All posts by Michael Perry
Below are all of Michael Perry's postings, with the most recent are at the bottom of the page.
DenisW:
If you do need to replace your aerial, then have a log-periodic type fitted as that will be suitable for the foreseeable future. it will cover all the services currently being transmitted and those planned for the next 6 years or more. Also do not fall for the 'con' about digital aerials, all UHF aerials are capable of receiving Digital TV signals at no extra cost.
To have it fitted, select a good local contractor by asking around. Do not use one that has an 0800 number or uses a mobile contact number.
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MikeB and Peter Young:
I suspect what was meant was that signals from Hannington should be pretty good but that is subject to the growth of the line of trees in between the transmitter and you abode. The other alternative is the use of Rowridge (and not Wlatham as that is in Leicestershire serving the East Midlands!). That is on the Isle of Wight above Newport so you may have a view of that, but not all of Southamption does (some on Town Hill Road don't!).
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Taz Bradley
A Zone 2 dish will 'collect' roughly twice the amount of signal strength than a Zone 1 because it is larger. The stronger signal means it will be less affected by heavy rain/snow/hail/etc that diminish the amount of signal arriving at the dish. So a Zone 1 could well be borderline in your part of Kernow in a village I know quite well having enjoyed holidays there several times. (Yes, I'm a 'grockle'!)
A Zone 2 dish, being larger, needs to be carefully mounted on good strong support so it doesn't get moved by the winds and storms and be aimed very carefully as it has a narrower reception angle. You may be lucky to live in a part that is more protected by the surrounding hills, so storms will have less windage effect.
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Kev
There is no 'Swindon area' transmitter! There are main transmitters at Medip and Oxford plus a small 'relay' at Seagry Court.
To help you we need a post code, either where you live or of a very nearby shop. Then contributors to this site can check which transmitter you might be using. It would also help if you indicate the direction your aerial(s) are pointing giving a compas direction.
You don't say whether your 3 TVs are all connected to a single aerial or whether they are uising a separate aerial for each TV. If they use a signle aerial, that suggests a fault with either the cable from the one aerial or the splitter/distribution unit that feeds the signals to the TVs.
If you give us more information, we may be able to assist.
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Simon Dale
I'm not sure about the necessity to upgrade at the present time, but if you do consider it I would advise selecting a good quality log-periodic aerial. These cover the whole spectrum likely to be used for TV broadcasting now and in the foreseeable future. But do not fall the scam of a 'digital' aerial, *all* UHF aerials will receive both digital and analogue broadcasts equally well and some are charging a premium for a 'digital' aerialm when it is not required technically.
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Bill Magson
The page this entry is being shown on also gives details of work being carried out on the Tacolnston transmitter, which includes some periods of reduced power. That is likely to affect reception, especially if your previous signal reception was close to the lower margins of 'acceptable' for your equipment. A retune in these circumstances means you have lost at least one service.
Check this site over the coming days for when the maintenance work has been completed, indicated by no newer entries for such. Then, and only then, should you try another retune.
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David Beresford
Not giving a post code means we have no clue as to what part of the country you live in. I will assume you have a standard 38 cm 'minidish' that is not giving sufficient signal when there is rain, snow, etc. It may be that consideration of changing the dish to a Zone 2 45 cm dish is worthwhile. The larger dish will be less susceptible to variations of signal reception due to the rain, etc. There is, of course, a potential cost implication.
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Mr C Gardner:
What programme are you expecting to receive on Logical Channel Number (LCN) 23?
There is no MUX broadcasting on channel 23 (487 MHz) from the Black Hill transmitter at this time. See above for a listing of all currently available services and future developments.
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Monday 21 July 2014 8:46PM
Gary (and Anthony)
The original aerail groupings were worked out very carefully in the sixties so that there would be maximum coverage with minimum interference. Sadly, modern planners have not had the forethought to consider the affect on millions of viewers who had perfectly good aerials - until the frequencies used were changed or added to.
Not all modern aerials are wide-band, many Yagi pattern aerials are still grouped. A 'wide band' version of a Yagi type is not the best solution as they are not so good at the lower frquencies (channel/Mux numbers). The group W types mentioned by David Roberts (above) are of the poorer Yagi pattern and not to be recommended.
The best solution, if your old aerial is not so good with the newer services, is to change it to a log-periodic type which is good across the whole band by its design. And don't fall the con of a 'digital' aerial, all UHF log-periodic aerials are ideal for both the old analogue signals (no longer available) and all digital signals.