A sad story about blu-ray player/recorders in Canberra.

Stevian said :

magiccar9 said :

Amethyst said :

farnarkler said :

Johnboy I would have bought a Dick Smith product but, according to the sales staff in the Canberra Centre DS, if it doesn’t make the signal better, they won’t refund so if it doesn’t work I’d be stuck with a useless product.

That’s BS. They have a 14 day money back guarantee for whatever problem/change of mind. If they won’t refund it, take it to another one of their stores for the refund and (if you want to go this far) shoot off an email to their head office. I hope you just got a newbie and they’re not telling all their customers this!

Actually may I correct you in the error of your comment. Working at DS I can tell you with certainty that as of September 1 we have removed the 14 day change of mind policy. Now, before you go jump to the assumption that we can’t do that, and decide to try your luck with Consumer Affairs, let me tell you that the 14 days change of mind is a privilege that we offered you, not a right.

So we now recommend that when you purchase a product, choose carefully because generally we can’t accept it back. That’s the same rule for EVERY store, so I wouldn’t bother trying to return the product to another store.

So Dick Smiths have decided that all those cutomers were cluttering up the place and getting in the way of more important matters? A pity, but I’m sure there are other stores that actually want customers

Or they may have gone with the same policy that almost every other business in Australia has. Change of mind does not equal refund.

Do you realise how difficult it is to sell second-hand goods in a retail store. In 14 days, boxes get damaged and instructions/packaging are gone. Then you have to sell it for $10 instead of $60 and then it is just a matter of time before you are broke.

Wake up to yourself.

magiccar9 said :

Amethyst said :

farnarkler said :

Johnboy I would have bought a Dick Smith product but, according to the sales staff in the Canberra Centre DS, if it doesn’t make the signal better, they won’t refund so if it doesn’t work I’d be stuck with a useless product.

That’s BS. They have a 14 day money back guarantee for whatever problem/change of mind. If they won’t refund it, take it to another one of their stores for the refund and (if you want to go this far) shoot off an email to their head office. I hope you just got a newbie and they’re not telling all their customers this!

Actually may I correct you in the error of your comment. Working at DS I can tell you with certainty that as of September 1 we have removed the 14 day change of mind policy. Now, before you go jump to the assumption that we can’t do that, and decide to try your luck with Consumer Affairs, let me tell you that the 14 days change of mind is a privilege that we offered you, not a right.

So we now recommend that when you purchase a product, choose carefully because generally we can’t accept it back. That’s the same rule for EVERY store, so I wouldn’t bother trying to return the product to another store.

So Dick Smiths have decided that all those cutomers were cluttering up the place and getting in the way of more important matters? A pity, but I’m sure there are other stores that actually want customers

Amethyst said :

farnarkler said :

Johnboy I would have bought a Dick Smith product but, according to the sales staff in the Canberra Centre DS, if it doesn’t make the signal better, they won’t refund so if it doesn’t work I’d be stuck with a useless product.

That’s BS. They have a 14 day money back guarantee for whatever problem/change of mind. If they won’t refund it, take it to another one of their stores for the refund and (if you want to go this far) shoot off an email to their head office. I hope you just got a newbie and they’re not telling all their customers this!

Actually may I correct you in the error of your comment. Working at DS I can tell you with certainty that as of September 1 we have removed the 14 day change of mind policy. Now, before you go jump to the assumption that we can’t do that, and decide to try your luck with Consumer Affairs, let me tell you that the 14 days change of mind is a privilege that we offered you, not a right.

So we now recommend that when you purchase a product, choose carefully because generally we can’t accept it back. That’s the same rule for EVERY store, so I wouldn’t bother trying to return the product to another store.

montana said :

i can pick up all digitial channels reliably with $5 rabbit ears.

in gunghalin.

Have you considered using a vee shaped antennae that protudes from a plastic base and sits on top of the tv? Hard to beat the audio pickup though I suppose.

i can pick up all digitial channels reliably with $5 rabbit ears.

in gunghalin.

There’s no secret about the fact that you need a new antenna to reliably pick up digital broadcasts. IIRC it was well-publicised.

farnarkler said :

Johnboy I would have bought a Dick Smith product but, according to the sales staff in the Canberra Centre DS, if it doesn’t make the signal better, they won’t refund so if it doesn’t work I’d be stuck with a useless product.

That’s BS. They have a 14 day money back guarantee for whatever problem/change of mind. If they won’t refund it, take it to another one of their stores for the refund and (if you want to go this far) shoot off an email to their head office. I hope you just got a newbie and they’re not telling all their customers this!

Question, how are you connecting the Blu-ray player to the TV ?
Is it through an appropriate HDMI cable and in the right attachment spot ? Are the settings correct to show the output from the Blu-ray through the tv ?

