Hi

After six years of not having a TV I've decided to get one. Not that
anything has come on that is particularly good, but I want to get a lodger
and I think that these days the expectation is that there'll be a TV

Getting the TV might prompt me into "going digital" in more ways than just
the TV. However I don't really understand how it all works.

I'm going to describe my current set up for radio which is very good for my
purposes.

In my living room I have an Arcam FM tuner. A respectable budget one. In my
bedroom I have an FM Tivoli clock radio, which produces superb sound I
think certainly for my classical music requirements.

On the roof of my house is an FM aerial which provides the signal for both
my tuners by co-ax and a splitter. I put it all in myself including digging
trenches in the walls and then filling them in Quite a lot of work. The
co-ax I used was CT100 iat the time which I believe is DTT quality. I was
thinking ahead

For the forthcoming TV I will be using Freeview. I can use a Freeview box I
guess, although I don't know which one yet. I haven't even got the TV yet.

I will need to put up an aerial suitable for DTT of course. I see that with
the TV channels there are also radio channels including the ones I listen
to, BBC radio 3 and 4. I'm wondering if I should take down the FM aerial,
replace it with my DTT aerial, then can I just take the audio signal out of
my Freeview box and plug it into my amplifier in my living room and thus
get radio as good as the rather excellent FM I am used to?

If I did that I would cut off the FM signal to my Tivoli radio, I'm
wondering if the digital signal from the DTT aerial for radio is the same
as that for digital radio and could I change my Tivoli FM radio to a
Digital Tivoli radio and give it the signal from the DTT aerial on the
roof?

I bet it's not as simple as that.

Alternatively I could keep the FM aerial on the mast and add the DTT
aerial. But can I send the digital signal down the same co-ax as the FM
signal? Will the different signals interfere in any way?

So...

What would you do?

Thank you





--
Patrick - Hove, UK
If you wish email me from my web-site: http://www.patrickjames.me.uk

On Fri, 24 Aug 2007 12:20:34 +0100, patrick j
wrote:

Hi

After six years of not having a TV I've decided to get one. Not that
anything has come on that is particularly good, but I want to get a lodger
and I think that these days the expectation is that there'll be a TV

Getting the TV might prompt me into "going digital" in more ways than just
the TV. However I don't really understand how it all works.

I'm going to describe my current set up for radio which is very good for my
purposes.

In my living room I have an Arcam FM tuner. A respectable budget one. In my
bedroom I have an FM Tivoli clock radio, which produces superb sound I
think certainly for my classical music requirements.

On the roof of my house is an FM aerial which provides the signal for both
my tuners by co-ax and a splitter. I put it all in myself including digging
trenches in the walls and then filling them in Quite a lot of work. The
co-ax I used was CT100 iat the time which I believe is DTT quality. I was
thinking ahead

For the forthcoming TV I will be using Freeview. I can use a Freeview box I
guess, although I don't know which one yet. I haven't even got the TV yet.

I will need to put up an aerial suitable for DTT of course. I see that with
the TV channels there are also radio channels including the ones I listen
to, BBC radio 3 and 4. I'm wondering if I should take down the FM aerial,
replace it with my DTT aerial, then can I just take the audio signal out of
my Freeview box and plug it into my amplifier in my living room and thus
get radio as good as the rather excellent FM I am used to?

If I did that I would cut off the FM signal to my Tivoli radio, I'm
wondering if the digital signal from the DTT aerial for radio is the same
as that for digital radio and could I change my Tivoli FM radio to a
Digital Tivoli radio and give it the signal from the DTT aerial on the
roof?

I bet it's not as simple as that.

Alternatively I could keep the FM aerial on the mast and add the DTT
aerial. But can I send the digital signal down the same co-ax as the FM
signal? Will the different signals interfere in any way?

So...

What would you do?

Thank you

Put up a normal TV antenna for digital TV. You can buy diplexing
filters to go at the top and bottom of the CT100 to let it carry both
the TV and FM signals.

If you have a choice between FM and DAB for radio, there will be some
channels you can't get on FM, and others that actually are better
quality on FM, so if you can keep open your options for FM and DAB,
try and keep both.

The best quality radio generally comes from the digital TV channels.

d

--
Pearce Consulting
http://www.pearce.uk.com

"patrick j" wrote in message
al.Net...
Hi

After six years of not having a TV I've decided to get one. Not that
anything has come on that is particularly good, but I want to get a
lodger
and I think that these days the expectation is that there'll be a TV


Getting the TV might prompt me into "going digital" in more ways than
just
the TV. However I don't really understand how it all works.

I'm going to describe my current set up for radio which is very good
for my
purposes.

In my living room I have an Arcam FM tuner. A respectable budget one.
In my
bedroom I have an FM Tivoli clock radio, which produces superb sound I
think certainly for my classical music requirements.

On the roof of my house is an FM aerial which provides the signal for
both
my tuners by co-ax and a splitter. I put it all in myself including
digging
trenches in the walls and then filling them in Quite a lot of work.
The
co-ax I used was CT100 iat the time which I believe is DTT quality. I
was
thinking ahead

For the forthcoming TV I will be using Freeview. I can use a Freeview
box I
guess, although I don't know which one yet. I haven't even got the TV
yet.

I will need to put up an aerial suitable for DTT of course. I see that
with
the TV channels there are also radio channels including the ones I
listen
to, BBC radio 3 and 4. I'm wondering if I should take down the FM
aerial,
replace it with my DTT aerial, then can I just take the audio signal
out of
my Freeview box and plug it into my amplifier in my living room and
thus
get radio as good as the rather excellent FM I am used to?

