
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P
Paul Ryan5:05 PM
Good to here they are working on it I have reverted to std def for the affected channels for now as it cab be really annoying
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G
Gareth10:50 PM
I have signal dropout issues on BBC4 HD and other com7 channels from Winter Hill. I did a complete re-tune to clear and re-install channels. This didn't work so an installer fitted a wideband aerial and new cable. The signal meter confirmed all signals were good strength. I still had intermittent problems though. I tried a 4G filter and bought some new shielded cable to connect my DVD recorder/tuner to my TV. All the signals show full strength. The drop-outs aren't as frequent now but they still happen. I have complained to Digital UK. I am in the M25 postcode area in North Manchester.
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Saturday, 20 December 2014
J
jb3812:34 AM
Gareth: As an engineer who up until recently has been involved with transmission equipment for years, albeit I still am to a certain extent, I am therefore naturally rather interested in this problem, especially the aspect concerning the levels of the strength and quality of the signal prior to the drop out, as well during the actual drop out.
Insomuch, is the signal "strength" seen to fluctuate immediately prior to the drop out, and when the drop out occurs does both the strength and quality vanish? (indicating an RF carrier failure) or is it only the quality that vanishes but with the strength still being indicated at roughly the same level as before? this then inclined to suggest that the signal data is being seriously corrupted by such as a spurious burst of oscillation whereby it cannot be decoded by the receivers, hence a blank screen.
Would appreciate clarification on which of the two aforementioned situations applies.
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G
Gareth12:57 PM
jb38: I am not very good with the technical side of TV transmission but when I have the signal condition window open on the TV whilst watching a COM7 channel, the signal quality and strength are both at maximum on the COM7 channels. When the signal drops out, both the quality and strength drop to zero and I receive a No Signal message on screen for about 1 or 2 seconds. I don't notice any fluctuation in strength and quality before the signal drop out, the drop in strength and quality to zero happens instantly and lasts for 1 or 2 seconds. The strength and quality then return back to maximum as soon as the signal is back.
The strength and quality were slightly lower on the TV as the signal is piped through my DVD recorder with a freeview tuner. When I changed the cable connecting the DVD recorder and TV the strength and quality on the TV were at the maximum. So the signal on the TV is now the same as that when using the DVD recorder tuner.
I received a message from Digital UK this afternoon to say that they are aware of the COM7 issues at Winter Hill and they are investigating the problem.
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A
anthony4:51 PM
The fluctuation in signal strength that I see isn't prior to anything, if I hadn't had the strength meter on I would have been unaware of anything. The drop outs cause the meter to show zero strength and quality, the fluctuations show sometimes quite a large drop in level but only a small one in quality hence no effect on the picture but I do live in a high signal strength area. Although it is 18 miles away I can see not just the mast but the hill as well from my bedroom window. There are no fluctuates on the other coms including the new local one. I'm on the edge of the beam for the older GMAN com but it usually works despite very low signal strength and iffy quality.
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MikeP
10:12 PM
10:12 PM
Gareth
Just a thought but you might have too much signal! If you use the search on this site looking to 'too much of a good thing' you will see a discussion about having too strong a signal can give the symptoms you describe. I'm not in your area so can't be sure, but it's worth investigating - possibly by adding an attenuator in the signal cabling (they just plug in).
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J
jb3811:57 PM
Gareth / anthony : Many thanks for the replies, the content of having clarified the issue, insomuch confirming that the signal strength drops to zero when the drop out occurs, and that its "not" one of those cases where a message indicating "no signal" is being triggered by something having affected the quality of the signal, as happens in many devices.
By the way, although having followed all said on the subject by viewers affected by the problem, the issue on continuity of signal strength was raised by a former work colleague who dropped by yesterday evening for a chat, a quick re-check on the aforementioned postings referred to leaving us unsure as to whether the strength was vanishing or not, hence the main reason for requesting clarification on the issue.
Thanks again / jb.
PS: Just noticed MikeP's posting on the subject, although the symptoms of an overly strong signal can indeed result in exactly that said by MikeP, and so by all means try a test by inserting an attenuator in line, but considering the fact that the main BBC B HD transmitter is radiating on 100Kw without any problems having been reported, I very much doubt if COM7 radiating on only 25.7Kw is likely to result in overloading anything.
But though one never knows! as predictions involving RF signal strength is seldom ever really accurate apart from when taken from some test point on the actual transmitter.
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Sunday, 21 December 2014
A
anthony3:55 PM
The problems started for everyone at the same time and in my case ceased for a while after Arqiva's first fix. I have two independent systems one of which is on a very good aerial and the other on a fairly poor one, the faults occur on both systems at the same time. It is not therefore too little/much signal. H.J.Hill has conformation from Arqiva of a fault, see P118 19th December.
In my professional experience, fixing an intermittent fault like this is very difficult and frustrating, you are sure you have the solution only to be disappointed.
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