All posts by Dave Lindsay
Below are all of Dave Lindsay's postings, with the most recent are at the bottom of the page.
ROGER HARRIS: If the TV has been tuned to the correct frequencies (and thereby correct transmitter) then retuning is a fruitless effort. The best thing to do would be to tune the bedroom TV in with it in the lounge, connected to the lounge's incoming aerial socket.
In some places the lounge will have an incoming aerial socket and an outgoing on -- outgoing to the other room(s) such as the bedroom. This is so that a satellite receiver box can add its own analogue picture and thereby be viewed in the other rooms.
Therefore, is there such a socket in your lounge? If so, try linking the incoming socket to the outgoing one and see if the picture in the bedroom improves.
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Hilly: It is probably doubtful you will. Refer to the link I provided the only multiplex in the West Midlands area to carry it is the "Birmingham" one, which is on channel 11C.
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Paul Fisher: Is the set a Freeview HD one, which means it contains a DVB-T2 tuner? If not then you will not receive Freeview HD services. Saorview uses DVB-T only therefore a non-Freeview HD receiver capable of showing HD pictures will receive RT One HD and RT 2 HD.
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Gordon Insley: Prior to switchover digital signals were limited in their coverage. This was due to lack of frequencies available. The pre-switchover signals essentially served as many as possible, but in no way matched the reach, even from the 80 transmitters which carried them.
The new HD channels (COM7 and COM8) are essentially in a "pre-switchover" state. They were introduced so as to encourage take-up of Freeview HD (DVB-T2) receivers. Channels 31 to 37, excluding 36, were left silent at switchover with the intention of them being given over to new multiplexes.
The objective of, what are now known as, COM7 and COM8 was to cover as much of the population as possible, and so at least possible cost. This, by definition, is likely to mean that not every viewer of transmitters which carry the channels can pick them up reliably, this being because some require the higher power in order to receive (for example, where there is an obstruction in the way). The higher the power the more likely it is to interfere with other transmitters which are co-channel. Therefore the effect is to render unusable signals from either transmitter.
The objective of the plan was to maximise the number of viewers. So reducing the power, so to speak, may increase the number of people who can successfully receive elsewhere. It stands to reason, therefore, that there must have been an analysis of population by area and that there was a trade-off made.
To keep costs down the multiplexes have a fairly short life-span of five years equipment (antennas) that was already in existence was used.
So, to recap, the objective is to encourage take-up of Freeview HD receivers and cost has been kept to a minimum.
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shirley cooper: This is, as you say, a reception issue and as such the BBC is not responsible for your own system (aerial, TV, cable etc).
The most common reason for poor reception, and indeed the first thing to check is that you are tuned to the correct transmitter the one to which the aerial faces.
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TREVOR: What UHF channel is it on? This information is usually given on the signal strength screen and might give us some idea where it is coming from.
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Ivor Manzalaoui: I would suggest that the most likely might be Rowridge at 248 degrees.
With all transmitters you are hampered by not having line-of-sight. Whilst Rowridge is only 10 miles away, the ground rises up to your west and there is a lot of clutter on the ground which could cause you difficulty.
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TREVOR: Refer to the list of services published by Digital UK:
Digital UK Industry - Channel listings
DAYSTAR is on COM7 which was introduced last year. It carries new HD services of BBC Four, BBC News and others. Its coverage is not as good as the other channels.
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Andy: It's probably got more to do with the different ways in which the devices "decide" which signals to go with. Some go with the first they find, others work out which is the strongest and others ask you which network/region you want (this actually being a question as to which transmitter where they are from differing regions).
We don't know your exact location but Portishead slopes downwards, towards the water, meaning that Mendip is likely to be out of line-of-sight, but Wenvoe, across the Severn, may be stronger.
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Wednesday 7 January 2015 2:10PM
ROGER HARRIS: Please can you clarify your point about the bedroom TV which "originally came" with "limited" Freeview channels. The TV doesn't "come" with any channels, it is down to what is supplied via the aerial. What is the thinking behind using a box to increase the number of channels? Without knowledge of your location, preferably in the form of postcode it is not possible to have any idea as to whether you may be stuck with what is unofficially termed "Freeview Lite". It would also be useful to know whether the limited channels are BBC One and ITV/STV/UTV, with no Commercial (COM) channels ITV3, Pick and 4Music -- focus in on these five as this is one from each multiplex (which is a single signal).