If I did that I would cut off the FM signal to my Tivoli radio, I'm
wondering if the digital signal from the DTT aerial for radio is the
same
as that for digital radio and could I change my Tivoli FM radio to a
Digital Tivoli radio and give it the signal from the DTT aerial on the
roof?

I bet it's not as simple as that.

Alternatively I could keep the FM aerial on the mast and add the DTT
aerial. But can I send the digital signal down the same co-ax as the
FM
signal? Will the different signals interfere in any way?

So...

What would you do?


Tell the lodger to sort his own sodding telly out....

Buy a TV with an integral Freeview tuner. You'll probably need a
roof aerial unless you're actually in the shadow of a transmitter.

The sound radio channels on Freeview are arguably the best quality
currently available. Your TV will have an audio output.

Later, you may decide to get a hard drive video recorder. Again,
choose one with integral Freeview tuner. You will then have ultimate
flexibility to watch (or listen to) one channel, record another. Or
you could get a cheap Freeview box to use just as the front end of
your radio listening.

I fear your other radio equipment has becme obsolete. Some will tell
you broadcast FM sounds better. If you subscribe to that theory, fell
free to leave your FM aerial on the mast. It won't bite your TV
aerial :-)

I will need to put up an aerial suitable for DTT of course. I see that with
the TV channels there are also radio channels including the ones I listen
to, BBC radio 3 and 4. I'm wondering if I should take down the FM aerial,
replace it with my DTT aerial, then can I just take the audio signal out of
my Freeview box and plug it into my amplifier in my living room and thus
get radio as good as the rather excellent FM I am used to?

Stick with the FM .. I do!...

If I did that I would cut off the FM signal to my Tivoli radio, I'm
wondering if the digital signal from the DTT aerial for radio is the same
as that for digital radio and could I change my Tivoli FM radio to a
Digital Tivoli radio and give it the signal from the DTT aerial on the
roof?




I bet it's not as simple as that.

No its not..

Alternatively I could keep the FM aerial on the mast and add the DTT
aerial. But can I send the digital signal down the same co-ax as the FM
signal? Will the different signals interfere in any way?

Can be done with a diplexer but sometimes separate leads are a better
bet. A lot depends also on where you live and what the digital TV signal
is like in terms of strength etc..

--
Tony Sayer

In article ,
Owain wrote:
No, DTT is digital *television*. If you want true digital radio that's
Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB) and you can use an external aerial for
that as well, in fact your existing FM aerial might do.

I'm in a pretty high DAB field strength area but using my decent FM aerial
gave worse results than a bit of wire out the back of the tuner. DAB
doesn't take kindly to poor signal levels - you get a 'boiling mud' effect.
Of course it could be that a simple FM aerial of the halo type etc is so
poor in rejecting unwanted RF that it does work after a fashion on Band
III and Band II.

You usually don't need a highly directional aerial for DAB as multipath
doesn't worry it in the same way as FM, so a simple dipole is often
sufficient. Or if you have easy access to a suitable high fixing point a
'Slim Jim' made out of plastic water pipe and a few scraps of wire is a
good DIY method. I've got a roof terrace and mounted one of these on the
top of the access door frame and it works very well.

--
*Gargling is a good way to see if your throat leaks.

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

On Aug 24, 2007 Owain wrote:

No, DTT is digital *television*. If you want true digital radio that's
Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB) and you can use an external aerial for
that as well, in fact your existing FM aerial might do.

Thank you.

If I do put an dedicated DAB aerial on the mast (on the basis that while
I'm up there it might be a good idea as well) then do I need any sort of
diplexer to separate the signal from the DTT signal so that I could use a
DAB radio?

--
Patrick - Hove, UK
If you wish email me from my web-site: http://www.patrickjames.me.uk

On Aug 24, 2007 Laurence Payne wrote:

The sound radio channels on Freeview are arguably the best quality
currently available. Your TV will have an audio output.

I find this very interesting. I quite like the simplicity of just having
one aerial supplying the digital signal for Freeview and taking the radio
output from that. If the signal is very good then this might be the way to
go for me.

--
Patrick - Hove, UK
If you wish email me from my web-site: http://www.patrickjames.me.uk

On Fri, 24 Aug 2007 19:20:48 +0100, patrick j
wrote:

The sound radio channels on Freeview are arguably the best quality
currently available. Your TV will have an audio output.

I find this very interesting. I quite like the simplicity of just having
one aerial supplying the digital signal for Freeview and taking the radio
output from that. If the signal is very good then this might be the way to
go for me.

Well, you don't have to decide all at once. Get your tv. It will
have Freeview. Hook it through to your good sound system and see how
the radio channels grab you. None of the options suggested require
you to immediately throw away any other options.

In article et,
patrick j scribeth thus
On Aug 24, 2007 Owain wrote:

No, DTT is digital *television*. If you want true digital radio that's
Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB) and you can use an external aerial for
that as well, in fact your existing FM aerial might do.

Thank you.

If I do put an dedicated DAB aerial on the mast (on the basis that while
I'm up there it might be a good idea as well) then do I need any sort of
diplexer to separate the signal from the DTT signal so that I could use a
DAB radio?


If you have the slightest interest in audio quality then I suggest you
try a DAB tuner first. With the exception of BBC Radio 3 the quality is
pretty dire!...
--
Tony Sayer