The digital TV set-top box does not pick up channels. What is a digital TV receiver

Previously, this article, posted on the website “DOM BELKA. We build a house ourselves ”was called“ Another advantage of a soft roof ”, was dedicated to an antenna well located under a roof transparent for radio waves and wiring an antenna cable to TVs in a private or country house. However, after the passage of time associated with the introduction of digital terrestrial television (CETV), much has changed, and the article itself has lost its relevance. There were many questions related to mastering the reception of terrestrial digital multiplex packages. Why some antennas work better than others, why poor reception with active antennas, why an unstable signal over time, and many other reasons that have accumulated in the comments. Nevertheless, some blog visitors have coped with the difficulties of mastering the CETV reception on their own, and I can only summarize them and my experience.

What needs to be done to receive terrestrial digital television?

It is necessary to have a TV with the DVB-T 2 standard or to purchase a DVB-T 2 digital set-top box for an old TV or a TV with a different standard (DVB-T).

Make sure that digital broadcasting exists in the region.

Confident reception is commensurate with the distance to the television transmitter (TV tower), the height of its antenna and the power of the transmitter itself, as well as with the terrain. When using self-made 4-element antennas without an amplifier, at a distance of 80 km from Ostankino, in conditions of low terrain (low ground), the reception level at a height of 5 meters from the ground is 50% with 100% quality. Judging by the comments, similar distances using similar self-made antennas located at a height of 5 meters from the ground were blocked from the regional TsETV transmission towers. With the same power of analog and digital transmitters, the range of the digital signal is higher.

What is meant by intermittent ECTV?

Episodic freezing of a television picture, loss or stuttering of sound, scattering of an image in the form of a mosaic, or even a complete absence of a television picture. I encountered two reasons for unstable reception.

1. The simplest and most easily eliminated reason is the weak level of the television signal. I determine the signal level. There is an INFO button on the remote control for a TV or digital set-top box, and after 1 - 2 clicks, all information about the signal parameters appears on the screen. Important parameters are signal level and quality, and when one of these values ​​is less than 20%, the reception is unstable. During the day, the level can vary within 10 - 15%, this is due to the conditions for the passage of radio waves and depends on changes in the troposphere and weather. But this is not the worst thing, and the level itself can be increased by using a gain antenna or by raising it higher above ground level.

2. The reason is more complex and difficult to eliminate if the level or quality of the signal jumps and the most dangerous is when its jumps reach 0%. In this case, do not wait for the television picture. This means that the level of external interference is commensurate with the level of the signal, and the difficulty itself lies in the search for external interference. It can be emitted by a household appliance, nearby cellular repeaters or nearby broadcast transmitters, high-voltage transmission lines, etc. How to deal with this? Read on.

What antenna should be used when receiving terrestrial digital television?

If, before receiving digital broadcasting, the antenna received analog channels in the decimeter wave range, then it must also cope with the reception of digital multiplex packets. So in the village I didn’t have to change anything and the combined antenna with an amplifier (photo 3), located under the roof of the house transparent to radio waves, successfully copes through a splitter (photo 4) with 4 TVs, some of which receive terrestrial digital channels.

Let me remind you once again that a roof made of soft roof, slate or ondulin is almost transparent to radio waves and the antenna parameters under it do not change much, and at the same time it is protected from birds, precipitation: rain and snow, and therefore it is not afraid of corrosion. It also simplifies its maintenance.

Photo 5. At the cottage on weekends this antenna is not working.

A similar antenna at the dacha (photo 5) lost digital channels on weekends (the signal level or quality twitched from 0% to 100%), and the reception of analog programs went with strong interference. I solved the problem by using homemade antennas without amplifiers for each TV. In conditions of strong interference, the use of an antenna amplifier is impractical, since it will amplify all interference in the entire frequency range and overload the digital set-top box or TV.

I called the self-made antenna in photo 6 “Olympus 2014”, and it lived up to its name when this year in the country, an hour before the European Football Championship, it turned out to be better than the purchased Locus-Pro active antenna (photo 5). And in the Kaliningrad region, she won the Pole active antenna, receiving better Polish and all Lithuanian channels.

What kind of amplifier is needed to receive terrestrial digital television?

