All posts by Dave Lindsay
Below are all of Dave Lindsay's postings, with the most recent are at the bottom of the page.
Paul ware: Try manual tuning if available. For PSB1 (BBC One, BBC Two etc) tune to UHF channel 60 and for PSB2 (ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5 etc) tune to UHF channel 57.
What you should do is, on the manual tune screen, enter/select the UHF channel number but hold off pressing the button to scan/add services immediately as in this situation a receiver usually acts like a signal meter, often giving strength and quality readings.
In answer to your question, to feed the main television and bedroom TV from the rooftop aerial then you may well need a powered amplifier (booster) with two outputs at your location because the ground rises up in the direction of the transmitter and therefore you can't see it:
Terrain between ( m a.g.l.) and (antenna m a.g.l.) - Optimising UK DTT Freeview and Radio aerial location
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mrs rulings: I think Dallington Park is likely to serve you in Brixworth. I suggest that you were tuned to Sandy Heath.
If you have an aerial with an in-built signal amplifier (booster) then ensure it has power as loss of power will result in the signal level dropping dramatically.
Bring up the signal strength screen on BBC One. It should be tuned to UHF channel 27 (522MHz), which is Sandy Heath. Dallington Park is on channel 50 (706MHz). What is it tuned to?
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mrs rulings: What I meant to say in the first sentence was that I think Dallington Park is not likely to serve you.
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jb38: I thought 4G services were allocated C61 up to C69 so might this not cause patterning on an analogue picture, if the signal is strong enough?
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Kirsty fedorenko: If there's a setting for region or network preference then using it should tune it correctly.
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Linda pick: at800, the organisation set-up by the mobile networks:
Contact us | Advice or general enquiries | at800
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Rob: Of course it will cancel out interference from the aerial.
But if it's picked up in the cables then it may reach your TV. However, the objective of double-screened cable is to keep the signal in the cable and stop interference from outside.
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D,Sopher: The short answer is yes, a roof-top aerial will likely improve reception quality, although it's possible that you may never achieve stable reception all the time, particularly of the Commercial (COM) channels.
There are some points you should be aware of - the long answer, if you will:
The terrestrial transmitter network post-switchover is a two-tier one with low power "filler in" transmitters only carrying Public Service (PSB) channels. An explanation of the reasons for this is here:
Londonderry (Northern Ireland) Freeview Light transmitter
In a situation such as yours where the inferior-coverage COM4-6 channels are inferior in terms of availability/reception (as against the PSBs) you may need to go further, such as use a roof-top aerial, or you may never achieve stable reception at all times on those channels.
Digital UK has published a list of all Freeview services here:
Digital UK Industry - Channel listings
COM7 and COM8 are the new quasi-national multiplexes carrying extra HD services, but these will not be available to you, even if you had a HD receiver.
Each multiplex or "mux" is a single signal. Thus, focus on one service from each multiplex.
UHF channel numbers (broadcast channels) are as follows for each transmitter:
PSB1 - BBC One | MP=C49 | P=C43
PSB2 - ITV | MP=C58 | P=C46
PSB3 - BBC One HD | MP=C54 | P=C40
COM4 - ITV3 | P=C42
COM5 - Pick | P=C45
COM6 - 4Music | P=C39
Transmitter abbreviations: MP=Mynydd Pencarreg; P=Preseli
The signal strength screen should tell you which UHF channel ("C") you are tuned to. As I say, look at one service per mux, the first of each being given above.
If you have poor reception of PSB2 (ITV, Channel 4, Channel 5 etc) then maybe it's tuned to Preseli and the good reception of PSB1 is because it's on Mynydd Pencarreg. Using the latter for PSB2 may achieve better reception and you may achieve this by either manual tuning or unplugging the aerial for the earlier part of the scan. If the automatic tuning scan only gives percentage then have it unplugged until, say 55%.
The following are terrain plots for each transmitter to your location:
Preseli:
Terrain between ( m a.g.l.) and (antenna m a.g.l.) - Optimising UK DTT Freeview and Radio aerial location
Mynydd Pencarreg:
Terrain between ( m a.g.l.) and (antenna m a.g.l.) - Optimising UK DTT Freeview and Radio aerial location
As you can see, you don't have line-of-sight with either, and so are having to rely on the effect of signal the bending around obstructions (signals travel in straight lines). So you may be lucky to get anything approaching a stable signal from an indoor aerial!
If you have some channels tuned to one transmitter and some to the other then they are each in almost opposite directions, so depending on the way your window faces you might be facing away from at least one of the transmitters! And for Preseli your aerial should be set horizontally and for Mynydd Pencarreg it should be vertical, for best possible reception.
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Wednesday 6 May 2015 11:50AM
robbie mullaney: ITV, ITV2, E4 and others are carried on PSB2 multiplex. Oxford broadcasts this on UHF channel 60, which is the highest and the closest to 4G services in the 800MHz band which may be operating in your area, these occupying channel 61 upwards. The mobile base stations which are a short distance from you are also in line with your aerial too.
Therefore, it's worth seeing if 800MHz 4G has started by ringing at800. at800 is the company set-up by the mobile operators and tasked with alleviation of reception issues:
Contact us | Advice or general enquiries | at800
There are mobile base stations a short distance away.