Freeview: Rowridge (Isle Of Wight, England) Full Freeview transmitter
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Full Freeview on the Rowridge (Isle Of Wight, England) transmitter

Google StreetviewGoogle mapBing mapGoogle Earth50.676,-1.369 or 50°40'35"N 1°22'7"WPO30 4HT

4G at 800MHz (at800) Freeview reception issues

When 800MHz 4G mobile broadband services start there will be 2 multiplexes in the higher risk range (C21-23, C30, C59-60): C22: ArqA, C21: BBCB
See How do I know if the 4G broadband will overload my Freeview? and Full UK map of 4G issue areas for details.

This transmitter has no current reported problems

The BBC and Digital UK report there are no faults or engineering work on the Rowridge (Isle Of Wight, England) transmitter. Click to recheck

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The symbol shows the location of the Rowridge (Isle Of Wight, England) transmitter which serves 620,000 homes.

Other maps:Rowridge DABRowridge AM/FMRowridge regionBBC SouthMeridian (South Coast micro region)

Radiation patterns

Radiation patterns withheld

Map key

The bright green areas shown where the signal from this transmitter is strong, dark green areas are poorer signals. Those parts shown in yellow may have interference on the same frequency from other masts.


List by multiplex|List by channel number|List by channel name|See terrain plot

Rowridge transmitter Freeview broadcasts

If you have any kind of Freeview fault, follow this Freeview reset procedure first.

Digital television services are broadcast on a multiplexes (or Mux) where many stations occupy a single broadcast frequency, as shown below.

MuxAerial positionFrequencyHeightModeWatts
PSB1
BBCA
 vertical max
 horizontal max
C24 (498.0MHz)
320m64QAM 8K 2/3
24.1Mb/s DVB-T MPEG2		200,000W
200,000W
Channel icons
1 BBC One South, 2 BBC Two England, 7 BBC Three, 9 BBC Four, 70 CBBC Channel, 71 CBeebies, 80 BBC News, 81 BBC Parliament, 301 301, plus 12 others

PSB2
D3+4
 vertical max
 horizontal max
C27 (522.0MHz)
320m64QAM 8K 2/3
24.1Mb/s DVB-T MPEG2		200,000W
200,000W
Channel icons
3 ITV (Meridian (South Coast micro region)), 4 Channel 4 South ads, 5 Channel 5 Part Network ads, 6 ITV 2, 13 Channel 4+1 South ads, 14 More 4, 28 E4, 33 ITV +1 (Meridian south coast),

PSB3
BBCB
 vertical max
 horizontal max
C21+ (474.2MHz)
320m256QAM 32KE 2/3
40.2Mb/s DVB-T2 MPEG4		200,000W
200,000W
Channel icons
101 BBC One HD (England no regional news), 102 BBC Two HD (England), 103 ITV HD (ITV Meridian Southampton), 104 Channel 4 HD South ads, plus 1 others

COM4
SDN
 vertical max
 horizontal -6dB
C25 (506.0MHz)
299m64QAM 8K 3/4
27.1Mb/s DVB-T MPEG2		200,000W
50,000W
Channel icons
10 ITV 3, 20 G.O.L.D. (not free), 25 Dave ja vu, 26 Home (not free), 27 ITV 2 +1, 30 5*, 31 5USA, 34 ESPN UK (not free), 38 Quest, 39 The Zone, 44 Channel 5 +1, 72 CITV, plus 22 others

COM5
ArqA
 vertical max
 horizontal -6dB
C22+ (482.2MHz)
302m64QAM 8K 3/4
27.1Mb/s DVB-T MPEG2		200,000W
50,000W
Channel icons
11 PICK TV, 12 Dave, 17 Really, 29 E4+1, 32 Movie Mix, 46 Challenge, 48 Food Network, 82 Sky News, 87 Community Channel, plus 9 others

COM6
ArqB
 vertical max
 horizontal -6dB
C28 (530.0MHz)
302m64QAM 8K 3/4
27.1Mb/s DVB-T MPEG2		200,000W
50,000W
Channel icons
15 Film 4, 18 4Music, 19 Yesterday, 21 VIVA, 24 ITV 4, 41 Sky Sports 1 (not free), 42 Sky Sports 2 (not free), 47 4seven, 83 Al Jazeera English, 85 RT English , plus 21 others



Regional news from the Rowridge transmitter


BBC South Today 1.3m homes 4.9%
from Southampton SO14 7PU, 26km north
to BBC South region - 39 masts.

