Help - TV about to go out of the window!!

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foxylady06
foxylady06 Posts: 2 Newbie
in Techie Stuff
We need some help with the battle of a ridiculously poor tv signal we've been having for months now..

Moved in in 2013 (N.E. Midlands) - No signal whatsoever, booster installed on aerial..problem sorted.

Fast forward to 2016 - Losing channels but on re-tune (after unplugging and replugging aerial from back of tv and switching off/on mains), the TV is not even finding the channels so we've gone from up to 100 channels down to about 15!

TV is an old Wharfedale 26" HD ready tv - is this the problem?

Will a new sparkly TV find the channels?

TIA!!
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  • pappa_golf
    pappa_golf Posts: 8,895 Forumite
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    only if there is a signal to be picked up


    possibly a faulty aerial booster or faulty cable , or even power going to the booster!


    would it not be easier to beg/borrow/steal a replacement TV , in order to check the aerial signal?


    in fact , freeview boxes are 10 a penny , why not get one (ebay/gumtree/freecycle) and see if that picks up the channels
    Save a Rachael

    buy a share in crapita
  • Chrishazle
    Chrishazle Posts: 609 Forumite
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    To me, you need an aerial installer to visit, check the signal you're getting from your current aerial as that may need replacing with something higher gain and/or a masthead amplifier. If it's OK, he can then test the signal from the booster to check it's giving decent signal, then check at the TV end of the coax.
  • forgotmyname
    forgotmyname Posts: 32,569 Forumite
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    Is it pointing the same direction as everyone else in the street?
    Censorship Reigns Supreme in Troll City...

  • kwikbreaks
    kwikbreaks Posts: 9,187 Forumite
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    TV's these days will usually show the signal strength and quality. Check the menus - probably somewhere in setup/install.

    Assuming the signal strength does show as poor and it used to work then the chances are your masthead amp has either got water in it or somehow isn't being fed power up the coax - checkout the coax connectors and make sure the amp PSU is plugged in and getting power.
  • knightstyle
    knightstyle Posts: 7,001 Forumite
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    Here in similar area we have terrible signal strength.
    Subscribe to Sky for a year and then leave and buy a Humax Stat box.
  • Robisere
    Robisere Posts: 3,237 Forumite
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    When you say "NE Midlands" do you mean East Lincolnshire? Or NE Lincolnshire?

    That is my area and we had very bad mobile and TV signal, although TV is OK since they boosted the transmitter to give us Digital TV and we had the work done as described: There was a local TV and antenna specialist in the village who had fitted antennas for everyone and he did ours by climbing a long ladder and testing the signal of an antenna on a pole, kept raising it until he got a good signal. Then used the pole to mark the height of our new antenna, fitted and braced against high winds. I should have noticed all the very tall antennas in the village when we moved in!

    He also told several neighbours and ourselves that a huge tree was causing a problem for our digital signal. Apparently the 'tight' digital signal can be confused by branches moving about in the line of the transmitter signal. He gave us a letter to that effect and the tree was removed. The signal has been 10/10 ever since. Maybe find out where your transmitter is and if you have a similar problem?

    The mobile signal is still poor: we can get 3G intermittently and 4g not at all.
    I think this job really needs
    a much bigger hammer.
  • Laz123
    Laz123 Posts: 1,742 Forumite
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    foxylady06 wrote: »
    We need some help with the battle of a ridiculously poor tv signal we've been having for months now..

    Moved in in 2013 (N.E. Midlands) - No signal whatsoever, booster installed on aerial..problem sorted.

    Fast forward to 2016 - Losing channels but on re-tune (after unplugging and replugging aerial from back of tv and switching off/on mains), the TV is not even finding the channels so we've gone from up to 100 channels down to about 15!

    TV is an old Wharfedale 26" HD ready tv - is this the problem?

    Will a new sparkly TV find the channels?

    TIA!!


    IMHO yes it is the problem. Having used this brand many years ago and experienced numerous problems with no support I gave up on them. I seem to recall it's the old Argos brand they used to sell. BTW TVs are pretty cheap nowadays.
  • kwikbreaks
    kwikbreaks Posts: 9,187 Forumite
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    Looks like the OP maybe carried out her threat and has been cooling her heels in the local nick.
  • kwikbreaks
    kwikbreaks Posts: 9,187 Forumite
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    Laz123 wrote: »
    IMHO yes it is the problem. Having used this brand many years ago and experienced numerous problems with no support I gave up on them. I seem to recall it's the old Argos brand they used to sell. BTW TVs are pretty cheap nowadays.
    Still going and nothing to do with Argos - http://www.wharfedale.co.uk/

    Recommending buying a new TV with no diagnosis of the problem is hardly worthy of a money saving site regardless how cheap TVs may be.
  • shaun_from_Africa
    shaun_from_Africa Posts: 12,858 Forumite
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    kwikbreaks wrote: »
    Still going and nothing to do with Argos - http://www.wharfedale.co.uk/


    That's just the loudspeaker division.


    Wharfdale was split up a while ago and Argos purchased the right to use the brand name on various electronic devices (except loudspeakers).
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