All posts by jb38
Below are all of jb38's postings, with the most recent are at the bottom of the page.
Geraldine: I would carry out a factory re-set on your Panasonic then let it auto-tune, as you are indicated are being able to have good reception across the board from Oxford, although I do have certain reservations about reception of anything other than from the main BBC / ITV transmitters is concerned as many have problems with these, but one never knows!
| link to this comment |
Gary: I would check that the "F" plug connector on the box and also the LNB / dish is sound, as that symptom / temporary cure found could be caused by a faulty connection being jogged into life by having the power switched off then on again, this being one of the easier to cure faults!
| link to this comment |
revs: If you are receiving from Sutton Coldfield then the DRG site (trade view) power indicator shows Ch42 (SDN) as being on 141.6Kw / Ch45 (ArqA) at 100Kw / Ch39 (ArqB) at full 200Kw, the two lower powered muxes operating that way until April 24th 2012.
| link to this comment |
Mike: If reception is affected in any other room then its either caused by the box itself having developed a fault, or its connected to a problem with the multi- outlet LNB or dish alignment.
To check the latter, press "services" then 4 -6 and observe the signal strength / quality, which should be roughly the same at about 75% level, if not, or one is radically different from the other, then the dish requires slight re-alignment.
If though the signal readings are OK, then disconnect the box from the mains for a few minutes before powering it up again and letting it go through the usual "searching for listings" procedure.
| link to this comment |
Bob: Well as you will probably realise these predictor sites have elements of "hit and miss" built into them, as forecasting the path of any radio frequency signal that's not of a frequency that's received via a dish is notoriously difficult to do with accuracy, that is unless in an area known to be reasonably flat (Fenlands etc) enabling partial line of sight operation, and so educated guesswork based on the results of a few tests seems to be the order of the day, at least nowadays!
I tried an IP27 test code ending in 0QN and observed that Tacolneston indicated good reception right across the board, albeit with its SDN mux on Ch42 running at just under 75% power, Sandy also being similar on all muxes with the exception of its low powered (20Kw) SDN mux on Ch31, Sudbury though only being OK on its PSB muxes until June 2012 when the commercial muxes come onboard.
As you have mentioned, trees and all sorts of other things can upset prediction forecasts, and so I really use them for reference purposes as there isn't really any alternative, this being why I was interested in what you reported as I regard it as a form of field test for the area, as most queries / comments are based on a complaint of something not working.
| link to this comment |
Allie: In addition to the info Briantist has given the link for, when you say that you found BBC & ITV on your portable are you referring to analogue reception?
If on your main device (TV or box) you found the BBC up in the 800 ranges albeit that they disappeared, but should you find anything else up there with a reasonable quality signal go into the TV's tuning menu / signal check area (whilst on the channel) and note the channel number being shown associated with the indication, as this could be used for manually tuning the channel in after having first of all having carried out a factory re-set.
| link to this comment |
John C: Well, pleased to hear your good news that the re-set come download helped the situation, as Humax boxes (which I have two of) might not be the most user friendly compared to for example Vestel chassis devices, these coming under a multitude of various brand names, but at least unlike some of these brands Humax boxes have really good tuners and with most Humax problems being rectifiable one way or another, so hopefully yours should be sorted out now ready for the festive season, as they say!
"Merry Christmas" to you also.
| link to this comment |
Hayden: And a final point with regards to your aerial, because Waltham is located at 95 degrees to the left of your aerials present direction of facing Sutton Coldfield that places it just about on one of an aerials two dead spots for reception, i.e: right angles to where it faces, so any signals picked up will be severely reduced unless the aerial is turned around to suit.(100 degrees)
| link to this comment |
colin speight: Which model of Alba box are you referring to? but regarding the OTA message you were (are) getting, that indicates that the box is, or attempting to, update its software via any over air downloads that might have been available so its not really advisable to switch it off whilst its doing this, that said though, if its been running for more than about 15 minutes or so like this then it may have locked up, switching off being then the only answer.
However although being unaware of the model or age of, I have to be perfectly honest and say that in general many Alba boxes have a reputation for being unreliable, with them suffering from a range of problems like freezing / crashing etc, and what you have reported is just another in the chain, and with as you have already found out, any actions taken that appears to rectify the situation being in reality nothing other than something that can be considered as a temporary measure.
| link to this comment |
Thursday 22 December 2011 12:30PM
Hayden: Ignore comment about aerial polarization used for Derby, as I forgot that its the exception to the rule and uses horizontal the same as main stations.