Freeview/Freely

How high pressure weather conditions can affect your Freeview reception (video)

Jane.Frydenlund — Wed, 10 Aug 2022 10:30:27 +0000

How high pressure weather conditions can affect your Freeview reception (video) Jane.Frydenlund 10 August 2022

Television signals can be affected by high pressure atmospheric conditions, which generally brings fine weather or morning fog. This may result in temporary pixilation which will pass once the weather conditions change. Matt Taylor from ��̳ weather explains why.

How does good weather affect my television?

Alan.Boyle — Fri, 11 Jan 2019 09:25:39 +0000

How does good weather affect my television? Alan.Boyle 11 January 2019

The television transmitter network is engineered to a very high level, so impacts due to the weather are rare. However, there will be occasions when certain weather conditions allow the signals carrying television services to travel further than normal. This can cause cause problems such as pixelation.

When these conditions occur, there is nothing that can be done but wait until the weather system has moved on.

Effect of Weather on Reception

The ��̳ has over 1000 television transmitters across the UK. The television transmitter network is engineered to a very high level, so impacts due to the weather are rare. However, as we only have access to a limited number of frequencies to broadcast television services, we need to re-use them numerous times across the UK. Therefore, there will be occasions when certain weather conditions allow the signals carrying television services to travel further than expected. Therefore at these times, you can then receive different television services that are using the same frequency.

Normally, the signals from each transmitter can only be received by those homes that have aerials with a direct line-of-sight to the transmitter. Being able to receive more than one signal using the same frequency can cause problems such as pixelation. This is known as co-channel interference and can be caused by a weather effect called tropospheric ducting. For more information see our guide on tropospheric ducting.

This can also happen with the television relays in our transmitter network which receive their signal from another transmitter.

Example of how weather can impact television reception

What can we do?

Since we cannot control the weather, we have no influence over abnormal propagation through the troposphere, and it is only practicable to plan a network where interference is suffered no more than 1% of the time. To improve on this figure, broadcasters would need to increase the number of transmitters drastically and build a much denser network. This is impractical and would be very expensive.

Unfortunately, tropospheric-type interference is never spread thinly throughout the year. It tends to happen mostly in the evenings - when television viewing is at a peak and specialist FM programmes are on air. It often appears at the same time on consecutive days, then disappears for several months. Some years are worse than others, depending on the prevailing weather patterns. Nevertheless, when averaged over several years, the majority of viewers and FM listeners should be free from this sort of interference for at least 99% of the time, providing they live within the service area of their transmitter and are using a good directional aerial.

When we are aware of this happening, we will put up a news item on Works and Warnings.

What can you do?

At these times, there is nothing that can be done but to wait until the weather condition changes. You should not retune your television when this happens.

If you have re-tuned your television, we would recommend doing a manual retune to the transmitter your aerial is pointing towards. We have a guide to help you manually retune.

Freeview Play channel numbers

Jane.Frydenlund — Mon, 24 Oct 2022 16:03:16 +0000

Freeview Play channel numbers Jane.Frydenlund 24 October 2022

Freeview Play combines Freeview’s traditional over-the-air channels, which you need an aerial for, with on-demand content that you can get via broadband.

The table below shows the Electronic Programme Guide (EPG) positions for ��̳ services on Freeview Play for internet connect viewers

��̳ TV and Radio channel numbers on Freeview Play

Last updated 27 September 2023

EPG No	��̳ TV channels	Multiplex
1	��̳ One HD - local variant	PSB1
2	��̳ Two HD - local variant	PSB1
7	��̳ ALBA (in Scotland)	PSB1
9	��̳ Four HD (Eng, Wales, NI) ��̳ Scotland (in Scotland)	PSB1
23	��̳ Three HD	PSB3
24	��̳ Four HD (in Scotland only)	PSB1
101	��̳ One HD - local variant	PSB3
102	��̳ Two HD - local variant	PSB3
106	��̳ Four HD (Eng, Wales, NI)	PSB3
108	��̳ Four HD (in Scotland only)	PSB3
109	��̳ Three HD	PSB3
204	C��̳ HD	PSB3
205	CBeebies HD	PSB3
231	��̳ News SD	PSB1
232	��̳ Parliament	PSB1
250	��̳ Red Button Text	PSB1
601	��̳ Red Button 1	PSB1
611	��̳ One SD - local variant	PSB1
612	��̳ Two SD - local variant	PSB1
613	��̳ Three SD	PSB1
614	��̳ Four SD	PSB1

