Muirkirk transmitter - analogue switch-off

Muirkirk digital switchover schedule

Note: This is the only schedule for digital switchover. Digital services cannot be introduced before the dates listed for "testing purposes" as they will generally use the same transmission frequencies as the services they replace. Another alternative, available today, is Freesat.

May 2011 S M T W T F S 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 - - - -

BBC Two Scotland analogue switched off. The following Freeview digital services will be available: 1 BBC One Scotland 2 BBC Two Scotland 7 BBC Three 9 BBC Four 70 CBBC Channel 71 CBeebies 80 BBC News 81 BBC Parliament 105 BBC Red Button 301 BBCi 301 700 BBC Radio 1 701 1Xtra BBC 702 BBC Radio 2 703 BBC Radio 3 704 BBC Radio 4 705 BBC Radio 5 Live 706 BBC Radio 5 Live Sports Extra 707 BBC Radio 6 Music 708 BBC Radio 7 709 BBC Asian Network 710 BBC World Service 719 BBC Radio Scotland 720 BBC Radio nan Gaidheal

May 2011 S M T W T F S 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 - - - -

BBC One Scotland, ITV-1 STV and Channel 4 analogue switched off. The following Freeview digital services will be available: 3 ITV1 STV 4 Channel 4 5 FIVE 6 ITV2 13 Channel 4+1 14 More4 28 E4 33 ITV2+1 50 BBC HD 51 ITV1 HD 52 Channel 4 HD 100 Teletext 102 Rabbit 106 Direct Gov 107 Gay Rabbit

Transmission frequencies

Before Sunday 15th November 1998

C41	C44	C47	C51
ITV1	BBC TWO	C4	BBC One

Sunday 15th November 1998 to Wednesday 11th May 2011

C41	C44	C47	C51
ITV1	BBC TWO	C4	BBC One

After Wednesday 25th May 2011

C41	C44	C47
Mux D3+4	Mux BBCA	Mux BBCB

Colour bands denote aerial groups: Red:A Yellow:B Green:C/D Brown:E Grey:K Black:Wideband

Notes

'Out of group' frequencies are marked with a star. Analogue power output 100 Watts, post switchover average digital multiplex output will be 20 Watts.

To receive signals from this transmitter, the aerial must be mounted for vertical polarization - the elements going from top to bottom.

Before switchover, the public service broadcasting multiplexes were 1, 2 and B; afterwards they were first PSB1, 2 and 3 but now called BBCA, D3+4 and BBCB. The commercial multiplexes A, C and D had initial post-switchover names COM4, 5 and 6; now they are SDN, ArqA and ArqB. At switchover BBCA, ArqA and ArqB will switch from 16QAM to 64QAM mode transmission, so five multiplexes will transmit in the 64QAM (2/3) 8k mode. BBCB is used for Freeview HD (DVB-T2, 256QAM), and has a pre-switchover service on selected main transmitters.

After switchover an existing group B aerial will provide all digital TV services.

See full list of analogue transmitters for a complete list of shutdown dates.

itv1 - Darvel transmitter area*

Date	Incumbent ITV company
31st Aug 1957 to date	Scottish Television
1st Feb 1983 to 31st Dec 1992	TV-am (breakfast)
1st Jan 1993 to date	GMTV (breakfast)
Note	For digital switchover this region is now known as STV.

* The Muirkirk transmitter was not an original ITV VHF 405-line transmitter: the historical information shown above includes the details of the company reponsible for the Muirkirk transmitter when it began transmission.

Your comments are always welcome. Please use the form below to add your thoughts or questions to this page. We will get back to you as soon as we can.