Antenna amplifiers, which were previously used in antennas for analog reception, are not always suitable for receiving DTTB and can fail in interference conditions. When receiving a digital signal, the first place in the parameters of the amplifier will now be its linearity, the ability to pass a high-level signal without distortion. Next is selectivity, the ability to suppress radio stations and interference outside the operating range. The signal-to-noise ratio is responsible for sensitivity, the value that determines the range of reception, and the smaller this ratio, expressed in dB, the greater the range. But you should not get carried away with a large gain, since its high value will be inversely proportional to the linearity of the amplifier. The antenna amplifier must compensate for the losses in the cable and in the splitter, if any. For each meter of coaxial cable in the decimeter range, the loss is about 0.5 dB, and in the splitter, if any, about 10 dB. The gain of the antenna amplifier should be within 15 - 20 dB.

Why with cable RCA"tulip" for the analog video input of the TV set-top box works stably, but with a cable HDMIAre not all multiplex packets received or does the level (quality) of the signal jump?

Most likely, the HDMI cable is of poor quality, it is not shielded, it is located next to the antenna and clogs it with interference. It is enough to lay the cable as far as possible from the antenna or to place the antenna further from the cable. Pulse signals pass through the cable, which emit a wide range of higher harmonics on the air, and their frequencies can fall into the bands of multiplex digital packages or into the intermediate frequency amplifier of a set-top box or TV, which causes reception failures.

Why is the transmitter several kilometers away, but the indoor antenna does not provide stable reception?

Sometimes it is enough to take the antenna out of the double-glazed window, since its transparency is not in all cases transparent to radio waves. A monitor, TV, digital set-top box, charger or power supply included in the network, an active speaker, an HDMI cable, and finally, just a power cable emit interference in a wide frequency range, so the antenna should be located as far as possible from these radiation sources. 1.5 meters will be enough. For close range, it is better to use indoor antennas without an amplifier, as the amplifier will amplify interference from household appliances, and reception will be unstable.

Interference can also be induced on the DVB - T 2 set-top box itself in case of its poor shielding or budget performance. The case is almost comical, when an active sound column located next to the prefix, possibly with a switching power supply, interfered with the normal operation of the receiver with its radiation.

What is the difference between a "digital" antenna and a decimeter antenna?

Antennas are no different - it's just a commercial move.

Why does a homemade antenna work better than a purchased antenna?

It's like a Stradivarius violin, made from the heart and for people, it sounds better. Most likely, antenna developers do not pay due attention to the production process, and for antenna manufacturers, these are just pieces of metal and wire where you can save on something. For example, a very cheap coaxial cable with high losses is used. Somehow in my practice I came across an antenna housing, which was simply a screen for radio waves, something was added to the plastic dye for beauty. And the use of an active flux in a year disables the antenna, even if it was just stored in a warehouse, wrapped in cellophane.

It all depends on the operating conditions. In the city and next to the transmitting tower, it is quite possible to get by with a single-element antenna without an amplifier (photo 9). The farther from the tower, the higher the antenna should be from the ground, and the more about it should have more amplification, that is, it should consist of a larger number of elements. The best results were obtained with a self-made antenna "Kharchenko" (photo 10).

Photo 10. Antenna "Kharchenko".

It covered the entire decimeter range of television broadcasting and therefore is suitable for all regions of the Russian Federation, given the fact that digital multiplex packages in different regions are widely scattered in frequencies. In a hilly area, the Urals, the city of Yekaterinburg, the Kharchenko antenna covers a distance of 60 km. And in the region of Veliky Novgorod, its range at a height of 4 meters from the ground was 80 kilometers.

What if there are power lines nearby and there is no digital reception?

Try using a circular polarized helix antenna, picking up the reflected signal from neighboring houses.

Why does a self-made antenna refuse to receive a multiplex packet at the center frequency of the range, but accepts extreme multiplex packets?

Again, it's all about interference. The antenna is tuned to the middle frequency and at this frequency it has better matching and gain, which means it is more susceptible to interference, which can be commensurate with the signal level, and the receiver will work unstably (the level or quality of the signal will twitch). It is enough to find a place or position for the antenna to reduce the level of interference.

What to do if on the route of the television signal near the windows of the towers of cellular operators?

I was helped by a homemade selective antenna amplifier with cellular suppression at the edges of the range. Mobile repeaters on frequencies 467 - 468 are more difficult to suppress, since these frequencies are close to the 480 MHz digital television operating range. You can try, shielding yourself from the repeaters with a spiral antenna reflector, to receive the reflected signal from the houses on the opposite side. In this case, the level of interference from repeaters may be weaker than the useful signal, and the reception will be stable.

Can the receiver itself be the cause of the unstable signal?

