Freeview 2012 NI Signal Boost-Overspill?

Pangea

So Northern Irelands Freeview HD switchover is being turned on next year I gather and the signal is being turned on fully.
Just wondering should there be significant rise in the number of people in the republic that will be able to get Freeview via overspill?

sesswhat

There should be a significant rise, and for a number of reasons:

• There will be many more Freeview transmitters
• Analogue will be switched off on both sides of the border, cutting down on interference (In East Donegal at the moment for example, I'm losing many Freeview channels with all the Saorview activity)
• The power will be increased
• More people will have digital receivers and idTVs, partly as a result of the publicity around Saorview
• ASO should force people to examine the alternative services available to them, whether that is Saorview, Freesat, FTA satellite or Freeview.

Despite all that, most of the country will never have access to any reliable Freeview service, so satellite will remain the best option for the UK channels.

Pangea

Thanks, I'm in SW Donegal and we used to be able to get the BBC'S UTV and CH4 on analogue up until roughly 15 years ago, not sure what happened but maybe with the freeview powering up next year we might be able to get it again.

sesswhat

You're at the mercy of the mountains there really so it will be very hit and miss in that area. Could it have been a deflector you were getting before?

Pangea

I'm not sure to be honest.
If there was a deflector then who would of put that up? It's purpose would hardly of been for the Freeview channels would it?

Minstrel27

Pangea wrote: »

It's purpose would hardly of been for the Freeview channels would it?

It's purpose would have been for the UK analogue channels.

thomasking22008

i live outside galway tuam area have bbc itv channel 4 through uhf aerial. would have chance recive all freeview channel from north ireland ?

Pangea

Minstrel27 wrote: »

It's purpose would have been for the UK analogue channels.

I wonder who would of put them up? The Irish or the UK TV people? (for want of a better word), strange since the UK analogue channels are not meant to be seen in the Republic.

thomasking22008 wrote: »

i live outside galway tuam area have bbc itv channel 4 through uhf aerial. would have chance recive all freeview channel from north ireland ?

You've got to be kidding, surprised you are getting it, you should have a good chance of getting freeview then.

Minstrel27

Pangea wrote: »

I wonder who would of put them up? The Irish or the UK TV people? (for want of a better word), strange since the UK analogue channels are not meant to be seen in the Republic.

They were put up by local groups so people could have UK television reception and were all over the country.

Vince Cable

thomasking22008 wrote: »

i live outside galway tuam area have bbc itv channel 4 through uhf aerial.

Take a look where your aerial is pointing, you'll probably see the 'deflector' (aka dodgy local relay) on a nearby hill.

Sam Russell

Tuam has deflector service. I assume that is where the BBC etc signals are coming from.

Strawberry HillBilly

Will deflectors be still useful post ASO ? or are they only relevant to analogue ?

snaps

Sam Russell wrote: »

Tuam has deflector service. I assume that is where the BBC etc signals are coming from.

Possibly the deflector between Clairemorris and Castlebar is where that's coming from.

Mike 1972

Tuam had its own deflector but this disappeared in mysterious circumstances in the early 1990's

Since then parts of town have been able to get a signal from Claremorris but this will end next year.

After ASO Freeview signals should be available in the Republic to roughly the same extent as analogue is now (with some variation) but some areas might be missing some channels due to frequency clashes with Saorview transmitters -particularly when the Freeview frequencies get reshuffled to release "digital dividend" spectrum.