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All posts by jb38

Below are all of jb38's postings, with the most recent are at the bottom of the page.


bev: Yes, thats correct, as you cannot make any changes to the parental block setting without it being inserted, but though the point is, that the system works exactly the same whether a persons a subscriber or not, likewise nothing will alter in this respect when you cease being a subscriber.

Now its known that you are using a Sky+ box, please be aware that you will lose access to the recording and playback side of your box when you cancel your subscription, as Sky disables this side of the box at around the same time as your ability to view the package channels previously referred to.

Of course, Sky does offer an option whereby a viewer can retain this side of the box with only the package channels being cancelled, the snag being that they charge £10.25 per month for the dubious privilege, many ex Sky subscribers opting to purchase a Freesat twin tuner recorder (PVR), Freesat devices not requiring any form of subscription whatsoever and are 100% compatible with ex Sky dishes, no modifications of any sort being required to the installation.

Regards / JB

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Full technical details of Freeview
Monday 24 November 2014 11:03PM

Jan: You should make one or two enquiries in the area to find out if others are also suffering from this problem? as cross channel interference can be a problem at various times during the year around the coastal areas of your region, the unfortunate aspect of this problem being that nothing can really be done to alleviate it, this being why many viewers decide to go for or the Freesat option.


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Full technical details of Freeview
Tuesday 25 November 2014 8:03AM

Jan : In addition to that said, and although less likely, but another possible reason could be due to interference being picked up from such as a pirate radio station of the mobile variety or otherwise set up in the evenings somewhere within the large industrial estate towards the rear of your property.





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bev: The PIN number controlled channel blocking system is not connected in any way with the status of your subscription, therefore anything presently blocked "will" remain that way until at any time you might decide to alter it. Another point to note being that the block will not be lost even if you disconnect your box from the mains, as it cannot be removed except by you going into the parental control menu and resetting it after you have re-entered your PIN number.

Also note, that although you are cancelling your subscription keep your viewing card inserted into the box, as its required in order for you to receive the correct news services for your area.

On the subject of the recording / playback side of your box. This was only mentioned because many people have numerous recordings stored away in the hard drive for future viewing, most of being totally unaware that they will not be able to access this side of their box once they cancel their subscription, a warning of this snag beforehand enabling them to transfer anything important onto a separate recording device.

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Alan Lloyd: Try resetting your box by disconnecting it from the mains for about 30 seconds or so before reconnecting it again and allowing it to go through the usual "searching for listings" procedure, on completion checking if this action has rectified the situation.

However, should it not have done, then another thing that can sometimes result in channels dropping out is by the dish having moved slightly out of alignment, e.g: being blown by the wind or something having knocked against it, therefore you should carry out a signal strength & quality check on the box by pressing :- Services - 4 - 6 and checking the result, both levels indicated having to be around 60% minimum for satisfactory reception, the important aspect of the signal being its quality which should never be under the strength, as this is always an indication that the dish requires slight realigning.

If the situation has not advanced any, then this is inclined to point to the problem being caused by the boxes internal power supply being defective, something not exactly uncommon in older boxes, as their power supplies can suffer from leaky capacitors resulting in a reduced voltage being fed to the tuner, the effect of this being erratic reception.

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Alison: Looking at the situation from another angle, can it be assumed that by "not having any signal for three months now" is meaning that you had one before and have not just moved into the property? because if by any chance you have, then even although you are indicated as having a line-of-sight with the Midhurst transmitter @ 6.5 miles away, it cannot be taken for granted that you will receive a signal via a same room type of aerial, that is "if" thats what you are referring to?

Also, referring to the TV's that you borrowed which apparently work OK around the corner from you, what aerials are those connected into at the property you borrowed them from? my only reason for asking being that the properties in your particular location could possibly suggest as being connected into a communal aerial distribution system.

Another point to note being, can it also be assumed that you did "not" attempt to retune the TV's that you borrowed? which of course if they were only switched off before you borrowed you should "not" have done, otherwise you will lose the channels already stored in the tuners memory.

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Full technical details of Freeview
Friday 28 November 2014 5:26PM

gemma stone : In addition to that said by Dave Lindsay regarding the Faversham relay. If you are also unable to receive (10) ITV3 or (18) 4Music, then your Freeview will most likely be from the Faversham relay, neither programme transmitted by this station.

That said, one or two aerials in your area would appear to be pointing towards the Bluebell Hill transmitter @ 16miles / 268 degrees, and although indications are that reception from anywhere other than Faversham is liable to be iffy, should by any chance you are able to receive ITV3 or 4Music? then it could be from Bluebell Hill, therefore carry out a "manual" tune on Mux C39 the transmitter used by Dave / Pick TV etc.



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Craigkelly (Fife, Scotland) transmitter
Sunday 30 November 2014 9:01AM

Zoe Bell: The most likely reason for your problem is that you are receiving Freeview from the local Cannongate relay rather than the Craigkelly transmitter, this latter station located across the Firth of Forth near to Burntisland. Should you recently have had occasion to auto-tune your TV? then its difficult to understand how this could have happened, as your TV should have picked up Craigkelly first by the fact of it transmitting on channels much lower down the scale compared to those used by Cannongate, or indeed the Angus transmitter, Craigkelly's channels being in the 21 - 45 range whereas the others are 49 upwards, and TV's scan from 21 upwards.

You should carry out a manufacturers reset on your TV prior to another auto-tune, this procedure also known as "default setting" or "first time installation" and see if this cures the problem, if by any chance it doesn't, carry out a second reset, but this time "manually" tune in each of the multiplexes used by the Craigkelly transmitter, channels as below.

27 (BBC) - 24 (ITV) - 21(HD) - 42 (ITV3 etc) - 45 (Pick tv etc) - 39 (4Music) - 33 (BBC4 HD etc) - 30 (Local)

However, A quick browse at you location would suggest that you are resident in a large apartment block?, should this be the case, then you are likely to be connected into a communal aerial system, if this applies then you should try enquire with one of the other residents to find out if they are experiencing any problems with reception.

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Connecting it all up | Installing
Sunday 30 November 2014 1:24PM

David Hobbs: Your loop amplifier system is totally dependant on the continuity of the audio output facility on the TV's scart socket your loop amplifier is connected into, anything that upsets it killing the audio, therefore with regards to you having stated that no audio can be heard via the loop from the BT Vision box connected into the TV via an HDMI lead, the question is, can it from the TV's speakers if you lean close to them? because if you can, then this is inclined to indicate that the scart output facility is being affected by input socket selection.

The main point of all this being, that if the continuity of the audio connection is maintained, then it should be irrespective of what you connect into the TV such as the Blue-Ray referred to, as all the TV does is to pass the audio of whatever you happen to be using at the time onto the loop amplifier.


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Connecting it all up | Installing
Sunday 30 November 2014 7:01PM

Neil Bell / David Hobbs: I personally, would prefer to use a powered TOS link splitter such as the type seen on the link, as non powered types, albeit it very low cost, are inclined to be somewhat erratic in operation because of their attenuation effect on the signal output level, hence why so many varied reviews are seen from the users of these devices on places like Amazon etc.

LINDY 2 Way TosLink Digital Optical Audio Splitter: Amazon.co.uk: TV

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