Digital help, for the beginners, we aim to explain about everything you need for Digital tv

123 AERIALS INFORMATION

| OXFORDSHIRE | BERKSHIRE | BUCKINGHAMSHIRE |

DISTRIBUTION AMPLIFIER'S AND SPLITTER'S EXPLAINED

Aerial amplifiers and splitters are used to enhance bad signal area's or for additional aerial points, multi room installs and to increase the digital signal enabling people to gain all the free channels or area's that have larger hills.

AMPLIFIER -

This is also known as a loft amplifier, a powered amp, a loft amp or loft box, distribution amplifier etc

An signal amplifier is normally installed in the loft or in a cupboard, and can be used to increase a poor signal or send multiple signals around the house.

An amplifier generally increases or boost a poor or week signal depending on how many signal ports the amplifier has, it will normally increase the signal by between 6db to 12db.

A signal amplifier will only increase a poor signal. The signal produces a better sound signal if it is increased at the main aerial mast itself.

MAST HEAD AMPLIFIER -

A mast head amp is normally installed when the signal coming from the transmitter is poor or the transmitter itself is a long way from you home.

A variable mast head amplifier is by far the best to use, if you live in a week signal area, as the poor signal can be adjusted up and down depending on the signal needed.

The most popular mast head amplifiers increase the signal before it enters your home between 9db to 25db.

A mast head amplifier will have 2 parts, the main amplifier sits just under the main aerial itself, increasing the signal where needed. The second part is the power supply, this will plug in behind your TV and send the power up the coax cable to supply the mast head amplifier.

ATTENUATOR -

An signal attenuator, is used to reduce a signal in very strong area's. If you live to close to the transmitter or your aerial is too large or producing too much signal, this can cause signal break up, picture pixelating or missing digital channels.

An attenuator is a simple little signal blocker that attaches to the cable itself via a cable connector, this reduces the signal being received to your freeview receiver or digital TV. the attenuators can be fixed the connector or cable to reduce the signal by between 3db to 25db.

Attenuators are used to stop channel freezing, pixelating picture, signal blocking or ghosting, if the signals are too strong they will not produce a signal good enough to get a digital TV picture.

COMBINER -

A combiner, is used when you want to have more than one type of aerial on your house.

An aerial combiner can be used for when you want to put FM, DAB, and an AERIAL signal all from one point, this can also be used if you want to receive signals from 2 different signal transmitters.

A combiner is used at the aerial mast itself and combines multiple aerial signals into a single coax cable, so you can receive the signal from one point.

SPLITTER -

A splitter can be installed any where on the coaxial cable run. This will be used to split a non amplified aerial signal out to feed another room or send an aerial signal to another Digital TV.

Splitters can cause a problem, they must only be used, when the signal strengths are already high enough to split. If you split a week signal or a signal that may already be causing you problems, it will only make the television picture worse.

A signal splitter must only be used when the signal is already at its strongest, as it can reduce the signal strength by 3db to 9db depending on how many rooms you want to run the signal cable to.

DIGITAL FREEVIEW, FREESAT or DVB

TELEVISION'S or SET TOP BOX

Freeview and freesat services, are provided free by the government and will give you 100 plus free channels available to you after the digital switchover, as long as you have the correct aerial signal via a set top box, freeview TV or freesat TV.

DVB -

DVB is abbreviated from Digital Video Broadcast. This is a logo that appears on the front of nearly all new LCD, LED or Plasma screen TVs.

This logo is a recognised symbol Which means that your TV or set top box receiver is capable of receiving free to air digital TV channels.

DAB -

Digital audio broadcast, this is a free service available directly from the aerial transmitter via a DAB aerial, installed by a local aerial engineer or digital radio technician, or you can receive this for free using a freesat receiver or freesat tv, or by using an existing freeview TV or digital freeview receiver.

DAB is a free radio service that can be listened to through a DAB compatible radio or stereo, the signal comes from the same transmitter as the digital aerial signal or it is also available through any freeview receiver that is receiving a digital signal or a freesat receiver that requires a satellite dish.

