Saorview Aerial for Monaghan

Surfn · 22-09-2011 05:20PM #1

hello folks, am i right in thinking its the green tipped uhf aerial i need for co monaghan, im close to monaghan town

Peter Rhea · 22-09-2011 05:37PM

Yes, a group C/D aerial is right for the Monaghan transmitter & also for Clermont Carn if your view of Monaghan is obstructed.

For either transmitter, you might need something better than the basic 10-element type & Clermont won't achieve full coverage for another year or so.

Surfn · 22-09-2011 05:42PM

Peter Rhea wrote: »

Yes, a group C/D aerial is right for the Monaghan transmitter & also for Clermont Carn if your view of Monaghan is obstructed.

For either transmitter, you might need something better than the basic 10-element type & Clermont won't achieve full coverage for another year or so.

thanks for the info peter, could you recommend a good uhf aerial for soarview in my area

Peter Rhea · 22-09-2011 05:51PM

Hard to be specific without knowing the signal conditions at your location. Is this the 1st time a terrestrial aerial has been used there? If not, what channels did you have previously?

Surfn · 22-09-2011 06:04PM

i have another aerial which receives ukfreeview its above the old vhf aerial that i want to replace with an aerial for saorview, i just tried something thy other day, i moved the freeview aerial around to the same direction as the vhf aerial was point, i thought to myself im gonna have a great rte signal now, but it didnt seem to pick it up at all, ive an mpeg4 tv tuner card in my pc. i did a rescan thinking it would pick up soarview but no go. i am missing certain freeview channels, itv, itv2 channel4 and a couple of others as well

deaglan169 · 22-09-2011 06:06PM

whats your location i live just outside town on a slightly elevated site, im using a 52 element for monaghan an overkill i know but it was originally going to cairn hill, also depending on location sligo roars in, you have a few options depending on were you are

Peter Rhea · 22-09-2011 06:16PM

Surfn wrote: »

i moved the freeview aerial around to the same direction as the vhf aerial was point, i thought to myself im gonna have a great rte signal now, but it didnt seem to pick it up at all

The 'Freeview' aerial is more than likely group A, so no good for higher frequencies.

The fact you have a VHF aerial indicates that you're already receiving from the Monaghan site but, certainly the UHF analogue coverage isn't anywhere near as good, so no point in using VHF reception quality as a guide to Saorview reception.

The Cush · 22-09-2011 11:05PM

Surfn wrote: »

i just tried something thy other day, i moved the freeview aerial around to the same direction as the vhf aerial was point, i thought to myself im gonna have a great rte signal now, but it didnt seem to pick it up at all, ive an mpeg4 tv tuner card in my pc. i did a rescan thinking it would pick up soarview but no go. i am missing certain freeview channels, itv, itv2 channel4 and a couple of others as well

Use the Saorview coverage checker to get the best transmitter recommendation for your location.

Peter Rhea · 23-09-2011 12:14AM

The coverage checker doesn't take local obstructions such as trees (plenty of those in Monaghan) & buildings into account, I suspect the OP has already looked at it anyway.

The Cush · 23-09-2011 12:31AM

Peter Rhea wrote: »

The coverage checker doesn't take local obstructions such as trees (plenty of those in Monaghan) & buildings into account,

As the disclaimer says on the site

Coverage

Coverage shown is based on a rooftop aerial in good condition (indoor reception may be possible in areas with very good signal strength).

Coverage shown is indicative only.

Local environment (hills, forestry, trees, buildings, and other large obstructions) will cause coverage to vary.

RTÉNL recommends consultation with a local competent aerial installer to confirm coverage in your area.

http://www.saorview.ie/make-the-switch/coverage-checker/

Peter Rhea wrote: »

I suspect the OP has already looked at it anyway.

The obvious is often missed.

Peter Rhea · 23-09-2011 12:37AM

The Cush wrote: »

The obvious is often missed.

