FAQ: Analogue, DTT, Aerials

babo9

watty wrote: »

Argos aerials are mostly overpriced Junk
That looks like a cheap copy of a Televes DAT75.

It depends where you are as to how big (how much gain) of aerial you need.

You are best to buy aerials from a proper supplier, not general retailer where you pay x2 to x4 for poor design.

Cool thanks,
Well currently I've just moved house and waiting on my lcd to be delivered.
Have an old old CRT to check signal now , using about 2 meters of coaxial attached to the curtain pole with a exposed copper wire on the end attached to nothing but a single 30 * 30 cm piece of tin foil and I get good reception for all channels depending which way the tin foil is rotated! I can get perfect RTE1 and 2 and good tv3 and tg4! State of the art stuff

ActingDanClark

not for one minute suggesting that i know better than watt et al., but living in a valley i couldnt get any signal using indoor aerials costing €20ish, but installed one of these aerials from argos in the attic and immediately had perfect reception of irish dtt, which of course now includes tv3. i have since bought two more and they're happily nesting in the attic-totally unsuitable for outdoor use though..

tvercetti

damian139 wrote: »

not for one minute suggesting that i know better than watt et al., but living in a valley i couldnt get any signal using indoor aerials costing €20ish, but installed one of these aerials from argos in the attic and immediately had perfect reception of irish dtt, which of course now includes tv3. i have since bought two more and they're happily nesting in the attic-totally unsuitable for outdoor use though..

which aerial did u get

ActingDanClark

i got one thats now €8.99 in argos, but the first one i bought was €39.99.
http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/9239690/Trail/searchtext%3EUHF.htm

watty

Those are junk and not suitable for other than Attic.

babo9

babo9 wrote: »

Was about to buy that today until I saw the comments here!
What about this one? Apologies if it's been discussed before but can't find it!
23.99 down from 79.99.
http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/9239717/Trail/searchtext%3EUHF.htm

Well I went ahead and bought it, must say I'm delighed, mounted it in the attic and have perfect digital reception and good analog. Pointed towards our closest broadcast (4 km).
I get signal reception in the 90's, picks up 8 analog channells and 32 digital (some are repeats though).
The aerial is made by Bush it turns out, here are the stats :


To contrast it I was using this modified pizza box :

Signal strength 35 - 45ish, placed next to tv downstairs.
It got 8 analog which were patchy but you could get each one good enough by moving it around. It picked up 16 digital channels which displayed perfectly but were blocky every now and again.

P.S. loving the hd footage they broadcast on RTE NL

Joe7

Did you design that pizza box thing yourself?

ActingDanClark

what are the 32 digital channels you picked up?

babo9

Joe7 wrote: »

Did you design that pizza box thing yourself?

Lol, inspired by that DIY tin foil and coat hanger attic aerial that you see posted around the net! Just wanted something quick

damian139 wrote: »

what are the 32 digital channels you picked up?

RTE1, RTE2, RTE News, RTE NL, tv3, tg4 (then they're repeated again, I'm smack in the middle of two broadcast stations so maybe that has something to do with it?) and then a whole host of radio channels!

Btw weather has gotten horrific here in Cork, storm for the night, signal strength is fluctuating between 70's and 90's now but picture only slightly affected every 15 mins maybe!

paddyp

watty wrote: »

Argos aerials are mostly overpriced Junk
That looks like a cheap copy of a Televes DAT75.

It depends where you are as to how big (how much gain) of aerial you need.

You are best to buy aerials from a proper supplier, not general retailer where you pay x2 to x4 for poor design.

Hi Watty,

Do you sell the blake ones or do I need to go to farnell I'd be interested in two on the sr18 ones. Cheers

watty

I don't sell anything.
See the stickies for suppliers here and techtir

almighty1

watty wrote: »

Those are junk and not suitable for other than Attic.

But would still suit a substantial percentage of the population?

What I mean is, wouldnt the majority of people get a perfect reception with an attic aerial?

I have an aerial like this, 15 miles from Mt Leinster with no line of sight and my reception is perfect.

Tom Slick

They tried to sell that €8.99 aerial for nearly 40 quid! I wouldn't give them a penny.

DingDong

Anybody use one of these:

Wideband UHF Aerial €23

Blake 32 Element €26

Triax DIGI 343 €45

A friend is looking to setup an aerial he is roughly 36Kms from three rock and 60Km from Clermount Cairn. He is a few Km's south of the Naul so Clermount Cairn maybe the best option?.

lucernarian

If he's south of The Naul then he won't have much luck with Clermont Carn. Three Rock is currently much more powerful. Any of those aerials should work outside, there's not a massive amount between them so I'd go with the cheapest. They usually work well inside an attic too but it varies widely from house to house.