EPG No	��̳ TV Stream
301	��̳ Three HD
302	��̳ Scotland HD
303	��̳ ALBA HD
501	��̳ News HD
502	��̳ Parliament HD

EPG No	��̳ Network Radio (pan-UK)	Multiplex
700	��̳ Radio 1 **	PSB1
701	��̳ Radio 1 Xtra	PSB1
702	��̳ Radio 2 **	PSB1
703	��̳ Radio 3 **	PSB1
704	��̳ Radio 4	PSB1
705	��̳ Radio 5 Live	PSB1
706	��̳ Radio 5 Sports Extra	PSB1
707	��̳ Radio 6 Music	PSB1
708	��̳ Radio 4 Extra	PSB1
709	��̳ Asian Network	PSB1
710	��̳ World Service **	PSB1

EPG No	��̳ Nations' Radio (Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland)	Multiplex
711	��̳ Radio Scotland / Wales / Ulster	PSB1*
712	��̳ Radio nan Gaidheal ** / Cymru / Foyle	PSB1*
713	��̳ Radio Cymru 2(Wales only) / ��̳ Radio London (London only)	PSB1*

EPG No	��̳ Local Radio (England)	Multiplex
711	Norfolk, Manchester, Newcastle, Leeds, Kent, Jersey, Berkshire, Bristol, CWR	PSB1*
712	Nottingham, Three Counties, Devon, Suffolk, Lancashire, Sussex, H&W, York	PSB1*
713	Guernsey, Cumbria, Humberside, Wiltshire, Leicester, Shropshire, Cornwall	PSB1*
714	WM, Lincolnshire, Merseyside, Tees, Surrey, Cambridge, Somerset, Solent, Oxford	PSB1*
715	Solent for Dorset, Stoke	PSB1*
716	Sheffield, Northampton, Essex	PSB1*
717	Gloucestershire, Derby	PSB1*

* Services broadcast in relevant local areas

PSB1 otherwise known as ��̳A and PSB3 otherwise known as ��̳B HD

** When ��̳ ALBA is not broadcasting

What is a Freeview multiplex?

Anonymous — Mon, 28 Jan 2019 10:24:53 +0000

What is a Freeview multiplex? Anonymous (not verified) 28 January 2019

The old analogue television services, for example ��̳ 1 or ��̳ 2, were broadcast from a transmitter using separate frequencies. Digital television allows us to bundle a number of television services into what is known as a multiplex and to broadcast them all on one frequency from a transmitter. Your television, or set- top box, then pulls out each individual service in the multiplex and allows you to watch it.

A number of multiplexes can be transmitted from each transmitter site, allowing a wider range of stations to be broadcast.

Freeview multiplexes

There are three public service broadcast (PSB) multiplexes. The ��̳ runs two of them and they are known as PSB1 and PSB3 or sometimes ��̳A and ��̳B. There is also a set of commercially-operated multiplexes, known as COM4, COM5, COM6 and COM7. Plus, in some areas, there are local television multiplexes which usually start with LTV.

Since the ��̳ has more services that can fit into PSB1 and PSB3, it has leased a small amount of capacity on the commercial multiplex COM7.

We keep an updated list of all our services on the various multiplexes

Why do we use multiplexes?

Using a multiplex enables us to broadcast a number of television channels at once using just a single frequency. This allows broadcasters to use the spectrum allocated to television to the maximum, giving you more stations to choose from. We are able to do this using technology that allows the television channels to be compressed together into a multiplex and then fed to the distribution network for transmission.

We can also add in radio stations, Red Button data services, subtitles and audio description into a multiplex. Each multiplex also carries the service information which includes the data needed for EPGs.

Digital transmission needs less power than analogue, so it is more cost-effective and environmentally friendly.

How many multiplexes can I get where I live?