Indeed, I usually point enquiries towards the coverage checker but in this case, I thought some local knowledge might come in handy.

Surfn · 23-09-2011 02:10PM

judging by the way my vhf aerial is pointing to receive anolgue rte, its seams to be cairn hill, i used to the ruler on google earth and cairn hill and the corcaghan transmitter are almost in the same line to where i live. i dont mind getting a 52 element c/d aerial if this will help get a better signal in my area. the coverage checker says its on air in my area

Peter Rhea · 23-09-2011 06:14PM

No VHF tv broadcast from Cairn Hill & certainly in northern parts of Co. Monaghan a fairly high gain aerial is necessary for half-decent analogue TG4 from the mast near Corcaghan.

I don't currently have any digital terrestrial myself, an old Freeview box was until recently showing a reasonable Saorview signal level with a 10-element wideband aerial & I'm about 7 miles to the north of Monaghan. TG4 analogue with the same aerial needs a masthead amp. to make it watchable. I'll eventually get around to fitting an 18-element group c/d aerial, one of these

deaglan169 · 23-09-2011 08:20PM

never thought much of those antennas but the specs arent bad, a triax 52 c/d offers around 3db more forward and front to back gain, which is roughly only 1 s point

Surfn · 23-09-2011 10:08PM

Peter Rhea wrote: »

No VHF tv broadcast from Cairn Hill & certainly in northern parts of Co. Monaghan a fairly high gain aerial is necessary for half-decent analogue TG4 from the mast near Corcaghan.

I don't currently have any digital terrestrial myself, an old Freeview box was until recently showing a reasonable Saorview signal level with a 10-element wideband aerial & I'm about 7 miles to the north of Monaghan. TG4 analogue with the same aerial needs a masthead amp. to make it watchable. I'll eventually get around to fitting an 18-element group c/d aerial, one of these

ok thanks for the info there, im just trying to get an understanding for this, was the the transmitter close to corcaghan there before saorview was introduced, i mean, does it broadcast analogue. the signal im getting at the moment on rte1 and 2 is good via the vhf aerial, tv3 and tg4 are unwatchable.so basically i should getting my new uhf c/d aerial and point it in the same direction as the vhf aerial

Peter Rhea · 23-09-2011 11:47PM

The Monaghan transmitter has RTE1 & 2 on VHF channels D & F (these are ROI-only channel designations).

TG4 is on UHF channel 64 & there's no TV3. I'm not sure if Unix 52 group C/D aerials are available, only group A, B & wideband (referred to as C/D-W).

deaglan169 · 24-09-2011 11:07AM

they can be got from Jim Toner aerial and satellite supplies Keady, he has the lot

Surfn · 24-09-2011 08:39PM

whats do yas reckon to this aerial here http://ie.farnell.com/triax/108790/aerial-unix-52-group-c-d-w/dp/4255471

deaglan169 · 24-09-2011 08:47PM

thats the antenna alright will work fine for you, its out of stock however;)

Surfn · 24-09-2011 09:00PM

deaglan169 wrote: »

thats the antenna alright will work fine for you, its out of stock however;)

i will have to check around a few sites to see where else i can get 1 from

exaisle · 24-09-2011 09:54PM

Id be more inclined to have a look at Cairn Hill on Group B....IIRC its the most powerful transmitter in Ireland and at a lower frequency than Monaghan....even at that distance you might get a more stable signal. Also, maybe try some kind of wideband antenna for starters (colour king/raster) and see what frequencies you're receiving signal on without any amplification..then take it from there...

