All posts by Peter Henderson
Below are all of Peter Henderson's postings, with the most recent are at the bottom of the page.Brian: I've been told unofficially it's now the end of Nov. 2012 for Divis, but don't take that as gospel
Digital UK did have a date of March 31 2013, if I remember correctly but this has been changed and simply states 2012.
Apparently a DSO manager for the province will be appointed in September to oversee the process so things may become clearer then.
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No problem Mark.
The mini RTE mux is also a topic of confusion.
Initially, press reports stated it would be broadcast from Divis, Brougher, Black Mountain (presumably the low power relay for West Belfast) and Carnmoney Hill.
I have been told unoficially the service will be using the old mast which is to be retained for this and existing FM Radio.
However, the latest information on Digital UK's website omits Divis and only states that the mini RTE mux will be broadcast from Black Mountain, Brougher, and Carnmoney Hill.
So what do they mean by Black Mountain ? Is it the low power relay for west Belfast (5 watts post DSO) or will it be a higher power transmitter covering greater Belfast and the surrounding area ?
Confusion all round it would seem.
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Ofcom DAB switchover coverage planning proposals | Digital radiTuesday 19 July 2011 8:38PM
Newtownabbey
I was in Salou Spain a couple of weeks ago. Gues how many stations were receivable on band II (i.e. 88-108 MHz) ? At least 40-50 and probably more, as there were so many it was very difficult to count. Who needs DAB when you've this many stations on FM ?
Back to Belfast, a city with around 500,000 inhabitants (including the surrounding areas) and only 9 stations (along with 3
long term community stations). Even our DAB is crap (still no Digital One)
So why can't the UK have 40-50 stations on the FM band ? As someone who has travelled widely throughout Europe, I can tell you that most countries, especially the Mediterranean ones, have FM bands with loads of stations all playing a wide variaty of music as well as speach. Is radio in general in UK far to tightly regulated by Ofcom ?
I think the main problem will be getting affordable car radios with DAB. OK, so you have devices like the the Pure Highway, but it's cumbersome to use (far too many trailing wires) and the sound quality isn't great, in my opinion.
Then there's the DAB+ problem as well. If the UK switches to this standard just how many DAB radios will become obselete ? A vast majority of DAB radios sold in the UK at present aren't DAB+ compatable, even with a software update.
Personally, I think the whole process could turn into an embarrassing farce for the government and Ofcom.
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Experiencing problems with Divis today.Lots of break up etc.
Signal strength is much the same.
Not sure if any engineering work is taking place or not.
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Brian : A spokesperson for UTV (one of the directors) has just stated on UTV Live that DSO in the province will start in the middle of next year (June ?) and be completed by the end of 2012.
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There are three main transmitters in NI Brian so I assume he's probably referring to all of them over the period i.e. Brougher, Limivady, and Divis.
I take it they do all switch at different times ?
I think Limivady is due to go first.
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I see you've brought forward the approximate date to December next year Brian. Have you heard something ?
John: as far as I'm aware, the mini RTE Mux is in addition to Freevuew. Channel 30 had been mooted for this, but it now seems as if it's going to be used for local TV, which I assume will be NVTV as it's already broadcasting.
I've read that channel 48 may be used for an additional Mux at Divis
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Black Mountain (Northern Ireland) Freeview Light transmitterSunday 14 August 2011 12:14AM
Newtownabbey
Yep that's what I was wondering Sauriau.
Originally this Mux was planed for Divis, Brougher, Black Mountain, and Carnmoney Hill.
However, there seems to be confusion all round now as this press release Mike has linked to above only mentions Brougher, Black Mountain, and Carnmoney Hill. Is this simply an error, or have they dropped plans for Divis ? I had assumed that Black Mountain was going to be this low powered relay that covers west Belfast.
However, if this transmitter is goung to cover all of greater Belfast, then it's going to have to be at a far greater ERP than 5 wattts.
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Same problem exists in Northern Ireland, but the situation is worse here in that we don't even have UTV HD on Sky or Freesat in the add channels feature.
UTV simply doesn't exist on any satellite platform/ but only on Virgin media,
There also appears to be some doubt as to whether or not it will appear on Freeview HD in the province post DSO as Digital UK only lists 3 Freeview HD channels post DSO in NI, which is odd.
Thankfully, I get reasonably good reception from Cambrett Hill.
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Sunday 10 July 2011 1:01AM
Newtownabbey
Sorry to hear about your accident Brian and hope you get well soon.
Currently receiving increased signal levels from Cambrett Hill in Scotlannd, along with the 4 Freeview HD channels on a Humax Freeview HD box. They look good.
Can't wait until the DSO in NI next year.