Freeview HD - UHF Aerial

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iDruid

64 posts

Master Geek

#160379 5-Jan-2015 00:45

Hey,

Was hoping someone could put me in the right direction regarding the selection of an aerial for my new place, I have
to pull the old VHF of the roof and put a new UHF aerial up, I know that my house is on the fringe and the signal strength
is not perfect, From what i understand the closest transmitter is on Waiheke Island (im in Cockle Bay btw).

I really am unsure about what aerial to buy, I have seen some on trademe but am wary about buying something that
will either fall to pieces or not deliver what i need, Do masthead amplifiers improve a signal or do they rather amplify
whatever signal you are currently getting?

I would like to take this project on myself rather than get a professional in to do it, Can anyone point me in the right
direction?

Cheers

Jase2985

13457 posts

Uber Geek

ID Verified

Lifetime subscriber

#1208280 5-Jan-2015 07:14

http://www.matchmaster.net.nz/EnterRequest.aspx and http://www.freeviewnz.tv/coverage.aspx

as for the aerial not sure how you determine which one you would go for

B1GGLZ

1961 posts

Uber Geek

#1208289 5-Jan-2015 07:56

http://freeviewforum.co.nz/page/antenna-guide

iDruid

64 posts

Master Geek

#1208298 5-Jan-2015 08:59

hi freeview website said unlikely, signal strength of the
matchmaster website when outside was 62db, the fella
that came and tested the signal strength with a handheld
said it's is doable.

not sure the links help to much as the matchmaster gave
me different results every time

any suggestions.

can anyone tell me what a masthead amp does?

B1GGLZ

1961 posts

Uber Geek

#1208456 5-Jan-2015 12:12

iDruid:

can anyone tell me what a masthead amp does?

A masthead amp is a low noise amp placed right at the antenna where it can amplify the weak signals in fringe areas to a better level for the TV at the other end of the co-ax. Probably in the order of 10 - 15db or more. The usual 12 - 18v required is fed up the co-ax via a power injector at the TV end. If an amp is placed at the TV end it amplifies received noise as well as the signal and is therefore usually useless. Depending on location and signal strength you really need to get a pro to do the install, preferably on a no work - no pay basis.

Jase2985

13457 posts

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#1208473 5-Jan-2015 12:37

iDruid: hi freeview website said unlikely, signal strength of the
matchmaster website when outside was 62db, the fella
that came and tested the signal strength with a handheld
said it's is doable.

not sure the links help to much as the matchmaster gave
me different results every time

any suggestions.

can anyone tell me what a masthead amp does?

you can look at the coverage maps on the free-view site, and on the match master site you can change the transmitter you are looking at

its dooable alright its just how many elements the aerial needs to get you a good picture and which transmitter is the better one to point at

iDruid

64 posts

Master Geek

#1208899 6-Jan-2015 06:30

thanks for the reassurance Jase,

went next door and found this, will have
to ask them the quality if their reception.

this doesn't seem to be pointing at either
transmitter.

Jase2985

13457 posts

Uber Geek

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Lifetime subscriber

#1208913 6-Jan-2015 07:28

that only a medium sized (12/13 element) aerial but its mounted pretty high. you can get ones like that, that are longer.

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Apsattv

2388 posts

Uber Geek

#1209604 7-Jan-2015 00:01

What's at the top of that pole?

Because the antenna showing in your photo looks to me like a external Cell phone antenna.

iDruid

64 posts

Master Geek

#1209610 7-Jan-2015 00:39

It's just an old VHF ontop, it's
about 7 Mtrs high like my old one
that's still on the roof, dodgy really

iDruid

64 posts

Master Geek

#1209611 7-Jan-2015 00:41

Actually it's about 10mtrs high lol

PimpMyMagic

267 posts

Ultimate Geek

#1212638 12-Jan-2015 16:12

I installed an aerial last weekend in a difficult reception site with good results.
Your first move is to send up your drone and check on what your nearby residents have mounted on their houses, as this give you a good starting point on what might work. In our case just a selection of mostly broken down old VHF yagis and generally then having to resort to satellite dishes.
It was at the end of Tararu Creek Rd which is just North of Thames. The creek runs West, in from the Firth and is surrounded on its other 3 sides by very steep bush clad hills. The location is declared to be outside the coverage area of terrestrial freeview. A preliminary check with one of the large size yagis produced no sign whatever of any signal. This turned out to be a manufacturing fault in this particular brand of aerial we were using.
We had a large phased array available and tried that on our test broomstick mount. A press of the auto scan button on the TV and all the channels came up looking good, so we mounted it properly on a J-stick and ran about 10m of RG6, terminated with a Belling Lee connector going straight into the 42" Veon TV.
The signal appeared to be quite solid on all main channels, with an amount of aerial rotation not having any marked effect on quality.
This aerial was bought some years back on advice from The Freeviewshop, where I see them still listed for $79.
I was amazed by the results.

Apsattv

2388 posts

Uber Geek

#1212652 12-Jan-2015 16:40

It should be noted the Freeview Coverage maps are software estimated maps of coverage. Computer predictions based on land type, height of hills etc. They are guidelines only.