How to connect DVB-T2 digital TV?

In a number of previous notes, I have already talked about, there is no point in repeating once again, for those who are interested - you can read the first publications at the link above.

Today's note will be directed primarily to those who have not yet connected to the network, but want to do it, and do not have sufficient knowledge.

We will try to give basic knowledge and concepts about what is needed in order to use the Ukrainian national DVB-T2 digital network.

Search for the nearest RTS

First of all, you need to find the nearest station, to be more precise, its location. To do this, go to the official website in the section "How to receive a digital television signal", then click on the link " Nearest transmitter" (" Nearest transmitter"). In the presented table, find your region, as well as your (any nearest) city.

In our case, this is the Transcarpathian region, transmitters in the city of Mukachevo and Svalyava.

Due to the peculiarities of the landscape, reception here is possible from both RTS: to Mukachevo RTS - 4 km, to Svaliava - about 20 km, in both cases, direct visibility.

Selecting an on-air receiver (receiver)

At the moment, 5 receivers can officially work with the TVB-T2 network in Ukraine:

1. Trimax TR-2012HD
2. Strong SRT-8500
3. Trimax TR-2012HD PVR (TR-2013HD PVR)

The Trimax TR-2012HD was my first receiver. However, I did not like both the plastic case and the power supply from an external power supply. He was replaced by the Strong SRT-8500. In general, there was no difference in reception quality, these devices have equal parameters.

The Strong SRT-8502 has newer hardware than the previous two receivers. Thomson THT702, in terms of hardware, is a complete analog of Strong SRT-8502, except for the display and SCART support.

Trimax TR-2012HD PVR has not yet been seen in retail on the Ukrainian market. This receiver has a PVR function and can record the air to an external drive.

You can also purchase a TV CAM module if it has a CI+ slot.

In any case, the choice of the receiver is exclusively individual.

Antenna selection for DVB-T2

The distance to the RTS will depend on which antenna you will need to buy. The farther the RTS is from you, the better the antenna you will have to buy.

There is a lot of debate about which antenna to use? Whatever it was, and Use of indoor antennas is highly discouraged. I, because their cost is the same as that of external antennas, while they do not always provide signal reception from all four multiplexes.

External antennas also come in different types and designs, they are both compact and full-sized.

Remember! DVB-T2 does not require special antennas with the same marking, the digital signal is perfectly received by the usual decimeter antennas. All the talk about "special" antennas is mostly a marketing ploy to sell more expensive antennas.

An exception to this rule is the so-called "Polish" antennas, with a grating. In order for this antenna to receive a digital signal normally, it is necessary to replace the usual amplifier with a symmetrizer (by the way, the Poles already have ready-made solutions, this is the LNA-xxx line). It is highly desirable that the symmetrizer cut off everything except the decimeter range (UHF).

Personally, a full-sized UHF antenna did not suit me, so my choice fell on a compact external antenna Strong SRT 15 ANT ECO.

Strong SRT 15 ANT ECO was bought for a number of reasons, namely:

• installation was planned inside the balcony, so the antenna should be compact
• Amplifier can be powered directly from the receiver, eliminating the need for a power supply
• reception is carried out from the RTS, located at a distance of 4 km in line of sight, so there should be no problems

As subsequent experiments showed, the antenna is quite capable of receiving a signal from the RTS Svalyava, located at a distance of about 20 km.

The Strong SRT 15 ANT ECO kit has everything you need to get started:

• antenna bracket
• set of dowels for fixing the bracket to the wall
• set of brackets for attaching the bracket to the pipe
• power supply with injector

I didn’t like the power injector itself at all, its ergonomics are weak, besides, the simplest coaxial cable of an extremely small diameter is used (you can accidentally tear it off).

If there are several TVs?

Please note that each TV needs its own separate receiver (terrestrial receiver) or CI + CAM module.

In order not to use several antennas, you can put a special divider - a splitter. You can buy it at any radio store, do not be stingy, the more expensive the splitter, the less signal loss.

The OUT connectors on the splitter must be at least the number of connected devices. The antenna must be connected to the IN connector.

If your antenna does not need power, simply connect the antenna to IN and the cables from the receivers to OUT.

However, if your antenna needs power, you will need to use a power injector by connecting it in series after the IN connector.

Cable and accessories

Measure in advance and buy the required amount of coaxial cable (75 ohms), do not forget to add a couple of meters in reserve, you can always cut off the excess. I used the S660 cable for this purpose.

When working with the cable, special "accessories" are used, and we'll talk about them.

The basis is the F-connector (F-connector), wound on a stripped cable. Connectors come in different diameters, in this case, RG-6 is used, the size depends on the diameter of the coaxial cable. When buying a coaxial cable, ask which one to use.

The F-connector is designed to connect two F-connectors to each other, for example, when you need to extend the cable.

Mounting the antenna

It is desirable to install the antenna so that the visibility to the tower is as good as possible, with a minimum of obstacles.

If you are mounting the antenna on the roof, please follow the safety and precautionary measures!

Also keep in mind that a rooftop antenna is at risk of being struck by lightning, so the mast on which the antenna is mounted must have appropriate protection (lightning protection, lightning/lightning protection).

In my case, the antenna was mounted on the wall inside the balcony, in order to avoid the influence of atmospheric precipitation on the antenna, as well as to protect it from strong winds (in strong winds, the antenna may sway, which leads to the “falling off” of the picture).

It often happens that just mounting the antenna and turning it on the tower is not enough. It is recommended to connect the antenna to the receiver and change its position until the signal level and quality reach the maximum values.

Unfortunately, in my case there is interference of the signals of two RTSs, the first two multiplexes of which operate at the same frequency. For this reason, it was not possible to achieve high levels of quality and signal strength. However, this did not affect the final image quality in any way.

If you live near the border, there is a chance that the receiver will receive a signal from neighboring countries (if it is digital).

In this publication, we have omitted many nuances, but you can always leave your question or comment below.