Full Freeview on the Winter Hill (Bolton, England) transmitter
 | Google Streetview |  | Google map |  | Bing map |  | Google Earth |  | 53.625,-2.516 or 53°37'30"N 2°30'56"W |  | BL6 6SL |
The symbol shows the location of the Winter Hill (Bolton, England) transmitter which serves 2,690,000 homes. The bright green areas shown where the signal from this transmitter is strong, dark green areas are poorer signals. Those parts shown in yellow may have interference on the same frequency from other masts.
Are there any planned engineering works or unexpected transmitter faults on the Winter Hill (Bolton, England) mast?
Winter Hill transmitter - Winter Hill transmitter: Possible effect on TV reception week commencing 04/11/2024 Pixelation or flickering on some or all channels 
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Digital television services are broadcast on a multiplexes (or Mux) where many stations occupy a single broadcast frequency, as shown below.
DTG-8 64QAM 8K 3/4 27.1Mb/s DVB-T MPEG2
DTG-12 QSPK 8K 3/4 8.0Mb/s DVB-T MPEG2
DTG-2 16QAM 2K 3/4 18.1Mb/s DVB-T MPEG2
H/V: aerial position (horizontal or vertical)
Which Freeview channels does the Winter Hill transmitter broadcast?
If you have any kind of Freeview fault, follow this Freeview reset procedure first.Digital television services are broadcast on a multiplexes (or Mux) where many stations occupy a single broadcast frequency, as shown below.
| Mux | H/V | Frequency | Height | Mode | Watts |
| PSB1 BBCA | H max | C32 (562.0MHz) | 726m | DTG- | 100,000W |
 1 BBC One (SD) North West, 2 BBC Two England, 9 BBC Four, 23 BBC Three, 201 CBBC, 202 CBeebies, 231 BBC News, 232 BBC Parliament, plus 17 others | |||||
| PSB2 D3+4 | H max | C34 (578.0MHz) | 726m | DTG- | 100,000W |
 3 ITV 1 (SD) (Granada), 4 Channel 4 (SD) North ads, 5 Channel 5, 6 ITV 2, 10 ITV3, 13 E4, 14 Film4, 15 Channel 4 +1 North ads, 18 More4, 26 ITV4, 28 ITVBe, 30 E4 +1, 35 ITV1 +1 (Granada), 71 That’s 60s, | |||||
| PSB3 BBCB | H max | C35- (585.8MHz) | 726m | DTG- | 100,000W |
 46 5SELECT, 101 BBC One HD North West, 102 BBC Two HD England, 103 ITV 1 HD (ITV Granada), 104 Channel 4 HD North ads, 105 Channel 5 HD, 106 BBC Four HD, 107 BBC Three HD, 204 CBBC HD, 205 CBeebies HD, plus 1 others | |||||
| COM4 SDN | H max | C29 (538.0MHz) | 726m | DTG-8 | 100,000W |
 20 U&Drama, 21 5USA, 29 ITV2 +1, 32 5STAR, 33 5Action, 38 Channel 5 +1, 41 Legend, 42 GREAT! action, 57 U&Dave ja vu, 58 ITV3 +1, 59 ITV4 +1, 64 Blaze, 67 TRUE CRIME, 68 TRUE CRIME XTRA, 81 Blaze +1, 83 Together TV, 91 WildEarth, 93 ITVBe +1, 209 Ketchup TV, 210 Ketchup Too, 211 YAAAS!, 251 Al Jazeera English, 255 FRANCE 24 (in English), 265 Rok Sky +1, plus 29 others | |||||
| COM5 ArqA | H max | C31 (554.0MHz) | 726m | DTG-8 | 100,000W |
 11 Sky Mix, 17 Really, 19 U&Dave, 31 E4 Extra, 36 Sky Arts, 40 Quest Red, 43 Food Network, 47 Film4 +1, 48 Challenge, 49 4seven, 60 U&Drama +1, 65 That's TV 2, 70 Quest +1, 74 &UYesterday +1, 76 That's TV 2 MCR, 233 Sky News, plus 13 others | |||||
| COM6 ArqB | H max | C37 (602.0MHz) | 726m | DTG-8 | 100,000W |
 12 Quest, 25 U&W, 27 U&Yesterday, 34 GREAT! movies, 39 DMAX, 44 HGTV, 52 GREAT! christmas, 56 That's TV (UK), 63 GREAT! romance mix, 73 HobbyMaker, 75 That's 90s, 82 Talking Pictures TV, 84 PBS America, 235 Al Jazeera Eng, plus 18 others | |||||
