Freeview ready LCD TV
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Hi
We have just purchased this for my daughter for Xmas. I checked the tV out at my mother in laws house which is 2 miles away and it tuned in correctly using an old plug in indoor aerial.
I have got it home but the set is telling me that there is no signal despite the fact I have the old indoor aerial plugged into it.
Can a nayone suggest anything Will a better indoor aerial help.
Our own family TV gets reception via a sky dish.
We have just purchased this for my daughter for Xmas. I checked the tV out at my mother in laws house which is 2 miles away and it tuned in correctly using an old plug in indoor aerial.
I have got it home but the set is telling me that there is no signal despite the fact I have the old indoor aerial plugged into it.
Can a nayone suggest anything Will a better indoor aerial help.
Our own family TV gets reception via a sky dish.
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Comments
Indoor aerials are at a disadvantage compared to roof top aerials. They are usually very much smaller which means they suck less signal out of the air than a roof aerial. They are also used lower down which in turn can reduce the amount of signal. And of course they are used indoors. The walls of the building attenuate the signal passing through them. So more walls less signal.
Then add in differences in the terrain between your house and the transmitter, eg there may be a hill or tall building in the way which does not apply at your mother in law's house. So it is very possible for an aerial to work in one location but get nothing somewhere else.
A different aerial might not make any difference. Unless you have one of those loop type aerials which in my experience are next to useless. The type that look like a small roof aerial are better usually. But if there simply is not enough signal to allow reliable reception then changing on indoor aerial for another probably won't make much difference.
It could be that the only way to get reception is to install an outdoor aerial or possibly in the loft. A possibility is to hide a roof/loft type aerial on top of a suitable cupboard/wardrobe and hope that pulls in enough signal. But that is not a very elegant solution.
So, I'd suggest 3taking things:
1- check the aerial is pointing towards the direction of the transmitter.
2 - check the aerial is correctly polarised, now this sounds techie but it isn't. On a normal aerial the "blades" either go up / down I.e. vertically or left/right I.e horizontally. I suspect it should be vertically as it's a relay transmitter - to be sure look at the aerials on the roofs of neighbouring properties.
3 - retune the tv. It is possible the other house was on a different transmitter.
Lastly bear in mind as it is a relay, Shotleyfield doesn't broadcast all Freeview channels, only a selection of them, so if you get 30 or so channels that may be right.
Hope this helps.
It should do. There were very few areas where new aerials were actually needed, and the digital transmissions are at full power now switch-over is complete.
That is provided the aerial and cable are in good condition. If the aerial hasn't been used for a number of years then all kinds of thing may have happened unnoticed. It could have moved round in the wind. There may be physical damage to the aerial. The cable connections could be degraded, for example rain could have got into the terminal block corroding the terminals. The cable itself could be damaged.
But if the aerial is in good nick then it should receive Freeview OK. You can tell whether you are pointing at Shotleyfield or Pontop Pike just by looking at the aerial. If it is pointing roughly west then it is pointing to Pontop Pike, if more or less east then it's pointing to Shotleyfield. Also if you used the aerial in the analogue era and had Channel 5 then chances are it is pointing at Pontop Pike.
Thanks for the help lads.