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Full Freeview on the Waltham (Leicestershire, England) transmitter

first published this on - UK Free TV
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The symbol shows the location of the Waltham (Leicestershire, England) transmitter which serves 770,000 homes. The bright green areas shown where the signal from this transmitter is strong, dark green areas are poorer signals. Those parts shown in yellow may have interference on the same frequency from other masts.

Are there any planned engineering works or unexpected transmitter faults on the Waltham (Leicestershire, England) mast?

Waltham transmitter - Waltham transmitter: Possible effect on TV reception week commencing 25/03/2024 Pixelation or flickering on some or all channels Digital tick


Choose from three options: ■ List by multiplex ■ List by channel number ■ List by channel name
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Which Freeview channels does the Waltham transmitter broadcast?

If you have any kind of Freeview fault, follow this Freeview reset procedure first.

Digital television services are broadcast on a multiplexes (or Mux) where many stations occupy a single broadcast frequency, as shown below.

MuxH/VFrequencyHeightModeWatts
PSB1
BBCA
 H max
C32 (562.0MHz)442mDTG-50,000W
Channel icons
1 BBC One (SD) East Midlands, 2 BBC Two England, 9 BBC Four, 23 BBC Three, 201 CBBC, 202 CBeebies, 231 BBC News, 232 BBC Parliament, plus 17 others

PSB2
D3+4
 H max
C34 (578.0MHz)442mDTG-50,000W
Channel icons
3 ITV 1 (SD) (Central (East micro region)), 4 Channel 4 (SD) Midlands ads, 5 Channel 5, 6 ITV 2, 10 ITV3, 13 E4, 14 Film4, 15 Channel 4 +1 Midlands ads, 18 More4, 26 ITV4, 28 ITVBe, 30 E4 +1, 35 ITV1 +1 (Central west),

PSB3
BBCB
 H max
C35 (586.0MHz)442mDTG-50,000W
Channel icons
46 5SELECT, 101 BBC One HD East Midlands, 102 BBC Two HD England, 103 ITV 1 HD (ITV Central West), 104 Channel 4 HD Midlands ads, 105 Channel 5 HD, 106 BBC Four HD, 107 BBC Three HD, 204 CBBC HD, 205 CBeebies HD, plus 1 others

COM4
SDN
 H -3dB
C29 (538.0MHz)442mDTG-825,000W
Channel icons
20 Drama, 21 5USA, 29 ITV2 +1, 32 5STAR, 33 5Action, 38 Channel 5 +1, 41 Legend, 42 GREAT! action, 57 Dave ja vu, 58 ITVBe +1, 59 ITV3 +1, 64 Blaze, 67 TRUE CRIME, 68 TRUE CRIME XTRA, 78 TCC, 81 Blaze +1, 83 Together TV, 89 ITV4 +1, 91 WildEarth, 209 Ketchup TV, 210 Ketchup Too, 211 YAAAS!, 267 Al Jazeera English, plus 30 others

COM5
ArqA
 H -3dB
C37 (602.0MHz)449mDTG-825,000W
Channel icons
11 Sky Mix, 17 Really, 19 Dave, 31 E4 Extra, 36 Sky Arts, 40 Quest Red, 43 Food Network, 47 Film4 +1, 48 Challenge, 49 4seven, 60 Drama +1, 65 That's TV 2, 70 Quest +1, 74 Yesterday +1, 75 That's 90s, 233 Sky News, plus 11 others

COM6
ArqB
 H -3dB
C31 (554.0MHz)449mDTG-825,000W
Channel icons
12 Quest, 25 W, 27 Yesterday, 34 GREAT! movies, 39 DMAX, 44 HGTV, 52 GREAT! romance, 56 That's TV (UK), 61 GREAT! movies extra, 63 GREAT! romance mix, 71 That’s 60s, 73 HobbyMaker, 82 Talking Pictures TV, 84 PBS America, 235 Al Jazeera Eng, plus 18 others

