new freeview, no signal

mishkanorman

we have purchased a new 19" lcd from ebuyer with the purpose of providing freeview to my gran,

Initially we got no signal, then we changed the aerial and got the first few channels with a bad reception. We then added a signal booster and got the remaining channels (perfectly) and lost the main 1-5 channels (and more)


Ive lost all patience with it and need some advice,

Could it be the TV, we purchased a cheap model (that had reviews) but it picks up all channels using the main aerial at my fathers house.


any suggestions ??


mishka

S0litaire

Freeview transmitters are running at 50% or lower power at the moment. When your area switches off the analogue signal the digital signal will be put up to 100%

What type of aerial do you have at the moment?
How many horizontal bars (elements) does it have?
The more elements it has the better it can pick up weak signals.

I'm supposedly in a great Freeview area but since i'm on the side of a hill, with the transmitter on the other side, my street can hardly get a signal without a tall aeral.

espresso

You simply need a proper external aerial.

mishkanorman

espresso wrote: »

You simply need a proper external aerial.

simply need a new outside aerial,


is it ? my father isnt all that bad at DIY, will he manage it himself or does it require an electrician?

after looking at the neighbours we noticed a few external aerials, but the thought of the extra cost is whats bothering us all,

solitaire,


we purchased a new aerial which was bigger than the previous and biggest the shop had, it helped but not enough,



are you all saying that its definatley not the telly ? because thats my contribution and i dont want to be the reason we are having all this hassle


mishka


ps thanks for the speedy replies !

Stompa

mishkanorman wrote: »

we purchased a new aerial which was bigger than the previous and biggest the shop had, it helped but not enough,

It's not solely down to the size of the aerial, you need to ensure you have the correct type, and that it's positioned correctly.

espresso

mishkanorman wrote: »

simply need a new outside aerial,


is it ? my father isnt all that bad at DIY, will he manage it himself or does it require an electrician?

after looking at the neighbours we noticed a few external aerials, but the thought of the extra cost is whats bothering us all,

we purchased a new aerial which was bigger than the previous and biggest the shop had, it helped but not enough,

Enter your post code here and what type of aerial does it suggest.

Internal set top type aerials are usually a waste of time, unless you can actually see your local transmitter from your property.

mishkanorman

it states "Log periodic "

the transmitter is 5 miles from us, we got no signal at all with a set-top box aerial and only got results with a loft aerial and signal booster,


mishka

Stompa

FWIW a few tips here:

http://www.stevelarkins.freeuk.com/loft_aerial.htm

aliEnRIK

mishkanorman wrote: »

are you all saying that its definatley not the telly ? because thats my contribution and i dont want to be the reason we are having all this hassle


mishka


ps thanks for the speedy replies !

Youve already stated that it works perfectly at your dads, so the tv is clearly sound.

espresso

mishkanorman wrote: »

it states "Log periodic "

the transmitter is 5 miles from us, we got no signal at all with a set-top box aerial and only got results with a loft aerial and signal booster,


mishka

What else does it state? Is your aerial the correct type and group? Is it mounted to suit the polarisation of the transmitter? Is it pointing in the correct direction i.e. compass bearing? Did you use good quality co-ax? Too many unknowns!

stixman7

mishkanorman wrote: »

we have purchased a new 19" lcd from ebuyer with the purpose of providing freeview to my gran,

Initially we got no signal, then we changed the aerial and got the first few channels with a bad reception. We then added a signal booster and got the remaining channels (perfectly) and lost the main 1-5 channels (and more)


Ive lost all patience with it and need some advice,

Could it be the TV, we purchased a cheap model (that had reviews) but it picks up all channels using the main aerial at my fathers house.


any suggestions ??


mishka

Having recently bought an LCD with freeview for my mother, and also a pc with tv & freeview, I have come across the same problems. The feedback I am getting suggests that the amplification in the tv's and pc's are not as strong as those in the freeview set top boxes. This is certainly a plausable reason, as in both homes we have set top boxes that pick up the channels better.

I have been recommended to get a reasonable outside aerial with an integral amplifier, or to just purchase a "mast head" amplifier in conjunction with the existing aerial. These are most effective installed closest to the aerial outside, as opposed to buying an indoor amplifier, which is much less effective.

For the purchase of either the integral aerial + amp, or just a mast head amp, Maplin have very reasonable prices, as do Screwfix. I hope this is useful to you.