The ��̳’s two multiplexes (PSB1 and PSB3) are broadcast from over a thousand transmitters across the UK, along with PSB2, which carries services such as ITV, Channel 4 and FIVE. Between them they cover over 98.5% of the population. Only PSB1 and PSB3 are funded by the licence fee.

The commercial multiplexes (COM4, COM5 and COM6) are broadcast from a much smaller number of transmitters and cover 90% of the population.There is also COM7 multiplex which broadcasts from even fewer sites and cover about 63% of the population.

In some cities and surrounding areas, one or more Local TV multiplexes may be available. These carry a channel dedicated to the local area, plus some additional commercial services.

Use our transmitter checker tool to find out which transmitters you can tune to and the multiplexes available on those transmitters.

Reception Problems

If you have a reception problem with one service in a multiplex, you will also have problems with all the other services in that multiplex. It is also possible for the signal strength and quality of one multiplex to be different from another. This could be due to the different frequencies used, the power of the transmitter and that not all multiplexes are broadcast from the same antenna on the site.

The our transmitter checker tool can give you an indication of the expected quality of the multiplex signal you can receive at your location.

Freely channel numbers

Jane.Frydenlund — Mon, 19 Aug 2024 13:08:33 +0000

Freely channel numbers Jane.Frydenlund 19 August 2024

��̳ TV and Radio channel numbers on Freely - Last updated 27 August 2024
EPG no.	��̳ TV channels
1	��̳ One HD - your region
2	��̳ Two HD - your region
8	��̳ Scotland HD (in Scotland)
10	��̳ Three HD
11	��̳ Four HD
12	��̳ ALBA HD (in Scotland)
63	��̳ Scotland HD (Eng, NI, Wales)
64	��̳ ALBA HD (Eng, NI, Wales)
235	��̳ Three SD* (Scot, Wales)
236	��̳ Scotland SD* (in Scotland only)
237	��̳ ALBA SD* (in Scotland only)
301	��̳ News HD
302	��̳ Parliament HD
348	��̳ News SD*
349	��̳ Parliament SD*
351	C��̳ HD
352	CBeebies HD
399	C��̳ SD*
551	Red Button
751	��̳ One London
752	��̳ One South
753	��̳ One East
754	��̳ One East Mids
755	��̳ One West Mids
756	��̳ One EY & Lincs
757	��̳ One West
758	��̳ One South West
759	��̳ One Channel Islands
760	��̳ One NE & Cumbria
761	��̳ One North West
762	��̳ One Yorkshire
763	��̳ One South East
764	��̳ One Scotland (Eng, NI, Wales)
765	��̳ One Wales (Eng, NI, Wales)
766	��̳ One Northern Ireland (Eng, NI, Wales)
767	��̳ Two (NI, Wales)
768	��̳ Two Wales (Eng, NI, Scot)
769	��̳ Two Northern Ireland (Eng, NI, Wales)
EPG no.	��̳ Radio channels
601	��̳ Radio 1
602	��̳ Radio 1Xtra
603	��̳ Radio 2
604	��̳ Radio 3
605	��̳ Radio 4
606	��̳ Radio 5 Live
607	��̳ Radio 5 Sports Extra
608	��̳ Radio 6 Music
609	��̳ Radio 4 Extra
610	��̳ Asian Network
611	��̳ World Service
EPG no.	��̳ Nations' Radio (Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland)
612	��̳ Radio Scotland (in Scotland only)
612	��̳ Radio Wales (in Wales only)
612	��̳ Radio Ulster
613	��̳ Radio nan Gaideal (in Scotland only)
613	��̳ Radio Cymru (in Wales only)
613	��̳ Radio Foyle (in NI only)
614	��̳ Radio Cymru 2 (in Wales only)
EPG no.	��̳ Local Radio (England)
612	Berkshire, Bristol, CWR, Jersey, Kent, Leeds, Manchester, Newcastle, Norfolk
613	Devon, Hereford & Worcester, Lancashire, Nottingham, Suffolk, Sussex, York, Three Counties Radio
614	Cornwall, Cumbria, Guernsey, Humberside, Leicester, London, Shropshire, Wiltshire
615	Cambridgeshire, Lincolnshire, Merseyside, Oxford, Solent, Somerset, Surrey, Tees, WM
616	Solent Dorset, Stoke
617	Essex, Gloucestershire, Northampton, Sheffield
618	��̳ Radio Derby
Out of area channel numbers
692	��̳ Radio Scotland (England, NI, Wales)
693	��̳ Radio nan Gaideal (England, NI, Wales)
694	��̳ Radio Wales (England, NI, Scotland)
695	��̳ Radio Cymru (England, NI, Scotland)
696	��̳ Radio Cymru 2 (England, NI, Scotland)
697	��̳ Radio Ulster (England, Scotland, Wales)
698	��̳ Radio Foyle (England, NI, Scotland)
699	��̳ Radio Berkshire
700	��̳ Radio Bristol
701	��̳ Radio Cambridgeshire
702	��̳ Radio Cornwall
703	��̳ Radio CWR
704	��̳ Radio Cumbria
705	��̳ Radio Derby
706	��̳ Radio Devon
707	��̳ Radio Essex
708	��̳ Radio Gloucestershire
709	��̳ Radio Guernsey
710	��̳ Radio Hereford & Worcester
711	��̳ Radio Humberside
712	��̳ Radio Jersey
713	��̳ Radio Kent
714	��̳ Radio Lancashire
715	��̳ Radio Leeds
716	��̳ Radio Leicester
717	��̳ Radio Lincolnshire
718	��̳ Radio London
719	��̳ Radio Manchester
720	��̳ Radio Merseyside
721	��̳ Radio Newcastle
722	��̳ Radio Norfolk
723	��̳ Radio Northampton
724	��̳ Radio Nottingham
725	��̳ Radio Oxford
726	��̳ Radio Sheffield
727	��̳ Radio Shropshire
728	��̳ Radio Solent
729	��̳ Radio Solent for Dorset
730	��̳ Radio Somerset
731	��̳ Radio Stoke
732	��̳ Radio Suffolk
733	��̳ Radio Surrey
734	��̳ Radio Sussex
735	��̳ Radio Tees
736	��̳ Radio Three Counties Radio
737	��̳ Radio Wiltshire
738	��̳ Radio WM
739	��̳ Radio York