| LM | H -20dB | C40 (626.0MHz) | 572m | DTG-12 | 1,000W |
 from 1st October 2014: 7 That's Manchester, | |||||
| LL | H -17dB | C24 (498.0MHz) | 572m | DTG-12 | 2,000W |
 from 30th June 2014: 7 Bay TV Liverpool, | |||||
| LPR | H -20dB | C56 (754.0MHz) | 572m | DTG-12 | 1,000W |
 from 1st October 2014: 7 That's Lancashire, | |||||
| GIM | H -20dB | C57 (762.0MHz) | 572m | DTG-2 | 1,000W |
 Now 90s, Spotlight TV, Clubland TV, Country Music Entertainment , Classic Hits MCR, 77 That's 60s MCR, 78 TCC, 80 That's 80s, 86 That's 90s MCR, 88 TV Warehouse+1, | |||||
DTG-12 QSPK 8K 3/4 8.0Mb/s DVB-T MPEG2
DTG-2 16QAM 2K 3/4 18.1Mb/s DVB-T MPEG2
H/V: aerial position (horizontal or vertical)
Which BBC and ITV regional news can I watch from the Winter Hill transmitter?
BBC North West Tonight 3.1m homes 11.8%
from Salford M50 2QH, 22km southeast (140°)
to BBC North West region - 92 masts.
ITV Granada Reports 3.1m homes 11.6%
from Salford M50 2EQ, 22km southeast (139°)
to ITV Granada region - 80 masts.
How will the Winter Hill (Bolton, England) transmission frequencies change over time?
| 1956-80s | 1984-97 | 1997-98 | 1998-2009 | 2009-13 | 2013-18 | 2013-17 | 20 Feb 2020 | ||
| VHF | C/D E | C/D E | C/D E | C/D E | C/D E T | W T | W T | ||
| C9 | ITVwaves | ||||||||
| C12 | BBCtvwaves | ||||||||
| C24 | _local | ||||||||
| C29 | SDN | ||||||||
| C31 | com7 | com7 | |||||||
| C32 | BBCA | ||||||||
| C34 | D3+4 | ||||||||
| C35 | BBCB | ||||||||
| C37 | com8 | com8 | |||||||
| C40 | LOCAL2 | ||||||||
| C48 | C5waves | C5waves | |||||||
| C49tv_off | ArqA | ArqA | |||||||
| C50tv_off | BBCA | BBCA | |||||||
| C54tv_off | -BBCB | -BBCB | -BBCB | ||||||
| C55tv_off | BBC1waves | BBC1waves | BBC1waves | ArqB | ArqB | ArqB | com7tv_off | ||
| C56tv_off | _local | _local | _local | LPR | |||||
| C57tv_off | GIM | GIM | GIM | GIM | |||||
| C58tv_off | SDN | SDN | SDN | ||||||
| C59tv_off | ITVwaves | ITVwaves | ITVwaves | D3+4 | D3+4 | D3+4 | |||
| C61 | ArqA | ||||||||
| C62 | BBC2waves | BBC2waves | BBC2waves | BBCA | |||||
| C65 | C4waves | C4waves | C4waves |
tv_off Being removed from Freeview (for 5G use) after November 2020 / June 2022 - more
Table shows multiplexes names see this article;
green background for transmission frequencies
Notes: + and - denote 166kHz offset; aerial group are shown as A B C/D E K W T
waves denotes analogue; digital switchover was 4 Nov 09 and 2 Dec 09.
How do the old analogue and currrent digital signal levels compare?
| Analogue 1-4 | 500kW | |
| SDN, ARQA, ARQB, BBCA, D3+4, BBCB | (-7dB) 100kW | |
| com7 | (-12.9dB) 25.7kW | |
| com8 | (-13.4dB) 22.6kW | |
| Analogue 5 | (-16dB) 12.5kW | |
| Mux 1*, Mux 2*, Mux A*, Mux B*, Mux C*, Mux D* | (-17dB) 10kW | |
| LL | (-24dB) 2kW | |
| GIM, LM, LPR | (-27dB) 1000W |
Local transmitter maps
Winter Hill Freeview Winter Hill DAB Winter Hill AM/FM Winter Hill TV region BBC North West GranadaWhich companies have run the Channel 3 services in the Winter Hill transmitter area
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Friday, 25 November 2011
P
Paul9:04 AM
Manchester
Hello Dave,
Only had the Samsung for two weeks, but as regard the Technika, yes last month prior to the reduction in pwr for the ch 57 multiplex.