ITV Meridian News 0.8m homes 3.2%
from Whiteley PO15 7AD, 24km north-northeast
to ITV Meridian (South Coast) region - 36 masts.

Self-help relays

Portsmouth DocksTransposer2 km N city centre50 homes Estimate. Group of houses'

How the transmission frequencies change over time

years1950s~851984-971997-981998-20122012-132013-182013-182019-
aerial groupVHFA KA KA KA KA KA KA K
C3BBCtv
C21C4C4C4+BBCB+BBCB+BBCBBBCB
C22+ArqA+ArqA+ArqASDN
C24BBC2BBC2BBC2BBCABBCABBCAD3+4
C25SDNSDNSDNArqA
C27ITVITVITVD3+4D3+4D3+4BBCA
C28+BArqBArqBArqBArqB
C30-Alocal
600C31BBC1BBC1BBC1com7
C32+2
C33+D
C341
C37+Ccom8

orange background for multiplexes names moregreen background for transmission frequencieslilac background for power levels in watts800MHz band: 4G mobile to start in 2013700MHz band: possible 4G in 2019 more600MHz band: new or moved digital TV services more
Notes: + and - denote 166kHz offset; aerial group are shown as A B C/D E K W
Italics for analogue, digital switchover was Wednesdays 7th March and 21st March 2012.

  • Ofcom have projected that a local television service for Southampton including Eastleigh, Fareham, parts of Isle of Wight, parts of Portsmouth, Winchester could use an Interleaved Frequency on the Rowridge transmitter using C30
  • COM7, COM8 projected for 2013-16. COM7 and COM8 to operate as Midhurst,Rowridge VP, Salisbury SFN.
  • COM7, COM8 projected for 2013-16.

Comparison of old analogue and current digital signal levels

Analogue 1-4 500kW
COM4||, COM5||, COM6||, com7≡, com7||, com8||, com8≡, PSB1≡, PSB1||, PSB2≡, PSB2||, PSB3≡, PSB3||(-4dB) 200kW
COM4≡, COM5≡, COM6≡(-10dB) 50kW
Mux 1*, Mux 2*, Mux A*, Mux B*, Mux C*, Mux D*(-14dB) 20kW

History of Channel 3 in the Rowridge transmitter area

Aug 1958-Jan 1992Southern Television
Jan 1982-Dec 1992Television South (TVS)
Jan 1993-Feb 2004Meridian
Feb 2004-Dec 2014ITV plc
Feb 1983-Dec 1992TV-am•
Jan 1993-Sep 2010GMTV•
Sep 2010-Dec 2014ITV Daybreak•
• Breakfast ◊ Weekends ♦ Friday night and weekends † Weekdays only. Rowridge was not an original Channel 3 VHF 405-line mast: the historical information shown is the details of the company responsible for the transmitter when it began transmitting Channel 3.


Your comments: most recent posts are at the bottom

firstFirst comments prevEarlier comments  ◊  Later commentsnext Latest commentslast

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.

jb38
Thursday 8 March 2012 9:29AM
Stephen: As nothing is seen mentioned as yet about any fault being in existence on Rowridges BBC mux you should consider the possibility of the signal you receive being excessively powerful thereby blocking your tuner on that channel, as its presently only the BBC mux that's operating on 200Kw, ITV still only being on 20Kw until March 21st, needless to say that if you use an aerial amplifier temporarily try by passing it.

