where to buy or rent a UHF signal meter?

MiketheMechanic

Does anyone know where I can buy or rent a UHF signal meter?

I'm using a yellow-tip UHF yagi outside. My TV3 and TG4 reception from Woodcock hill is far from ideal (RTE1 & 2 are ok-ish, watchable).
Rather than try organise a portable TV atop my roof, a meter sounds like a much better plan. I plan on adding a masthead amp also, but would rather get the "Barefoot" reception optimised first.

Can anyone help out?

MtM

Foggy43

Maybe some may have a different opinion but I feel Yagi aerials are ok if you live in a very strong reception area. Outside of this you need a DX or some call it a Quad X Aerial.

What I call a Quad X http://www.antiference.co.uk/dx8.htm

I have seen a lot of UHF Aerials installed around my area since the start off Digital Terestrial TV and all are Quad X.

How close are you to Woodcock Hill, Mike?
Quad X antenna are expensive.

Another point, but I need confirmation, a strong signal does not always mean good signal quality.

watty

Get an assistant and a pair of PMR446 radios or mobile phone and point the aerial. The mast amp should be 6ft to 2m away from the aerial to avoid feedback.

Molly those ARE yagi aerials. The X design just makes it a little tolerant of polarisation shift with DX and slightly wider band.

At the end of the day the "real gain" of any yagi (no matter what it is called) is related to the boom length, not the number of spiky bits. After 2 wavelengths length, the increase in gain is marginal, hence big DX aerials use an array of four Yagis. I have seen an array of 32 yagis as there is a limit to gain of an individual one.

If you have one or two strong signals they may prevent you receiving weak ones. If all are too strong (mast amp too high a gain) then the tuner is overloaded and you get herring bone pattern. Common on badly aligned cable systems.

I have to have a 6dB attenuator on my aerial feed (at TV end) AND a mast head amp.


Moving my aerial from roof to back door greatly improved my Woodcock Hill pictures to better than Sky Digital (on 4:3 content, on ARCed 16:9, the Sky is better), as it now has a view under the trees rather than through them!

MiketheMechanic

Thanks Watty, Molly.
Its a 16 element yagi plus rectangular reflector, with boom length of approx 1.2m. Yellow tip for Group B.
The frequencies I'm intereseted in lie between Ch 39 (~615 MHz) for RTE1 and Ch 49 (~700MHz) TG4 from Woodcock.
So that's wavelengths of approximately 42cm to 48cm. Thus, as you mentioned Watty, this yagi is greater than twice the wavelength required. (Almost three times worst case)
I have line of sight to the Eastern part of Woodcock hill but can't see the mast directly. Some houses on slightly higher ground 0.5km away obscure the hill from me (and the antenna)
I presume this is the mast ?
http://uk.geocities.com/mds975/masts/woodcockhill.html
Watty, From the Patrickswell/Limerick City side, where is this mast in relation ro the Radome? Left or right?
Must take a drive up there some day.
MtM

Foggy43

I think I will need a little help from Watty here. I'm sure the TV Mast is South or maybe South East of the Radome. I think there are a few masts on Woodcock Hill.

Watty! My applogies for getting my aerial types wrong. I better do a refresher on the subject. Any sugestions?