* Only available when television is connected to an ariel

Effect of tropospheric ducting on Freeview

Anonymous — Mon, 28 Jan 2019 11:55:41 +0000

Effect of tropospheric ducting on Freeview Anonymous (not verified) 28 January 2019

When a television signal is broadcast from a transmitter, some of it disappears upwards into space and is lost. However, during certain weather conditions, the “lost” signal can become bent back towards earth and received much further away than normal. The lost signal can potentially travel great distances, up to many hundreds of miles.

This is known as tropospheric ducting and can distort or prevent television reception.

What causes Tropospheric Ducting?

Normally, the higher you go into the atmosphere, the colder it is. However, high pressure can cause a temperature inversion. This is where a layer of air in the troposphere will be at a higher temperature than the layers of air below it. Some of the television signals from a transmitter bounce back towards the ground and potentially again up to the inversion, effectively creating a duct for the signals to travel along.

Example of how a signal can travel further than normal

When does it happen

Tropospheric ducting of television signals is relatively common during summer months especially during evenings in periods of stable and fine weather. However, it can happen at any time of the year. It tends to happen when we have hot days followed by rapid cooling at night. This is why it is common near the coast.

When we are aware of this happening, we will put up a news item on Works and Warnings.

What impacts does it have?

Because the signals can travel further afield it can become possible to receive services you can’t normally get. For Freeview, your aerial can pick up signals from distant transmitters as well those from your local one. If they are on the same frequency, it can cause co-channel interference. This will cause temporary picture break-up (pixilation). These additional signals can sometimes cause problems with relay transmitters in our network.

How long does it last?

This is hard to estimate as there are many variables that cause tropospheric ducting. It often appears at the same time on consecutive days and then can disappear for several months at a time.

What should you do?

At these times, there is nothing you can do but wait until the weather changes. You should not re-tune your television when this happens. If you have re-tuned we recommend doing a manual re-tune to the transmitter your aerial is pointing towards. We have a guide to help you manually retune.