Should you not use an aerial amplifier then if you have access to a set top aerial give your TV or whatever a re-tune (essential) with that plugged in, as it doesn't matter if any picture received is iffy as its really more the case of if you get it at all. Should a set top aerial not be available then just use a small length (about 600mm or so) of wire pushed into the middle part of the TV's aerial socket and carry out a re-tune, as if your problem is being caused by a high level of signal this test will prove it one way or the other.
Christopher Gray
Thursday 8 March 2012 11:30AM New Milton
I'm trying to help my Dad re-tune - he is in New Milton on the Rowridge transmitter. He can't get BBC1, BBC2, BBC News, which should be in 24. Anyone help?
Kev
Thursday 8 March 2012 1:04PM
Interesting issue with my ondigital tv.. can pick up all but the new (moved) BBC mux, which has moved to an 8k signal...
I have the Philips 32dw9625 which on this site says does not support 8k, but the spec says it supports DVB COFDM 2k/8k ..?
Are all the muxes moving to 8k? I had read that some TVs cannot support both 'at the same time'...
Any ideas? I know I can easily get a box and plug that in, just interested from a tech perspective why it's not working.
Andy
Thursday 8 March 2012 1:43PM
Have had problems receiving MUX2 (ITV1, CH4, CH5, ITV2 etc) even before yesterdays switchover, but now I have retuned (3 or 4 times) MUX2 does not even register on my TV. How come every other MUX ecept the BBC one is on low power, is that why I'm not receiving these channels?
Dave
Thursday 8 March 2012 2:05PM Brighton
Is there any usual order for the remaining analogue channels to go off air or not anyone know ?
Lynda
Thursday 8 March 2012 3:43PM
Thanks Dave Lindsay, but I was recording on Freeview's BBC1...........so was it still right not to record it ? No biggie as last night's worked as usual, I was just wondering.
Mike Dimmick
Thursday 8 March 2012 3:58PM
Lynda: the old location for BBC digital channels, on UHF channel C34, was closed down shortly after midnight. The new location, UHF C24, didn't start up until several hours later. Your recorder wouldn't notice the change until you retuned, or until it did its own automatic retune scan, but the service could still have been off-air at the scheduled recording time anyway.

You're lucky that your recorder apparently preserves its recording schedule across retunes! Most don't.
Solent-Viewer
Thursday 8 March 2012 5:06PM
After y'days fiasco, I retuned again this morning and got everything just fine, but at 16:30 every station within MUX-C went off air. Any ideas as to why this occured.

I notice that from the above chart, some MUX's are still on very low power, so when will this increase to the full 200KW??
Darren Jones
Thursday 8 March 2012 6:27PM
200kw will be from 21st on mux 1-3, the others will go to 50kw, I think on April 18. All are horizontal. however, it will be doing all 6 in vertical at 200kw, I think from 21 Mar but could be 18 April...
Chris
Thursday 8 March 2012 9:01PM Fareham
Since yesterday I lost all digital channels (Fareham, rooftop antenna pointed at Rowridge, reset/retuned). However today I found I can get perfect reception on BBC channels (BBCA) and tolerable reception on all others with a metal coathanger balanced on the antenna input socket, about 1 metre off the ground! I can only guess the 200kW on BBCA is overwhelming my tuners with the antenna gain. I tried a variable attenuator on the rooftop antenna feed, nowhere in the spec'd range (0-20dB) would it tune in.

Signal looks way too strong from here.
Mark Fletcher
Friday 9 March 2012 4:07AM Halifax
Dave,Brighton.The remaining four analogue channels BBC1,ITV1,C4,C5,will be switched off in no particular order depending on which mast you're using.Sometimes the ending of a programme could be an indicator but no guarantee can be given.The word suspense should be the norm as say C4 could go first,then BBC1,followed by C5 and finally ITV1 possibly.One indicator before analogue signal goes permanently is a sudden decrease in analogue signal strength and if you blink you could miss it,the analogue signal is turned off suddenly.Keep flicking the analogue channels quickly that's all i will say ?
jb38
Friday 9 March 2012 11:53AM
Chris: Thanks for that report, the content of being extremely helpful for reference purposes as on-site reception reports of the type given by yourself that include info on the exact location (or as near as) enable a much better picture to be built up of what's liable to be expected in a particular area over that given in the reception predictor charts, these always having elements of educated guesswork involved hence in many cases being totally misleading if taken too seriously.