LNG
 H -10dB
C41 (634.0MHz)442mDTG-125,000W
Channel icons
from 27th May 2014: 7 Notts TV,

DTG-8 64QAM 8K 3/4 27.1Mb/s DVB-T MPEG2
DTG-12 QSPK 8K 3/4 8.0Mb/s DVB-T MPEG2
H/V: aerial position (horizontal or vertical)

Which BBC and ITV regional news can I watch from the Waltham transmitter?

regional news image
BBC East Midlands Today 0.9m homes 3.4%
from Nottingham NG2 4UU, 28km northwest (306°)
to BBC East Midlands region - 17 masts.
regional news image
ITV Central News 0.9m homes 3.4%
from Birmingham B1 2JT, 83km west-southwest (244°)
to ITV Central (East) region - 17 masts.
All of lunch, weekend and 80% evening news is shared with Central (West)

Are there any self-help relays?

BraunstoneTransposer5 km SW Leicester city centre170 homes

How will the Waltham (Leicestershire, England) transmission frequencies change over time?

1984-971997-981998-20112011-132013-182013-174 Mar 2020
C/D EEEWW TW TW T
C26LNGLNG
C29SDNSDNSDNSDN
C31com7com7
C32BBCA
C34D3+4
C35C5wavesC5wavesBBCB
C37com8com8
C41_local
C49tv_off BBCABBCA
C54tv_offC4wavesC4wavesC4wavesD3+4D3+4D3+4
C55tv_offcom7tv_off
C56tv_offArqAArqAArqACOM8tv_off
C57tv_offArqBArqBArqB
C58tv_offBBC1wavesBBC1wavesBBC1wavesBBCBBBCBBBCB
C61ITVwavesITVwavesITVwavesBBCA
C64BBC2wavesBBC2wavesBBC2waves

tv_off Being removed from Freeview (for 5G use) after November 2020 / June 2022 - more
Table shows multiplexes names see this article;
green background for transmission frequencies
Notes: + and - denote 166kHz offset; aerial group are shown as A B C/D E K W T
waves denotes analogue; digital switchover was 17 Aug 11 and 31 Aug 11.

How do the old analogue and currrent digital signal levels compare?

Analogue 1-5 250kW
BBCA, D3+4, BBCB(-7dB) 50kW
SDN, ARQA, ARQB(-10dB) 25kW
com8(-12.7dB) 13.4kW
com7(-13.9dB) 10.2kW
Mux 1*(-14dB) 10kW
Mux 2*, Mux A*, Mux B*(-14.9dB) 8kW
Mux C*, Mux D*, LNG(-17dB) 5kW

Which companies have run the Channel 3 services in the Waltham transmitter area

Feb 1956-Jul 1968Associated TeleVision†
Feb 1956-Jul 1968Associated British Corporation◊
Jul 1968-Dec 1981Associated TeleVision
Jan 1982-Feb 2004Central Independent Television
Feb 2004-Dec 2014ITV plc
Feb 1983-Dec 1992TV-am•
Jan 1993-Sep 2010GMTV•
Sep 2010-Dec 2014ITV Daybreak•
• Breakfast ◊ Weekends ♦ Friday night and weekends † Weekdays only. Waltham was not an original Channel 3 VHF 405-line mast: the historical information shown is the details of the company responsible for the transmitter when it began transmitting Channel 3.

Comments
Friday, 23 July 2021
C
Chris.SE
sentiment_very_satisfiedPlatinum

5:03 AM

Michael :

The only way you can get a better idea of what is going on is by comparison of the C35 signal strength for the PSB3/BBCB HD mux with the other PSB muxes, namely PSB1/BBCA on C32 and PSB2/D3&4 on C34 using your lounge TV (since it always had a signal the set could decode).

