DTT with an indoor aerial in Dublin 2..

holidaysong

Could anyone here let me know if they have been able to receive the Irish DTT tests using an indoor aerial in the Pearse Street / Townsend Street area of Dublin 2?

I just got rid of my Sky subscription and as I'm unable to erect an outdoor or loft aerial in the apartment I live in I'm stuck using an indoor aerial for the four Irish channels. I'm currently looking at a couple of MPEG-4 receivers on ebay but I don't really want to splash out €70 for one if there's no hope of it working with an indoor aerial.

Any info would be appreciated.

Mr McBoatface

You can continue to use your old sky box to get free to air satellite channels like BBC, ITV, channel 4 , channels 5 and so on. Turn off you sky box at the mains and remove your old card from the sky box and the EPG will have changed to the UK default. If you try to view channels pay tv channels like Sky one a pop up error will appear. For tuning in some extra channels on the Sky box read this - http://boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055520627

The Irish DTT service which is not launched officially it's only testing at the moment you'll currently only get RTE 1&2 , TG4 and RTE news now. In October TV3 and 3E maybe there along with 1 or 2 more. See the stickies at the top of the page.

If you can get TV3 on analogue even a poor signal using and indoor aerial you should get "Saorview" the Irish DTT service without any problems

holidaysong

I'm already aware of the info in your first two paragraphs but in relation to the third paragraph, you're saying that a good TV3 analogue signal should translate into a good DTT signal for me? At the moment, my TV3 and TG4 signals are quite good (UHF I'm assuming) while my two RTÉ channels are useless (VHF?) so a DTT receiver will give me the RTÉ channels through DTT, while I can continue to live with getting TV3 on analogue until the official launch later in the year.

Cheers for the reply!

lucernarian

I've had very variable successes with DTT in that area. Not being on a ground floor and having a southeast facing window are usually enough. Also, newer houses or apartments really do cause problems through any foil backed insulation so a window becomes particularly useful. If there are particularly tall buildings in your way (the sports centre in TCD being an example) then of course that could be problematic.

But if you have TG4 (not so much TV3 particularly in Dublin) strong enough e.g. you can receive a half-readable teletext signal, you'll likely have no problems getting DTT.

Did you try tuning your TV fully for RTE1/2?? You can get RTE1 and 2 on Channel 29 and 33 in Dublin, from Three Rock mountain. Otherwise it's VHF from Kippure, which could be worse to receive than Ch 29/33 in specific circumstances.

holidaysong

Thanks TBC,

I've RTÉ 1 & 2 tuned in from Three Rock now. Much better than the VHF ones.

I'm in the first floor in a new build apartment. My sitting room is east facing with a large window though so I've the aerial placed in a good spot beside it.

My teletext on TV3 (and now the RTÉ 2 from Three Rock) are almost perfect, but it's not even half readable on TG4 unfortunately. When you say TG4 is a better guide in Dublin I take it this is because the RTÉ DTT Mux transmits on a channel closer to TG4 than TV3?

Anyway, thanks for your help.

lucernarian

holidaysong wrote:

My teletext on TV3 (and now the RTÉ 2 from Three Rock) are almost perfect, but it's not even half readable on TG4 unfortunately. When you say TG4 is a better guide in Dublin I take it this is because the RTÉ DTT Mux transmits on a channel closer to TG4 than TV3?

Precisely.

But, I have managed reliable DTT reception while not even being able to receive Three Rock TG4 in colour. It would be pretty much beyond doubt if you managed teletext on TG4 but if you manage even bits of teletext showing up on screen, you're probably in business for DTT too. How good is TG4 picture in general??

holidaysong

To_be_confirmed wrote: »

How good is TG4 picture in general??

The TG4 picture is fine. In full colour and the quality remains constant. Almost as good as TV3, it's just the teletext that isn't as good. Anyway, I'm a lot more optimistic about it now than I was yesterday so I'm going to splash out on the DTT receiver from ebay and see how it turns out. Will report back with my findings when it arrives.

Thanks for the help.

watty

Make sure it's HD (even if you you have no HDTV) not just MPEG4 and has MHEG5.
Should have SCART and HDMI connections -BOTH-

Better still wait 4 months.

lucernarian

Watty's right there, there's still a bit too much uncertainty about whether the receivers are worth the money if RTE do broadcast mainly HD channels etc.

Getting a cheap USB receiver from dealextreme or ebay along with some software that handles H.264 video will work nicely for the moment, and at far less cost. Of course, that involves using a computer. ProgDVB pro has a 3 week trial period which can let you fool around with a USB dongle and see how good reception is etc.

holidaysong

I'm also in the market for a new TV at the moment so could I kill two birds with one stone by going for this TV , the LG 26LD350. I've two concerns about this TV though; first of all, it doesn't refer to MHEG-5 at all (am I correct in thinking this relates to EPG/teletext functionality)? Should I be worried by this? And secondly, it's only 720p. I thought HD was more than this, 1080 and above?