I'm wondering if there is a deficiency within the tuners on both the Samsung and Technika ?
Because I still can't understand why I am able to pick it up on the Grundig digi box using an external aerial.
Regards
Paul
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Paul's: mapP's Freeview map terrainP's terrain plot wavesP's frequency data P's Freeview Detailed Coverage
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?
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P
Paul10:20 AM
Manchester
Dave,
thanks for the reply,
There was some mention earlier this month on this forum that the power had either been reduced or there had been a change in the multiplex?
I connected the Grundig freeview box to one of the existing external aerials,as an experiment to see if I could pull in CH57.
I normally have it upstairs connected to an indoor aerial, where reception of CH57 is not possible.
Paul
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Paul's: mapP's Freeview map terrainP's terrain plot wavesP's frequency data P's Freeview Detailed Coverage
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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Sunday, 27 November 2011
C
Chris12:04 PM
Hi
I can receive all channels apart from HD ones. I have a Panasonic TV (TX32LXD70) and a Philips Freeview receiver and recorder (HDT8520). My postcode is SK7 and I'm receiving from Winter Hill. On checking the UHF strength through the Philips box all show good strength and good to excellent quality apart from UHF 54 which I gather is the one the HD is broadcast from. Can anyone help please! Is it likely my aerial setup is the culprit?
Thanks
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C
Chris6:12 PM
ignore last post - sorted. Found that part of the cable outside was taped together. took it apart (was water sodden), trimmed it and put F connectors on each end then joined them with a back to back connector. hey presto - HD!
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Monday, 28 November 2011
M
MR C BOX2:29 PM
Bristol
i have a recently installed loft aereal & for some reason in the last few days i have been unable to get any BBC freeview channels on one of my TV's at night after about 8pm.
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MR's: mapM's Freeview map terrainM's terrain plot wavesM's frequency data M's Freeview Detailed Coverage
J
jb389:17 PM
MR C BOX: Reception strengths can vary in the evenings, and the TV that loses its picture could simply be because the level of signal it receives during daytime is just high enough and no more to resolve a picture in the first place, but at night time its dropping under the level.
You should carry out a signal strength check on it during daytime and compare this with what's happening in the evening, but it should also be appreciated that no two devices have the same sensitivity, this showing up by one device working where another wont even although they have the same signal, so this fact has to be kept in mind.
The other thing to check is that the offending set is actually receiving from the same transmitter as the other sets, i.e: Mendip BBC-Mux Ch61, as indications are that you can also receive Wenvoe (BBC-Mux Ch41) or even Bristol Kings Weston (BBC-Mux Ch43) albeit the latter being on a semi-variable status.
Its also assumed that the sets are being fed from a distribution amplifier / splitter so that they all receive the same level of signal.
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Wednesday, 30 November 2011
C
Charlie10:47 PM
Dear Briantist: I'm not sure whether this query really belongs to this forum - but now that digital TV reception has become the norm I am beginning to notice something peculiar - once upon a time anything recorded would naturally be expected to be visually inferior to live TV but I now find the opposite to be the case. I have noticed that the news from ITN - and to a slightly lesser extent the BBC news gives a poor picture with poor definition and an old-fashioned black cameo effect on outlines, whilst those programmes which are obviously recorded have a first class resolution. A further example was this morning's "The Wright Stuff" which I believe is live and has a very pretty 'receptionist' with lovely teeth and lovely smile who looked (at least, on my TV, as though she had just devoured a plate of spinach. Not pretty! Beginning to wonder whether my TV was going on the blink, this very programme's commercial immediately followed and the picture quality was (for as long the commercials were showing) absolutely perfect. I would appreciate your comments on this phenomenon to decide whether it is I who is at fault or whether something has 'crept in' here. Sorry for this long-winded epistle. Kind regards
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Saturday, 3 December 2011
D
David9:21 AM
High guys. For 3-4 years I have watched BBC1 and 2 etc from Granada (Winter HIll). All Ok, but retuned 3 day ago and channels 1 and 2 now BBC Wales, with the others moved to Channel 812 and 821. Aerial does not appear to have moved.
Ideas? I have retuned several times
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