Why not. Receivers are constantly being upgraded, improved, improved in order to reduce costs, and therefore the possibility of their failure is not ruled out. This year, the following happened to me: a new budget DVB-T 2 receiver, the DENN DDT 103 model, deteriorated after three weeks of operation in the Russian climate with a temperature of + 30 degrees Celsius, began to stutter and freeze after heavy rain. At first I decided that the home-made antenna had “caught a cold”. When the next day I changed the prefixes, I found, in this way, a diseased budget option, in which up to 5 electrolytic capacitors were saved in the power circuits, and the remaining ones may have “shrunken” capacity, which caused a voltage ripple incommensurable with life. Usually, at high temperatures, intensive aging of radio components occurs.

The operation to restore the set-top box took place in the field, by adding a large capacitor (1000.0 microfarads) to the input power circuit, 10 times more than all installed ones. It is known that the larger the capacitance of the power filter capacitor, the less interference from switching voltage converters that are used in the power supply circuit of the receiver.

After several years of proper operation, one multiplex package disappeared.

The multiplex package, the very first, main one, with the Carousel and the Vremya program, was gone. What I just didn’t say in the comments on this case, but the trouble happened to me too. I turn on auto-tuning, the receiver stops at the frequency of the missing channel, tries to capture something, but nothing happens. Receivers from different manufacturers do not catch, purchased and home-made antennas are silent. No, they even receive duplicate multiplex packets on other frequencies, from other transmission towers, but the first frequency of the main channel is regurgitated. Of course, I became interested in why there is duplication and unfolded the map of digital terrestrial television broadcasting.

Rice. one.

It turned out that I was at the same radius of the transmitting towers (Ostankino, Butovo, Serpukhov), broadcasting on the same frequency of the missing multiplex channel. What is it - inconsistency in the frequency range, lack of synchronization or commissioning? So far, I just shrug my shoulders and repeat the phrase - "time will tell." All hope is for another transmitting tower (in Chekhov), which will also stand in this line, but already next to me.

Again, antennas of the analog wave range took off into the sky with a span of several meters to watch, through the snow falling on the screen, the program "Time" and satellite dishes stick around the walls of village houses.

And I, looking at the horizon, will wait until I cut my antenna mast. After all, even on spaceships, in case computers freeze, there is always a backup analog communication channel.

Perhaps the article will be supplemented.

Thanks to all blog visitors who helped with their comments in compiling this article.

The satellite dish is not related to terrestrial repeaters and receives a signal directly from the satellite. You can't connect to it.

When will analog TV be turned off?

In accordance with, state support for analogue broadcasting will be completely discontinued in 2018.

Decree of the President of the Russian Federation of June 24, 2009 N 715

"On all-Russian mandatory public television and radio channels"

With amendments and additions dated: May 12, 2011, April 17, September 30, 2012, April 20, 2013, July 21, August 11, 2014, July 15, 2015

4. The Government of the Russian Federation shall ensure:

b) provision, in accordance with the procedure established by the Government of the Russian Federation, of subsidies: to broadcasters - to reimburse the costs of paying for communication services provided by the federal state unitary enterprise "Russian Television and Radio Broadcasting Network" for the purposes of on-air analog terrestrial broadcasting of all-Russian mandatory publicly accessible television channels and radio channels (including including using communication networks of other operators) in settlements with a population of less than 100 thousand people, in 2011 - 2018, and for the purposes of over-the-air digital terrestrial broadcasting of these TV channels and radio channels (including using communication networks of other operators) in settlements settlements with a population of less than 100 thousand people - starting from 2019; Federal State Unitary Enterprise "Russian Television and Radio Broadcasting Network" - for reimbursement of costs (part of the costs) associated with the implementation of digital terrestrial broadcasting of all-Russian mandatory public television and radio channels in 2011 in settlements with a population of less than 100 thousand people, in 2012 - 2018 - in all settlements of the Russian Federation;

How to connect DVB-T2 digital TV?

You need an antenna (indoor or outdoor), a set-top box or a TV with a built-in tuner. In apartment buildings, a common antenna is most often absent. The signal in the home network is provided by cable operators, DVB-T2 is not in it.

Why is there no signal on the TV?

Provided that it used to be, it is necessary to check the connecting cords for damage, turn off and on the equipment, and automatically scan the channels.

What antenna is needed for digital television?

Broadcasting is carried out in the decimeter range, respectively, any antenna will do. When buying a new antenna, pay attention to the DVB-T2 mark and the gain.

What is the difference between active and passive antenna?

