All posts by jb38
Below are all of jb38's postings, with the most recent are at the bottom of the page.
Ian Turner: There is also another aspect that has to be taken into consideration, that being, whether your aerial installer has pointed your aerial at the local "light" (limited channels) Freeview transmitter at Congleton, or the main full Station at Winter Hill? as both these stations indicate good reception using your post code.
A way to check this being, whilst on the BBC HD channel to go into the tuning menu section / signal check indicator and observe what Mux channel number is seen, if its Congleton then it should show Ch47, but if Winter hill its Ch54.
Once this is known, then have look inside the loft hatch and check that if the Mux channel seen on the test was 47 that the aerial has been mounted vertically, (elements top to bottom) whereas with Ch54
applying it should be horizontal.
However before trying this test have a look up in the 800 ranges and check to see if any BBC HD channel shown up there is stronger, if it is then check the Mux number as it may require you to manually tune the TV to get it to the correct EPG position. (if this applies!). (Ch47 bu)
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Roy Barrett: Just purely out of curiosity, knowing the Sleaford area I was just wondering if Belmont was preferred for any particular reason over Waltham? as although what KJM has stated is certainly perfectly correct full reception of all six Mux channels will only be from the latter date mentioned, as two Mux channels (Arq A - Ch53 from 17th & Arq B - Ch60 from 17th) are in the "poor" and unreliable category until then.
This in contrast with Waltham which already shows better coverage, and even more so come the end of this month, that is apart from Mux A/ SDN (Ch29) which wont be until the 12th October, albeit it presently isn't indicated in a lesser category other than good, which of course I fully appreciate that in reality might not quite be accurate as far as the Sleaford and district areas are concerned.
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steve: Reception predictor indications suggest that you should get good reception from Chatton (13mls)or possibly from Pontop Pike(35mls) although Chatton is the one you are most likely receiving, to check this go into the TV (or boxes) tuning menu / signal check area whilst on BBC1, and if its Chatton you will see Ch40 indicated, however if its Pontop Pike it will be Ch48.
Regarding your aerial, it should be pointing roughly to the left of North for Chatton, and if at all possible would be better mounted externally, even using a gutter mount, as the Chatton transmitter is transmitting on pre switchover power and will be doing until August of next year, so nothing will improve until then.
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Sarah: There is one final test you can do to check if the infra red "sender" on the remote control is still working.
The procedure is, if you have a digital camera switch it on and hold the remote control in front of the camera lens so that you can see it clearly on the cameras LCD screen, then whilst watching press any button on the remote and hold it for a few seconds, if the remotes sender is working you will see a flickering white dot showing up on the cameras screen.
This test of course only tests the infra red sender device itself.
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Bill Wallace: Another thing you have to consider is the fact of Ch67 still being on low power and yet its operating on the 8k mode, as this can have the effect of responding as a lower signal strength than the other two low powered Mux channels, namely MuxA / Ch43 (until 31st Aug) & MuxC / Ch40 which are still on the 2K operating mode. (operating modes as per Digital UK's trade predictor)
In other words as Jim F has said, there is likely nothing wrong with your aerial or mast head amplifier.
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Steph: Although you have mentioned that you are located in Oxford its a case of where? as a post code would enable your actual reception possibilities to be checked on.
As far as a loft aerial is concerned, they just look the same as aerials seen on many roofs, albeit usually less bulky, unless that is its one of the "log periodic" variety, then its basically flat and shaped like an arrow head with a flattened point.
Loft aerials work very well in many locations provided they aren't sited next to a water tank, or even worse facing into it! as in real terms the reception strength difference between loft level and chimney stack mounting is in most cases minimal, or in some "iffy" locations loft actually being better as the aerial can be moved about to obtain the best reception position.
That said though, a problem they can have over being mounted outside is because a wet roof can slightly reduce the signal being received, something which is not exactly a good thing if in an area of poor reception, however if you provide a post code then a more positive assessment can be given.
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Elaine Fuller: To be quite frank about it, the Digital UK trade reception predictor doesn't really indicate good reception being possible from anywhere associated with your post code, with the only slight glimmer of hope being on the 23rd of November from Tacolneston, however this being short lived by going downhill again in June 2012.
In areas such as yours where aerials can be seen pointing in various directions, is always (and without exception!) an indication of an area of erratic reception where signals are capable of changing strength within a few yards of each other, needless to say nothing can be done about this, as areas like that are really what Freesat was intended for, or partially anyway.
As regards your JVC TV Vs the Humax box, Humax boxes are amongst the best for reception sensitivity and stability as far as glitches are concerned, and when you say that the Humax was poor compared to the JVC are you sure they were both receiving from the same transmitter? as judging by what you have said I feel that your reception area is possibly even worse than the trade predictor has forecast.
When you are carrying out experiments with reception, "always" check via the devices tuning menu / signal strength / quality indicator that each device is using the same Mux channel for whatever you may be looking at, this just in case they aren't! and something which is not beyond possibility at your location.
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Roy Mitchell: Thanks for the update on the situation regarding your signal source etc.
That's problem with reception in areas such as yours, insomuch that "some" people might get a reasonable signal at a particular spot whereas a very short distance away another person could be struggling for any.
The other potential problem about this type of reception is, that seasonal changes can in many cases cause quite large variations in the signal strength received, as the good reception one person might be having could well be because of a reflective signal, this being why when an aerial is being set up (or altered) that in some cases the best signal received is "not" always obtained in the exact direction of the transmitter, but can be 10/20 degrees (or more) to either side of the direct line.
Freeview can be very convenient as far as multi-room use etc is concerned, but it will never rival Freesat for sheer reliability.
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Brian: As far as its strength is concerned it isn't! as I have just checked it. However if you are referring to quality you could find that not only Ch4 HD but anything else (CBS programmes etc) at about 11Ghz (and above) vertically polarised are also low at approx 60% or so, this dependant on the LNB used on the dish, although I have a suspicion that there is more to it than this. (and NOT an alignment problem)
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Monday 8 August 2011 9:25PM
Glenn Staveley: I should really have previously asked this, but what model of Grundig are you actually referring to?