Aerial signal splitter

[T40ORA]

Will splitting the signal from one aerial cause deterioration to the picture quality, especially of HD? We only have freeview.

[gpo746]

T40ORA said:

Will splitting the signal from one aerial cause deterioration to the picture quality, especially of HD? We only have freeview.

Depends how strong your signal is.

[T40ORA]

Do I need to buy a meter to measure this? Or can I check another way?

[Dogwatch]

T40ORA said:

Do I need to buy a meter to measure this? Or can I check another way?

1. Switch on telly

2. either: picture is crap - get aerial amplifier
or: picture is fine. Everyone happy.

[Who me ?]

T40ORA said:

Will splitting the signal from one aerial cause deterioration to the picture quality, especially of HD? We only have freeview.

Signal split will ( with a decent splitter) degrade the signal by 50%. In practice it'll degrade the signal by a lot more. the best way to split is via an an amplifier, where the signal is amplified prior to split.

[markmullen]

When I needed to split a signal from one bedroom to the next I just used a cheapo aerial amp like this, http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/1...

Worked a treat, all digital channels working.

[TonyRPH]

Using a booster / amplifier is fine, depending on how good the signal is in the first place.

If your signal is marginal, then I would place the booster as close to the aerial as possible. You can get masthead amplifiers for this purpose, although these are usually only needed in cases of extremely weak signals.

Some amplifiers will also allow you to send power (usually 12v DC) up the aerial cable itself, so needing power near the amplifier is not an issue.

But the closer the amplifier is to the aerial, the better the signal will be.

This is an 8 way but you can get 2 way versions. Place something like this in the loft near the aerial and your signal losses will be minimal.

Preferably also try to get one with variable gain.

[rxtx]

I might also be tempted to fit a high pass filter before the amp too, unless it has one built in.

[T40ORA]

Thanks for moving to the right place Mods.

I've noticed some intermittent pixelation, so maybe a bad connection. When I get the guy to look at it, I will also get him to look at fitting an amplifier/filter.