A regular amplifier is installed on the active antenna, power is supplied from the power supply, which is located next to the TV, which is convenient for one TV. A separate amplifier can be connected to a passive antenna, and after it the signal is divided into several points.

How to connect digital terrestrial television through an indoor antenna?

The use of an indoor antenna is possible only in the zone of reliable coverage of the repeater, most often, this is within the line of sight of the tower.

Can two TVs be connected to one set-top box?

Technically, it's possible. Either directly or through an external RF modulator. But such a scheme is extremely inconvenient, both TVs will simultaneously show one program and the channels need to be switched directly on the set-top box. It is more convenient to put an additional receiver.

Why does the signal of digital terrestrial television disappear?

Insufficient signal level leads to periodic disconnection of the broadcast. In such cases, a more powerful antenna and reinstallation at a higher point is necessary.

What cable to use for TV wiring?

Coaxial cable with a resistance of 75 ohms, it is advisable not to buy a cable thinner than 6 mm. The manufacturer can be anyone. Remember - "Good things don't come cheap". If the cable is laid for life, it is better not to save.

Why are the channels encrypted?

The broadcast of some channels may be encoded in order to test the broadcast. At the beginning of 2018, there are no paid DVB-T2 channels.

After the advent of digital television, many users wanted to switch to its reception. It's not just about frequent discussions and the desire to try something new. Signal quality is an order of magnitude higher, and ease of access increases attractiveness. It is possible to connect digital TV to outdated kinescope models with the help of additional devices, and to modern TVs.

Ways to receive a digital signal

There are several ways to connect a high-quality signal to a TV:

1. Cable TV. Reception is carried out via a common cable. The downside is the subscription fee and not ubiquitous availability;
2. Satellite television. Signal transmission is carried out through satellites, and reception is carried out using an individual dish. You also need a monthly fee plus the purchase of special equipment;
3. Broadcast television. The digital TV signal is distributed from terrestrial repeaters, you can receive it from an antenna, indoor or outdoor. This is a completely free method of watching TV shows in a modern format. It has disadvantages: often a low signal level, the quality of the picture can be affected by the weather, the location of the tower, etc.

The least expensive way is to receive digital television through an antenna installed and configured by the user.

How digital television works

The transmission of picture and sound for digital television is carried out by encoding the video signal and sound over digital channels. Digital encoding differs from analog in immunity to interference (external obstacles). A blurry, fuzzy picture, stripes are impossible here. The image is either clear or completely absent.

If the reception is uncertain, then perhaps the picture will break up into squares, disappear and reappear from time to time. It depends on how you set up the antenna. Alternatively, you can install a different antenna or raise and deploy the existing one, pointing at the TV tower.

Required viewing equipment

1. Antenna;
2. A separate set-top box with a DVB T2 tuner that supports the MPEG 4 standard and can operate in Multiple PLP mode.

Antenna can be used conventional analog. If the TV was released relatively recently, then it may have a built-in tuner of the desired format (the outdated DVB T format is no longer supported). Then you don't need to buy anything else.

To find out if there is a built-in DVB T2 tuner, you can look at the data in the data sheet. It is even easier to find a TV model on the Internet and get a comprehensive answer.

Selecting a digital tuner

At first glance, all TV boxes are the same. The main thing is not to make a mistake in the main technical characteristics. But there are other features that affect the further operation of the equipment and the breadth of functions covered:

1. The absence of buttons on the external panel of the set-top box will oblige you to use it only with the remote control, which is not always convenient;
2. If the tuner does not have a USB port, this technique cannot be used as a media player. If available, you can record TV shows and play photos, videos.

Important! A good choice is a set-top box with a separate power supply. It is usually built in. The most common cause of tuner failure is a power supply failure. If it breaks, you need to repair or replace the entire prefix, and the remote power supply must be replaced separately without problems.

Many hang the TV on the wall, and quite high. Then it is inconvenient to use the usual design of the prefix. There are equipment modifications - compact set-top boxes that are attached to the back of the TV with adhesive tape. The strength of the attachment must be considered. Such a receiver is controlled by a remote control through a separate sensor attached to the same adhesive tape on the outer panel of the TV. Power comes from the TV's USB port.

The set-top box can also be used in conjunction with a computer monitor (if there is an HDMI port). Then you can watch digital TV from a conventional antenna. If the built-in TV tuner fails, it can be easily replaced using the receiver.