If I don't go for the MPEG-4 TV at this time then the box I'm looking at is this one. Again there's nothing about MHEG-5 but it is HD at least.

I realise the smart thing to do would be to wait for a box with a Saorview sticker on it but they might not be out for another 6 months, which is quite a while to put up with (only) indoor analogue reception on the Irish channels.

watty

I doubt it's 720p

"HD Ready" means MUST display 1080i and 720p, by resampling. Native resolution is usually 1366 x 768, but can in fact be almost anything.
"HD Ready" LCDs are needed to give decent ordinary resolution pictures as the non-HD LCDs are fixed pixel unlike CRT, thus give poorer pictures if the source isn't digital and exactly matching the native pixels. Since SD (non-HD) can be 384, 544, 704 or 720 wide in 4:3 or 16:9 (thus EIGHT resolutions), an HD Ready LCD is the minimum.

You need an actual HD TV, 1920 x 1080 native pixels as all HD broadcast is 1080i lines. None is 720p.

There is no TV3 yet on DTT anyway, nor any assurance of service till November 2010, though breaks etc are less frequent. So waiting 3 months at least makes sense till we see what TV3 does.

Unless a TV has HD 1920 x1080 native, MPEG4 HD DTT tuner it's a bad idea. Not having MHEG5 has unknown consequences. It's largely a Text and extended EPG system.

All Saorview set-box have HDMI for HDTV and automatically downsample to SCART for non-HD Tvs.

STB

Get an Edision Argus 2n1 from Saor TV. €160.

Does HD sat and DTT. You will have no problem picking up DTT in town (and its quality is like that of a sat station in comparison to fuzzy analogue).

Your existing aerial and Satellite cable plugs in the back. One channel list which you can organise yourself.

holidaysong

That doesn't have a 7 day EPG though, unlike the Sagem Freesat HD which costs just €129. The DTT element is really redundant for me though as I'm in the market for a HD TV and I'm not going to go for anything less than MPEG-4 so I don't really plan on needing a STB for DTT long term.

Watty, thanks for that info. Gives me quite a bit to take on board. Don't think I'll gamble on a STB at the moment but if I do go for a HD TV in the next few months I'll keep in mind your suggestions.

STB

The Sagem doesnt do DTT. It does satelitte only. It does not offer record facilities. Why would you restrict youself ?

For an extra 30 euro the Edision is MPEG4 for both Sat and DTT. 7 day epg for DTT. Now next for Sat. And you can record via USB.
When Saorsat comes on next April it will work for that too.

It connects to your existing TV.

One channel list. One remote control.

If you are simply buying a new TV with MPEG4 then look at the LG LF7700 range, full HD, DTT and HD Sat tuners and also have VHF/UHF analogue tuners and play Divx.

They are also cheap.

There is no gamble, the specs are out.

holidaysong

Not having a 7 day EPG for the sat would be a big downside for me though. I'd prefer to have that than have just one channel list, one remote control, etc.

Could you guide me to an Irish website that lists the LG LF7700 and how much it costs?

almighty1

holidaysong wrote: »

Not having a 7 day EPG for the sat would be a big downside for me though. I'd prefer to have that than have just one channel list, one remote control, etc.

Could you guide me to an Irish website that lists the LG LF7700 and how much it costs?

https://www.richersounds.ie/asp/product.asp?ObjectID=930&Mode=0&productid=1009&Results=true&keys=LF7700

holidaysong

Thanks for the link. A bit out of my price range at the moment though.

STB

There is a 32" and 37" in the range as well. £399 afaik.

holidaysong

Just an update in relation to my opening post, I went ahead and got a new TV with a built in MPEG-4 tuner and I'm picking up DTT load and clear with my indoor aerial. Signal strength of 70% and signal quality of 100%.

fat-tony

STB wrote: »

There is a 32" and 37" in the range as well. £399 afaik.

LG have discontinued the LF7700 (AFAIK). The 32" is as scarce as hens teeth - Richer Sounds don't seem to have any left - am waiting on word to see if they can source one anywhere for me.

STB

http://www.directtvs.co.uk/LG_32LF7700_32_Inch_Freesat_Full_HD_LCD_TV_32LF7700/version.asp

STG £470 - Irish Tel Number= STG £24.95 delivery.

They are as dear as £700 for anyone mad enough to pay those prices.

If in the UK you can get one from coop elec (they dont deliver to Ireland)

http://www.coopelectricalshop.co.uk/products/ProductDetail.asp?ProductCode=LG-LCD-32LF7700-BL&source=KELKOO&utm_source=kelkoo&utm_medium=Price+Comparison&utm_campaign=Kelkoo&tduid=ded8ac7fa910333ffef026610c1c37d6

£440