TV Aerial

ThemeOne

I have taken over a property with an existing freeview aerial. Reception on all BBC seems fine, but other channels seem prone to occasional breakup, though sometimes they are fine.

Before I get someone to look at it, would it be worth replacing the existing coax cable (of unknown age and provenance) with a new, high quality cable?

Le_Kirk

I wonder if your aerial is pointing at the correct transmitter and, if it is, is it accurately aligned. Might be worth getting "a man" round to sort it as you could lash out on new co-ax and still have the problem. Any trees or large buildings in your line of site to the transmitter?

grumpycrab

Not an expert but try to determine which channels have problems e.g. are all HD ok? (101,102...) compared with SD 1,2,3...
Are there any other aerial sockets to try?
Have you traced the aerial lead(s) to see if there's any amplifier (e.g. have you been in the loft).

ThemeOne

I'd say the aerial does point in the right direction. It's fixed to the side of the wall (third floor) with the cable entering through a hole drilled in the wall.

There was no faceplate or anything, just the cable direct from the aerial, and a length of coax inside, which I connected up using normal coax plugs.

HD and SD both seem fine. In fact today (and recently) everything seems fine, but I have had breakup on ITV3, RT and LBC, sometimes so bad I've had to switch off.

Not aware of any large buildings or trees in line of sight.

stator

Unless the cable is very long, or damaged then it's unlikely to make a huge difference to your signal.
Find out which transmitters are near you and which one your aerial is pointed at.
It might be on a local transmitter that only carriers the main PSB MUXs

It may be that there is a better transmitter to point at since yours was installed.

If it's pointing in the right direction check what type of aerial it is. Some are better than others. Some designed for wideband, which isn't always a good thing. If you have a Group A transmitter then a Group A aerial is best.
Beware of professionals. A lot will just sling up any old aerial because it's easier for them than checking which one is best for your house. It's best to do your own research rather than just relying on someone else.

ThemeOne

In case anyone has any further comments, this is the aerial

ThemeOne

I have a further question regarding radio reception.

I have an oldish Bose Wave Radio / CD Player, which needs an external aerial connected for FM reception. I tried connecting the TV coax lead (gender changer needed) and it worked - a good selection of FM stations were pulled in with good reception.

I don't know whether the aerial was designed to receive FM as well as freeview, or if I was just lucky?

Would the aerial also receive DAB radio - I have nothing to test it on, just curious.

almillar

A big lump of metal high up would have helped the FM reception, I don't think you got lucky, FM just isn't that fussy. DAB will almost certainly require a specific aerial, but will similarly benefit from it being placed high up.

stator

Whilst it's designed for certain frequencies it will also pick up strong signals like FM and probably DAB too.

It's quite short, but that's because it's supported by the end and not a cradle.

Have you worked out which transmitter you're on yet?

You might try and aerial like this log periodic. (Log 36) It's bigger than your current one and is supported from the end, so should fit on your current bracket:
http://www.aerialsandtv.com/atvschoiceofaerials.html#Log36

That website is full of tonness of information on aerials.

ThemeOne

Yes I've identified the transmitter - it's pointing at the right one, and there seem to be no others which would offer a decent signal in the area.

Thanks for the Log 36 recommendation - I will read through with interest.

stator

Have you checked which MUXs your transmitter is broadcasting and at what power levels?
If you tell us the transmitter we can have a look at some of the tehnical websites with this sort of info