Peter Rhea · 25-09-2011 08:46AM

Surfn wrote: »

i will have to check around a few sites to see where else i can get 1 from

Take a look here

Surfn · 25-09-2011 12:49PM

exaisle wrote: »

Id be more inclined to have a look at Cairn Hill on Group B....IIRC its the most powerful transmitter in Ireland and at a lower frequency than Monaghan....even at that distance you might get a more stable signal. Also, maybe try some kind of wideband antenna for starters (colour king/raster) and see what frequencies you're receiving signal on without any amplification..then take it from there...

will a group c/d-w aerial pick up from cairn hill and at the same time it will be optimised for group c/d aka the monaghan transmitter, i think the c/d-w might be the safest bet.

exaisle · 27-09-2011 04:22PM

A wideband antenna will pick up from Cairn Hill. A group B would be better but if you use a small wideband, you should be able to judge from the analog signal received.

Peter Rhea · 27-09-2011 05:20PM

I don't think there's a lot of point bringing Cairn Hill into the equation. If the OP was in an area that had decent CH reception, they'd more than likely already be receiving all 4 analogue channels from there on UHF, rather than the VHF/UHF combo needed for Monaghan for only 3 channels.

If they are already using the Monaghan tx, it's highly unlikely that reception from CH is any better than Monaghan UHF.

Smcgie · 28-09-2011 11:59AM

Hello all.

I'm living in Monaghan and have recently bought a tv with freeview built in and saoirview approved. But I have no ariel on the house.

What exactly is the best method in setting up getting the uk channels (can be done because my cousin lives in the same area and has the freeview) and the RTE & saoirview channels?

bit green on all of this.

Thanks

Peter Rhea · 28-09-2011 12:15PM

Without an idea of signal conditions at your specific location, there's not a lot of point in trying to recommend anything. Basically, there's a choice of 2 transmitters for Freeview & at least 3 for Saorview & it's anyone's guess which is best for you.

Unless you're willing to experiment a bit, you'd be better off getting in a pro.

Add to all this the fact that the Freeview signal will get a big increase in about a year from now & you're faced with the fact that what could require a high-gain, expensive system now (if it works at all) could probably be accomplished with something fairly basic after switchover.

Surfn · 21-11-2011 12:26PM

i got this aerial and it pulls in a great signal and i wouldnt be in the best of reception areas, i use it with the ariva 120 combo box. i thought id be smart and put it in the attic, that was a no go. as soon as i tried it outside, worked great so i mounted it on the gable of the house. great aerial http://www.vanjak.com/index.php?dispatch=products.view&product_id=29936

lucernarian · 22-11-2011 10:36AM

Surfn wrote: »

i got this aerial and it pulls in a great signal and i wouldnt be in the best of reception areas, i use it with the ariva 120 combo box. i thought id be smart and put it in the attic, that was a no go. as soon as i tried it outside, worked great so i mounted it on the gable of the house. great aerial http://www.vanjak.com/index.php?dispatch=products.view&product_id=29936

Is that for receiving Monaghan? How far are you from the RTE site near Newbliss?

Surfn · 22-11-2011 11:46AM

To_be_confirmed wrote: »

Is that for receiving Monaghan? How far are you from the RTE site near Newbliss?

as the crow flys im about 8km from the monaghan transmitter, im in a very low lying area. the reception with the aerial is good, even when i had it mounted at standing height just to check it out

Peter Rhea · 22-11-2011 12:12PM

Surfn wrote: »

i wouldnt be in the best of reception areas

Surfn wrote: »

. . . the reception with the aerial is good, even when i had it mounted at standing height just to check it out

That would suggest that you are in a good reception area. Attic reception will only work if the signal can penetrate the building structure, metallic objects or water tanks will stop it dead.

Surfn · 22-11-2011 01:06PM

Peter Rhea wrote: »

That would suggest that you are in a good reception area. Attic reception will only work if the signal can penetrate the building structure, metallic objects or water tanks will stop it dead.

yeh i wanted the aerial in the attic, so i never tried it anywhere other than the attic at the start and that was a complete no go, i thought to myself they had sent me the wrong aerial group. as soon as i took it outside bingo, great reception.im glad its mounted outside now, as will be a much better job

Saorview Aerial for Monaghan

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