All posts by MikeB
Below are all of MikeB's postings, with the most recent are at the bottom of the page.
Nigel: Your 13km from the transmitter, so an overload is not a total surprise. Different TV's have different tuners, and they can all act in a slightly different way - Sony tends to be sensitive but robust, whilst Humax and Panasonic tend to be sensitive full stop. So its perfectly possible for your other TV to be OK (just about), whilst the LG breaking up. Add to that a feed to your other TV which might not be as good, etc, and that could explain the mismatch.
As they say in Jaws, your going to need a bigger boat.I'm 46km from my transmitter, and in order to get the strength down enough so that the PVR didn't get confused, I've put a 12db attenuator on that feed. Best suggestion is to get a couple of fixed ones in series (6 + 12 + 8, etc), until you've got a level thats OK. The fixed ones are less than two quid each on Amazon, and they fit into each other, so you can make a 'stick'. Get another aerial lead, so you dont have the attenuators sticking out of anything - because the weight of them will damage the sockets.
Be interesting at what level of attentuation your signal will need to come in at around 75%!
| link to this comment |
Nigel: Bad luck - 5 years old(?) so pretty much out of warrenty. Either get a Freeview HD tuner cheap (Manhatten for about 44 quid - Buy Manhattan Plaza HD-T2 Smart Freeview HD Digital Receiver | John Lewis ) or if you want to upgrade anyway, most of my customers have gone up from a 32 to a 40-42 or even 47/48.
If your about 8-10 feet away from the screen, by far the best value I can suggest is the ace Samsung H6400 from 2014. They are about to vanish (the new 2015 J6300 is curved), but has a great 400hz 3D screen, fully smart, two remotes, etc. Right in the mid range, and a very popular model.
Still just about available for 399 - Buy Samsung UE40H6400 LED HD 1080p 3D Smart TV, 40" with Freeview HD, Voice Control, Built-In Wi-Fi and 2x 3D Glasses | John Lewis - great price, five year warrenty, and I'd be very happy having one myself!
| link to this comment |
hade: If your using a seperate reciever and its connected via scart, make sure its connected properly. If not, try a reset - might be that the softwares got a glitch.
| link to this comment |
Mr J Phillips: According to Wikipedia, Ceefax has been off the air since Octover 2012!
Ceefax
| link to this comment |
GP: If its common to all TV's, loogically it must either be the transmitter, or your system (or something making it go wonky).
Since its very unlikely that the trasmitter suddenly goes weak for several hours each night at peak time, it must be you. If your signal strength was steadily or suddenly much weaker, then that would point to your system - perhaps a failing wire, or dodgy distribution system, etc. Whats strange is that the same thing seems to happen at the same time each night. Thats the sort of thing you get when there is single source interference (just google it on this site).
Check to see if there is anything in your house (or close by) which works on a timer - its might be leaky and killing the signal. Something like a thermostat might fit the bill. JB38 has excellent advice on how to find the source via an AM radio.
The other thing to do is to improve your cabling. A better cable, with shielding, makes interfence less likely. ATV Sheffield has some on their website, which look very good value for about four pouns plus postage. And of course if your using another box, such as a PVR, make sure that a decent cable goes between that and the TV.
Be interesting to find out exactly what it is!
| link to this comment |
Rodney: You havn't given a postcode, but you have the classic signs of too high a signal strength. Search for 'too much of a good thing' on this site
| link to this comment |
Keith Blackham: you havn't included a postcode, so we have no idea of your location, and thus the sort of signal you should get. However, the transmitter seems fine, so its almost certainly your system.
You've had the Tv aerial dismantled and reinstalled. Did this include all the cabling? A poor signal is normally down to a broken or frayed connection, corrosion, moisture, etc. You've had the booster replaced, so that not it. Did you check the fly lead from the socket to the TV? A classic is the cable coming loose or falling out, or perhaps just being faulty.
And the other thing to check is are you actually tuned to the transmitter you think you are? Plenty of people will naturally try to trtune when they get a poor signal. Of course that retuning might mean they lose the original transmitter, and end up with one far more distant, but with a lower channel no., which means it gets picked up first. Check with the transmitter details that BBC1 etc is actually on Channel 28, etc. If its not, your tuned into the wrong station, hence your problem, even though the original fault might have been fixed.
BTW - paying your licence fee doesn't guarantee you can get decent reception, thats down to geography, physics and equipment.
| link to this comment |
David bowden: Then logically its you! Check back from the back of the TV up the signal path. Could be as simple as the aerial lead falling out of the socket on the TV, but equally could be a frayed or corroded cable, moisture via a crack, loose or broken connection, etc.
| link to this comment |
And: Just to add to Dave Lindsay's excellent advice, if your current TV aerial is getting all the channels it should do, then any new TV should do exactly the same. Obviously if its a very old or non functioning aerial, then replace, but if its working, dont worry.
On the subject of new TV's, this is the advice I give to my customers (of which there were a surprising amount today, given the weather!):
Find the right size. Which magazine has a decent size guide on their website (OK, a little vague, but..). Basically, a 32in should be about 1.5m/7 feet away, a 40/42 about 8-10 feet (40 x 3 = 120in = 10feet), and 47-50 around 10-13ft, etc. If your TV is about 5 years old or more, you can go up one size safely - the TV has shrunk in width about 10%. That means a modern 48in is about the same wideth as a 6 year old 42in. Basically, 2 and a half to three times the size of the screen away from where the TV is to where your sitting is fine.
Freeview HD, Full HD, wifi and smart are all standard - your paying for the panel. The better the picture, the better the blacks and the higher the refresh rate (it will be crisper and sharper, especially when there is movement). You also pay more money. Best value is for something in the midlevel with 3D (you'll get a better panel - the 3D is thrown in for nothing).
The 2015 TV's are all starting to come in, and therefore at new prices, although they will settle down. A 2014 model (at a good price) is a great idea if you can still get one, because you are buying above your weight, especially since a lot of models are now 4K.
If you had a 32in and were looking to go to a 40ish screen then the 40 Samsung H6400 would be my choice. Buy Samsung UE40H6400 LED HD 1080p 3D Smart TV, 40" with Freeview HD, Voice Control, Built-In Wi-Fi and 2x 3D Glasses | John Lewis
Fantastic value at 399 (I sold one today to a lady who was after the new 2015 Samsung 2D TV - the one I suggested was cheaper and better), and if it was a 47-50in then the Panasonic 47 650 http://www.johnlewis.com/…3194
Again, right in the mid range and excellent value. These are both 2014 models, so about to vanish, but something similar from those brands or LG/Sony would do well. Never go to a supermarket or a catalgue shop to buy a TV (low end and often high prices, and seldom Freeview HD, which now a must), and please go to a proper shop, so you can look at it and ask questions. Good luck.
| link to this comment |
Sunday 31 May 2015 2:07PM
Melvyn Clark: Almost certain a part of your aerial system has died. It must have been going for the past couple of days (hence the weakening signal), but now thats it. Perhaps a frayed/broekn cable, corrosion, etc.
Call out a professional, I'm afraid.