Yes, I have ! Not driven on the A31 between Alresford and Alton for a while, but a couple of weeks ago I lost the South Hants mux just after Rufus Stone going west
on the A31, the radio jumped to FM (was listening to Wave 105) then jumped to Wave on the Dorset mux. Normally all that occurs coming down Poulner Hill towards the A338 spur junction. Driving back the other way, the switch back from Dorset to S Hants didn't occur until I came down the hill at Cadnam, almost at the point the A31 turns into the M27. Something has changed. Perhaps a 'sharper' directional antenna at Chillerton, (which might be how they achieved the ERP increase, rather than turning up the wick on the tx itself !)

Glad it's not the car then I've noticed also on Wave that on the B3073 (the road through the northern New Forest) the switch to Dorset used to be going down the hill after Godshill into Fordingbridge, it's now just before the Downton turn.

I wonder if during the recent lift conditions we're getting interference on 11C from either the Swindon mux or Devon in the west, and from Kent in the east. With the buildout of those muxes this may be what now happens in the summer months. It's about time South Hants got a new allocation.

Kent from Wrotham is seriously constrained towards Hampshire. I struggle to get much out of Wrotham in South Godstone - East Grinstead - Ashdown Forest on 11C. You can just about get it down the M23 for a bit.

Ha, yes. There will be quite a bit of 'incoming' now !

Mrs C now has DAB in her car, a Peg 108. A nicer radio than the 308's, but only
6 presets instead of the 15. It's a Toyoto derivative, so completely different GUI etc,
but basic RF performance is still very good (in fact better you might say, it's not as easily 'deafened' by ACI as the 308's radio)

Regarding coverage predictions, the BBC made a fascinating input to an Ofcom consultation a few years back: http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/bin...ponses/BBC.pdf

I borrowed one of those from the dealer a couple of weeks ago when mine went in for a service. It was only the FM version, but that performed better than my own (and was slightly less irritating!)- the community station I'm involved with carried all the way to Salisbury in the 108, it auto retunes to BFBS in the 308 whether I want it to or not. But I digress.....

Just to clarify, when I said accuracy I meant of the data rather than the maps.

In what sense is stating the obvious, i.e. that the UKPM needs serious work to move from a 10m outdoor rooftop model, to a 1.5m indoor, correlated fading model, 'fascinating'? And to dispel any myth that this is an intelligent purveyor of input (BBC) to an intelligent consumer of advice (Ofcom), remember that the latter are the geniuses that think that FM equivalent coverage = 99% locations / 99% time*.

I only ever met John Causebrook, the father of the Vodafone/UKPM once, at an IEE conference in the late 80s when I was a lowly PhD student with hair and without beer belly, so don't know whether he's still with us. If not, I'm sure he's rotating at high speed in the grave...

* although that yardstick would sure as hell have been handy over the last couple of weeks, where imported interference in the Hebrides during this lift, that's giving you lucky lot down sarf plenty of coverage, is comprehensively trashing the feeble whispers received on Beeb DAB from Skriaig and Clettraval here in South Uist

Devon mux now renamed to, er "Devon" !!

The Wrexham & chester mux seems to have had a slight power increase.It might be the weather, but i suspect not as all high pressure has gone. It seems too low to be Llangolen, has anyone else noticed a change?

Does anyone happen to know if the power increase for South Hampshire from Chillerton Down has happened yet?

Sometimes I think the signal strength is better in the North of the county (up towards Newbury) but it might just be atmospherics.

according to this

http://frequencyfinder.org.uk/DAB_Multiplexes.pdf

it allready happens

Hmm, that list is showing the fourth site for Nottinghamshire as Nottingham UHF rather than Holme Farm - that's nearer the big gaps at Eastwood and Stapleford - but the former despite being about 2km from the Nottingham UHF site has it's own TV relay (at the other side of the town just over 5km away from Nottingham UHF) so not sure how well that will work for DAB!

Yes, the signal is much stronger into Dorset now, especially Dorchester where it's an easy catch and in other places where the Devon MUX isn't knocking it out.

It's better to the west, worse to the north.

Don't think Llangollen has been switched on yet.

We've seen a increase in the signal strength of the Sheffield multiplex in Retford. I wonder if the Clarborough mast has gone on air?

To add, I've been to the Clarborough mast and sure enough, new antenna for GPS, BBC National DAB and the Sheffield multiplexes. If Clarborough hasn't gone on air, I'm a monkey's uncle.

going by this http://www.ukdigitalradio.com/covera...tails.asp?id=5
st. mark now has D1 coming from the site. so not long before local DAB comes from it or was it put on at the same time.

Yes, Clarborough is on the air, but it's D1 that's providing a filler, not BBC.

From the strength of the signal we were getting, I had thought so but decided to hold off saying anything. The BBC national multiplex is now third strength wise in town.

Odd the BBC isn't broadcasting from there too, considering it (or 'Grove' as it was originally called) was pegged as a future site for strengthening national coverage. Maybe in the future.

Has Crabwood Farm had its power increase on South Hants? Things seem to be back to "normal" as far as signal is concerned round Alresford/Four Marks. Either that or something was amiss at Chillerton Down for a while.

It has. What do you mean by "back to normal"?

After Chillerton Down's power increase, a massive hole appeared in the coverage on the A31 between just east of Winchester and Four Marks, where reception had been OK before. Mark C (I think) speculated that the tx directionality at Chillerton had been tinkered with to acheive the increased power. For the last week reception around Alresford/Four Marks has been solid again, if not stronger.


Edit: see post #351

Something odd also happened to SDL's coverage, a 'hole' appeared on the M3 halfway between J8 and 9. It was there for a few weeks, possibly the same period as the S Hants hole east of Winchester. I wonder if the two are related with work at C Down ?