SET TOP BOX or FREEVIEW BOX -

A Digital set top box or freeview receiver, is a small receiver that sits by the tv, the coax cable goes into the receiver and then the digital box converts the digital aerial signal, so you can receive more free to air digital channels.

A set top box is a cheap way of converting an old analogue signal (which will not exist after the digital switchover) into a digital signal so you can receive all the new digital channels available in the area you live.

FREEVIEW -

Freeview Digital TV is a free service is a free TV service capable of receiving over 100 digital channels including radio aerial signals, all available via a Digital aerial.

A aerial engineer can check signal strength and available channels, and if necessary advice you on a new aerial install or aerial upgrade if needed.

You may need to upgrade your old aerial so that the freeview box or Freeview TV can receive the correct signals if not you may have picture freezing, missing channels or NO TV AT ALL after the digital switch over.

FREESAT -

Freesat TV is a great free service, again with a freesat receiver you can receive over 100 plus digital channels including DAB, some tv;s also come with freesat tv built in. Freesat installs are ideal when there is a low signal or in poor signal area's, because it allows you to have a low cost dish install on a south facing wall and unless there is a tall building or tree's in the way you are guaranteed a digital signal.

All freesat services require a dish, you will need to have a mini dish installed, on your house with either a quad lnb or single LNB depending on how many freesat boxes you use or if you have purchaced a freesat recorder. Also you will need to have 1 or 2 coax cables run from the dish into the freesat reciever or freesat tv.

A freesat installer can install the dish for you, as you will not be able to align the dish without a digital satellite meter. Please call 123 aerials and we can arrange a freesat engineer visit 0800 1244192

TYPES OF DIGITAL BOXES

DIGITAL CABLES

AERIALS

SATELLITE DISH

A satellite dish is used externally, to collect a signal for freesat, sky TV or many European satellites. It has to be perfectly aligned as it is pointed directly at a gestational orbiting satellite in space, thousands of miles away.

SKY DISH or FREESAT DISH-

A sky satellite dish, also known as a zone 2 dish. Consists of an externally mounted Sky dish, which needs a clear line of sight to the sky. The line of sight can not be blocked at all, if this happens all channels will just display NO SATELLITE SIGNAL.

Please ensure that the line of sight is clear, there can be no tree's or tall buildings in the way.

SATELLITE DISH -

Only sky TV use the 43 cm zone 2 satellite dish on a daily basis. Freesat engineers and freesat installers love to use the smaller satellite dish as it is light weight, low in cost and this of all satellite dishes are the easiest to install. To gain a wider range of channels or for European satellite dishes, it is necessary to use a larger dish.

A satellite dish comes in many different sizes but all work the same.

REFLECTOR -

The dish reflector is the oval or round part of the dish, This part of a satellite dish is designed to bounce the signal or sound from the satellite in space, back down the dish arm into the LNB.

DISH ARM -

The Satellite dish arm is another important part of the dish, it is the perfect length to hold the LNB far enough away from the dish reflector itself , so the LNB can be perfectly pointed at the centre of the reflector.

LNB -

Or low noise blocker, The LNB is the part that catches the the noise or satellite signal, converts it and sends it down the coax cable to the satellite receiver, freesat box, freesat TV or sky box.

A satellite dish has to be perfectly aligned using a signal meter, if the dish alignment is off by a little you will have missing channels, picture freezing or no signal. To contact a local satellite engineer call us 0800 1244192

LED, LCD AND PLASMA TV'S

Before purchasing a freeview box, freesat tv or freesat decoder, please consider which channels you want to receive, as freesat and freeview are 2 totally different systems and do not have the same digital channel listings.

LED SCREEN TV -

Light Emitting Diode.

These LED televisions are generally thinner and consume less energy, With LED technology the TV is designed to produce a sharper clearer image or picture.

LCD SCREEN TV -

Liquid Crystal Display.