What channels are available to watch

To watch free digital channels through a conventional antenna, the 2017 list contains two multiplexes:

• the first RTRS 1 - frequency 546 MHz, channel 30;
• the second RTRS 2 - frequency 498 MHz, channel 24.

Technical data are valid for Moscow and the region. They may differ in other regions. A total of twenty television channels and 3 more radio programs are available.

Important! TV does not pick up additional channels. Antenna tuning will not affect the number of received channels, but only their quality.

How to locate a TV tower

Users living in the city, in the signal reception area from the TV tower, are not puzzled by such questions. But for the inhabitants of remote towns and villages, the information is relevant. What knowledge is needed for the best choice and proper tuning of the antenna:

1. The exact location of the tower and the distance to it;
2. Technical parameters (channels and broadcasting frequencies), using which you can catch a digital signal in a given area. This is necessary for the user to manually tune TV channels on the set-top box;
3. Is the entire list of channels available for reception. There may be one or two packages.

Full information about the TV towers is on the official website of RTRS. There are maps where you need to enter the name of a particular settlement in the search bar. A map of the area will immediately open, on which all transmitting TV towers are indicated (green - operating, black - under construction). If you click on the cursor hovering over the selected village, information will be available on where and for how many kilometers operating transmitters are installed, channel numbers (TVK), broadcasting frequency, number of packages).

The active menu includes a function that allows you to find out the coverage areas of individual repeaters.

Now, armed with knowledge, it is necessary to determine whether it is enough to install an indoor antenna or whether an outdoor, more powerful one is required.

Antenna types

The analog signal is received at the MV antenna. DVB antennas are more compact. There are combined samples capable of receiving both ranges. From such a combined design, unnecessary elements can be removed, and you get an excellent UHF antenna. For example, if there is a long whisker (an element for the MV signal), they can be removed.

All antennas are divided into:

• active;
• passive.

Active devices are those in which amplifiers are used. The antenna with the amplifier must be connected to a power source. If a receiver is used, the 5V power for the amplifier is supplied through it. This is done in the menu settings. The option is called Antenna Power.

An amplifier does not always mean better reception, in some cases it will even hurt:

1. In the area next to the TV tower, turning on the amplifier can lead to the complete disappearance of reception due to too strong a signal;
2. The amplifier is the weakest element of the antenna, often failing. Plus a power supply and additional wires, which also require repair and replacement;
3. The intensity of the TV signal itself is provided by the design of the antenna. And the amplifier in parallel increases the level of noise and interference;
4. If you want to connect another TV to a passive antenna, this is easier to do.

Passive structures do not have additional amplification, they are usually used in areas with a stable signal.

Antenna selection and installation

An old antenna may be suitable for receiving a digital signal if it consists of short elements or combined. If there are working serviceable antennas, it remains only to find out whether they will effectively catch the "figure" in local conditions.

The decimeter signal does not have an extensive coverage area. Therefore, for its distribution, it is necessary to build a network of transmitters. The surrounding landscape, the presence of high-rise buildings, mountains, forests, the power of the repeater greatly affect the quality of the signal. Antenna installation must take into account all these factors.

Reception zone

A stable and reliable signal zone is an area within a radius of no more than 10 km from the television tower. Here, a simple indoor antenna will do a great job of receiving. If you have an amplifier, you can not use it.

If the signal disappears, the image breaks, then you need to connect the existing amplifier through the set-top box, using the appropriate menu item. Power will be supplied via the antenna cable.

Multi-story buildings can become a problem due to the reflection of decimeter waves. But the same reflection can be used. Let's say the antenna does not catch when it is oriented towards the TV tower. Point it at nearby tall buildings, the reception of the reflected signal will probably be much more effective.

It is necessary to check the presence of electrical appliances near the room antenna (third-party power supplies, etc.), as well as metal blinds on the windows. They can significantly weaken the signal.

Short circuit

There are cases when the set-top box suddenly stopped responding to the use of the remote control, buttons, the image and sound disappear, and “Antenna short” is displayed on the screen. The problem does not mean that digital television does not work. There is simply a short circuit in the antenna cable or in the receiving device itself.

Why did the closure happen? There may be several reasons:

1. The presence of a short circuit in the cable associated with careless installation, in all likelihood, at the connection points. The antenna plug can only be damaged by manufacturing defects;
2. The active receiver is in operation, power is supplied to the amplifier. The amplifier is sensitive to lightning and can be damaged during bad weather;
3. A passive antenna is connected, and the power to the amplifier is turned on in the receiver's menu. Passive devices are often short-circuited.

