Freeview coverage after analogue switch off?

W

waynewickenden

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Currently freeview only covers is it about 75% of the uk, i gather that when analogue is swithced off that it will cover a higher number of uk households.

But if it dosent then how are people that cannot afford a subsription such as sky, cable etc going to be able to recieve tv if freeview isnt available in there area.

Anyone have any ideas on this one
 
how about tv through your broadband connection. connected by wifi from the pc to a flat screen in your living room or kitchen.
 
matty2767 said:
how about tv through your broadband connection. connected by wifi from the pc to a flat screen in your living room or kitchen.

Thats going way to far,

Dont try to be clever Mr im smart
 
As I understand it DTT will never match the coverage of the analogue signal but it will be very very close.

As you already know there are non-subscription deals for digital satellite which are already serving the more remote areas that don't even receive a good quality analogue signal. By the time we start analogue shut down I expect that the current lineup on Dsat and their encryption status may be different which may mean not even needing SKY hardware for the main "free" channels.
 
Part of the current problem is that digital terrestrial transmission is restricted because it can interfere with the analogue signal. Once analogue is switched off it will be possible to convert more transmitters to digital, though Starburst is correct that it will probably never quite match today's analogue coverage.
 
Bernard Barnett said:
Part of the current problem is that digital terrestrial transmission is restricted because it can interfere with the analogue signal. Once analogue is switched off it will be possible to convert more transmitters to digital, though Starburst is correct that it will probably never quite match today's analogue coverage.

Now that's an optimist's answer :) The pessimists among us would say that all the bandwidth liberated by the analogue switch-off will be immediately sold off to the highest bidder to swell the government coffers :laugh:
 
Listened to a radio program and they are going to convert the current analogue stations to digital for people in outlying areas. So, eventually it should match exactly. They were pretty vague on areas where there is not digital tv coverage and the period of time it took to convert the stations over. I suspect no TV would be the answer to that.

This process is starting next year in some areas (Wales and the North West I seem to recall).
 
This OFCOM document might answer some questions.

Nick_UK, while liberated bandwidth may well be sold off for non-TV purposes, this does not mean that coverage cannot be improved significantly by simply shuffling the existing digital mux frequencies and boosting their ERP.
 
FaxFan2002 said:
Listened to a radio program and they are going to convert the current analogue stations to digital for people in outlying areas. So, eventually it should match exactly.
I doubt very much that all or even most of the relay transmitters will be converted as it would be very expensive. Even the most optimistic forecasts I've seen don't predict an exact match to analogue coverage.
 
I couldn't agree more, I suspect fob off was at play...
 
If you read the OFCOM consultation document on digital swithcover, there are five possible scenarios relating to coverage.

All scenarios assume that all 1184 transmitters will be switched to digital. About 200 main transmitters would transmit 6 multiplexes, the remainder would only transmit 3 (Mxs 1, 2 and B)

1. Transmit all channels at 16 QAM giving good quality signal, but reduced coverage. Some transmitters would get a power increase. This option will IMPROVE coverage over analogue, but would reduce channels available on Mx 2.

2. Transmit Mx 1 and B at 16 QAM and Mx 2 and 64 QAM giving reduced coverage for Mx 2 (but increased number of channels). Mx 2 would operate at a higher power than 1 and B to compensate for the reduced coverage of 64 QAM transmission. A few extra transmitters would be built to maintain coverage equivalent to analogue (though some viewers might lose Mx 2).

3. Transmit all Mxs at 64 QAM at higher power rate with new transmitters as in 2. This means more channels on Mx 1 and B to present, but some viewers on the fringes of reception would receive no DTT.

4. As in option 2, but with no new transmitters built. This would result in 100,000 homes losing terrestrial television (and no doubt these homes are not in areas covered by cable).

5. As in option 2 but no increased power for Mx 2 and no new trasmitters. This results in 350,000 homes losing terrestrail TV.

I feel very strongly that as many people as possible should submit responses to OFCOMs consultation. I for one am in a position where I need option 1, and no others. I receive poor DTT at present, so I need to power boost due at my transmitter (Mendip). Cable is not available to me and I cannot have a satellite dish at my home.

For the full text of the consultation document see:

http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/condocs/pods/pods.pdf
 
I've put my post code into the "can you get freeview" thingy and it tells me I can only get about 5 channels through Freeview (Belmont) is this true ? If so it's crap for me :eek:
 
The postcode checker is often quite cautious with its results. You may well find that your reception is fine. The best thing to do, if possible, is to borrow an STB and try it. A lot depends on your aerial and the mux frequencies for your area.
 
It seems a bit of a lottery really as I'm sure I'll need a new aerial to receive freeview but don't want to spend all that money just to find that I can't get it.
 
JohnG said:
It seems a bit of a lottery really as I'm sure I'll need a new aerial to receive freeview but don't want to spend all that money just to find that I can't get it.

Well just get a reciever if it dosent work say that it was faulty and take it back to the store of purchase, as simple as.
 
The post code checker is rubbish - probably sponsored by Sky!
 
I was thinking of getting a PCI Freeview card for my PC so they might be a bire more fussy about accepting it back. I think I may just get one to try on the TV first to try it out - thanks for the advice.
 
According to the freeview postcode checker I can not recieve DTT at all; however I got a cheap box (sagem ITD58) from Richer Sounds for £30 on the off chance it would at least recieve the odd channel. Plug it in and I get all 6 mux's no problem. This from a loft aeriel too!

Just shows that the checker is pants, and that you have just got to try it and see.
 
father alice said:
According to the freeview postcode checker I can not recieve DTT at all; however I got a cheap box (sagem ITD58) from Richer Sounds for £30 on the off chance it would at least recieve the odd channel. Plug it in and I get all 6 mux's no problem. This from a loft aeriel too!

Just shows that the checker is pants, and that you have just got to try it and see.

The same in my house, i also have a loft ariel, i cant recieve channel 5 on Analogue, the postcode checker says i cant recieve freeview, but like it goes i can recieve every channel on all six muxes.

The postcode checker is total and utter rubbish, sort it out somebody!!!!
 
http://www.wolfbane.com/cgi-bin/tvd.exe?

Try that one guys. Way better, it gives no definitive answer, cos it's not possible. The only absolute way to check is to connect a box. Then start arsing about with the aerial. Bear in mind that different boxes are better at some things. Often, the cheaper the box the better with weak signals. The pricey ones have lots of features, and need a better signal, well maybe!
 
Wolfbane ain't great either - Sutton is used here - barely gets a mention
 
JohnG said:
I was thinking of getting a PCI Freeview card for my PC so they might be a bire more fussy about accepting it back. I think I may just get one to try on the TV first to try it out - thanks for the advice.

In general, PCI cards for the PC tend not to be as effective as set-top boxes, for the simple reason that a PC is full of interference-generating components. Freeview signals are weaker than analogue signals, and that is all the more reason to keep receivers away from interference-generating PC's :thumbsdow
 

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