FáilteDAB: Coverage, Tests and Services

Maybe it will but the mux 2 footprint would also cover areas where regional stations Beat (south east) and iRadio (north west) are supposed to have the same audience. Now there's obviously nothing to stop all 3 stations broadcasting on the same mux, they all broadcast on the same internet after all. Speculation about what we might or might not get is fun

When I heard about those fees yesterday I felt it very unfair but the flip side is it might move more of them to DAB given how much cheaper it is to broadcast on. Could also move more of them online is the other risk

With good FM DX this evening here outside Kilcar in Co. Donegal, I took a walk up the hill behind our house with a Reka DAB radio (from Aldi) and a Qodosen DX-286 to try finding the best spot with Galway Bay on 96.8MHz. I did a DAB scan and picked up the FáilteDAB Mux 2 along with the 3 muxes from Northern Ireland.

The following is the sequence of info screens on the station playing the test tone, which I thought I would preserve from the test station:

Northern Ireland DAB signal here for comparison:

On FM I was also picking FM stations from the East such as Nova on 100.3MHz (below) and Dublin's Q102 (slogan during an ad break) on 102.2MHz. I haven't managed to pick up the original FáilteDAB mux to date during any DX event.

White Mountain.

52.50700475432892, -6.842576340373493

Nice lift this morning. Mux1, D1, BBC, SDL and N. Ireland coming in in Castlebar . Quite strong too, could hear it until you dip down to go into town .

Hopefully some of ye can get rx of Mx 2 now. Kiltimagh be on Sunday and Nowen Hill soon apparently.

Where is Nowen Hill

Yes, West Cork . I wonder how the coverage will be in Co. Cork. They will 3 transmitters then!

Didn't think Donegal would get a Mux 2 signal or is it just atmospherics due to the good weather?

Na, just tropo propagation

sorry for duplicate post. Boards or my net seems to b acting up

Just checked my DAB radio. The tone has changed to a very high pitched tone. Fàilte DAB signal coming from Keeper Hill in North Tipperary.

oh it is tropospheric ducting

Here near Arklow we always have UK DAB but today coming in is Bayside north wales radio which is a local station I’ve never seen before that covers Colwyn Bay and Llandudno in North Wales,varying between just 1 and 2 bars in signal on the roberts presumably on very low power

On strong stations, the sound quality is much better on the Qodosen DX-286, especially with headphones. On weak stations with the telescopic antenna, the Qodosen is a night vs day difference, especially with stations 0.1MHz apart. With an external FM antenna away from any source of interference, it also picks up weak stations that my Tescun PL-880 cannot tune.

I made a short clip to give an example. The clip starts with me trying trying to pick up Shannonside radio with the Reka, Tescun PL-880 and Qodosen DX-286 on the same external 100cm aerial in a south facing window. I then try to tune a today FM relay on 101.1MHz and Q-Radio (Northern Ireland) on 101.2MHz on both the Tescun and Qodosen.

I look forward to FailteDAB 11B going live on Kiltimagh as I pick up Midwest radio reasonably well without any tropospheric propagation.

Travelled to Rosslare from North Cork this morning, strong Mux 2 signal all the way through South Tipp, Waterford into Wexford. Mux 1 also available in Rosslare today, but that's the weather as it isn't normally here. Also some Welsh DAB coming in due to weather, BBC radio on FM is here pretty much always.

Good strong tone received today on Pembrokeshire coast on Roberts Duologic radio with telescopc aerial.

I know conditions are up as the slightest hint of a lift obliterates reception of RTE etc TV from Mt Leinster — I've never discovered why but once lift conditions return to normal the TV signal will be 100%.