Full Freeview on the Sutton Coldfield (Birmingham, England) transmitter
 | Google Streetview |  | Google map |  | Bing map |  | Google Earth |  | 52.600,-1.835 or 52°36'1"N 1°50'5"W |  | B75 5JJ |
The symbol shows the location of the Sutton Coldfield (Birmingham, England) transmitter which serves 1,870,000 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.
This transmitter has no current reported problems
The BBC and Digital UK report there are no faults or engineering work on the Sutton Coldfield (Birmingham, England) transmitter._______
Digital television services are broadcast on a multiplexes (or Mux) where many stations occupy a single broadcast frequency, as shown below.
64QAM 8K 3/4 27.1Mb/s DVB-T MPEG2
DTG-12 QSPK 8K 3/4 8.0Mb/s DVB-T MPEG2
H/V: aerial position (horizontal or vertical)
Which Freeview channels does the Sutton Coldfield 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.
64QAM 8K 3/4 27.1Mb/s DVB-T MPEG2
DTG-12 QSPK 8K 3/4 8.0Mb/s DVB-T MPEG2
H/V: aerial position (horizontal or vertical)
Which BBC and ITV regional news can I watch from the Sutton Coldfield transmitter?
BBC Midlands Today 2.9m homes 10.9%
from Birmingham B1 1RF, 15km south-southwest (200°)
to BBC West Midlands region - 66 masts.
ITV Central News 2.9m homes 10.9%
from Birmingham B1 2JT, 15km south-southwest (201°)
to ITV Central (West) region - 65 masts.
All of lunch, weekend and 80% evening news is shared with Central (East)
Are there any self-help relays?
| Burton (shobnall) | Transposer | 1 km W Burton-on-Trent | 60 homes |
| Coalville | Transposer | 18 km NW Leicester | 600 homes |
| Solihull | Transposer | Land Rover building | 400 homes |
How will the Sutton Coldfield (Birmingham, England) transmission frequencies change over time?
| 1950s-80s | 1984-97 | 1997-98 | 1998-2011 | 2011-13 | 7 Mar 2018 | ||||
| VHF | B E T | B E T | B E T | B E K T | W T | ||||
| C4 | BBCtvwaves | ||||||||
| C33 | com7 | ||||||||
| C35 | com8 | ||||||||
| C36 | LOCAL2 | ||||||||
| C39 | +ArqB | ArqB | |||||||
| C40 | BBC2waves | BBC2waves | BBC2waves | +BBCB | BBCB | ||||
| C42 | SDN | SDN | |||||||
| C43 | ITVwaves | ITVwaves | ITVwaves | BBCA | BBCA | ||||
| C45 | ArqA | ArqA | |||||||
| C46 | BBC1waves | BBC1waves | BBC1waves | D3+4 | D3+4 | ||||
| C48 | _local | ||||||||
| C50tv_off | C4waves | C4waves | C4waves | ||||||
| C51tv_off | LB | ||||||||
| C55tv_off | com7tv_off | ||||||||
| C56tv_off | COM8tv_off |
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 7 Sep 11 and 21 Sep 11.
How do the old analogue and currrent digital signal levels compare?
| Analogue 1-4 | 1000kW | |
| SDN, ARQA, ARQB, BBCA, D3+4, BBCB | (-7dB) 200kW | |
| com7 | (-10.5dB) 89.2kW | |
| com8 | (-10.7dB) 86kW | |
| LB | (-20dB) 10kW | |
| Mux 1*, Mux 2*, Mux A*, Mux B*, Mux C*, Mux D* | (-21dB) 8kW |
Which companies have run the Channel 3 services in the Sutton Coldfield transmitter area
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Tuesday, 5 November 2019
C
Chris.SE2:51 PM
Roy:
1st, this may be of interest - today, More4+1 has moved from BBCB/PSB3 mux to COM7. So some space on BBCB - speculation!
