Anyone using freeview, and noticed Ch5 goes slow motion or stuttery (like frames missing) every now and again?

Had it in the old place in Surrey, now I've got the new aerial sorted for DTV noticing the issue has moved with me.

I have seen it once on someone elses TV, and as it's only really ever seen on Ch5 I'm hoping its Five and freeview issues rather than my HDTV.

Anyone else in Lon/Surrey/ Anglia confirm similar peridoic issues?

I'm in manchester, old freeview box used to do it in the rain.

Got a sammy TV now that doesn't do it but channel 5 was funny when the wife was watching ghost last night. I'd blame C5.

I'm in manchester, old freeview box used to do it in the rain.

Got a sammy TV now that doesn't do it but channel 5 was funny when the wife was watching ghost last night. I'd blame C5.

Phew!

Watching some cannable thing on Ch5 now and it keeps doing it. Swapping channels and back sorts it. Hoping Sammy's not faulty.

Maybe I'll raise it with Ch5 and freeview as an issue.

I found the cheap freeview box does from time to time this but the good one does not.

I'm thinking it is just the cheap box having the minimum amount of CPU you can get away with and struggling when there are errors to correct.

If your box doesn't auto update it might be worth checking for software updates as these fix a lot of oddness in set top devices.

iirc C5 is a bit poor most places even on analogue. It's never been brilliant, as when it came out the sent tech's out to fiddle with video's so that it wouldn't balls them up

All the Freeview channels are spread across two or three channels on the UHF band, whereas the analogue signal is one station per channel. Therefore, if it's a hardware / reception issue, there should be other Freeview stations where you have the same problem. If it's just five that does it, then it's a broadcast issue. Newer TVs often display signal strength / quality, so that may help if your problems don't go away...

Is it electrical interferance? IE a boiler firing up, or an electrical item being turned on or off.

Is it electrical interferance? IE a boiler firing up, or an electrical item being turned on or off.

Good point. Turning on the extractor hood above our hob really screws the picture on the little telly we have in our kitchen...

All the Freeview channels are spread across two or three channels on the UHF band, whereas the analogue signal is one station per channel. Therefore, if it's a hardware / reception issue, there should be other Freeview stations where you have the same problem. If it's just five that does it, then it's a broadcast issue. Newer TVs often display signal strength / quality, so that may help if your problems don't go away...

FREEVIEW is carried on six uhf channels in most areas (less so fewer stations in some areas until analogue switch off and frequencies become available)

in some areas some of the multiplexes have been placed outside the band of the analogue aerials so you may need to change aerial to get all the multiplexes ,without knowing your location I cant tell if that is the case

each freview multiplex is 24M of data ,the bbc splits this into 3 tv channels and some radio and uses one type of coding

non BBC multiplexes use a different modulation and have more tv channels so less data per channel and they are more prone to reception problems this site lists the multiplexes

Terrestrial - Digital Spy

ch5 is in multiplex A which it shares with mainly shopping channels

Are you using an amplified antenna or a booster box?

I get problems when I turn up the amp too far. Too much signal can break up the picture just as well as too little.

Yer my Samsung HDTV does it all the time, only fix I have found is changing channel and then back to the channel I was watching.

It only started doing it since an over the update about 7 months ago, keep meaning to call Samsung about it as its almost a year old!

I've had similar problems with Freeview reception over the past 3 - 4 weeks.

I did a quick check of the kit, connections etc and hastily attributed the reception problem to a degradation in the transmission signal. See below.

http://www.briskoda.net/forums/tech-shed/california-dreaming/92265/

As you can see, my post 5 days ago, to a specialist technical site was met with a rebuff:-

Freeview on Crystal Palace TV transmitter | ukfree.tv - independent digital TV and switchover advice

By chance I discovered a post which described the fault I was experiencing exactly and attributed it to a faulty capacitor in the Freeview Box. It further described how the fault could be fixed with the installation of a new electrolitic 1000 pf capacitor from Maplins (Price 50p)

On inspection the of the box, the capacitor referred to showed all the symptoms of decay described. I replaced it with a new one and everythings back to normal ! Incidentally, the capacitor concerned was on the power side of the board and regulated a circuit connected with the remote handset - how the hell this impacted on signal reception ? Anyway, its fixed now.

So it might be worth checking out your kit first. That's not to say that some Freeview transmissions are not being output at low power at the moment - Crystal Palace is reported as OK, but apparently the Guilford repeater is on reduced power. I suspect that many others are as a consequence of the work necessary to action the reported move of some BBC digital radio channels between multiplexors.

Check out the following:-

U.K. and R.O.I. Television Reception

Welcome: Start here | ukfree.tv - independent digital TV and switchover advice

Nick

7/11/07

Forgot to add in the post above that the reason I lost the analogue signal as well, was that there was, coincidentally, a corresponding fault in both the RF and Scart connectors at the rear of the TV set - just some loose connections requiring a bit of solder.

I've not got round to fixing the TV so I've made a temporary rigg which routes the signal from Freeview box via a Scart adapter to the RCA phono sockets on the front of the TV - result, perfect reception !

Nick,

7/11/07

Thanks folks.

Seems only ch5 (dont watch shopping channels), so assuming its a broadcast issue rather than kit.

Do get a spike when the boiler fires up, the surround system gives a nasty crunching sound as the signal glitches