That said though, admittedly they are handy for the other info they provide regarding channel numbers, changes taking place on switchover dates, TX powers and distances / headings from post codes etc, in your case you being located at 15 miles from the station with it being located on a heading of 213 degrees.
jamie
Friday 9 March 2012 5:45PM Chichester
rowland davies
Friday 9 March 2012 9:50PM Emsworth
I have a nearly new Sony ( LCD KDL) with inbuilt FREEVIEW.

Is it possible to tune to S4C and other programmes transmitted by the Cardiff transmitters ?? - I am anxious to tune to
Welsh Rugby programmes ( in English
If so, how do I go about it??

Rowland Davies
jb38
Friday 9 March 2012 11:14PM
rowland davies: As far as I can see there is no chance whatsoever of picking up any of the Welsh transmitters, so the only chance of getting what you wish is by using Freesat.
Chrissie
Saturday 10 March 2012 9:37AM Gosport
I bought new TVs two years ago, but have had two years of with poor signal, I expected good reception after switchover, and yes, BBC is great now but I have no ITV channels at all, I live in PO12 3NR. I have two indoor digital aerials, and on my main set I have ITV 1 and BBC and Ch4 +1 through my old NTL box, I am no longer an NTL customer (they kept putting the prices up)but the box does bring in ITV (Corrie fan) How do I get the ITV channels? I could afford a new aerial but last time I had one fitted (Last house, 10 years ago) it cost me £250, there is no way I could afford to get another one fitted, I'm petrified of heights or I would have fitted an out door one myself. If BBC is so good on the aerial why is there no ITV at all?
Dave Lindsay
Saturday 10 March 2012 9:56AM
Chrissie: The first phase of switchover at Rowridge occured on 9th March only affected BBC channels. On 21st March ITV will go on to full power (as BBC is now).

Until then, ITV1, C4, C5 etc are on UHF channel 32. If your set allows, manually tune to C32. Depending on its design, it might tell you the signal strength on that channel. It could be too low to produce a picture and you may find that moving your aerial whilst looking at the strength indicator might help you receive these services.

As I say, on 21st March, they will go on to full power (and will move to UHF channel 27).
Dave
Saturday 10 March 2012 12:09PM Brighton
Twas atually 7th March 8 mins after midnight :)

I'm wondering during tropo lifts how the Caen (France) transmitter will be affected as they share chs 22, 25 and 28 I notice
Chris
Saturday 10 March 2012 12:58PM Chichester
North Chcichester. I have lost BBC1 and 2. I cannot lock onto ch 24 where they are meant to be. Any ideas?
Colin T
Saturday 10 March 2012 7:16PM Winchester
Otterbourne north of Southampton at SO21 2EE. This is a care home with a communal aerial where all the other TVs have been successfully returned at first stage DSO except my Mother-in-laws Toshiba 17WLT46B. As with several of the above, Ch 24 seems to be empty and there is no sign of BBC1&2. I tried a variable in-line attenuator (2-20dB) but that made no difference, and I tried a piece of wire instead of any aerial - no signal at all! The Toshiba help-line says keep trying and wait until after DSO 2 on 21 March, but that leaves my Mother-in-law with no BB1&2. Any ideas?
Colin T
Sunday 11 March 2012 10:12AM
Dave
Many thanks for the prompt reply. Looking at the references you gave me, it seems I am not alone. No one has reported a solution, but I will try the full factory reset someone has suggested (60 sec push of the menu button on the set). It is supposedly an 8k set, so that cannot be the reason. It has been quite troublesome over the years, with repeated loss of sound, which I eventually learnt how to fix through the engineering menu.
Rod Darling
Sunday 11 March 2012 2:57PM
Hi have bought a new DVB-T receiver and connected to my TV and have a great reception but have one problem I can only receive BBC channels no ITV etc and no Freeview channel line-up multiplexes have also followed your Freeview reset procedure with no luck also have tried the manual scan but can only get started on channel 21 and no further than channel 68 as we are OAP any help will be appreciated
We do have a type 2 high signal outdoor ariel thanks
jb38
Sunday 11 March 2012 3:37PM
Rod Darling: What you have reported could suggest that you are not in a particularly good area for reception, this being why you can only receive BBC and nothing else, as the BBC multiplex is the only one presently operating on high power.

