Freeview signal from Wharite

Can anyone tell me if there has been a recent problem/lack of signal strength from the Wharite transmitter ?

Background : I have a property at Waikawa Beach which is in the Manawatu,many km south from Wharite. Until recently I have been able to receive sufficient signal to run two seperate UHF decoders to give good stable pictures.

Out of the blue a few weeks ago the picture started to pixelate quite often. So I disconnected the splitter and ran one decoder. This helped a bit ,but was still unacceptable. Did all the usual cable checks and found corrosion at the aerial baluns. Reconnected this but with no improvement..

I have now fitted a new baluns and a Matchmaster 15 db masthead amplifier. Still no improvement!!!

I can receive Al Jazeera and a few others. but TV 1,2,3,4 etc shows "no signal"

I have swapped decoders,made new F connections, and am now at a loss to what to try next.

Perhaps I should cut down the neigbours tree which is about 80 metres away in line of sight?

Any suggestions/or knowledge would be appreciated.

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Permalink Reply by Edster on March 30, 2015 at 13:00

this is all doing my head in.. I have a tv that I have been getting no signal so was going for a phased array and am told by the expert not to go near them.. He' says its a waste of money.. It seems every one has a diff idea.. why do you recommend them Steve?

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Permalink Reply by Steve J on March 30, 2015 at 13:09

I'm going from experience in this area , where the signal suffers from layering and multipath . I found the phased array WISI brand gave me the best results !!

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Permalink Reply by Edster on March 30, 2015 at 13:11

I cant get a signal.. last option phased array.. Im behind a hill.. cant help but wonder if its more waste of money.. Sorry to original poster for jumping in on your thread.. I just couldn't help but ask about them..

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Permalink Reply by Steve J on March 30, 2015 at 13:14

A phased array wont help if there is NO Signal !!

you (( may )) have to go to satellite !

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Permalink Reply by Edster on March 30, 2015 at 13:20

I got a quy coming.. quoted $570 but guarantees he can get all channels clearly using a standard type aerial.. this is going to be interesting.. $570 seems very expensive though.. ouch

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Permalink Reply by willis on March 31, 2015 at 0:20

in more difficult places not uncommon to find various frequencies come in best at various heights and the difference can be very pronounced

thats where a phased array works well as it is a broadside array and bridges the height gap

a standard array may only work ok on 2 freq and a lot of them are particularly bad at the bottom end,gradually getting into their stride about ch 37

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Permalink Reply by Edster on March 31, 2015 at 8:09

well, cost $590. But where others have struggled. He has every channel working perfectly with a 10 out of 10 strength for every signal.. He said stay well away from phased arrays. Too many contact points which will eventually corrode and cause signal drop out or failure or something like that. Im not happy about cost but he got tv working perfectly.. I guess some times it pays to pay for knowledge. He was here less than two hours.. Damn expensive parts... Well that's my tv issue sorted.. Glad I didn't waste a further $100 on a phased array..

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Permalink Reply by Biggles on March 31, 2015 at 8:34

Good outcome. Quality parts are expensive but they do the job and last. Just shows what a good Pro with the right gear can achieve. Digital TV is much more demanding on antenna installations than analogue ever was.

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Permalink Reply by John Baird on March 31, 2015 at 9:11

Ouch !!

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Permalink Reply by Edster on March 31, 2015 at 9:18

$170 just for masthead amp.. the one I paid $46 for off trademe was totally useless. As Biggles says, a good pro and the right gear made all the diff.. Unfortunately that some times comes at a cost. But I do agree.. Ouch lol

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Permalink Reply by nzdtv.com on April 1, 2015 at 2:25

Can you post a photo of your new install? also the make and model of the new masthead amp.

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Permalink Reply by Edster on April 1, 2015 at 6:21

the guy who done the install didn't tell me specs of masthead amp.. You could give him a call and ask.. He seemed easy going to chat to.. Failing that i'll have to get up on the roof and see what if any thing is written on it or give the guy a call myself and ask.. Link at bottom..
As for aerial, just looks like a very basic yagi type aerial which are supposedly (according to freeview) the worst to use in my type of situation.. Go figure!

Have a chat to the installer and if no joy, just let me know and I'll ring him for info.. http://www.tvdigital.co.nz/Terrestrial+Aerial+Installation+and+Repa...