Sony IDTV a step backwards?

[Galilee]

Hi - new poster here.

I've just bought a Sony KD28DX51 to replace the 14" I've been watching for the last 10 years. Good plan, or so I thought!

I used to watch Freeview on an old 1998 Pace ONdigital box - a second-hand cast off from a friend.

Now I've got my new Sony set up, I can't get as many channels through the set's built-in tuner than I could get from the ONdigital box. I'm in a partial coverage area, but I could get C4 and FIVE on the old box. Now I can't get FIVE (no great loss, admittedly, but now I can't watch Joey), and C4 often breaks up.

Have I set up my TV wrong? The menus don't offer many options. I've gone through autotune several times.

How does IDTV differ from set top boxes? I'd read good things about Sony IDTV tuners on this forum so it never occured to me that I'd get less channels on it. I was even half hoping it would find a few more for me!

Any advice, or even an explanation, appreciated!

Thanks!

EDIT - I've just realised there's a Freeview forum. Sorry if this is in the wrong place!

[nig28]

Hi
If you have got the aerial going directly into your digital TV then it should be working ok. Digital tuners do differ in there ability to cope with a poor signal, and I am not surprised your Sony copes a little less well, as it has many features such as 7 day EPG.
Nigel

[Phil_S]

On the couple of occasions that my local transmitter has gone onto low power for maintenance I've found that my Sony iDTV loses channels that the Humax box connected to it can still find and display, and the Humax input is looped through the TV. I think it's just the way Sony iDTVs are - they seem to require a good signal.

On the other side of the coin, the Humax is prone to finding some channels twice and storing the poorer signal of the two, so if I do a rescan I have to manually retune it.

[Galilee]

Originally Posted by nig28

I am not surprised your Sony copes a little less well, as it has many features such as 7 day EPG.

If this is true then it's a fantastic irony that I can use the EPG to see what programs are showing, at the expense of actually being able to tune in to watch them!

Thanks for the replies though - I'll just keep retuning and hope the signal improves in my area.