In the latter case, you need to disconnect the receiver from the network, separate the antenna from it, then turn on the power again, on the connected tuner, in the menu settings, turn "Antenna Power" to the "Off" position.

Important! The search for and elimination of the causes of a short circuit is carried out after the attachment is separated from the mains.

Remote area from TV tower

Distance is considered to be more than 30 kilometers from the repeater. With a powerful transmitter and direct visibility, we install a small receiving device such as a wave channel or a log-periodic one. You need to direct the antenna to the TV tower. In such conditions, it is even possible to use an indoor unit with an amplifier.

With increasing distance and when a settlement is located in low places, the requirements for the antenna increase. More powerful samples are needed. A good receiving device necessarily includes an amplifier, and its arrow is long enough. There are samples with several arrows, but they will only be needed under extremely poor conditions.

Many users have a Polish antenna, since in the recent past it was popular because of its affordable cost. Its other name is the lattice. Can this design be adapted for digital television?

It is quite functional, but some changes are required. The antenna amplifier does not contribute, but interferes with signal reception. Therefore, it must be taken out of work. Simply disconnecting the power supply is often ineffective. It is more reliable to dismantle the television cable on the amplifier board and connect it there to the two upper bolts: to one - the central core, to the other - the shielding braid. Thus, the amplifier is excluded from the circuit, and the antenna becomes passive.

Antenna and TV setup

There are several ways to properly set up a digital signal. The choice depends on the conditions of admission.

Auto search

This method is the easiest, but it requires a strong stable signal. The equipment is installed, turned on, digital channels are selected in the settings menu, and auto search is turned on. The TV automatically finds and stores the entire list of channels.

Manual mode

Suppose, in the auto-search mode, the TV cannot catch anything. Or found channels with interference. These pictures are not digital. Perhaps the TV at the same time went through the entire frequency range and caught several analog channels.

Now it will be useful to know the numbers of TV channels (TVK), through which the signal is transmitted for each multiplex. Information about the location of the TV transmitter will also come in handy to direct the antenna in the right direction. If the house is surrounded by other residential buildings, you can navigate by neighboring receivers, but not by satellite dishes that "look" at their satellite.

1. In the menu, you need to enter the manual setting, after selecting DTV (digital television);
2. Enter the channel number or its frequency by typing from the remote control;
3. Two indicators will appear at the bottom of the menu, displaying the intensity of the television signal and its quality. Sometimes there is one indicator;
4. In the presence of even a slight signal, you can begin to turn and move the antenna in order to achieve its amplification. An instant reaction when changing the position of the receiving device is not worth waiting for. It will show up in a few seconds. The search should be carried out stepwise, with pauses. When the antenna is outdoor, it is difficult to do it alone, it is better to take an assistant;
5. Immediately after the appearance of a stable signal with a good level, you can start searching for channels and saving;
6. Channels of the second multiplex are tuned in the same way, if its reception is technically possible in the given area.

Important! If the signal disappears, then reappears with the scale filled to 100%, and this continues in turn, this means that there is no reception.

Complete lack of signal reception

This situation is typical for particularly unfavorable conditions, in low places, closed by mountains, next to high-rise buildings, with low-power towers located far away.

The search for a TV signal must be manual. At the same time, for its primary display on the indicators, you need to show patience and endurance, having tried different methods:

1. Purchase a powerful active antenna;
2. If there are other towers nearby, you can sometimes try a manual search on the TV set to alternate repeaters. Perhaps the signal passing conditions will be better;
3. A good effect is to raise the antenna to a height using a mast;
4. When the TV tower is located close, and the house is located in the center of a densely built-up area with high-rise buildings, one should not rush to buy an expensive powerful receiving device. It is better to experiment with the reflected signal by alternately directing the antenna in different directions to neighboring buildings or placing it on the roof.

Tuning via receiver

Old TVs, models without built-in tuners with DVB T2 support, require tuning through the receiver.

CRT TVs are connected to a digital set-top box with RCA cables, LCD models with an HDMI cable. In the first case, the AV mode is selected during setup, in the second, HDMI. The mode is selected from the TV remote control. On the remotes, the choice of modes is located under different buttons: INPUT, SOURCE, VIDEO, just a rectangle with an arrow.

Subsequent setting is carried out using auto-search or manually using the set-top box. The antenna must be connected to the set-top box.

Receiving a digital television signal on a conventional antenna is an easy way to provide yourself with a high-quality picture that requires minimal financial costs and physical effort. With the development of the network of TV towers, the signal reception conditions will improve.

