All posts by Dave Lindsay
Below are all of Dave Lindsay's postings, with the most recent are at the bottom of the page.
J Dagless: As you're in the centre of Norwich, your aerial *could* be pointed at the Norwich Central transmitter. It doesn't broadcast the commercial channels such as ITV2, Pick TV and Yesterday.
If you are getting these, then you must be picking them up from Tacolneston. If your aerial does point at Norwich Central and you are getting these, then you are lucky. If this is the case, you could suffer periods of poor reception because the aerial is not pointing at the transmitter you are tuned to. The fact that Yesterday/Film4 and associated channels are poor could be as a result of the fact that your aerial is pointing at Norwich Central (as those signals come only from Tacolneston).
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J Daglass: Do you know where your aerial is pointing?
Norwich Central is to the north of you and Tacolneston is south west.
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J Dagless: Sorry, the above posting should say that Norwich Central doesn't broadcast ITV3. It DOES carry ITV2 (as do all transmitters in the country).
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J Dagless: Ah right. I guess you're in a block of flats with a communal aerial (based on photos on Google Streetview).
Have a look at this page:
Freeview signals: too much of a good thing is bad for you | ukfree.tv - independent free digital TV advice
99% strength could indicate too higher signal level.
If you're in a block served by a communal aerial, can you ask others what their Freeview reception is like now?
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Paul: I came across this comment which was posted a few weeks ago:
Movies4Men | ukfree.tv - independent free digital TV advice
This mentions a change of mode of the signal. I guess that this will probably necessitate a retune. Have you carried out a full retune on your Technika?
As the Goodmans works, you could use it to see which rooftop aerial is strongest for Ch57 (if any). You might then try using the best one with the Technika (and Samsung) to see what you get.
Not sure how relevant it is, but there is a suggestion to run the auto-tune through with the aerial unplugged:
My Freeview box has no EPG, is blank on FIVE, ITV3, ITV4, ITV2+1, has no sound or the channel line up is wrong | ukfree.tv - independent free digital TV advice
Depending on how much time you want to spend on this, it could be worth a shot.
Failing this, you could try a booster, if you have one or if you can borrow one. I urge caution with this!
The professionals on here don't usually advise using boosters. They can cause adverse effects and are not ideal because they amplify noise picked up in the cable from the aerial. But as a last ditch attempt (before considering an aerial upgrade which isn't guaranteed to suceed), it might be worth a go.
What I would say is that a booster will amplify all the other multiplexes as well. As they are higher than Ch57, it could make them very high (or perhaps too high) which could cause issues. Your receiver could tell you "no signal" or "low signal" when the opposite is true (or it could cause picture break-up):
Freeview signals: too much of a good thing is bad for you | ukfree.tv - independent free digital TV advice
It will be a fine balance (*if* it can be struck at all) between boosting Ch57 enough and not pushing the others over the top. Obviously a booster with a variable control is preferred.
I make these suggestions as a technical-bod. I'm not an aerial installer. I generally try things to see what happens and I have given you some suggestions of how I would approach this problem. There are obviously no guarantees that it will work.
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J Daglass: What I would say is that if the problem is too higher signal level and you're served by a comunal aerial system (and you haven't installed your own booster) is that it is the responsibility of the landlord to have the problem put right.
There shouldn't be any need for you to use an attentuator to reduce the level of signal coming out of the wall socket.
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J Dagless: As others are experiencing difficulties, I would get on to your landlord.
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ssscruddy: Perhaps your receiver has tuned to another transmitter. Can you confirm that your receiver is tuned to UHF channel 50 for BBC channels (and not 43 for Sutton Coldfield or 27 for Sandy Heath)? This information might be on the screen that shows signal strength/quality.
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As someone who works hard on SAYNOTO0870.COM, I would advise that Channel 4 Viewer Enquiries can be contacted on (028) 9092 1702 instead of the published 0845 076 0191 number.
This will be cheaper for many people, including those on Virgin Media, Sky Talk, mobile phones and many others. The main exception are those on BT Calling Plans who pay for their calls where the 0845 number will be cheaper.
The 028 number goes through to the same automated menu as the 0845 number.
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Friday 25 November 2011 9:55AM
Paul: You mention a reduction in power. Who told you that?
As for why the other sets are not picking the multiplex; the sensitivity varies between models. The thing with digital pictures is that you either receive them or you don't, with a tiny bit inbetween where the picture breaks up. So perhaps your Goodmans is "only just" receiving enough signal level to work and your Technika (and maybe Samsung) is "only just" receiving slightly less than they need to show a picture.
You say that your Samsung and Technika each run off their own roof aerials. What about the Goodmans; where is the aerial for that?