If the lounge TV showed the signal being low and then increasing after which you can then get it on the bedroom TV, yes you could reasonably conclude that it is transmitter engineering.
Because both sets are Samsung, there's the possible suspicion that the signal feed to the bedroom is not as good as that to the lounge. One way of checking would have been to take the bedroom TV to the lounge and try it there whilst you had no C35 in the bedroom. If you then got it in the lounge that would suggest the bedroom feed could maybe do with some attention - check all your coax plugs and such first.
If you couldn't get it on the bedroom TV in the lounge then the bedroom TV would seem to have a less sensitive tuner for whatever reason.

Try that method of checking if you have any further issues and do post back if you have queries or need further help.

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Chris.SE's 4,101 posts GB flag
M
Michael
6:41 AM

Many thanks Chris that's a good idea at the moment both have perfect freeview HD channels so I'm leaving well alone they are both stunning pictures in dynamic mode in HD

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Michael's 17 posts GB flag
Monday, 26 July 2021
Transmitter engineering
sentiment_very_satisfiedOwner

9:09 AM

Waltham transmitter - Waltham transmitter: Possible effect on TV reception week commencing 26/07/2021 Possible Pixelation or flickering on some or all channels [DUK]

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Transmitter engineering's 149,799 posts GB flag
Monday, 2 August 2021
M
Michael
8:22 AM

I have now lost the HD channels in my lounge completely saying no signal strength when I manual tune channel 35 same in bedroom the warden is on holiday a week when she gets back she will phone longhurst to send Ariel man ! The normal freeview channels are fine makes me wonder if the communal Ariel can't cope with the HD signal and I may have to have Ariel in loft I don't mind paying as I like the HD channels I have good eyesight by the way I wonder if it may be Sutton colefield transmitter ?? What channel is that to manual tune for HD channels ? Thankyou for your help

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Michael's 17 posts US flag
C
Chris.SE
sentiment_very_satisfiedPlatinum

4:40 PM

Michael :

Waltham isn't supposed to be on Planned Engineering now and nobody seems to be reporting any outages, no fault reports from the BBC.

If you were getting Sutton Coldfield instead of Waltham it would be Central West News rather than East, but you're unlikely to get good reception from Sutton Coldfield in any event, the BBC predict variable reception.

How does the signal strength and quality of the BBCA/PSB1 and D3&4/PSB2 multiplexes UHF C32 & C34 compare when you don't have the HD mux PSB3/BBCB HD which is on C35. Is the signal/quality lower on them than it is when you have the HD channels? This would indicate something not working correctly, not just the HD channels having a problem.

Have you tried to check for a bad/broken connection in the flylead from the set to wall plate even gently wiggle the plug in the wall plate to see if there's a bad connection there. Some times such faults can affect only one multiplex or one multiplex more than others.

How are the signal strength and quality figures on the bedroom TV? - If they are lower than normal whilst HD in the lounge is missing, this could indicate a communal system fault. Are you neighbours having any similar problems with the HD channels?

Sutton Coldfield BBCB HD is on C40, but you are unlikely to get any signal as the aerial is pointing the wrong way and is likely to be not good anyway.

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Chris.SE's 4,101 posts GB flag
M
Michael
5:42 PM

Chris C32 and C34 are both 100% strong signal quality in lounge and bedroom C35 is no signal quality in lounge and bedroom I've checked leads and wall sockets both perfect tight fit bare in mind these sockets have been here 23 years I've been here just over 2 months !

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Michael's 17 posts US flag
C
Chris.SE
sentiment_very_satisfiedPlatinum

7:16 PM

Michael :

I'll try and keep an eye on any reports of current issues at Waltham (hopefully any one else reading might post if they spot any info). The BBC in particular are usually very good in reporting any issues that affect any of their multiplexes or channels.

Did you ask if any neighbours had issues? In the absence of any known transmitter issues, it does sound like an issue with the communal system, which may of course only affect your one feed to the lounge for some obscure reason.
If neighbours are having similar issues or nothing else transpires, then it would be best to get the warden to get the aerial chap in to give it all a check out.