Video

Even as a child, living in the country, I always tried to set the TV to a good reception of a large number of channels. The only option that I figured out for myself from these attempts is that the higher the antenna is, the better the quality of the channels and the greater their number. But the height of the mast for the antenna has a limit. Therefore, some of the channels were always shown well, some were not shown very well, and some were not shown at all. Now, living in a city, you don’t experience problems with the quantity and quality of TV channels provided, but when visiting a village, sometimes you want to turn on the TV, switch channels, choosing an interesting program. But in the countryside, time flows more slowly and modern technologies arrive there late, and sometimes do not come at all.

In this regard, I set myself the goal of setting up as many television channels as possible in the village. To begin with, I propose to consider what options are available today to obtain a high-quality signal and picture on the TV:

1Cable TV- television, in which the signal is distributed through a television cable that is directly connected to each television set

Pros: Quality TV.

Cons: Subscription fee, available only in major cities.

2 Satellite television. Satellite television broadcasts via a satellite "suspended" in near-Earth orbit. The signal is received by viewers on an individual dish antenna.

Pros: Quality TV.

Cons: Cost of equipment, subscription fee.

3 Terrestrial television. Terrestrial television distributes the signal using ground repeater stations, in order to receive this signal it is necessary to use an antenna.

Pros: low cost.

Cons: often a low signal level, the display and quality of channels depends on the weather, distance from the tower, mast height, etc.

You can also say that TV channels can be watched via the Internet, but in this article I would like to talk about watching channels without using a computer / laptop, and even more so the Internet.

Of all the methods described, only the use of satellite TV was suitable for me, but I really didn’t want to spend money on buying equipment, and then paying a subscription fee. After digging around on the Internet, I found an alternative way - terrestrial digital television. The essence of digital television is as follows - the transmission of a television image and sound occurs by means of digital coding of the video signal and the sound signal using digital channels. Digital encoding, unlike analog, provides signal delivery with minimal losses, since the picture and sound are not affected by external factors (interference). Of the nuances of using digital television, I note the following - a television channel in digital television has two provisions, it will either work in good quality, or it will not work at all. Unlike analog TV, there is no boundary condition and interference, the only exception is if the channel has a very poor communication quality, it can slow down, turn off and turn on again, in order to avoid this, you need to use another antenna, raise the existing one higher or turn towards the TV tower .

What you need to watch digital TV:

TV antenna;

TV or set-top box (Set Top Box) with tuner DVB-T2(namely DVB-T2, outdated DVB-T will not work), support for the MPEG4 video signal compression standard and Multiple PLP mode.

You do not need to buy an additional antenna, just use the antenna for the analog signal. But the antenna itself is not enough, to watch digital TV you need a set-top box with a DVB-T2 tuner (some modern TVs do not need such a set-top box, since it is built into the TV, this information can be obtained from the documentation for the TV or on the manufacturer's website, which considers a similar case ). Prefixes are not expensive, on average from 1500 to 2000 rubles. In fact, apart from this prefix, you do not need to buy anything. Another plus is that you do not need to pay a subscription fee for terrestrial digital television.

It is important to note that digital TV allows you to view a limited number of channels, at the time of writing there were 20 of them (perhaps less depending on the region of residence).

Digital television is not tuned according to the principle - the higher it is raised, the more it is caught. You can only tune these 20 channels, plus you can add more analog channels that your antenna will catch (if the DVB-T2 set-top box or your TV has such a function). You can get more detailed information about the number of channels and the possibility of using digital television in your region by calling the RTRS hotline: 8-800-220-20-02 (free calls within Russia) or on the website: www.rtrs.rf.

So, I propose to move from theory to practice. In my case, a conventional television antenna was used, which was very popular 15 years ago. With this antenna, I was able to catch about 3 analog channels in good quality, 2 in satisfactory quality, and a couple more channels appeared in poor quality in good weather.

I purchased a DVB-T2 set-top box. Regarding the choice of prefixes, I did not rack my brains, because technically they are all alike as two drops of water. Most of them have two outputs - a tulip (some SCART) and HDMI, there is a USB connector for viewing the contents of USB media. I got the impression that they are all made in the same Chinese factory, only equipped with different boxes and labels. When buying, pay attention to the remote control of the set-top box, since you will use it all the time (switch channels, turn the volume down, up, etc.).

I connected the antenna to the DVB-T2 set-top box, and connected it to the TV using a tulip (it usually comes with the set-top box).

