Arqiva Press Release on Emley Moor and Sutton Coldfield switchovers
Brian Butterworth published on UK Free TV Date: 21 September 2011
"UK digital TV switchover reaches key milestone"
Arqiva's re-engineering of the UK digital terrestrial TV network has reached a key milestone today as two of the largest transmitters complete Digital Switch Over. With the Emley Moor (Yorkshire) and Sutton Coldfield (West Midlands) transmitter groups completing today, along with Fenton (Stoke-on-Trent and Newcastle-under-Lyme), the cumulative UK population switched to all-digital television has tipped from under 50% to 63%.
Arqiva is investing 700 million pounds and 1,200 man-years of work to implement the task over a five-year period, working in partnership with Digital UK. The Yorkshire region becomes the ninth to complete switchover as the number of switched transmission sites across the UK reaches 873, comprising 48 of the 68 transmitter groups. The Central region completes on 28 September with the Oxford transmitter group.
Peter Heslop, Arqiva Digital Switch Over director, explains: "Each transmitter group is treated as a separate project and with 68 projects in total, all phased over the implementation period, this is project management on a very large scale. 2011 is by far the busiest year for switchovers and having started with some smaller population areas we're now racing towards the 98.5 per cent conclusion next year. I'm delighted to report that we're on time and on budget."
Completion milestones for the end of 2011 include 11 out of the 15 TV regions, 80% of transmitter sites and 65% of the population. The London region alone covers 18% of the UK population from just one transmitter group which will switch in April 2012.
From today all six digital multiplexes are being transmitted at high power from Emley Moor, Idle and Keighley, and from Sutton Coldfield, Brierley Hill, Malvern and Fenton, with - for the first time - the three public-service multiplexes from 81 dependent relays.
Following the analogue switch-off for BBC Two on 7 September, the remaining analogue signals for BBC One, ITV1, Channel 4 and Channel 5 ceased by 00:02 on Wednesday 21 September. The new digital signals entered official service at Emley Moor at 06:00, Sutton Coldfield at 06:00 and Fenton at 01:30, with the last of the relays completed by 17:26.
4:00 PM
Phil: Fully realising that you have said you are in a bad reception area, but the fact of you being only five miles away from high powered Emley Moor could be causing overload problems in your TV/ boxes tuner, the symptoms of an over powerful signal being exactly the same as one that is too weak.
Although not mentioned, but should you have any form of booster fitted try removing it, or if you have type of set top aerial around try that for a test.
If you have neither, then you will likely have to purchase a simple attenuator to place in line with the aerial socket of your TV, as if you had a reasonable picture before DSO your problem points to the signal being too strong.
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Phil: Additionally, please see the check-list on the Freeview signals: too much of a good thing is bad for you | ukfree.tv - independent free digital TV advice page.
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