Television reception at the caravan in leafy North Yorkshire has become intermittent of late.
I have a small, flatscreen telly with an analogue tuner, and a Digihome Freeview pvr tuner.
Freeview was working quite well until a few weeks ago when BBC1 and BBC2 vanished.
No worries, just use analogue, but the picture is not brilliant.
Try an amplifier.
Great joy, analogue BBC is much better, and Freeview BBC has returned.
But with the amplifier, other Freeview channels - Film4, some of ITV - became intermittent to the point of being unwatchable.
Grrr...back to square one.
I suspect there is no easy solution.
Pre-switchover, I think we have the worst of both worlds - weak digital and analogue signals.
Not helped by my installation being in a field surrounded by trees - mobile signals around here are rubbish, and FM radio is patchy.
The aerial is on a pole which is a little higher than the caravan roof.
I could increase the height by a metre or so, but I wonder if that would make much difference.
Best bet might be to wait until analogue is switched off.
The Freeview website says the digital signal will be more powerful when that happens.
Roll on 2012. :)
|
...vous avez considered one of these...
One or two people on the site have them.
They are more aimed at tourers and the dishes tend to be mounted quite low, which leaves them vulnerable to being tinkered with.
Not a problem with a tourer, but could be with a static which is left unattended for days at a time.
|
|
Way back in my aerial rigging days we used to avoid amplifiers if at all possible. We always found, even with the best, that they amplified all the signal problems along with the signal. That extra metre of height, or even a bit less, will likely make all the difference.
Last edited by: Mike Hannon on Sun 10 Oct 10 at 14:08
|
...we used to avoid amplifiers if at all possible...
I've tried amplifiers in several rented flats and 'telly in the bedroom' installations over the years.
Not once did the amplifier provide a satisfactory solution.
I had the one I tried in the caravan 'in stock' from my last failed attempt at making up for an inadequate signal.
...extra metre of height, or even a bit less, will likely make all the difference...
Thanks for that, might be worth a try.
|
>> ...we used to avoid amplifiers if at all possible...
>>
As a last resort use a masthead amplifier. It amplifies the clean signal at the aerial, not all the crap picked up on the way to the TV.
|
>>They are more aimed at tourers and the dishes tend to be mounted quite low<<
Affirmative, I considered one on the Hymer years ago ...
Some folk had a hellova time in Cornwall pre analogue switch orf, even now some still have signal problems in some areas I hear,
2012 is a long way away and we might all be brown bread by then, if I was thee I'd keep me eye out for a 2nd hand portable sat system on ebay.
|
|
Iffy - have you tried retuning the pvr? Worth a go if not.
|
Iffy,
prior to analogue switch off over here in the NW (end of last year) our Freeview PVR was not at all happy. Subsequent to the switchover I kept an eye on the signal strength, as reported by the PVR as that is the only means I have of detecting the strength. A year on and it is still reporting the same signal strength. So I'm not convinced that they do turn the wick up after analogue is switched off. Go for that extra metre, or get the chainsaw out. I'll help if I can keep the wood :-)
John
|
I've not tried a retune, although I do turn the machine off at the plug each time I leave.
It has picked up the odd new station, but it can't do any harm to do a retune.
...I'm not convinced that they do turn the wick up after analogue is switched off...
Not what I wanted to hear - looks like the simplest solution might be increased aerial elevation.
|
I can't remember if the wick is being turned up on main transmitters on a region by region basis at local DSO, or whether they're waiting for all regions to switchover first. Information in the public domain is scattered and sometimes out of date, given that they've changed their minds more than once, then there's the complication of the HD mux being shoved in at the last minute.
Sounds like you're at a tricky location anyway, not sure if you're pointing at a main transmitter or a relay, the latter don't carry all the channels anyway.
It would be interesting to know your postcode / general location to see what the various reception predictors make of it, although they can only ever give a general answer.
Masthead pre-amps might make things better or worse; if the problem is purely a weak wanted signal in a area with generally low noise and interference then they can work wonders, however if there are signals from several transmitters and other localised interference, reflections etc. then they can make matters worse. As stated above mounting them as close as possible to the aerial helps.
Worst case scenario then a local aerial installer might be able to use an aerial optimised for the locale to some degree, to alleviate problems.
Either that or get a dish like other folks say.
|
Update.
Retune seems to have improved matters.
BBC1 and 2 returned on digital, and appeared reasonably steady, although I didn't have time to watch for long.
Quite a few extra channels appeared on the list, I won't be watching them, but it shows the retune has done something.
Moral of the story: regularly retune your pvr, particularly if there's a digital switch over in the offing.
|
Get sky and fit the dish on a pole or fit it pointing through the window in your caravan!
£24.00 a month don't be tight get it spent. Or better still go to pub and have some fun.......
|
>> Get sky and fit the dish on a pole or fit it pointing through the
window in your caravan!>>
Might as well get Freesat in that case - it's free...:-)
|
Might as well get Freesat in that case - it's free...:-)
Yes it is but what is there worth watching? Pay the cash get more choice or do something else like have sex.!
|
>> Might as well get Freesat in that case - it's free...:-)
>>
>> Yes it is but what is there worth watching?
My Partner, insists on paying for the Virgin service, I only ever watch the free to air channels apart from the odd Wheeler Dealers on Disco Turbo
The rest is just low quality American tat! - not worth paying a subscription for IMO!
|
|
Isn't there a telly in the pub?
|
Where are you pointing Iffy?
Belmont has had issues over the weekend. Don't know about Emley Moor. Back to normal now.
Third hand was that there were problems caused by the weather :-O
|
I dont know if this site will help you, there is a lot of info on it
tx.mb21.co.uk/
Iffy's main Transmitter in North Yorkshire should be Billsdale.
|
>> Where are you pointing Iffy?
>>
>> Belmont has had issues over the weekend. Don't know about Emley Moor. Back to normal
>> now.
>>
>> Third hand was that there were problems caused by the weather :-O
>>
Yes, there was a 'lift on' due to high pressure somewhere or something which screwed up TV reception for many people, see thread below for example:-
groups.google.com/group/uk.tech.digital-tv/browse_thread/thread/04c53d547fd64ed8#
|
As RV says, I think the transmitter is Bilsdale.
Reception improved on Sunday night after I retuned the PVR box, and maybe the atmospheric conditions had improved by then.
|
...update...
BBC 1 and 2 still freezing occasionally.
Following advice from Mike Hannon (above), I've added about a metre to the aerial pole, which makes it well over a metre above the apex of the caravan's roof.
It now looks as if I'm pretty much 100 per cent on all Freeview channels.
Job's a good 'un.
|
Signal woes - Dog
