All posts by MikeB
Below are all of MikeB's postings, with the most recent are at the bottom of the page.john moore: Looking quickly at the terrain plot/coverage checker (although I'm sure our resident gurus will be able to tell you more), you should get a perfectly decent reception from two transmitters, with Sutton Coldfield being closest.
Check your signal strength, and what transmitter/channel your actually tuned into (either 43 or 49). You should have done a retune a while back (for Waltham at least), and possibly it hasn't really happened for you.
Also check your equipment - are the leads in properly, is the aerial pointing the right way/right one for the location, etc.
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William Carter:
Since the breaking up is worse on HD, and you say the strength is even higher on SD, it sounds like your signal strength is too high. Since your only 9km from the transmitter, thats another indication that the strength is too high for the tuner.
Signal strength should be lower than than you've suggested - 75-80% is fine (my PVR is on 93% and is ok, but its near the limit). Ironically, your lovely shielded cable is not helping, since a better signal is something you might be better off without!
Bypass any booster, and have a look at this:
Freeview signals: too much of a good thing is bad for you | Digital switchover | ukfree.tv - 10 years of independent, free digital TV advice
There seems to be loads of people having similar problems - perhaps the retune has pushed a lot of systems over the edge, but I'm surprised it didn't happen at switchover.
(PE12QN)
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Keith: Your TV is perfectly fine, and frankly, a new TV might have the same problems as the old! Sony tuners are fairly sensitive, yet stable - I've got the HX860 and its OK even at high signal strength. Technica isn't a brand known for its tuners, but different tuners react in different ways.
Obviously the change in channels after the recent retunes has had an effect, which we've seen for a lot of people. Even though it was OK before, the retune has just tipped things over the edge. Check what channels your Tv's are tuned into - 53 for Oxford, and 27 for Sandy heath (both have a retune soon, but the channels will the same).
Have a look at A.T.V (Aerials And Television) FM DAB TV Aerial, plus poles and brackets - what is your aerial like, and what is the cable like(poor cable can really make a difference) on your old setup, plus whatever the chap put in.
Your signal strength isn't bad - not perfect, but doable, so a check to make sure that all the connections are OK might help.
JB38 put his finger on the point about the amp - does its work? In fact it could be making things worse, so just bypassing the amp to check might help.
What I cant figure out is why the aerial had to be moved - at least he could have moved it around to face Sandy Heath, and see what happened.
(PE12QN)
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Jenny: Winter Hill is on channel 50, not 62. Try a factory retune and see what channel you end up with - if it ends up with another transmitter, then try a manual retune.
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Laura: If you put your postcode into the box near the top, you can see what transmitters and signal you should get. Even better is to include your postcode on any future message - one of the reception gurus will help.
Have a look at what your neighbours have - aerials or dishes? If they have aerials, then there is a good chance you could have one too (and check the loft, you never know, there might be an aerial or a coax system).
If you live in a valley, or just one of those Freeview blackspots, then you'll have to look at Freesat. There was possibly a very good reason the previous occupants went for Sky.
Don't put great store by the signal you get from a portable aerial - they are often pretty ropey at best. Much better to find out what other people in the road are doing, although remember that the strength of digital signals went up hugely after switchover, so just because it was rubbish three years ago doesn't mean its rubbish now.
If you get a good signal (and a good local installer should be able to tell you) - then you can have Freeview, which would make life easier. Read A.T.V (Aerials And Television) FM DAB TV Aerial, plus poles and brackets - it will tell you all about them, and even if you don't want to do it yourself (I must admit I wouldn't like to go up on my roof), you know what your looking for. Expect to pay around £150 for a basic install.
Assuming that Freeview is not possible, then its Freesat. Have a look at the dish - how many wires does it have coming out of it? If its just the one, does it have any extra connections you can use? If its got two wires, then you can watch and record, but if there are extra connections, even better.
The normal thing to connect to your twin dish is Freesat PVR (and usually its a Humax) - so you can watch and record at the same time. But check your TV - many Panasonics, some Samsungs, LG's and one lone Sony have Freesat built in. Even if you've got just one LNB, you could use it to at least watch.
For more info on dishes, etc - see SatCure UK satellite and Freeview information - you can upgrade the LNB, put in an extra dish, etc - and again you can do it yourself or get someone to do it. If your going to upgrade the LNB, get a quad - the problem with Freesat is that its not especially flexible - if you want to add a TV in the kitchen, bedroom, etc, then its much easier having spare LNB's ready.
So first - find out about Freeview.
If no Freeview - find out what connections you have on your dish - are they enough? If not, you can upgrade them. (PE12QN)
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Paul Stableford: I've no particular insight into the particular bit of kit, although we did get a fair number of these returned last year because people found them fiddly to use and they could only record on one channel.
This thread has a lot about software http://www.avforums.com/f…tml, but since you've got the latest, we can discount that.
I'd start with a clean auto retune, without any boosters, etc. Since your closer to Waltham than I am, and your getting a fine signal on your other TV, its obviously not the signal path or the aerial.
Waltham is on Channel 49 for a manual tune. You say your not sure of the quality, but the signal strength looks ok but varying - could it be that the signal is too strong? (my Sony is showing 93% signal!).
Other than that, I'm at a loss. If its that bad, return it. (PE12QN)
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M
Waltham (Leicestershire, England) Full Freeview transmitterSaturday 6 July 2013 12:05PM
Peterborough
jb38: I can confirm that the Samsung does have twin HD tuners - Samsung does occasionally have 'fat fingers' on its website! The turners are described by Samsung as not being the most sensitive...
There is one thing that occured to me, but I've held off becuase it seems a very stupid question: Paul Stableford - are you using an HDMI lead to connect it to your TV?
Most PVR's now have nothing but an HDMI output, in line with most TV's, where HDMI's make up the bulk of the inputs. Humax is pretty unusual in having an actual scart as well, but I notice that the Samsung does (slightly unusually) have RCA outputs as well as HDMI (which it has to have, since its a Blu-Ray), so you can connect it to a non-HDMI equiped TV.
Here's the thing - on some boxes, if you use the non-HD connections, the box concludes you cannot use HD, and therefore simply does not show you any HD channels in the EPG. Since you said you have an HD ready TV, I assume you are, but its a thought. Its always worth swapping out the HDMI lead to make sure its not dodgy, although it should make no difference.
Frankly, this model is widely seen as a bit of a lemon, and hopefully this years models are back on form - the Panasonic eqivalant is actually slightly cheaper this year, which might be a good alternative. Hopefully, Paul did not pay too much for it!
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David Smith: If you live very close to the transmitter, check your signal strength - it might be too much.
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Jimmy: Check your digital TV to see what channel/transmitter its tuned into. Presuming that both TV and digibox are fed from the same aerial, check the box to see where its getting its signals from. Your probably best for Hannington on channel 45 (although I havn't looked at the terrain plot). Also check all the cables/connections are OK - you never know...
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Friday 28 June 2013 7:48PM
Peterborough
Bob Cutler: As Brian said above, try a full reset/retune (make a note of any programmes you want recorded, because it will wipe the list).
My Sony also came with Guide Plus, but when I first set it up, it went straight to the normal EPG, and I never even saw Guide Plus, fortunately.