Will Freeview still be broadcast via satellite?

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Vorbis

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#18982 31-Jan-2008 18:50

When Freeview goes Terrestrial will the Sat. feed still be available? Also will I need a UHF aerial to receive the terrestrial feed, and will the quality be any better/worse than satellite?

Cheers for any insights...

manhinli

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#107821 31-Jan-2008 19:10

Vorbis: When Freeview goes Terrestrial will the Sat. feed still be available? Also will I need a UHF aerial to receive the terrestrial feed, and will the quality be any better/worse than satellite?

Cheers for any insights...

Yes, Freeview will be available in both Satellite and Terrestrial forms.

An aerial is required for Terrestrial reception, and also a MPEG4 decoder.

Quality depends on where you are living. See freeviewnz.tv for more info on expected coverage.

The Terrestrial feed is digital. The Analogue broadcast will be switched off in a few years, so either way you're going to get a dish or have a decoder stuck to your current UHF aerial.

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sbiddle

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#107823 31-Jan-2008 19:13

Yes, the DVB-S satellite transmissions will continue.

You will more than likely need a UHF aerial to receive the broadcasts. If you're close to a transmitter you could possibly get away with a VHF aerial or even a coat hanger or cheap rabbits ears but neither of the last 2 are recommended! :-)

The picture quality and channel lineup will be identical, the only difference is that HD broadcasts will be carried on the terrestrial platform as this is using H.264/MPEG4 compression, HD broadcasts will not be available on the DVB-S platform.

Vorbis

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#107824 31-Jan-2008 19:16

Thanks guys.

cyril7

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#107825 31-Jan-2008 19:30

The current analog TV transmission network has some 400-500 transmitters/translaters whos overall coverage struggle to even touch many parts of the country.

When the need to move on to a digital platform was made a sensible decision was made. Provide a DVB-S (satellite) service that could be received in even the most inaccessible parts of the country. This service would for the immediate future be limited to Standard Definition, but at least would be accompanied by all the trappings of modern digital broadcasting such as 16:9 for any nook or cranny across the nation.

The 2nd tier of the digital roll out was to supply major population areas with a DVB-T service using only around 30 transmitter sites that would include HD capability. This would mean that a lower cost UHF antenna solution would be possible for around 80% of the population, although the STB's will most likely make up for the cost of a dish. However having to only fit out 30odd transmitter sites would make the service more cost effective.

So the result is the DVB-S service is here to stay, it will remain the back stay of the FTA broadcasting service for decades to come.

Cyril

tonyhughes

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#107846 31-Jan-2008 20:42

and to add my simple version to the mix:

As far as I am aware (Although I can be one of the planets most misinformed people at times

), the DVB-S (Satellite) service was only ever intended as 'infill' for places that will not be able to recieve DVB-T (Terrestrial/aerial), and that DVB-T will have more channels/services. But yes - the sat based service is here to stay.

eXDee

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#107878 31-Jan-2008 22:53

About the UHF Transmission, we have a UHF Aerial and we had Sky UHF 10 years ago or so. However on looking for TV Central (a new waikato based local tv station) on UHF, i cant find it. I'm not sure how to check if its picking up UHF correctly, it gets C4 and i think TV3, but i dont know if its the VHF aerial getting these.

Will Freeview terrestrial use the same aerial? Perhaps we'll just get it looked at if we run into problems when the time comes.

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cyril7

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#107901 1-Feb-2008 08:01

TV Central is on UHF Ch40 from Te Aroha, and yes it would use the old Sky UHF antenna. TV3/C4 in Hamilton district are on VHF from a RuRu a site near Cambridge.

The FreeView service is in the UHF band and will be from Mt TeAroha, with a currently undecided in city infill Tx.

Sounds like your UHF antenna might not be connected or working properly.

Cyril

Niel

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#108080 1-Feb-2008 23:05

... or your UHF aerial is pointing in the wrong direction (someone worked on the roof?) or it is in the wrong orientation (some transmitters are horizontal polarized, some are vertical polarized).

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