What is a good Freeview installation?

obadmin — Wed, 24 Oct 2018 08:25:38 +0000

What is a good Freeview installation? obadmin 24 October 2018

A good installation needs a decent quality aerial fixed as high as possible and mounted securely on the outside of a building. The aerial needs to be pointing towards the best local transmitter. In some areas it may be possible to use loft or indoor aerials.

Ensure you have good quality cables and connectors and a qualified installer should be able to suggest the best option for you.

Aerials

There are all kinds of aerials available on the market and some which are specific to certain frequencies. A wideband aerial is a popular choice, although there are other aerials available. A qualified aerial installer with local knowledge will be able to advise further.

Height

Your aerial should be as high as possible pointing towards the transmitter with the best signal. Use the our Transmitter Checker tool to determine the best transmitter for your location. Ensure there is nothing in front of the aerial that could block the signal, such as trees. All TV reception predictions assume an outside aerial at a height of 10m from the ground.

Loft and indoor aerials

If you live close to a transmitter or can get a strong TV signal, then it could be possible to use an aerial in your loft or an indoor portable aerial. However, in both cases the signal will be weakened as it has to pass through various obstructions such as walls, roof tiles, foil backed insulation etc. Even if you are predicted to have good reception, you may have problems receiving services using indoor or loft aerials.

Cable and connectors

A television signal will always lose some of its strength as it passes along the cable and through the connectors. Therefore it is important to minimise the loss by using good quality cable and connectors.

Amplifier

These are not recommended unless absolutely required as they can introduce unexpected reception problems. See our help guide on the different types of amplifiers available.

Polarisation

Depending on the transmitter you are using, your aerial elements will need to be mounted flat (horizontal) or on its side (vertical). A qualified aerial installer with local knowledge will be able to advise further.

Qualified Installer

We cannot recommend individual installers. However the CAI (Confederation of Aerial Industries) is a recognised trade body which will be able to put you in touch with one of their members in your area.

Who is responsible for my Shared/Communal Aerial?

Anonymous — Mon, 28 Jan 2019 12:50:24 +0000

Who is responsible for my Shared/Communal Aerial? Anonymous (not verified) 28 January 2019

If you live in a multi-dwelling property such as a block of flats it is possible you all are using the same aerial to receive TV signals; this is known as a communal aerial. It’s usually the landlord or management committee’s responsibility to deal with any faults with a communal aerial.

It is worth first checking to see whether the problem is with your own equipment, or the local transmitter. If neighbours are having the same problem it may be that the aerial itself is at fault, or there may be an interfering signal. In either case, you will need to ask your landlord or management committee to solve the problem.

Checking for problems

Check cables and leads within your property to ensure the problem is not a simple installation fault. Please see our Freeview Installation guide for further details.

To see whether there are any faults with the local transmitters use our Transmitter Checker tool. This will help you to see if there are, or have been recently, transmitter faults in your local area.

Electrical interference

There are differences between a reception problem and one caused by electrical interference. See our help guides which explain the differences. Our sister site, the Radio and Television Investigation Service (RTIS) also has useful information on how to distinguish the difference.

If it is potentially interference, your landlord or management committee can contact the regulator, Ofcom, for help with solving the problem, using their contact web form. Since it is a communal aerial, you will not be able to contact Ofcom directly.

Troubleshooting your Freeview Television reception

Anonymous — Tue, 15 Jan 2019 16:26:16 +0000

Troubleshooting your Freeview Television reception Anonymous (not verified) 15 January 2019

Are you experiencing a loss of channels or picture and sound break up? By following this help guide, you’ll be able to figure out if there is a problem with a local transmitter, what checks you can carry out yourself which could help rectify the problem, and whether you should seek the advice of an aerial engineer.

Effects of poor Freeview reception are:

loss of channels

picture break up

sound glitches/break up

Step 1 – Check if there is a fault with your local transmitter

First, use our Transmitter Checker tool. If there is a fault, it will be highlighted. If there is more than one transmitter listed, check all of them.

