Very poor aerial reception area - is an expensive hi gain aerial worth the cost vs using existing sat dish

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Just moved into home about 30 miles from midlands tv transmitter and in a valley dip with a large hill between bungalow and transmitter! As you can guess, the aerial signal is dire. All the other bungalows around here have got fancy multi X element aerials on huge poles, whereas mine has got an old cheapest-of-the-cheap job stuck ontop of a ten foot pole fixed to the chimney.

I'd got a quote of £200 -ish for a 'digital ready' aerial installation (I know, don't laugh, they're all at it!) but as this is only going to give me terrestrial and freeview, and I notice, there is an existing satellite dish on the SE wall leading to a cable in the living room, I reckon that Freesat with a fifty-quid box is my best cost effective solution for getting basic tv with an acceptable picture.

Am I right? Even a fancy aerial in my area is not going to produce, I would have thought, a picture as good as the satellite. I know I'll be losing some channels, but that aside, shall I ignore the aerial completely and buy a cheap box?

Thanks in advance for any advice.
 
HNev:
Just moved into home about 30 miles from midlands tv transmitter and in a valley dip with a large hill between bungalow and transmitter! As you can guess, the aerial signal is dire. All the other bungalows around here have got fancy multi X element aerials on huge poles, whereas mine has got an old cheapest-of-the-cheap job stuck ontop of a ten foot pole fixed to the chimney.

I'd got a quote of £200 -ish for a 'digital ready' aerial installation (I know, don't laugh, they're all at it!) but as this is only going to give me terrestrial and freeview, and I notice, there is an existing satellite dish on the SE wall leading to a cable in the living room, I reckon that Freesat with a fifty-quid box is my best cost effective solution for getting basic tv with an acceptable picture.

Am I right? Even a fancy aerial in my area is not going to produce, I would have thought, a picture as good as the satellite. I know I'll be losing some channels, but that aside, shall I ignore the aerial completely and buy a cheap box?

Thanks in advance for any advice.

Go with the dish and Freesat/Sky!

By the sound's of it even with an aerial upgrade you wont get decent reception/full service.There is no such thing as an 'digital' aerial so if that's what the installers are claiming they'll fit i'd be dubious of their credentials.If you go the aerial route use a CAI and/or RDI-LB approved installer.

You can search for CAI approved installers in your area here, and RDI-LB installers here
 
Hi There, The fact that you have the oldest aerial in the area, suggests to me that the previous owners decided to go the Satellite Route to get decent reception. Question is whether the dish is for sky or for Freesat.Both will give you a number of free to view channels [freesat was introduced primarily to give good reception to folk such as yourself, getting poor or nil tv reception.Not sure of current prices for the set top boxes though. Freesat boxes start at around £50 as for sky Boxes perhaps Dave 75 will come along and fill you in,better than I.Good Luck.
 
Thanks for your replies: as for what type of dish it is - the small circular sat dish has been there for three or more years so it must be an old Sky dish, as Freesat only recently started up, I understand.

The Freesat website says I can get a basic Bush box for £45 from Argus. This would do for me, I don't want to pay for a Sky subscription.

My only remaining question is - will I be able to just plug in the cable from the ex-Sky dish and that's it?
 
HNev:

Thanks for your replies: as for what type of dish it is - the small circular sat dish has been there for three or more years so it must be an old Sky dish, as Freesat only recently started up, I understand.

The Freesat website says I can get a basic Bush box for £45 from Argus. This would do for me, I don't want to pay for a Sky subscription.

My only remaining question is - will I be able to just plug in the cable from the ex-Sky dish and that's it?

Sky and Freesat receive the same signal's from the same satellites,so providing the dish is still in good condition it's just a case of connecting it up to your Freesat box and away you go.
 
Thanks Dave and everyone,

Good news all around then - just plug and go.

Cheers,

HNev
 
Hi,

Sure this isn't an older analogue SKY dish? I thought all Sky-digital dishes were oval?

If it is an older one, it'll be pointing the wrong direction and won't work with a newer digibox.

Cheers,

Cofnchtr.
 
Hi,

Looks like a newer oval one to me so will probably work as long as there's no damage at the LNB end and the cable is OK.

Pretty cheap to replace either of these though.

Cheers,

Cofnchtr.
 
Do you know anyone who has a SKY box that you could borrow, maybe a neighbour or friends/familly?
You could then plug in the box and view the free channels to see what the quality is like, you can also check the signal quality and strength from the service menu of the SKY box. I don't know how the free channel line up compares with SKY and Freesat but at least you will know that the dish is fully working before hand.

If the channel line up is the same on freesat/sky then you might be able to buy a cheap standard SKY box for less than £50, especially if theres any 2nd hand boxes on fleebay for example.
 
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