Tulip - RCA connectors for video signal and stereo sound. Yellow is for video signal, white is for mono signal or left channel of stereo two-channel audio signal, red is for right channel of stereo two-channel audio signal.

I’ll make a reservation right away, I connected the prefix to an obsolete kinescope TV, so I chose a tulip cable, if you have an LCD or plasma TV with an HDMI output, then you should connect it with a nominal HDMI cable (it must be purchased separately), since the image quality will be much higher.

I switched the TV to AV mode and got to the DVB-T2 set-top box interface. Setting up the set-top box requires a minimum of effort, all default settings will satisfy most users. The main thing to do is to set up channels. To do this, I went to the channel search menu and selected Auto search.

A few minutes later, the DVB-T2 set-top box found those same 20 channels + 3 radio stations. But a few days later, from 11 to 20 channels disappeared, on the website rtrs.ru I saw that the towers to which I connected did not support 2 multiplexes (from 11 to 20 channels), and the fact that they worked for a couple of days, most likely there were tests. As a result, to view all 20 channels, I purchased a high-quality, "strong" antenna. Test video below.

ANT-T2-MAX antenna test video

In order to understand the capabilities and settings of this set-top box, I offer a photo of each of the menu items (I apologize for the low quality of the photo).

A digital set-top box, as I wrote earlier, can play files from a USB flash drive. To do this, insert a USB device into the set-top box, go to the menu, select "USB" - "Multimedia", select the playback format (music, pictures, video).

In addition, digital set-top boxes have the ability to record an image from a TV to a USB flash drive. To do this, it is enough to press the "Rec" button on the control panel of the DVB-T2 set-top box, after which the recording will start on the USB device.

To summarize, I am very pleased with the quality and quantity of digital TV channels (of course, more channels are possible, but not all at once). In my opinion, for remote places, dachas, villages, towns, where people are not ready to spend 10,000 rubles to purchase satellite TV + pay a monthly fee, I consider this option the most suitable.

 06.01.2017

 Denis Bolshekov

If you wondered: Why does the digital set-top box not show or show poorly? You are at the address.

Let's look into this situation.

Doesn't show digital DVB-T2 TV and what to do about it?

First you need to make sure that you are in the zone of reliable DTV reception. If the set-top box used to show and then abruptly stopped, a possible reason is the incorrect connection of the antenna equipment. Or the DVB-T2 receiver is outdated, this is solved by downloading a new firmware from the manufacturer's website.

We will assume that the prefix is ​​in full working order. In this article, we will configure only the prefix itself and the antenna.

Problem: not all channels were scanned and caught

You have done an auto search and your set-top box has not found all the channels - you need to manually search for channels. Most likely, the set-top box did not receive the second multiplex signal, and you will need the frequencies of the nearest transmitting tower.

If the TV shows nothing at all

You have selected the wrong output or have not switched the TV to AV or HDMI. Or they simply didn’t turn on the prefix, it should have an indicator that lights up green when turned on. The set-top box is turned on either with a button on it or from the remote control.

The set-top box is on, but the TV says "No signal"

If this happens, the antenna is most likely turned off, or the amplifier is not turned on in it. Check if the antenna is connected, maybe it has moved away, pull it out and insert it back. Try auto search again.

The prefix says "No services" autosearch did not find anything

If the channels stopped showing and the set-top box writes "No services", then it's a bad signal. You need to repeat the search manually. The fact is that with a weak signal, auto search can skip channels. On the contrary, a manual frequency search will show the strength of the signal, even a very weak one.

Picture with squares "friezes"

We need to check the signal strength. Press INFO on the remote control. The same behavior of the digital set-top box is observed if you are far from the tower, or a large building interferes with signal reception.

Here the solution is that it is necessary to amplify the signal using an active antenna, or put the antenna outside, raise it higher and the like.

If the quality of the signal and picture is poor, we adjust the antenna

If the signal intensity is high but the picture quality is not very good, then you must either replace or try to tune the antenna. In the literal sense, turn the antenna in different directions. The mustache is responsible for the meter range, and the ring for the decimeter range. Here is the ring and twist in different directions. It is advisable to move around the room or put an antenna on the windowsill.

Digital TV works great with a reflected signal. But it is very sensitive to obstacles from reinforced concrete walls, plastic window frames.

As a result, we get

If you need to understand why digital TV does not work? If the signal is weak, then it must be amplified, using an amplifier or an active antenna. Find the optimal location of the antenna in the room, "turn" it.