Keep us posted.

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Chris.SE's 4,101 posts GB flag
Tuesday, 3 August 2021
M
Michael
6:22 AM

Chris it was pixelating on normal channels last night I changed channels and back again and this stopped that could you please tell me how a communal Ariel works have I got any cables in my loft or is it cable under the road ? Would the Ariel man put something on the communal Ariel on the wardens house roof or would he go in my bungalow loft ? I cannot have an Ariel outside but I can in the loft would an Ariel in the loft pick up freeview HD channels ? I suppose I'm looking at 150 fitted ? Any advice most welcome thanking you

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Michael's 17 posts US flag
Wednesday, 4 August 2021
C
Chris.SE
sentiment_very_satisfiedPlatinum

5:02 AM

Michael :

Whilst Walthsm is no longer "listed" for Planned Engineering, doesn't mean that there isn't work going on or faults still present. Whilst I can still find no listing of any faults, experience has shown that the lists aren't always accurate. That said, it is rather curious that sometimes you've lost the HD channels on your bedroom TV and not on the lounge, and visa versa. I have difficulty believing this is down to transmitter work, but cannot rule it out.

Secondly, as one would expect, provision of the TV signals are part of your maintenance contract, I would NOT even be contemplating having my own aerial installation, any faults on the system need to be fixed. The fact that you've mentioned that the installation might be around 23 years old does suggest it could well have some faults especially cable and connection faults.
The fact that it was the HD channels that you initially had problems with is of no consequence to a communal system. The signals are RF signals the same as any other multiplex, being HD is irrelevant.

Communal systems will vary dependent on the particular circumstances, location and number of outlets required. "Typically", signals from an aerial (sometimes more than one aerial) may be fed through a pre-amp and then split to a number of filters and amplifiers each of which is tuned to the UHF channel for all the required multiplexes, and the gain of each adjusted so that all are at a similar signal level, they are then combined and fed through a distribution system which will have amplifiers with variable gain to provide the right signal levels at the various outlets. These systems are not especially cheap and are usually used in very large installations. Smaller installations may simply have an aerial and amplified splitters, and depending on the layout there might even be more than one. Routing of cables (maybe through ducts) will depend on how the "complex" was originally designed and built and what other "communication" requirements there are/were for such a complex (eg. alarm/help & telephone systems and so on).

How yours is done, with some buildings/bungalows not directly attached to another, is anyone's guess, and isn't really relevant, it's their responsibility to fix any faults on the system, which I strongly now expect to be the issue. In the instances where you've been losing signal, for example did it rain (maybe heavily) shortly before the signal loss? Water getting into a system, even afterwards when it is "drying out", can have strange effects on signals depending on the part and location of such water ingress. Some of the extreme heat that we've had of late could have affected joints that have been deteriorating.

Leaving all that aside, being in a bungalow means any individual aerial you might have will lower down and this will usually result in a poorer signal, especially if there are any nearby buildings on the line-of-sight between the aerial and the transmitter. In a communal system aerial location should be where there is a reliable and consistent signal.

Forget this idea of having your own aerial, the warden needs to get the "man" in to check out the system and fix any faults. A good professional "aerial man" would probably be CAI registered and would know if there were local transmitter issues (as clearly many other people will be affected) and should know about reception in a given local area. If your neighbours were also being affected, it would at least suggest that it's not your TVs or flyleads etc at fault.

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Chris.SE's 4,101 posts GB flag
M
Michael
5:41 AM

Thankyou for your reply Chris warden is away till next Monday the chap across road is having same problem some days nights fine other times pixelating and yes certainly after a heavy shower I've noticed Thankyou for pointing that out . There are 32 bungalows all linked together the warden has a house with communal Ariel on the roof ..

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Michael's 17 posts US flag
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