This situation should change as far as ITV1 and the HD service is concerned come March 21st when they also switch over to high power, but the remaining three commercial transmitters will not be increased until April 18th when a further re-tuning event takes place.

You should really provide your location (pref: post code) with any query involving reception, as this would enable the signal level expected in your area to be assessed, my reply being based on you being served by the Rowridge transmitter(s).

By the way, UHF TV channels only start at 21 and end at 68, so there isn't anything wrong.
Nicholas Willmott
Sunday 11 March 2012 8:54PM
Rod Darling: The UHF band runs from channel 21 to channel 68 (it always has done). Freeview TVs, boxes, etc therefore scan the UHF band from channel 21 to channel 68, therefore your receiver is working correctly in starting at 21 and ending at 68.

Good luck getting the ITV1/ITV1+1/ITV2/C4/E4/More 4/C5, (plus HD channels if you have a HD receiver) on 21 March, and more channels (ITV3, Pick TV, Yesterday etc) on 18 April. N.B. The commercial muxes (channel bundles) will be stronger in vertical polarisation than horizontal, therefore for best reception of all channels you may want to get your aerial remounted vertical after 18 April.
jb38
Sunday 11 March 2012 11:47PM
Colin T: Regarding the 8K issue on that model of TV which by the way it its original fashion dates back to 2004, and although its tuner might well have been updated and factory fitted with an 8K capable chip, something which the Toshiba customer services is aware of hence the statement made by them, but whether or not this technical update had actually been activated when being set up in the factory is another matter altogether, because as you have obviously noticed yourself there are just too many people reporting this type of problem with that model for the fault to be one caused by the viewers installation.

Still, one never knows what will happen when you carry out the full factory reset, as that might trigger things into action.
Colin T
Monday 12 March 2012 3:47PM Winchester
Curiouser and curiouser! I swapped the Tosh 17WLT46B for a Wharfedale LCD1710AF, which appears to be a rebadged version of the same chassis, with identical on-screen graphics and all the controls in the same relative position. It tuned in a treat, and Mother-in-law is now sorted. I brought the Tosh home (SO22 5NP) where we watch Hannington. On retuning, it failed to find channels 1-8, and only started on channel 9, though the Wharfedale that was there before was fine. I fear Tosh is destined for the tip!
Jessica
Monday 12 March 2012 5:27PM
Hi there,

I have today noticed that I have many of the BBC channels on my freeview recorder box no longer work (BBC1, BBC2, BBC News, CBBC...). The box is a Wharfedale 160DTRHDMI. It 'finds' the channels and the Programme Guide keeps it to date and accurate, however the channels stay blank with no sound or picture.

I have turned it off and on at the wall, done a first-tiem installation and even tried to search for them manually on Mux C24 as stated above but with no luck.

I have a small TV in my bedroom in in-built Freeview and that is working fine, so I guess my aerial must be getting a good enough signal.

Can anybody help me? x
jb38
Monday 12 March 2012 9:24PM
Jessica: The problem you are having is most likely being caused by the Vestel T825 chassis used in the Wharfedale not having the latest software installed thereby not being able to respond to the new transmission modes being used when transmitters switch to high powered operation.