If there is no problem with the transmitter, visit our Works & Warnings page. We advise of known issues, major transmitter work and whether high pressure or extreme weather could be causing problems.

If there is an issue with your local transmitter or you’ve found the answer on a Works & Warnings page, the problem should resolve itself without you doing anything. Consider using ��̳ iPlayer or ��̳ Sounds while you wait for the issue/work to be resolved.

Step 2 – Check the cabling

Start by checking the cables that are connected to the television or set-top box and the wall socket. They should be securely connected. If possible, try with another cable, in case the cable or connector is faulty.

Step 3 – Check your television is tuned to the transmitter with the best signal

You should get the strongest signal from the transmitter your aerial is pointing towards. Some Freeview reception problems are due to the receiver not using the best signal. This can be an issue when signals from more than one transmitter can be received. A manual retune will allow you to choose which transmitter signal to tune to. The Transmitter Checker can help figure out which transmitter your aerial is pointing towards.

Check our manual retune guide for instructions.

Step 4 – Check the aerial system

Next, you might want to consider getting your aerial installation checked. We cannot recommend individual Installers. However the CAI (Confederation of Aerial Industries ) is a recognised trade body and can put you in touch with one of their members in your area. If you are a tenant or are using a communal aerial, you should contact your landlord/managing agent.

Also, please read our guides on:

What is a good Freeview installation

How to check your cables for water damage

How to better your signal using an amplifier or attenuator

Who is responsible for my Shared/Communal Aerial?

Other Considerations

Obstructions between the aerial and transmitter can cause problems. Trees are the most common obstructions. They can affect the signal. This can be greater at different times of the year (when there are more leaves), when wet or in high winds.

Other examples of obstructions are newly built property nearby, or construction equipment, like a crane. If obstructions are too problematic to overcome and/or permanent, you might want to investigate if you can reposition your aerial and retune to a different transmitter. Another solution would be using another way of receiving services, like Freesat for example.

If you suspect trees could be a problem, read our guide What is the effect of trees on reception?

Interference

If after working though the steps above you are still having problems, it’s possible that interference (an unwanted signal interfering with your reception) could be the cause. Please see our other help site, the Radio and Television Investigation Service for further information.

What type of aerial do I need?

Anonymous — Mon, 28 Jan 2019 17:02:15 +0000

What type of aerial do I need? Anonymous (not verified) 28 January 2019

To access digital terrestrial television you need an aerial. It can be built-in, indoor or external and vary with platform.

This guide gives a simple overview of the different aerials available.

Television aerials

There are three main factors to consider when discussing television aerials - polarity, group and location.

Polarity

This is not as complex as it sounds. Television services are broadcast either horizontally-polarised or vertically-polarised. Your aerial needs to be mounted flat (horizontal), or on its side (vertical), depending on the transmitter it is pointing towards and the polarity of the services broadcast.

Aerial types

Horizontal and Vertical

Aerial Group

To help boost reception, an aerial can be manufactured to receive a specific range of frequencies. This is known as a grouped aerial. For example, Group A aerials are better at receiving services between channel 21 and channel 37. This worked well for many years, but since we had to clear some broadcast channels for 4G and 5G services, we have had to squeeze more television services into fewer channels.

This has meant that some transmitters are using frequencies different from those that have been used for many years. This can mean some households may have a grouped antenna that isn’t suitable, or is less effective, for the frequencies now being used. The solution is to install a wide band aerial that covers all frequency ranges.

It is difficult to determine which group aerial you have, or even if it is wide-band. You may need to seek advice from a professional aerial installer.

Location

The best place for an aerial is at a height of ten metres, mounted outside without anything between the aerial and the transmitter. All the coverage predictions used in our tools assume you have an external aerial at 10m.

If you are in an area that has very good coverage, you can use loft or indoor aerials. However, some of the signal strength will always be lost when using indoor aerials. This is becoming more prevalent with new properties as many have foil-backed insulation in roofs and walls. This sort of insulation blocks television and radio signals.

Indoor

Indoor portable aerials tend to come in two varieties, mini replicas of external aerials and wire loops. The looped aerial will perform the worst and is unlikely to give you good reception.

Indoor aerial