Aerial problems

iqon66

Hi guys

I am investing in a tv soon mpeg-4 tuner built in.I live 7km from the truskmore transmitter in co sligo.Have a good view no obsticles blocking the way.I currently use a bunny ears aerial and i pick up rte1,2,tv3 and tg4
no problem very clear.I have a aerial the same as in the picture i have attached and i set it up in the attic pointing towards the truskmore transmitter and the end result was rte 1 and 2 were perfect but tg4 and tv3 were very bad.Any idea what the problem may be????My connections are perfect,etc.Any help much appreciated thanks.

Vince Cable

In what way are TV3 & TG4 'very bad', is it snow or ghosting?

Maybe patterning due to overloading, while the VHF channels are attenuated by the UHF aerial?

Are you sure your connections are good & you're not just picking up signal on the cable?

iqon66

Hi vince
My connections are good i double checked them.I looked at my aerial and its a group b aerial so then looked up the grouping aerial for truskmore transmitter and its a group c-d aerial the aerial im using covers 582-734Mhz
The c-d covers 686-854Mhz so the group a aerial was not covering the frequency for tv3 and tg4 and yes they were ghosting.So that solves my problem i hope.

Vince Cable

iqon66 wrote: »

The c-d covers 686-854Mhz so the group a aerial was not covering the frequency for tv3 and tg4 . . .

It doesn't cover the VHF RTE channels either. I don't think aerial group is going to matter that close to a powerful transmitter, even if you're not actually in the full-power beam.

I don't have experience of reception that close to main transmitters.

iqon66

I might buy a wideband group aerial black tip so.That covers all frequencies.

The Cush

iqon66 wrote: »

I might buy a wideband group aerial black tip so.That covers all frequencies.

Group CD will do for Truskmore - http://www.tvtrade.ie/tv-and-radio-aerials/uhf-aerials.html

Vince Cable

iqon66 wrote: »

I might buy a wideband group aerial black tip so.That covers all frequencies.

The group B aerial might perform alright on the channels used for Saorview (53 & 57; channel 53 is the top of group .
The analogue channels (60 & 63) are further out of its best operating range and gain can fall off quite dramatically above the design group.

lucernarian

Aerials generally work better below the design frequency than above design frequency so a Group C/D may pick up weakish Group A but a Group A will barely pick up Group C/D. VHF is better on grid UHF aerials than the contract yagi aerials as in the attached photo but it wouldn't matter so close to the transmitter!

Is the aerial definitely pointing to Truskmore with the little rods parallel (horizontal) to the ground? And the pressed metal plate is facing away from the transmitter with all the small rods in front towards the transmitter? I just want to double-check the basics, you should be getting reasonable TV3/TG4 from there.

Vince Cable

iqon66 wrote: »

its a group b aerial . . . so the group a aerial was not covering the frequency for tv3 and tg4 and yes they were ghosting.

Just curious, when you went to the trouble of buying a grouped aerial, how did you end up with the wrong one?

Is it group A or B, does it have a colour-coded bung or some other identification?

The ghosting might not affect the Saorview channels or putting the aerial outside (not necessarily too high up) may lessen or get rid of it. Being close to a powerful transmitter doesn't guarantee trouble-free reception.

sourpuss

Hi there,you may be able to use your bunny ears to receive Saorview as you are very close to transmitter, as I have seen them get it at a much greater distance,get the tv and try,you can buy a wideband ariel if signal is inadequte.

Mexecutioner

iqon66 wrote: »

My connections are good i double checked them.

Someone told me that about his diy sat. install recently while wondering why he wasn't getting any signal.

Turns out he'd completely removed the braid to make it easier to fit the f-connectors.

iqon66

Hi vincecable

I ended up with a b group aerial because i moved from the midlands and thats the aerial to use down there i didnt cop on until i read up on the aerials yesterday.Yes i might get away with using bunny ears because i am close to the transmitter.I have heard of people using a coat hanger to receive saorview thats amazing.

Peter Rhea

Don't worry too much about analogue reception at this point, it can be troublesome in areas of very high signal strength.

How long is the downlead from your aerial? A poorly sited aerial combined with a long cable can be particularly vulnerable in these cases.

lucernarian

I wouldn't worry about using any other aerial if the bunny ears are giving good TV3 and TG4 reception. Saorview will romp in on those rabbits ears if existing analogue is good. I'd only spend any money on a better aerial if you are experiencing any breakup when you get your Saorview TV.