2nd, to follow any changes at Sutton Coldfield (look for it in the detail) -
Go to Freeview | All your favourite TV shows, all in one place and all for free scroll down the page to the box "Check Freeview at my home" and enter your postcode and house number/name. Scroll down the new page where available channels are shown in "tiles". Below the initial block there is a "down arrow" if not all are displayed. If you are only interested in a particular group of channels click on that button on the top row.
If you scroll down just after half way down the page, there is a button "Detailed view". If you click on that it will show the predicted reception of transmitters and multiplexes that may be receivable at your location on another new page. Transmitter distances and aerial directions etc are given at the top of that page.
If you hover over any given channel number a pop-up box will show you the transmission details, power etc.
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R
Roy7:16 PM
Chris.SE - I noticed More4+1 had moved recently when my PVR failed to record it or show any EPG. I'm sure retune notices used to appear automatically? Certainly there seem to be some obscure channels which I struggle to believe attract any real audience. At the risk of being controversial (or showing my ignorance) I do wonder if these tiny audience ones couldn't be grouped on the more problematic Muxes? Anyway, the link you provide shows that on 13 November, Sutton Coldfield will again hack at the power of Ch55 +Ch56, reducing those 'served' by either by another 5%. Feels like the 'death of a thousand cuts', hence my original post. I did recently try a modern aerial fitted in the loft (seeking to avoid the cost of an installer going on the roof) but despite being Group T and therefore better suited, the overall signal strength was less than my old one outside. It would be nice know their plans better, before shelling out for a professional install that might be not required in 2 years time when all settles down (maybe), but it looks like no one really does.
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Chris.SE8:02 PM
Roy:
I'm not sure what you looked at, but there is no change to the power being transmitted by COMs 7&8 at Sutton Coldfield between now and 2020 and thereafter on current planning, they remain at 56.162kW.
You may be affected by reception changes at your location due to other transmitters moving their COMs 7&8 muxes to UHF55&56, but as I don't have your postcode, I can't confirm that one way or the other.
Reception using a loft aerial will normally be worse than an external one (using like for like aerials) due to the attenuation produced by the roof, often more when wet. A Group T will be fine in years to come. It's always possible that you'd need a filter for 5G if there's a very close 5G transmitter in your line of sight whatever aerial you use (if 4G experience is anything to compare with).
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Chris.SE8:04 PM
Forgot to say, I did have a screen pop-up today saying that Programme mapping had changed .....
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Roy9:49 PM
Chris.SE - OK, so it's not power but other factors at work reducing the reception area. Shame anyway. Yes I was fully aware a loft aerial was less sensitive than a roof one, it was a cheap gamble, although if they work they're spared the weathering and wind blowing them over the years, sunlight cracking the coaxial, water penetration, birds sitting etc. I'd hoped a modern aerial might outweigh the loss of sensitivity from being behind the tiles. So far it hasn't, though it might as you say perform better in future. I do have a pair of 4G filters (top and bottom) fitted when Freeview eventually sent some engineers out after I initially complained of poor reception. They thought a nearby mast was interfering, and the filters did help. It's just coverage of 55 & 56, for whatever reason, continues to decline.
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Monday, 11 November 2019
G
Gordon3:26 PM
Chris. SE.
You might want to try investing in a Televes DAT HD Antenna (wideband) with passive/active inbuilt pre-amp. It is a most sensitive unit and works superbly in fringe areas /poor reception zones, in active mode the aerial gives somewhere in the region of 26dB gain which will help overcome any losses on downlead and loss created by LTE800 4/5G filters. You will need a 12VDC PSU / mast head type PSU to power the pre-amp.
This setup works fine for me and I'm 40+km away from Sutton Coldfield in a rubbish reception zone.
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Tuesday, 12 November 2019
C
Chris.SE9:19 AM
Gordon:
Thank you for your information and I'm glad that you are getting good reception with your set-up. If this is the version with the amplifier that automatically adjusts the signal level output, then it clearly will have some useful advantages in some locations.
BUT these aerials have a very high windage, so I wouldn't recommend them except in circumstances where there are no other reliable options nor in very exposed areas subject to frequent high winds.
