Masthead amplifier question

iqon66

Hi guys
I want to get freeview going on my tv which has a built in mpeg2 tuner.I have a triax hg5 digital aerial which has a 12db gain.I live close to the border,I set up my aerial to see what the analogue reception was like and its not great so i guess il need a mast head amplifier.By car the distance from where i live to brougher mountain where the freeview transmitter is 68km from line of sight my aerial pointing towards brougher mountain would be less of a distance i guess.Im not sure what db gain of a mast head amplifier to get as i read if you get a too high db amplifier it can overpower the picture.If anyone can help me out id appreciate it alot.Thanks

Peter Rhea

Amplifiers can't work magic & the Freeview power from Brougher is very low atm. A bit of local knowledge can be most useful in these cases (maybe post your location).

iqon66

Im living in bundoran.There are alot of houses where i live with digital aerials facing towards brougher mountain.so mabye i am wasting my time trying to get freeview or could i get it with proper equipment.

JRH

Your aerial is wideband ? perhaps not great for group A transmitter ...

Not sure how good freeview reception is around Bundoran ...
Im going to give it a quick try for a friend in tullaghan shortly ...
She just needs saorview .. but i'l come armed with cheap group A aerial from Farnell and a tesco booster and give it a go :cool:

byte

Bundoran can be hit and miss for good signal from Brougher - for Freeview, even more so.

There is no such thing as a digital aerial, they all receive digital and analogue signals. Are you sure your neighbours are getting Freeview?

Personally I'd try replace that HG5 (which is wideband) with a Triax UNIX52 Group A (or better equivalent). You will also most likely need a masthead amp. Be careful on the one you choose, as Truskmore is very strong in Bundoran. Maybe get a Group A masthead as opposed to a wideband one. This will probably also necessitate a seperate small Group C/D aerial or that HG5 for Truskmore Saorview and a Group A/CD combiner (with powerpass on the A side for your masthead amp).

iqon66

I live in the tullaghan area also..I thought a wideband aerial covers all the different groups and combines them in the wideband aerial.when i pointed the aerial to brougher i got 2 lights lit up on my Labgear DVB-T Digital TV Aerial Signal Strength Meter .All i picked up is the rte radio channels so mabye truskmore is interfering with the aerial i have faced towards brougher.I dont want to be buying more aerials until i am certain freeview can be picked up where i am.

The Cush

iqon66 wrote: »

I thought a wideband aerial covers all the different groups and combines them in the wideband aerial.

It does but it can be a compromise. Some more information here http://www.aerialsandtv.com/aerials.html#WidebandAerials

watty

Also most Wideband aerials are poor at Group A. They are really Group BC with reduced A and D performance. The higher the gain of Wideband aerial, the worse it is at A and D. Which is why for "weak" reception pairs or quads of aerials for each group are used and then combined.

A mast amp is really only to cancel the loss in the feed cable. Especially on tall masts and longer feeds to the distribution amp. An amplifier also amplifies all the noise and interference received.

iqon66

So i need a group a type aerial,I was looking at different types and i found a triax supergain 18 group a aerial.I wonder would this do the job for me or mabye i need a higher gain aerial.

JRH

few more to choose from here ... i coundn't say which is best though

http://cpcireland.farnell.com/jsp/search/browse.jsp;jsessionid=JWW5FNYIWODLUCQLCIPJKBQ?N=411&Ntk=gensearch&Ntt=group+a+aerial&Ntx=mode+matchallpartial&suggestions=false&ref=globalsearch&_requestid=1278615

Revived45

Just wondering whether a tetra filter before the mast head amp would be a good idea or will the filter performance of the Group A amp be sufficient?

I live in Co Louth but moved to FTA satellite as signal is solid and less prone to interference. My own view is to avoid mast head amps, particularly wideband ones, as I believe the UHF band will be used for a lot more than tv in the future. In time, I believe, masthead amps, particularly wideband ones, will be prone to being overloaded by other local signals delivering broadband in the UHF band.

Not trying to put you off, just giving a view as to the future. Good luck with the project.