DVB-T HD cards?

[Roberdin]

Thanks Jake.

There should be no problems with the DVB-T cards and HD then; just a case of being able to decode it fast enough on the computer itself - 1080p H.264 @ ~ 18MBit/s (BBC HD) takes some work for the old CPU.

So it sounds like integrating support for this into the TV server/client should not be problematic.

On to problem two : does anyone know a reliable way to boost DVB-T reception? I have already got a new aerial and wiring fitted, and I therefore receive excellent signal on all muxes, except for BBC HD1. This is clearly due to the low power output at the transmitter... but there is surely a (fairly) cheap way for me to boost my signal without moving house?

Maplin sells a Digital TV signal booster: but I've had some poor experience with signal boosters. Does anyone have any idea how reliable/good these things are?

[knutinh]

Originally Posted by Roberdin

Thanks Jake.

There should be no problems with the DVB-T cards and HD then; just a case of being able to decode it fast enough on the computer itself - 1080p H.264 @ ~ 18MBit/s (BBC HD) takes some work for the old CPU.

So it sounds like integrating support for this into the TV server/client should not be problematic.

On to problem two : does anyone know a reliable way to boost DVB-T reception? I have already got a new aerial and wiring fitted, and I therefore receive excellent signal on all muxes, except for BBC HD1. This is clearly due to the low power output at the transmitter... but there is surely a (fairly) cheap way for me to boost my signal without moving house?

Maplin sells a Digital TV signal booster: but I've had some poor experience with signal boosters. Does anyone have any idea how reliable/good these things are?

Basically, your problems with radio transmission could be cathegorised as :
1. low signal level
2. low signal to noise ratio
3. interference and reflections

DVB-T is quite good at using reflections for improving signals. Interferences usually come from a different direction than the wanted signal, and a "wide" antenna will be worse than a narrow one.

low signal to noise ratio is very common, and an amplifier wont do any good, as itll amplify signal as well as noise.

low signal level may occur, if the amplifier built into your tv tuner is working sub-optimally at low levels. In that case, a "booster" with sufficiently low self-noise may be of help.


Basically, the cure to all problems is ensuring that you have a directive antenna with high gain (the more the better), aimed straight at the source. If you need any amplification, it should be placed as close to the antenna as possible. Make sure youve got good wiring.

-k