Freeview Reception: Can anyone in Poole get Dave?
Discussion
We've swapped from analogue to Freeview reasonably recently.
When we had the new ariel fitted, we were advised to have it pointing at Rowridge (Isle of Wight). This was because the Poole transmitter was only going to get a subset of channels.
We've waited for things to settle and have re-tuned 3 TVs several times and:
a) no Dave.
b) BBC HD drops out every 5 mins.
c) several other channels missing (compared to list on Freeview website).
Just wanted to know what any other Poole people are rxing. Anyone else had similar probs?
I think I'll be getting aerial fitters back.
Shentodj
When we had the new ariel fitted, we were advised to have it pointing at Rowridge (Isle of Wight). This was because the Poole transmitter was only going to get a subset of channels.
We've waited for things to settle and have re-tuned 3 TVs several times and:
a) no Dave.
b) BBC HD drops out every 5 mins.
c) several other channels missing (compared to list on Freeview website).
Just wanted to know what any other Poole people are rxing. Anyone else had similar probs?
I think I'll be getting aerial fitters back.
Shentodj
Hiya.
Need a few more details really like - where are you topogriphacally - i.e. in a dip, on a hill, in a detached house with space around it, or on a crowded housing estate with other houses in front of your aerial?
And then - what aerial, how big, how high, and what cabling down to the TV from it?
I've done a few installations over the last few years in my own houses, and good digital is dependent upon your location, and equipment.
I'm near the South coast like you - but around Winchester, we're split roughly equidistant to Rowridge on the IOW and the Hannington transmitter, which is a similar distance away in almost exactly the opposite direction. Last time I checked, Rowridge transmits most of the multiplexes at a slightly lower power than Hannington, but due to the topography of the land in-between, I get a better result from Rowridge.
Digital is a lot more dependent on a decent signal reception than analogue was. So you sometimes need to work a bit harder to get a good reception of all 6 multiplexes - compounded by the fact that not all multiplexes are transmitted at the same power. Meaning you might get some channels, but be missing others, as you've found out. (FYI 'multiplexes' are 'groups' of channels transmitted together on the same frequency BTW..)
So to begin with - you need dedicated '75 ohm' coaxial cable from the aerial down to your receiver as a minimum for good digital. If you have an older house and are relying on the original analogue cable - forget it, this should ideally be replaced first.
Next - height and orientation of the aerial. If you're in any kind of dip or valley, or have hills or other houses obstructing your line to Rowridge - you need to get some poles fitted to the house to get the aerial as high as possible.
The azimuth of the aerial - i.e. the correct lining-up of it to point exactly towards the transmitter is important. Also, rather than having it at a 90 degree angle to the ground, you find that angling it slightly 'upwards' from 90 degrees can help.
Aerials themselves - I've found that 'Televes' high-gain multi section units work the best. And in addition to that, in extreme fringe areas, Televes also sell a device that plugs into the receiver head, powered from a transformer in the lost, to increase the gain.
Hope all this might help a bit!
Need a few more details really like - where are you topogriphacally - i.e. in a dip, on a hill, in a detached house with space around it, or on a crowded housing estate with other houses in front of your aerial?
And then - what aerial, how big, how high, and what cabling down to the TV from it?
I've done a few installations over the last few years in my own houses, and good digital is dependent upon your location, and equipment.
I'm near the South coast like you - but around Winchester, we're split roughly equidistant to Rowridge on the IOW and the Hannington transmitter, which is a similar distance away in almost exactly the opposite direction. Last time I checked, Rowridge transmits most of the multiplexes at a slightly lower power than Hannington, but due to the topography of the land in-between, I get a better result from Rowridge.
Digital is a lot more dependent on a decent signal reception than analogue was. So you sometimes need to work a bit harder to get a good reception of all 6 multiplexes - compounded by the fact that not all multiplexes are transmitted at the same power. Meaning you might get some channels, but be missing others, as you've found out. (FYI 'multiplexes' are 'groups' of channels transmitted together on the same frequency BTW..)
So to begin with - you need dedicated '75 ohm' coaxial cable from the aerial down to your receiver as a minimum for good digital. If you have an older house and are relying on the original analogue cable - forget it, this should ideally be replaced first.
Next - height and orientation of the aerial. If you're in any kind of dip or valley, or have hills or other houses obstructing your line to Rowridge - you need to get some poles fitted to the house to get the aerial as high as possible.
The azimuth of the aerial - i.e. the correct lining-up of it to point exactly towards the transmitter is important. Also, rather than having it at a 90 degree angle to the ground, you find that angling it slightly 'upwards' from 90 degrees can help.
Aerials themselves - I've found that 'Televes' high-gain multi section units work the best. And in addition to that, in extreme fringe areas, Televes also sell a device that plugs into the receiver head, powered from a transformer in the lost, to increase the gain.
Hope all this might help a bit!
Gassing Station | South Coast | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff