Freevieew box not picking up all channels

rosy

I have a ( couple of years old) Pace freeview box for my kitchen TV which was working fine till a few weeks ago, when it started taking ages for certain channels ( non-BBC ones mainly ) to load when switched on. We ended up keeping it on standby all the time. Now even with that some channels don't come on properly at all ( mass of coloured pixels and no sound). I just retuned it and it now only has 25 channels on the menu instead of the 80-odd that we had before. All the channels we had trouble with before ( ITV, Ch 4 and 5, all the radio ones etc ) are no longer there. Before I go and buy a new box ( we have an integrated digital TV in another room , no probs there) is there something I should check/do? Thanks.

Wombat

Have you tried reloading all the channels?

Try automatic searching for the channels again. If that doesn't work then it's either a fault in the machine or a poor signal.

slowen

My parents purchaseda freeview box and could not get some channels onto it as I dont think the signal downstairs was strong enough so I had to take the box upstairs as I have a new arial and scanned for channels and it picked them all up. The freeview box is now back downstairs and all the channels now work, maybe worth a try on another arial to see if it makes any difference

EDIT: Forgot to mention that the box was tried on two seperate arials in the house

caveat_emptor

You don't say whether your two TVs share an aerial. If your kitchen TV has a separate aerial try moving the aerial to improve the reception.
I have a loft aerial that moves from time to time....scary.

rosy

Thanks to all for replying so promptly. The aerial is in the loft, both TVs are downstairs. The aerial is the same one for both TVs, it has a booster on it and the signal is then split to the two TVs. Have tried rescanning a few times. First time it got 25 channels again, then 34, but the extra ones again were breaking up a lot. The ones that are working are working perfectly. Also, the TV in the living room is completely OK. I've tried retuning kitchen TV by plugging it into the other aerial socket but no difference. I am going to try refitting all the leads as albertross suggests ( maybe some have worked loose?) I have a sinking feeling that because this deterioration in picking up signals has been getting gradually worse and worse it might be the box in its death throes. Oh, and it never accepts any software upgrades either!

Kerry_o'keefe

I have a similar problem to Rosy. Have Freeview box downstairs linked to extwrnal ariel - no probs. Bought Freeview box for daughters room, attached to small (in room) ariel, with booster - some channels excellent. Others indicate weak signal. Any ideas for sorting this out ?. Are there any 'wireless' loft ariels out there ? Answer may be loft ariel above daughters room ? All ideas greatfully welcomed. Thanks

Wombat

Good idea to try the Pace box on someone else's outdoor aerial to see if that improves matters.

If it does, then the problem is with your aerial and/or leads. Freeview needs a strong signal, a good aerial and leads in good condition. Check for corrosion on the terminals at the aerial end and the wires from the aerial lead to your aerial.

A signal booster can sometimes boost the interference as well as the signal if the reception is poor, which won't help your tuning.

Also Freeview reception can be very weather dependent. I know of 2 people who lose several channels if it rains, both down to inferior aerials.

redux

how is the signal booster in the loft powered?

... or is it downstairs? - much better to amplify the signal next to the aerial, before the cable losses ...