The real problem with this situation being that its no longer broadcast as an "over air" download because of these PVRs being much older models, with the only other way of getting the software being a somewhat tedious (and risky) exercise of downloading it into a PC and then the transferring it into the PVR via a cable between both, anything glitching during the process rendering the PVR totally useless.

Sometimes though and even without a software update, if when on BBC2 you flick the channel selector up to ITV then immediately down again to BB2 it sometimes triggers the receiver into operation, but its never really a satisfactory solution in the long term, as any recordings made are frequently found to suffer from skipping and jumping at random.

As a matter of interest, if it is the 2K / 8K issue (as described) that's causing the problem then you will likely find that ITV etc also vanishes from Wednesday.

The point is that you should really provide your location (pref: post code) with these type of problems so that the signal levels expected in your area can be assessed, especially where transmitters as powerful as Rowridge are involved, at least on the BBC that is until Wednesday when ITV etc also
increases its power.
jb38
Monday 12 March 2012 9:26PM
Jessica: The Wednesday I refer to being March 21st and not this coming Wednesday.
jb38
Monday 12 March 2012 11:09PM
Colin T: Well your latest findings could possibly back up what I mentioned about uprated IC's having been fitted but not necessarily activated by the aligners / testers at the end of the production line, this done by a direct connection onto the the appropriate PCB test points.
Jessica
Tuesday 13 March 2012 9:28AM
Hi jb38,

That doesn't sound great but thanks for your reply. My postcode is SO30.

I've tried flicking up and down to the BBC channels but no luck! x
Colin T
Tuesday 13 March 2012 11:45AM
jb38. Thanks for your interest and knowledgeable comments. It seems to me that this all comes back to the 2k/8k issue, and that perhaps on DSO2 at Rowridge I would have lost Channels 3-8 as well as 1-2 which disappeared at DSO1. This would perhaps explain why I can't get 1-8 on Hannington, which is now fully switched. Does this make sense? Is there any way of downloading new software to upgrade the Toshiba?
jb38
Tuesday 13 March 2012 8:48PM
Colin T: Well if the problem is purely connected to the issue of 8K operation then you shouldn't by rights be able to get anything at all from Hannington, but I have had instances in the past where a device fitted with a so called upgraded tuner behaved erratically by intermittently failing some 8k channels but never on 2k ones for no apparent reason, this giving rise to the suspicion that the problem was that of a two fold one insomuch still that of the 8K issue but coupled to a possible intermittent fault in the tuners PLL oscillator circuit, tuners never really being repaired because of their critical nature and as such are just replaced as a complete unit, tuner replacement is only a 15 / 20 minute job anyway.

However it this particular case it was strongly suspected by more than myself that the problem had most likely been caused by a bug in the newly developed software used at the time by the manufacturer and something very few will ever admit to, at least openly anyway!

With regards to your software download query, I really don't think there is anything you can do about this as Toshiba would be almost certain to say that it doesn't require it, and although these devices are well out of any period of warranty its almost guaranteed that if they weren't, and Toshiba had one returned for that problem, then the first thing they would do is to either replace the tuner or even the complete set, as a number of these imported devices are always held by service depots purely for the purpose of being used as a replacement, this done rather than stocking a multitude of spares.
Phil K
Wednesday 14 March 2012 7:52AM
We live at Holton Heath and have previously had decent reception from Rowridge. Since switchover, the new mux on C24 has been okay, but since yesterday afternoon we have had intermittent poor/no reception on this mux (others are fine). Is this something to do with the switchover process?

