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Why have I lost ITV?


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In a gale this last winter the sat dish moved, children then attacked it and took some useful connecting bits.

But since this episode we have had BBC1 and Channel 4, but no BBC2 or ITV.  The signal strength is about 60% and the signal quality about 70%.  We have been to our local TV shop and they say they can't help us as we use different astra satellites.

Has anyone any ideas?

M

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I have looked at the info for that sat http://www.lyngsat.com/28east.html but can't see anything immediately obvious that may be causing your problem. I'd check to make sure that absolutely no trees are in the path between your dish and the satellite(s).

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[quote user="MargaretD"]

In a gale this last winter the sat dish moved, children then attacked it and took some useful connecting bits.

But since this episode we have had BBC1 and Channel 4, but no BBC2

or ITV.  The signal strength is about 60% and the signal quality

about 70%.  We have been to our local TV shop and they say they

can't help us as we use different astra satellites.

Has anyone any ideas?

M

[/quote]

which BBC/ITV region are you getting?

Also, has the box been switched off for any length of time?

p

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No trees, but yes, the box has been switched off for 6 weeks, but then we weren't getting ITV or BBC2.  We get the channels for the North West, but the BBC1 is OK.  We're also missing BBC3 and BBC4.

I've tried realigning everything, but having misplaced my compass it's a little more difficult - just line it up to the back of the post box (that's 149.5 degrees from north!) and the tilt is at 29.5 degrees.  These settings are ideal for our village - I suppose I was wondering if something funny had happened - like ITV gone on strike etc...

Thanks for the help,

M

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This could be a problem with your box - the signal that carries BBC1, also carries BBC2, BBC3 and BBC4 as well as BBC News 24 and the Beeb childrens channels as well as BBC2 Northern Ireland- my point being that if your dish is capable of receiving one of these channels it should get them all - if not there must be a different reason and unless there is something really weird going with your cabling, it must be a box problem.

The same goes for ITV - almost - the satellite that sends ITV1 also sends ITV2, Citv, ITV4 Men & Motors and one or two others. Get one, you should get them all.

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[quote user="MargaretD"]

No trees, but yes, the box has been switched off for 6 weeks, but then we weren't getting ITV or BBC2.  We get the channels for the North West, but the BBC1 is OK.  We're also missing BBC3 and BBC4.

[/quote]

I suspect that the missing channels are on the same "rotation" (horizontal?). This would explain it. Can anyone with a list confirm this?

 

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ITV Granada, BBC 2, 3  and 4  are on Astra 2D

BBC1 NW and Channel 4 are both on astra 2A

(BBC 1 is at 10.787, and Channel 4 is at 12.168, so the LNB is getting the switching signal OK)

the footprint of 2D is tighter than either Eurobird (which carries E4,

for example)  or 2A, so I think the problem is poor signal

strength from the dish/LNB geting to the receiver. The actual strength

and quality meters you see in the setup page, only reflect the 'tuning'

channel which the set is pre-programmed with  - I can't remember

which it is: nor can I remember how to get to the installer's menu

(Help anybody ?) but if it was a transponder on 2A (for example) it

wouldn't show you how bad the signal you are receiving from the weaker

2D.

You mentioned you had the LNB stolen some time back; was the cable cut

and left bare where rain could get into it possibly? As for the

positioning of the dish, the 3 Astra satellites (A,B, and D) are so

nearly in the same place as to be a single source, and Eurobird (E4,

france 24 etc) is .3 of a degree further east so as far as a small dish

is concerned, they are all in the same place, so in terms of positioning if you get one, you get them all.

So...

Either it's a problem with your box: you could try a hard re-boot to

make it install the latest software (it would do it no harm even if it

did no good),

Or the cable is degrading the signal. Any chance you could get a short

length of coax and lug the box and TV nearer the dish and try

substituting the cable to test this theory?

Sorry not to be of more help.

p

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  • 2 weeks later...

Nick and Paul,

Sorry to take so long in replying.  Yes, I've cut over a metre off the coax wire.  We now have good signals to all TV channels.

After having installed it myself last year, I couldn't work out where I was going wrong.

thank you for your help.

Margaret

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[quote user="Timco"]

This could be a problem with your box - the signal that carries BBC1, also carries BBC2, BBC3 and BBC4 as well as BBC News 24 and the Beeb childrens channels as well as BBC2 Northern Ireland- my point being that if your dish is capable of receiving one of these channels it should get them all - if not there must be a different reason and unless there is something really weird going with your cabling, it must be a box problem.

The same goes for ITV - almost - the satellite that sends ITV1 also sends ITV2, Citv, ITV4 Men & Motors and one or two others. Get one, you should get them all.

[/quote]Almost correct but not quite.

It would be truer to say that the same SATELLITE carries BBC1, BBC2, ITV etc. etc. but each channel is broadcast by a different transponder (read transmitter for simplicity) and not all transponders neccessarily transmit the same power level. In addition there are frequency differences which means that even if the power were the same the propogation and attenuation properties of the signals could be different.

From what you describe it seems fairly certain your system is operating on the margin and needs setting up properly and possibly fitting with new cable if simply cutting off 1m has made such a difference.

As for your TV shop, sound like a bunch of knobs if you ask me, if they professionally install satellite systems then they can line up on Astra just as easily as any other.

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