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All posts by MikeB

Below are all of MikeB's postings, with the most recent are at the bottom of the page.

M
BBC One HD
Tuesday 8 November 2016 2:08PM

Stuart: Look at what transmitter your actually on (just in case) and check signal strength and wiring. You should be getting HD from a Lite transmitter, and I know the Manhattan is HD (I've got one - they do tend to lock up, dont they?) and the 2015 Sony almost certainly has a T2 tuner, so your missing the mux in some way. And thats normally because the signal strength is too low - so either a dodgy connection or too low a signal from a transmitter.

If its on both sets, then the problem is probably where the signal splits or before.


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M
Winter Hill (Bolton, England) transmitter
Sunday 13 November 2016 11:30AM

Jim: Have you actually checked your system first? Is the signal due to having the wrong aerial (but wouldn't that be a problem right from the day it was put up?), or is it due to a problem within your own system, hence the low power.

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Full technical details of Freeview
Sunday 13 November 2016 11:36AM

PR: I've also got a manhattan T2 box, and while its OK for the money (and will get you Freeview HD), its only a receiver and does tend to lock up every so often.

Since its likely your VCR doesn't work either (being analogue), you can kill two birds with one staone, and get a PVR, which has two tuners, so you can record and watch at the same time.

Humax is what I recommend, and the T2000 has just won a WhatHifi award - http://www.johnlewis.com/…9133 . You can buy cheaper ones, but they work well, and are good value.

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Full technical details of Freeview
Sunday 13 November 2016 11:45AM

Hilary Woodward: You can check for yourself if there was a problem with the transmitter on its webpage, but I suspect there isn't. The only time transmitters have reduced power is when there is maintenance - other than that, its constant.

You shouldn't be suffering from weak signal - your just 23km from the transmitter, and I'm not sure what they are not telling you the 'truth' about.

In reality, 90% of the time on this website when people are complaining about the transmitter, its really a problem with their system. Your aerial system almost certainly has a problem somewhere, but is likely just about hanging on, and hence not noticeable. Add something like heavy rain, which gets into a cracked connection, etc, and it kills the signal completely. When the sun comes out and the connection dries out, it works again. But in the long term, it will fail.

As for problems watching a problem online, if your using a tuner card attached to the aerial, it will be the same problem, and if its buffering, then thats just a poor broadband speed, which has nothing to do with the transmitter.

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Betty Hurcombe: Check your system - your most likely losing channels as a problem with it appears and then recovers. Most likely explaination is that there is a break in a connection somewhere or a crack where water can get in. When its damp, it kills most of the signal, but then recovers when it dries out. But long term, its going to fail.

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Gill: There could be two possible reasons.

1) Your suffering from whats called 'single source interference' - you've got something like a thermostat or something with a timer, which comes on and causes interference. Search for that phrase on this site, and it should offer some ways to find out if you have, and what you can do about it.
2) You've just go a problem with your aerial, which just happens to act up at a time you notice it. Check your signal strength - if its very low, then there is a problem somewhere along the chain from the aerial to your TV. Could be a simple as a dodgy aerial lead in the back of the set - they are very cheap, and easy to replace, so at least you can check it. Remember that none of us check signal strength much unless there is a problem - it tends to work or it doesn't. And if thats the time we happen to be watching it, then we'll assume it only problematic at that time. Rain can get into the joints, kill a signal, and then dry out, and everything is fine again, but at some point, thats going to happen again.

3) Your getting 100% signal? See 'too much of a good thing' on this site for further info - 75% signal strength is perfect. If you can supply a postcode, we can see if your getting too high a signal.




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Hannington (Hampshire, England) transmitter
Monday 21 November 2016 10:13PM

Dougie Lawson: Your just 10.4km from the transmitter - so look at 'too much of a good thing' on this site, because that drop out sounds a lot like signal overload.

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M
Hannington (Hampshire, England) transmitter
Tuesday 22 November 2016 2:10PM

Dougie Lawson: Just replace the cable (they are really cheap), and if needed, change the box as well. Frankly, rain isn't a problem, unless you already have a problem - the water gets into your system and kills it. So your probably going to have to do something more at some point.

Water in the system acts as an attenuator, so its worth checking your system and signal strength.

Dont ever retune - if your TV was tuned in properly the first time, all that you've done is lost the signal, and if the problem is that your losing signal anyway because of your system, you've just compounded the problem.

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john: You will need a freesat box for each room (or just use the Sky box on 'no card') which attaches to your dish. Some TV will have freesat or at least a generic sat. tuner built into the TV, or you can buy a receiver for less than fifty quid. A humax PVR can easily replace the main Sky box.

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Winter Hill (Bolton, England) transmitter
Wednesday 23 November 2016 11:23PM

Don: Since there doesn't seem to be any problems with the transmitter, its really down to you. Systems fail, cables fray, and water gets in stuff. Check the system and work your way back to the aerials.

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