Also, see www.techtir.ie for other useful info on aerials etc.

evilivor

coylemj wrote: »

What transmitter are you looking to receive from? If it's a UHF only signal then the indoor UHF aerial on Watty's post above (below the rabbit's ears) will do the trick if you're signal is reasonably strong.

Afternoon, looking for a steer if possible. I can get the digital channels perfectly on my bedroom tv using set-top box and a battered, old set of rabbits ears so no problem there, all coming in loud and clear.

However, when I try and set it up downstairs in my living room, the room directly underneath, I can't get any signal at all it seems. So can any one recommend an indoor aerial that might help me gain a better signal (if possible)?

Cork City centre location. Any help appreciated.

watty

Aerials like ones on this page. http://www.saortv.info/terrestrial-saorview/

Really a big aerial like one at bottom of page in the attic can feed all your TVs and reduce interfernce and noise (symptoms are artefacts on moving video and occasional pixellation to even "freeze" or frame dropping).

evilivor

watty wrote: »

Aerials like ones on this page. http://www.saortv.info/terrestrial-saorview/

Really a big aerial like one at bottom of page in the attic can feed all your TVs and reduce interfernce and noise (symptoms are artefacts on moving video and occasional pixellation to even "freeze" or frame dropping).

Thanks Watty.

Borrowed one of these


and got the same result: all channels upstairs and no-signal downstairs.

Most odd.

Might investigate getting a roof or attic aerial installation done.

watty

Even one of those in the attic with 4 way distribution amp (usually the ones with screw on satellite style plugs are better than the push in plug models) in the attic.

Oat23

Bought the following aerial in argos on the off chance it would work with saorview - http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/9004272/c_1/1|category_root|Home%2Bentertainment%2Band%2Bsat%2Bnav|14419512/c_2/2|cat_14419512|Television%2Baerials%2Band%2Bboosters|14573578.htm
I plugged it in to my 32'' Sony Bravia and went to the digital tv set-up page, auto tuned, and I picked up 10 radio channels. Can't pick up any TV channels though. Like I said I chanced it but it doesn't look like it worked. My question is: Is the aerial capable of picking up the saorview tv channels or should I bring it back?
Not fussed if it doesn't tbh, would have been nice to have the saorview channels but if I can't, oh well.

Maybe it's the TV that can't pick up anything other than the radio channels?

Sam Russell

Oatesy23 wrote: »

Maybe it's the TV that can't pick up anything other than the radio channels?

Your TV may not have MPEG4. What model is it?

Oat23

Sam Russell wrote: »

Your TV may not have MPEG4. What model is it?

Sony Bravia 32'' KDL-32L4000

Sam Russell

Oatesy23 wrote: »

Sony Bravia 32'' KDL-32L4000

Looking at the manual, the TV is MPEG2, so no Saorview. It should load the epg and TV stations, but no video.

You need a set top box. You are receiving the signal though so your aerial works.

Oat23

Sam Russell wrote: »

Looking at the manual, the TV is MPEG2, so no Saorview. It should load the epg and TV stations, but no video.

You need a set top box. You are receiving the signal though so your aerial works.

Cheers, any idea if this would work?
Don't fancy buying a set top box atm. It'd fit nicely into my pc set up if it did work .

edit: Just seen on this link that the person is using the mobi dual .

watty

I tested the Dual tuner version. Better value. See results.
http://www.techtir.ie/reviews/mobidtv-dual-usb-dtt

Both are available at a good Buy it Now price from UK. I have NOT tested the Pro.

The Dual tuner aspect will be invaluable in a few months only.

Does not work on Linux or Apple.

Unless you have a version of Windows 7 that includes Media Center (the minimal at least doesn't), you need the "Total Media 3.5" as it includes decent MPEG4 codecs and works 32 bit/64bit, XP, Vista, Win7 out of the box if your PC is able.

Oat23

Cheers watty. I'll have to order one from ebay soon!

bigron2109

Was Picking up free view stations from Wales for the past 6 months, i live near rosslare harbour, but they have gone at the moment..Think the aerial we have in the house could be gone, but it still picks up the RTE, and TV3.

Could some one reccomend me a aerial for the bedroom to pick up this freeview stations again.

This is the make of the tele. Neon 37inch Wide Screen LCD TV with DVB & DVD
Model no : C 3770F

lensman

Would this do the Irish DTT service ?
http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/9239690/c_1/1|category_root|Home+entertainment+and+sat+nav|14419512/Trail/searchtext%3EARIEL.htm

BostonB

Are there any cheap DTT Set stop boxes that would work just for DTT on the old CRT TV. Seems a shame to replace a decent CRT to get a tuner.

Sam Russell

lensman wrote: »

Would this do the Irish DTT service ?
http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/9239690/c_1/1|category_root|Home+entertainment+and+sat+nav|14419512/Trail/searchtext%3EARIEL.htm

Yes but it is fragile and should go in the attic. Bacofoil construction.