Bad signal off freeview- will this work?

Bes

Bes

Bes

Soldato
Joined
18 Oct 2002
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Location
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So, the signal on freeview is terrible. I can occasionally get all channels when I scan, but after about 30 minutes, most of them become unwatchable. I rescan and get about 6.I live in Greenwich, and am at the bottom of a hill, and flanked by tall buildings on one side, so this probably explains why I have issues. I can't be a million miles off a watchable picture, given I can sometimes pick up all channels.

There is an 8- way splitter in the loft, three cables are plugged in, feeding 3 aerial points, but we only use 1 TV point in the whole house. Can I just remove the feeds that are not in use to boost the signal? Will this work?

Thanks
 
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WHy don't you replace it with a proper masthead amplifier and distribution block? More expensive but if you get a crap signal every little will help I guess?

If those feeds aren't plugged in I can't see it making any difference. I.e. nothing is using them.
 
But I thought the idea was that every split in the cable weakens the signal overall? i.e. 1 line > 3 TV points=33% strength each.

I can look at using an amplifier, but it's a rented house and I don't want to spend/ do too much to it.

Thanks
 
Bes said:
Can I just remove the feeds that are not in use to boost the signal? Will this work?
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No, that shouldn't make any difference at all.

The purpose of your signal distribution amplifier is to give 8 identical signals. The signal quality at one socket shouldn't alter whether there 8 TVs connected or just one.

The two most likely causes of your problem are a weak aerial signal or a bad distribution amp.

A bad distribution amp is one that adds too much noise to the signal when it is being amplified for splitting. It would be fairly easy to bypass the amp. Just disconnect the the aerial cables from the roof and to the TV, then use a coupler to connect them together.

However, given what you said about your location I'd think the most likely cause would be a weak signal. That might be a problem with the aerial (older- or wrong type / not aligned / damaged) or the aerial down lead (broken / frayed / water). It could also be the TV's tuner sensitivity is poor.

The best thing you can do is see if your neighbours have the same sort of problems and ask them how they fixed it. Bypassing the distributon amp will let you judge how good the aerial signal is. If the tuning still isn't good then get an aerial guy in to sort out your signal. It's money well spent.

Don't waste cash and time on a DIY booster. Your TV wants the biggest signal-to-noise ratio it can get. The best way to achieve that is to put a booster on the aerial pole because that's where the signal is strongest and the noise is weakest. The further away from the aerial that any booster is fitted then the more noise in the signal... and where do most of the boosters live that are sold on the high street? Yep, right by the TV; which is just about as far away from the aerial as it's possible to get. Brilliant :rolleyes: :D Boosters only really work well if there's a good signal-to-noise ratio in the first place but the level is too low because of cable losses. If the signal is pants to begin with then all they do is amplify the noise as much as the signal while adding their own bit of noise too.

Hop this helps :)
 
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Bes said:
But I thought the idea was that every split in the cable weakens the signal overall? i.e. 1 line > 3 TV points=33% strength each.
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That's true of the Y splitters sold for a couple of quid. They are passive. They just split the signal and so divide the signal level in the process. A powered aerial amp maintains the signal level for all outputs.
 
Hmm I don't know if it is an amp or just a splitter? This is a rented house remember, so I am sure the LL spent as little as possible on this side of things.

I can't see if it is powered easily, as it is behind a panel. I will investigate tomorrow.

If it is not powered, I guess subbing it for a powered one would help?

Thanks
 
You will rarely, if ever find an 8-way passive splitter.

A lot of amp's have a "Full" output. That is an output with a much higher signal output. It's designed for long cable runs and instances of multiple amp's etc.

However, if your signal is borderline and you're only using one output then plugging the TV point into this full output may be a crude solution.

Another possibility is the amp is faulty so would recommend you try to bypass it too.
 
Tesla- Nothing there is marked as being a full output on the amp.

What is the best thing to do here?

It is annoying as I had all the channels for a while yesterday, then suddenly they all started slowly declining until nothing.

This is a few hrs after the builder came to fix the aerial, which had no signal.

The first few tuning attempts got 6 channels, then 30, then 70. Since I lost them all yesterday, nothing.

Any ideas?

Thanks
 
Bes said:
...This is a few hrs after the builder came to fix the aerial, which had no signal.
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I'm sorry, can you say that again :eek: Your builder came to fix the aerial?? Who services your car? Your plasterer. Who does your electrics, your dentist?

There's more to getting a decent aerial signal that having a head for heights and waggling the aerial about. I'm sure your builder would be equally scathing if you suggested that your barber had offer to chuck up that new extension. Jeez
 
Most builders don't have much idea about aerials, I suggest your landlord get's a proper aerial installer in.

Bes, are you in Bristol? I know Bristol reception very well and there are now very few places with even "OK" reception, most areas of Bristol are now excellent.
 
Sounds like the builder messed up and now the problem is intermittent.

So you have a satellite dish up? If so I suggest getting a free sat box.
 
My freeview signal varies with time of day and the weather! From not that good to useless. A new freeview aerial was more expensive than a DIY satellirte dish - so installed FREESAT!
 
Ok:

1) It's a refurbished masionette, the builder cut the cable apparently. They supposedly replaced it. I didn't ask for him to come, the management co. sent him around.

2) I don't think there is any provision that the LL has to provide a decent aerial signal, hence I have to pay for it if I want it.

3) No I am in Greenwich, London

4) No I have not tried bypassing the splitter yet, need to get the toolbox out to get to the cable coming in off the roof, and have had a serious case of CBA the past few days. I will give it a go over the weekend though if it is worth the effort?

Thanks
 
Did the builder replace the cable, or just put a cheap joiner (or even worse twist the cables back to gether and make a home brew bodge/fix)... Joiners will reduce signal strength which is a bad thing if your in a weak spot to start with.

Of course its also possible that you dont have a wide band antenna, which is really best for picking up both analog and digital bands from a single antenna. The best solution for digital when you know the appropriate band, is to use a narrowband antenna (IE TV band is channels 21-68, but if you know digital is 44-55 (or whatever) in your area, you can get antennas which perform best on those channels.
 
No idea what the builder did- I am going to attack the whole shebang with some tools over the weekend and see what is going on up there.
 
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