Free view advice

grousedogtom

Hi I'm living just outside kilkenny city, this evening I set up a cheap contract group b aerial on a high pole from my garage pointing to Wales, I fitted a group b variable gain amplifier on the aerial, I retuned the tvs and picked up all the freeview stations from Wales, my question is what type group b aerial would be recommended as the one I'm using is the cheapest of the cheap. I'm hoping I can lower the pole once I fit a better quality aerial. Thanks

Antenna

grousedogtom wrote: »

Hi I'm living just outside kilkenny city, this evening I set up a cheap contract group b aerial on a high pole from my garage pointing to Wales, I fitted a group b variable gain amplifier on the aerial, I retuned the tvs and picked up all the freeview stations from Wales, my question is what type group b aerial would be recommended as the one I'm using is the cheapest of the cheap. I'm hoping I can lower the pole once I fit a better quality aerial. Thanks

Don't get your hopes up about having any consistent reception of UK Freeview there (even with a better setup)!
In recent times there has been unusually good FM radio reception here from Wales due to good conditions due to current atmospherics (try 104.9 BBC R4 etc) same goes for TV. It is not normal.

grousedogtom

This is a pic of the signal details, probably unusually good is it?

Sir Arthur Daley

grousedogtom wrote: »

This is a pic of the signal details, probably unusually good is it?

It is the mild weather again a factor.

Oscarziggy

My case is the opposite --- I live on the West Wales coast and receive signals from Mt Leinster 24hrs a day,7 days a week and 365 days of the year The reverse shouldn't be any different --- depending on where you live of course.
Thing is which transmitter are you receiving from using a Group B aerial?

http://www.digitaltvaerialsandsatellite.co.uk/digital_tv_aerial_groups.asp

Regards

Peter Rhea

Oscarziggy wrote: »

Thing is which transmitter are you receiving from using a Group B aerial?

It's Preseli: 120 miles from Kilkenny & with the Blackstairs mountains (the range Mt. Leinster is part of) in the way.

Oscarziggy

Peter Rhea.
Preseli is my local transmitter --- why didn't I know it was group B of course it is !!
Shame about the mountains -- the barometer is falling fast here so be interesting to see what happens in the next few days and into next week.
Regards

Antenna

grousedogtom wrote: »

This is a pic of the signal details, probably unusually good is it?

How is reception since you posted that?

Do you still have reception seeing as atmospheric conditions have changed?

grousedogtom

Antenna wrote: »

How is reception since you posted that?

Do you still have reception seeing as atmospheric conditions have changed?

Checked this evening all good and steady except channel 45 channels are not good, each other channel is fine, still working off a cheap group b aerial, a good quality group b could only help I'd imagine.

Antenna

Peter Rhea wrote: »

It's Preseli: 120 miles from Kilkenny & with the Blackstairs mountains (the range Mt. Leinster is part of) in the way.

Oscarziggy wrote: »

Shame about the mountains -- the barometer is falling fast here so be interesting to see what happens in the next few days and into next week.
Regards

Strange as it may sound but a single mountain (which can't be too near - perhaps 20+ miles away) in the direct path of long distance UHF/VHF signal can actually HELP long-distance reception during normal conditions (compared to the mountain not being there at all)

provided the mountain top has line of sight (or near enough line of sight) with both transmitter in one direction and receiver in the opposite direction.
The effect is more pronounced on a sharp-edged rather than rounded mountain top with no trees etc on the mountaintop.

Plenty reading about the effect here
https://archive.org/stream/jresv65Dn5p437/jresv65Dn5p437_A1b#page/n0/mode/2up