When I last looked there had been no change at Waltham (15:35)

Actually, this must have happened within the last hour. I can't access my TV dongle and the internet at the same time so - I just assumed things were as they were an hour ago...

To answer a question from earlier.

Mux bitrate before 24.13Mbps - after 27.14Mbps
Null packet rate before 0.42Mbps (1.72%) - after 3.5Mbps (~13%)

Can't comment on interference state yet.
Last edited by EEPhil : 25-10-2011 at 15:52

Thanks for the first confirmation (and that configuration has been on Caldbeck since 2009)!

I wonder if Argos TV is coming to Arq B at the end of November?

There is also capacity on Arq A.

At 9am this morning there was plenty of capacity on Arq-A (5.87Mbps Null Packet rate). D3&4 has 2.58Mbps null packets ~equivalent to Channel 5's bitrate. About 0.5Mbps spare on BBC-A and SDN* as well. (* with Topup Anytime running).
Plenty of space for more shopping channels.

Hmm, from Waltham my Hummy is now reporting it as the strongest COM multiplex! Only a couple of percentage points in it mind - was also happy tuning in with no retune, although it took a second longer than normal to tune in the firs time.

Still one of the weakest muxes where I am.
Had no problem with Humax, but trying to get anything out of an old Philips box was a pain. Needed a factory reset, and then both Belmont and Sutton Coldfield seemed to be better candidates for ARQ-B than Waltham (lower frequencies). And no manual retune available.

On the Humax I haven't noticed any increased interference, yet.

There is an article on this subject today on the UK Free TV website here is the Link http://www.ukfree.tv/fullstory.php?storyid=1107051914

So has anyone got a theory for why some transmitters are having SDN, ArqA and ArqB changed, some having ArqA and ArqB a changed and the rest just ArqB, at the moment. Hardware issues? Software issues? Manpower issues? Economic issues? Reception issues? Contractual issues?

West Country is trialling 3 muxes
Parts of Scotland are trialling 2 muxes
From Tacolneston DSO, 3 muxes will be converted
From end Nov 2011 all Arq B is converted allowing new channels except pre DSO unless matched çapacity.
Therefore we can assume that the rest will catch up by October 2012 (when last SDN mux goes 8k).

Once London is switched over they probably won't care whether a the remaining regions can't get every channel. London has to have everything, never mind the provinces

I think you mean Manchester.
They seem to favour that area over London nowadays.

Quite right too!
Mike

Only FEC change at Mendip in a couple of weeks -
Currently we get...
SDN.... Ch.48 - 85% strength - 100% Quality (zero BER) ... 64QAM 2/3 2K -> 8K - 12 Mar 2012
ARQ-B Ch.52 - 50% strength - 10% quality (Worst BER about 6.00E-06)... 64QAM 2/3 8K -> 3/4 FEC - 11 Nov 2011
ARQ-A Ch.67 - 65% strength - 50-60% Quality (zero BER) ... 64QAM 2/3 8K -> Ch.56 - 12 Mar 2012
...damp still weather - range 50miles

Summary of Digital UK info for Mendip...
Now 27 Oct 11
61 - 96 97 - 54 - 35 98 - 58 - 17 98 - 48 - 91 99 - 67 - 80 80 - 52 - 83 86
COM mux FEC change 8 Nov 11
61 - 96 97 - 54 - 35 - 98 58 - 17 98 - 48 - 91 99 - 67 - 80 80 - 52 - 83 86
Re-tune event 28 Mar 12
61 - 94 97 - 54 - 35 98 - 58 - 17 97 - 48 - 91 99 - 56 - 34 98 - 52 - 98 99
Reception change 2012
61 - 97 97 - 54 - 35 98 - 58 - 17 97 - 48 - 91 99 - 56 - 33 98 - 52 - 98 99
Final situation Nov 12
61 - 97 97 - 54 - 35 98 - 58 - 17 97 - 48 - 91 99 - 56 - 33 98 - 52 - 98 99

Sorry its a bit messy - but they keep deleting the old data
Note no reception change for ARQ-B on FEC change but changes at re-tune event - increased power?

DigitalUK think I will see no change - but marginal so any drop will be disastrous - especially as we cannot get ARQ-B from Stockland Hill as it is the same as MUX-B from Rowridge.

Arq-B at Sandy Heath is now FEC 3/4.

I can't remember if anything I ever watch is on ArqB. What's on ArqB that's vaguely worthwhile? (ie not a shopping or babe channel)

Worth watching - Yesterday, Film 4, Al Jazeera English,

Not a shopping or babe channel - 4 Music, Viva, Russia Today, ITV4,

Also consists of a number of Bauer's radio stations and Sky Sports.

ArqB at Sutton Coldfield hasn't changed FEC rate yet, but the day is still long.

Well it's changed now because i have just tuned it in and ARQ B says FEC 3/4 now.

Andy

So it has. Must have changed at 11:00 then!

I think I've watched one film on Film4 in the last year and that's it for my ArqB usage. My dad watches Yesterday, or "destroyers and battleships" channel as my mum calls it.

Winter Hill Arq B changed FEC from 2/3 to 3/4 between 13:10 and 13:15 today - a day earlier than expected from the digital uk postcode checker. In fact I'd only started my pc checking it about 30 mins before it changed, and my first thought was that I'd got my script wrong!

Spare bandwidth (pid 8191) is running at approx 3480 kbit/s.

No change on Angus ArqB yet

Indeed it has changed a day early i suppose it doesn't matter when they do it as there is no retune required thankfully.

Andy

Any more reports of FEC changes? Nothing on Angus yet. and we're past the stated dates for Durris too.

Has the FEC on 52 at Mendip changed yet?

(The quality seems to be a bit more variable - highest BER seen about 8.9E-06)

Very odd... I assume after the FEC change to 3/4???

Mendip 52 (ARQ B)
Signal Quality - 8% - Red bar
Signal strength - 60% - rock solid
Bit Error Rate - 00E+00 - rock solid !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


I should say the picture looks perfect - it's not that it is failing to notice or correct errors!

Checked again... (08:15)
Signal strength dropping a little ~50% - Bit Error Rate now varying between 9.57E-05 and 1.59E-06 (with random drops to 00E+00)

The figures given are short-term max and min - there is granularity in the BER - many particular figures are repeated

08:16 - just had a couple of sound glitches and BER dropped into ..E-04 (after a glitch when I glanced at the screen)