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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.

J
Full technical details of Freeview
Sunday 16 June 2013 8:02PM

Mrs h: I am a bit surprised that your inlaws could have been receiving ITV3 in the first place as viewers in that area are only predicted as being able to receive PSB services, however as far as ITV3 etc having vanished is concerned I would say that this is most likely being caused by the aerial facing directly into rather dense trees at the bottom of their garden, which by now the growth will have increased on whereby reducing the signal level of these channels to below that required to resolve a picture.

If their TV or box has a "manual tuning" menu go into this and enter Ch23 but do NOT press search or scan, because the signal level that Ch23 is being received at should then be indicated, make a note of its strength / quality giving an update on results, also mention the model number of the set should any problems be experienced.

Is a booster being used on their aerial system?

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Jason Wright: I will say that on most boosters the LED works off the same supply as the amplifier, but though on others it doesnt and can still be illuminated even although the amps not receiving any power, this being why its always a safer bet to try bypassing it first before calling anyone in.

Needless to say that if nothing is received after having carried out a retune with the aerial going directly to one of the TV feeds then this unfortunately points to a possible problem on the aerials termination box, and although a long shot, but if you had an old set top aerial around you could temporarily connect that into the boosters input socket rather than the main aerial and see if that resulted in anything been seen, this can sometimes even work (dependant on signal strength) using a short length of wire (5 feet or so) pushed into the middle of the "F" connectors socket.

Maybe you could also make a note of the model number printed on the splitter / booster and include that along with the result of your test.

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Jason Wright: Unfortunately I was unable to check the specifications of that device as the number given is not recognised by Labgear, but though judging by what you have said if its a distribution box come power supply for a mast head amplifier then the test requested would not be valid as it requires to be made externally.

Needless to say that in this instance its best to have someone check the aerial out.

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Rich: Only if it was a slip of the tongue, and what he really meant to say was either Freesat" or "free to view", the latter being a term generally used to describe the viewing of subscription free programmes from Sky, as "Freeview" is a terrestrial based system received via a normal aerial.

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J
Full technical details of Freeview
Friday 21 June 2013 12:55PM

Thomas Hartley: If you are receiving from the Emley Moor transmitter then the SLX brand filter shown on the link is one source, although 4G filters can be sourced from numerous outlets on e-bay.

That said, the next time you experience the problem it would be prudent to check with a neighbour to determine if they are also experiencing similar to yourself, as it can never be taken as a foregone conclusion that 4G is being tested out in the area and that this must be the cause of your problem as it could also be caused by numerous other reasons, however if indeed a 4G transmitter is being tested then its likely to be from the mast situated at the rear of the RPC yard in Raymond Street as this is close to Emley Moor's signal path.



4G TV Filter : Aerial Amplifiers & Distribution : Maplin Electronics


Maplin item number N26NY @ £7.99.

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John V Osborne: Just in addition to that said by Dave Lindsay, insomuch that as you are located in an almost perfect position for reception of these two stations via both ends of the aerial (only 2 degrees out), then provided that Crystal Palace is "not" being received via its signal being bounced back onto the front of the Sandy facing aerial from some distant object between Sandy and you I would say that its probably worth while swinging your aerial around 180 degrees.

My reason for saying this being, that when a signal is being received on the rear of an aerial the reflector is partially blocking the signal from reaching the active element, and of course with this being coupled to the fact that the aerial is performing almost exactly as would a rabbit ears set top aerial if positioned in the same spot by the fact that there aren't any directors to focus the signal onto the active element.

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Romana: A contract with Sky is only required for viewing programmes that are dedicated to a Sky package, if though they are not then its not necessary for Sky to be involved unless a person wishes to be able to view the correct regional news for their area, something which can only be achieved by purchasing a "free to view" card from Sky as otherwise the news by default reverts to London.

The card issued by Sky for this purpose was as far as I can remember around £25.00 but was not time stamped therefore could last a number of years.

By the way, are there any reasons for thinking along the lines of using a dish for satellite reception rather than "Freeview" via a normal aerial? this being far simpler if you are located in a reasonably good area for reception.

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michael: If you click on the Digital UK tradeview at the right hand side of your posting you will no doubt notice that Emley Moor is not even mentioned as being as possibility for reception, this being simply because that its "not" considered as being a viable proposition because of the signal blocking problem referred to by Dave Lindsay.

The fact that you have been receiving it in a fashion is "only" (apart from luck) through a combination of signal bending (diffraction) and reflection, both of these being most vulnerable to seasonal changes in atmospheric conditions as well as the state of the terrain, e.g: wet or dry which alters the reflective component.

The other point being, that the changes referred to are not by any means constant and can (and do) change from year to year, and so this fact must "always" be taken into consideration.

Needless to say I do not find anything unusual by what you have reported, as its something which would be expected in situations such as yours.

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Romana: I had an idea that there had to be something else involved, and of course Freeview is not really suitable for what you require and so a second hand Sky box and dish are whats required although I would avoid a Sky+ box, as although this is capable of recording its only able to do so if a contract is taken out, and when thats not your intention it would be slightly more expensive to run this type of box 24/7 because of the hard drive needlessly running at times for no reason.

By the way, the contract for the Sky+ box is NOT the same type of situation as the free to view card referred to, as the latter is not really a contract as such but a once of payment.

If though you are not bothered about regional news then there is no need to purchase a card as the box works without it.

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Marlene : If you are referring to a standard video sender then the senders "receiver" is coupled into the bedroom TV's scart socket and the sender (transmitter) into the Sky boxes AV2 socket, the point to remember being that your bedrooom TV's AV button (or input select) has to be set on the AV1 input and NOT DVB so that the TV is connected to the senders receiver.

The TV's tuner does not come into the equation.

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