Now you can no longer pretend nothing has happened: every time you sit nice and comfortable on your sofa, after a hard day at work, when you want to watch something on TV to relax, your device totally refuses to “cooperate”. The images displayed on the screen begin to get completely grainy, with continuous audio disturbances and, in some cases, even entire screens obscured.
In short, there is absolutely nothing relaxing in all this. The main suspect in this matter, in your opinion, is the TV antenna system: you have no idea when and how it was made. Here, then, that you would like to understand how to increase the quality of the digital terrestrial signal and, above all, if there is a need for large outlays to fix things. Do you see yourself at least a little in this description?
Yup? So, if you want, I can provide you with the help you need. In fact, in this tutorial I will provide you with an exhaustive overview of possible solutions to solve your reception problem. I will take care to explain everything to you as clearly as possible and you will only have to choose the possible remedy that best suits your needs and your situation. Then? Are you going to give me a few minutes of your time? Great, continue with the next lines, then. I wish you a good read and I wish you a big good luck for everything!
Index
- Preliminary information
- Test the signal strength
- Orient the antenna
- Use a UHF amplifier
- Replace TV or decoder
Preliminary information
You must know that there are several factors that can influence the reception of the digital terrestrial signal : the era and the way in which the antenna system of the building in which you reside was built and designed , the quantity and position of the signal repeaters in your area (in some areas it may be necessary to install more than one antenna to remedy this fact), the presence of buildings to obstruct the spread of the signal, and so on.
In addition, the model and how recent the television and digital terrestrial decoder you use should also be considered . However, as you may have already guessed, not all of these elements have the same relevance for the purpose of reception.
The role of the last ones I have listed for you (television and decoder), in fact, although it has a certain weight, certainly cannot be compared to that of the system. The way in which this was achieved and, above all, the year to which it dates back are absolutely determining factors and it goes without saying that these issues can only be assessed by an antenna technician .
By means of an accurate appraisal with special tools, he will be able to advise you on what to do. Most of the time everything is solved with a replacement of the antenna. In some cases, however, it may be necessary to completely replace the system (especially if this dates back to several decades ago and has suffered damage over time).
The signal intensity is measured in dB (decibels) and the system of a building is usually constructed in such a way that each floor corresponds to a “node” of the system which causes a certain dispersion (or loss) of the overall signal power . If the problem you are experiencing is localized only for some sockets of your system, then the antenna operator can also opt for a “cheap” solution, that is to direct more cables to the sockets with reduced power.
In short, by now I believe that the concept is clear to you: to solve the problem at the origin, the advice of an aerialist or a specialized technician is essential. In any case, in the course of the various chapters of this guide I will go to advise you of the tricks that you can take yourself , right away, to try to improve (at least a little) things.
Test the signal strength
Before moving on to the “countermeasures” to be implemented, you must be sure that, if you notice problems while watching the channels on your TV, the fact is really attributable to a reception problem and not, for example, to a malfunction of the TV components itself or the decoder to which it is connected (if present).
Televisions and decoders (even many of the older ones) generally have an integrated function that allows you to check the intensity and other details on the digital terrestrial signal. Generally, to access this option, you have to press the Menu button on the remote control (it could also be called Home and have the symbol of a house) and go to the Settings (or Configuration ) item. Next, you have to press the central button on the remote control (it could be called OK ) on the latter.
Proceed by pressing the center button on the Tuning (or Antenna ) item and in this menu you may find an item relating to the antenna test . If you have an LG TV you can read the specific details for the procedure to be performed on your device in this chapter of my guide on how to check if the TV antenna works .
I will now show you how to check the signal strength on a Samsung Smart TV (the 7th generation UE43NU7092UXXH model to be exact ; the names of the menu items may vary slightly if your TV model is different). To start, press the Settings button on the remote control and then move down with the directional arrow down button , select the item Support and press the Enter button (the one with the square symbol placed between the directional arrows).
Then select the item Self diagnosis and press the Enter key , then press the latter again on the item Information on the signal . Now you can check the strength and quality of the signal for each channel. Just change channels with the CH + or CH – buttons to test each of those available. Optimal values are at least 80% for both power and quality.
Furthermore, if you reside in a building equipped with a condominium antenna , you could also compare yourself with the other condominiums and ask them if they too are experiencing the same problems in receiving the digital terrestrial signal. If so, then the problem is related to the antenna itself or to the way in which it is positioned; otherwise, the malfunctions are attributable to the state of the system in your apartment. In both cases, this is useful information to communicate to an antennae .
Orient the antenna
Do you have any idea how the antenna of your system is oriented ? No? Then you should also take this into consideration if you are interested in improving your reception. In principle, the antenna should be oriented towards the repeaters of the digital terrestrial signal present in your area. You do not know what the ‘ location of the latter? You can fix it quickly and in a very simple way.
Just type tv repeater [name of your municipality of residence] in the Google Maps search bar and press the magnifying glass icon on it. The tool of the Mountain View behemoth will show you the map of your area with some red signs indicating repeaters. Alternatively, you can also visit the OTG TV site : it is a convenient online tool designed to provide details on the television repeaters present on national soil.
On the home page of the site, click on the name of your region of residence, then click on that of your province and, finally, click on the name of your municipality . The site will provide you, in a table, with details on the location of the repeaters. At this point, you just have to try to direct the antenna yourself towards the latter or get help from a technician or an expert (my advice is to opt for the second solution). If you want other “tips” about it, I suggest you read my tutorial on how to orient the TV antenna .
Use a UHF amplifier
Have you carried out the checks and put into practice the suggestions on how to increase the quality of the digital terrestrial signal that I gave you in the previous chapters but you have not obtained improvements of any kind? Then you can start evaluating any remedies. Signal amplifiers (also known as UHF amplifiers ) are easily found in electronics chains (both in physical stores and online ).
These are devices with extremely small dimensions and, in general, quite cheap (prices generally vary between 15 and 25 euros). In case of modest reception problems or interference, these solutions could be for you, since they allow a gain, on average, estimated at around 20 dB (in short, no miracle ).
Usually, installing amplifiers of this kind is an almost immediate operation: just connect them with an antenna cable to the appropriate wall socket, after which the amplifier must be connected to the television or decoder (operation may however vary from device to device. , always check the instruction booklet in the package).
There are various models with more than one input for devices, so as to offer the possibility of connecting more than one TV to the same amplifier (I told you specifically about this a while ago ).
Replace TV or decoder
A gain in terms of reception (even in this case these are still modest values , always remember that antenna and system are the first factors to consider in this context) can also be obtained by giving a “refresh” to your television or decoder. . In both cases, models dating back several years do not guarantee the performance you would get with newly released devices.
Furthermore, from 2022 the transition to the DVB-T2 standard is expected (which improves transmission capacity by up to 50% with the same bandwidth compared to the previous DVB-T standard), so if you have devices without support for this technology, the problems of reception will certainly be there after the “switch-off” to the new standard.
More precisely, the new reception standard for televisions and decoders is DVB-T2 HEVC . The acronym HEVC (High Efficiency Video Coding, also called H.265 ) refers to the video compression codec. This new standard supports resolution formats up to 8K (8192 × 4320) and allows for better results in terms of video quality than the previous H.264 standard .
These factors must be taken into consideration when considering the purchase of a new set-top box or a new TV. My advice, therefore, is to consider purchasing devices that support the DVB-T2 HEVC standard to aim for optimal reception results. We inform you also that was placed directly by the Government, that the transmission standard steps entirely to the DVB-T2 within the month of July of 2022 .