The signal power is at a constant 76%, but the quality is single digit - yet yesterday evening it was much higher.
Phil K
Wednesday 14 March 2012 1:14PM
...Thinking about it, could it be co-channel interference from France?
david
Wednesday 14 March 2012 5:39PM Salisbury
when rowridge switches on the 21march will will the three main muxs be in vp and full power . and what power will the non main muxs be until april 21
Solent-Viewer
Wednesday 14 March 2012 10:20PM
The whole of MUX-C has gone walkabout again. Everything else is fine but C is non existent and has been all day.
Mark Fletcher
Wednesday 14 March 2012 10:39PM Halifax
Solent Viewer.I would look up inversion effect.Also there is a possibility as you mentioned that Rowridge's Mux C on channel 37 may have been temporarily swamped by the analogue Channel 5 signal from Crystal Palace.It is a possibility !
Mark Fletcher
Wednesday 14 March 2012 10:42PM Halifax
Solent Viewer.What i forgot to add is that the analogue Channel 5 signal from Crystal Palace uses channel 37 as well !
Colin T
Thursday 15 March 2012 7:23PM
jb38 I think you are right about not getting Hannington on the old Tosh. Here in Winchester we can get both Rowridge and Hannington, and looking at the signal strength I think I was probably getting Rowridge (after DSO1 but before DSO2)from the back of the aerial pointing at Hannington, rather than anything from Hannington post DSO2. Anyway, the Tosh is now definitely for the tip, and many thanks for your knowledgeable and timely advice
colin1951uk
Thursday 15 March 2012 8:46PM Eastleigh
Solent-Viewer I think Roweridge has been having intermittent problems since Monday (the 12th.)

On that Monday afternoon (14:00hrs) I was watching a film on 4+1 and after about twenty minutes started getting pixelation and the 'no signal' warning problems forever appearing. I thought it was just that channel but after about five minutes I flicked through every station and found everything was screwed up in a similar way (and the only channel I could get was Film 4.) I had to give up watching but left my set on and checked it from time to time and at around 17:00hrs everything was back to normal.

Now weather would not have affected every channel with interference as I experienced it and my belief is something is wrong with the transmitter and they try to fix it outside of peak time viewing which is why you could well be having some reception problems.

I may be wrong..and if I am good..but my feeling is all will be sorted out come the next retune on the 21st..we'll see.

Just thought I'd mention my experience in view of your troubles.

jb38
Thursday 15 March 2012 9:32PM
Colin T: Thanks for your update, as I am always extremely interested to know the outcome of situations such as yours, and with this irrespective of whether or not it might confirm my suspicions about the cause of a problem.

Its a bit unfortunate about your Toshiba as its one of the brands I rather approve of, but it would still make a good monitor if used with a cheap Freeview box coupled into it via a scart lead, or alternatively it being used on its analogue setting to view a Sky boxes RF modulators output.

Anyway, much obliged for your update.

Regards / jb.


Kim V
Saturday 17 March 2012 11:08AM
Hello, I am in Dorset, near Wareham. Since the change to full digital early March, I am expediency many reception problems I didn't have before. Loss of quality on all BBC channels, no signal popup showing forever on some days, pixelisation, jerky image and sound. On the day I retuned, all seemed fine, the problems started on the next day. I have a topup TV account with a dedicated box that shows all channels, with the loss of quality described earlier. My TV set is less than 3years old, with all the modern trappings, but I have lost half of the channels on the day after retuning. (it was showing 125channels on that day). For several days I had 0 channels on the TV set. I Have lost most BBC, ITV, channel 4, 5 etc. I fail to understand why on the d day it was fine to subsequently end with the loss of reception? Can you help?
KMJ,Derby
Saturday 17 March 2012 11:33PM
Kim V: Could you give more information with regard to which transmitter you should be using, your postcode would be most useful so that a check on predicted reception can be made. If you are using Rowridge remember that it is only the standard definition BBC channels that have switched to high power working at this stage. ITV1&2, C4/C5 etc follow on 21st March 2012 (and HD channels start too).The COM muxes switch to high power working on 18 April 2012. The Wareham area receives rather patchy coverage from Rowridge, Mendip, Stockland Hill and Hannington so it is possible that you might have found signals from a different transmitter to the one that your aerial is pointing to, resulting in unreliable channels being stored.
Kim V
Sunday 18 March 2012 9:11AM
hello, thank for you reply. I am using the Rowridge transmitter, from your map above, my location is in the bright green area. It used to be fine before switchover. How could I check what the box is seeing?
Derek Green
Sunday 18 March 2012 11:07PM
Hi Kim V,