The LED TV has a wider range of sizes compared to the plasma TV and offers a light weight tv that is ideal as a display TV because unlike the old CRT TVs they can be left on for longer with no worry of screen burn.

PLASMA SCREEN TV -

Plasma TVs are generally the larger screens and like the older CRT TVs these are filled with gas.

A plasma TV is ideal if you wish to have a large tv with a great picture although these TVs need re-gassing after normally 50 thousand hours or use.

CRT SCREEN TV'S -

Cathode Ray Tube. (poisonous gasses are released if dropped or broken) these use the same gases as some kitchen strip lights and will cause problems with recycling the TV as the gas is not safe when exposed.

These are the older heavier TVs, Which many manufactures no longer make.

The CRT screen TVs, as they are so old most of them only receive an analogue signal and need to be adapted to digital TV, with a freeview digital set top box.

FLAT SCREEN TV -

This is the the term used to describe the picture producing part of the TV.

Most of the older CRT TVs used a curved screen, but since the introduction of flat screen TVs the pictures have been clearer.

Some of the problems that can be caused by flat screen TVs, is that when you sit off angle from the TV the picture may seem blurred.

REAR PROJECTION -

Rear projection TVs used to be widely used in pubs and clubs, but as a TV they are rarely used now because of their size and weight. Also the picture quality when viewing up close produces a very unclear or poor picture.

A rear projection TV has a flat mesh screen and at the base or rear of the TV, the image is projected onto this screen.

TV PROJECTOR'S -

TV Projector's have a main unit which is usually attached to a ceiling in a pub, club or bar and uses a system or coloured bulbs to project a picture on to a blank wall or drop down white screen. These projection boxes need to have externally spaced speakers attached as they do not have in built speakers. Most of these units produce Dolby surround sound.

TV projector's are ideal for public performances like football games or other sporting events, as the picture can be projected on to a screen or wall and the size can be adjusted from a very small screen to a super sized TV picture depending on the viewing audience.

BRACKET'S

WALL MOUNT -

A wall mount or TV wall mount is used when mounting a flat screen TV on a wall. We would not advise installing above a 42 inch TV on a plasterboard wall or using a swivel and tilt mount on a plasterboard wall.

TV wall mounted brackets come in 3 different types.

Fixed TV wall brackets - These TV wall brackets fixed directly to the wall and are do not move.

Tilt TV wall bracket - These like the fixed wall bracket fix in one TV position but have an angle adjust on it to allow for a different seating position.

Swivel TV wall bracket - These swivel and tilt TV wall brackets can be pushed back on the wall into the corner of the room to save space, and then pulled out and adjusted easily to allow for any seating position needed.

LASHING KIT AND LASHING BRACKET -

A lashing cradle is a C shaped bracket that is attached to a chimney using a metal lashing kit or nylon ratchet strapping. A Lashing Kit is used to stop and damage to the chimney caused by using a drill.

The lashing kit is installed using 2 J bolts, these are attached using a metal lashing strap, supported by 4 corned plates to stop the cable digging into the chimney mortar when it is tightened onto the lashing cradle.

We at 123 aerials prefer to use the nylon ratchet straps and ratchet brackets as these are safer for the engineer to install at height.

A lashing bracket and lashing kit are attached to a chimney, to support a pole or mast, this type of install is perfect for gaining height on a sky satellite dish or when installing a external roof aerial.

T and K BRACKET'S -

A T & K bracket comes in 2 parts they come in different sizes from a 12" stand off bracket to a 36" bracket. When used with a pole of any length they can be spread apart to gain height when there is no chimney or if the highest point of the house is a side wall. They are used to bring the pole away from the soffit or guttering.

A T and K bracket can be spread apart to hold any length of mast to avoid signal interference from tree's or other tall buildings they are generally used when installing a sky dish but can also be used to mount a digital aerial.

STAND OFF BRACKET -

A stand off bracket normally comes as a 6x6 bracket or a 9x9 bracket but may come in many different sizes.

A stand off bracket is ideal for holding a short pole to support a freesat dish, sky dish or aerial off the side of a flush external wall.