I hope yours is mounted securely on a high quality pole and if it is on a chimney you have a quality lashing kit properly fixed otherwise you could quickly end up with damage to your chimney.
I would also point out that it is possible to get good "gain" from other installations using an aerial of lower windage whose gain is around 12-14dB and a masthead amp whose gain can be upto 25dB giving a potential total gain upto 39dB.
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G
Gordon2:28 PM
Chris / Roy
The Televes DAT 45 HD is not to be confused with the Televes DAT 75 which is a beast of an aerial.
The purpose of recommending the wideband Televes DAT45-HD is that it has a wide receiving angle, high sensitivity and an integrated intelligent pre-amp and as such is superior in operation to some cheapo Yagi wideband with a masthead amp. An obvious choice for use in fringe or poor reception areas and in lofts.
Wind resistance is not an issue as my set-up is in the loft / roof space and delivers a high quality 69dB signal with the preamp active, plus the inbuilt pre-amp reduces cable connections from 3 to 1 which is never a bad thing.
However, I do take you point about low wind resistance antenna for external installations e.g. log periodic, but this is not the case here.
A prievious post by 'Roy' highlighting his disappointment with his new loft aerial quote,
" Yes I was fully aware a loft aerial was less sensitive than a roof one, it was a cheap gamble, although if they work they're spared the weathering and wind blowing them over the years, sunlight cracking the coaxial, water penetration, birds sitting etc. I'd hoped a modern aerial might outweigh the loss of sensitivity from being behind the tiles. So far it hasn't, though it might as you say perform better in future".
Aerials are not an exact science in application, more a 'dark-art'.
May be Roy should try a Televes DAT 45 HD as it could negate the effect of signal attentuation caused by the roof cladding and provide the reception improvement he was looking for.
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Wednesday, 13 November 2019
R
Roy7:55 AM
Re loft aerials and Tri boom designs like the cheap one I tried unsuccessfully (a Labgear LAB450T) , there's a very interesting site run by a installer who has carried out many admiral tests. Have a look at ATV aerial gain tests - A.T.V. Poles, Brackets, Clamps & Aerials where he slates the one I picked and says:
'Tri boom aerials were popularised by Televes (the DAT45 and 75) but more recently other companies have started producing them. I`ve never been that keen on Tribooms, I have generally found their gain figures to be lower than expected, in fact anyone who knows about aerials knows Tri Booms are not made to work, they`re made to sell. In addition Tri Booms have a high windloading and, if end mounted (and most are), they put a high twisting force on the pole.'
Have a look at his dB response curves and let me know whether you agree the Tri Booms are more about 'fashion and selling' than science?
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Chris.SE12:57 PM
Gordon:
Certainly an interesting aerial which will have its uses in certain applications, and if you have room for it in a loft, well fine! This "self-adjusting amplifier" is interesting! Whether it's suitable in Roy's case however (and many others I could think of), the jury could still be out.
It's not purely roof attenuation that's the issue here, it's the fact that the COM 7&8 signals are getting less reliable at his location due to the final transmitters elsewhere moving to the SFN channels 55 & 56. No amount of "clever" gain will resolve that if the signal is suffering interference, it's all due to the way SFNs work, there's a limit to what can be achieved. Take a look at what is going on with DAB and this "problem". Mind you I'm no expert in this area, I can only go by what the experts say.
Also you mention "it has a wide receiving angle" and that may be precisely the issue in some cases. However one report says it has a narrow beamwidth, whereas other "specs" says it's 30deg.
As Roy hasn't given a full postcode, I can't comment on whether it could be worth trying, but judging by what Roy has been saying, I guess he might be able to make that judgment himself. It depends on the location of potentially interfering transmitters. I haven't seen any figures for Front to Back ratio for example which could be more important in some cases.
Your points about the reduced number of connection with an in-built amp is very valid and always worth taking into account. Its application is very much "horses for courses".
Roy:
aerialsand tv.com is one site we often recommend people look at for a lot of very useful information ;)
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