I am in Canford Cliffs and have had problems since the first change made on 7 March. The BBC channels all have had problems, however, unusually part of this is for another reason. There has been a high pressure zone over Northern France around this time that has caused co-channel interference and break up/pixellation on BBC channels. Although theoretically I should always have had a reasonable signal, I have always had to have 3 boosters in a chain to get Freeview reception from Rowridge. The BBC changes and the weather situation caused me additional headaches, like you.

I think you should try a "factory reset" on your TV and also your TopUp box. Then try a re-scan of the Freeview channels. You should be able to find how to do the reset in manuals for the TV and box. This reset will take your equipment back to the situation when you first unpacked them from their boxes. I think you will get back a lot of your missing channels. I did. The weather situation is changing, with the troublesome high pressure zone becoming more diffuse. (You will get interference from French digital channels that use the same frequencies but only when the high pressure is south of our coast.)

You should perform the factory reset again on March 21 and another rescan for stations.

Let us know how you get on, please?
Stevem
Monday 19 March 2012 11:37AM
Derek

I live on Canford Heath as well and have the same boosters and seen the same co-channel interferece as you. Prior to the 7th March, BBC channels were stable but ITV, Channel 4 etc were often poor, presumably because of their low power. Indeed on the morning of 7th March it took two tunings to find ITV etc.

Analogue ITV used to be poor but lately it has been very good and a suitable alternative for when digital was unwatchable. I hope the boost to 50kW on Wednesday solves the problem, but it is a shame that the change of BBC channels is now subject to interference.

Derek Green
Monday 19 March 2012 5:00PM
Stevem

I think Canford Heath is further inland than where I am, Canford Cliffs? People have often been surprised that we are almost within sight of the IOW but our road has notoriously bad reception from Rowridge.

I agree it is bad that the BBC multiplex seems now to be the one that suffers from French station interference.

I am contemplating trying to remove one or more boosters after Wednesday. Like you, I hope the power boost will be enough to minimise co-channel interference. I have FreeSat in our main viewing room, so I am luckily not too dependant upon Freeview. However, some rooms have Freeview standalone sets and not FreeSat.
Derek Green
Monday 19 March 2012 5:11PM
I wasn't aware until I re-read the switchover details that the Rowridge transmitter will be unusual in that it will transmit the boosted power Freeview transmissions with both Vertical and Horizontal polarisation. It would have been nice to know about that from BBC/ITV etc i.e Freeview authorities. This means that all of us who have had problems might also try mounting our aerials with either horizontal or vertical orientated elements. This is new to me and I thought I was technically aware (ex BBC engineer! long time ago!).

So try removing boosters, and also try re-orientating your aerial elements (the metal bars) to be horizontal or vertical and check the signal strength on a few stations across the range. Do it after March 21st.

Question for Freeview authorities (won't read this?) is "Was this mixed polarisation designed to minimise French co-channel interference under high pressure weather zones over Northern France?"

I hope people are reading this. This post seems to be a long way down the Rowridge page!
Dave Lindsay
Monday 19 March 2012 5:13PM
Derek Green: Can you not get a more reliable signal from the Poole relay?
Stevem
Monday 19 March 2012 5:19PM
Derek

I misread your location but was fascinated that your situation was the same as mine.

I found a site that is a mine of information including this:

Post switchover Rowridge will (uniquely) be transmitting in vertical as well as horizontal polarity in order to lessen the chances of co-channel interference. The aim is to give people the option to use either polarity and therefore take advantage of cross polar rejection to help reject the unwanted transmissions.

The site is www.aerialsandtv.com link icon Rowridge Transmitter and much of the technical stuff will make more sense to you than it does to me.



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