Next stage is taking the unit to a family friend in Weston Creek to see if it can tune there. If it can’t then it’ll be calling in Kaz or another antenna company and, probably on their recommendation, a trip to Jaycar.

Thanks for the interesting comments. A couple of points I didn’t mention. In the family room we have a Kogan tv with built in DVD player. It uses the same brand of rabbit ears (in fact one of them has had the top three or four extension parts (dunno if that’s the right name) torn off and that picked up all the channels.

To TrenboloneBandit, yes it is 2011 so don’t you think manufacturers should be able to give us a product that tunes in all available channels and not require a more powerful antenna than one already has???

Johnboy I would have bought a Dick Smith product but, according to the sales staff in the Canberra Centre DS, if it doesn’t make the signal better, they won’t refund so if it doesn’t work I’d be stuck with a useless product.

troll-sniffer said :

ma7trlb said :

worth noting that SBS is the only UHF Horizontal polarization service on Black Mountain – getting/not getting SBS is a good indicator that something is pretty wrong setup/antenna/amplifier wise…

Is incorrect. All black Mountain UHF signals are horizontally polarised, the VHF (7 and 9 on the old tuners) are vertically polarised. That’s why a tuned Canberra aerial will have a horizontal yagi UHF element out the front with two or four medium length vertical elements behind.

Other configurations might be either for the repeater antennae for Tuggers etc or, as often is the case, Sydney-suitable aerials sold here by people who don’t know any better.

Actually all UHF TV broadcast in this country is horizontal, it is only VHF where it can be either vertical (generally country area’s including Canberra) and horizontal (generally major cities). Now considering we are talking digital TV the poster was correct, SBS is the only UHF channel off Black Mountain. The other 4 channels broadcast their digital channels on VHF.

The Mount Tuggeranong translator on the other hand is all UHF and the Mount Taylor translator is also all UHF, but only broadcasting ABC and SBS at present, not sure if there are plans for the other channels.

Anyway one major difference between digital and analogue TV that can and does effect the receive quality is the fact that the digital signals are not as powerful. I think I read somewhere that when analogue is turned off they can up the digital strength, which will also give them more bandwidth to deliver even more channels or more HD etc.

We were going to upgrade our antenna, then found that the arlec room antenna w powerpack ($30 from bunnings) does the job perfectly. We’ve since bought 3.

I agree with the antenna issues – its one thing to tell people to buy a STB, but then to tell them they have to fork out $350+ for an antenna is going to upset people. Plus once you have an antenna installed you cannot move your TV.

That said, if you are in Canberra, the DSE interior booster antenna work pretty well.

ma7trlb said :

worth noting that SBS is the only UHF Horizontal polarization service on Black Mountain – getting/not getting SBS is a good indicator that something is pretty wrong setup/antenna/amplifier wise…

Is incorrect. All black Mountain UHF signals are horizontally polarised, the VHF (7 and 9 on the old tuners) are vertically polarised. That’s why a tuned Canberra aerial will have a horizontal yagi UHF element out the front with two or four medium length vertical elements behind.

Other configurations might be either for the repeater antennae for Tuggers etc or, as often is the case, Sydney-suitable aerials sold here by people who don’t know any better.

Sammy said :

[Antennas are] something the federal government hasnt factored in with its anologue switch off

Really? For something they haven’t factored in, there sure is a lot of information about it on the Digital Ready website (www.digitalready.gov.au). In fact, they even setup the Antenna Installer Endorsement Scheme to assist people with getting their antennas upgraded.

A pensioner – the primary recipients of the set top box handout – I am pretty sure would not be aware of this. They will find out whether their antenna/cabling needs to be replaced when the person comes to install their set top box. What I have obviously failed to point out clearly enough, is that this government program has not taken this into consideration, and as a result will be alot of people who will be out of pocket for replacing their antennas when they get their free set top box installed.

A chain is as strong as its weakest link. Your story is unsurprising and I agree with troll-snoffer that the best idea is to RTFM which can be extended to RTF governments’ website on the topic which is very comprehensive.

EvanJames said :

It’s a nuisence that each station insists on broadcasting something in HD.

Yeah, technological progression is a real ass hat sometimes.

worth noting that SBS is the only UHF Horizontal polarization service on Black Mountain – getting/not getting SBS is a good indicator that something is pretty wrong setup/antenna/amplifier wise…

madscientist said :

However, this space age looking unit from Jaycar ( http://www.jaycar.com.au/productView.asp?ID=LT3134&form=CAT2&SUBCATID=1016#4 ) does the job where lesser antennae have failed – bit pricey but good quality. And looks nice and space age too!

Well, I suppose it loked space age in the 1950s, now it’s retro

In a rental with a (crappy old) shared antenna, I tried a number of indoor aerials to get better reception; unfortunately the path towards Black Mountain went straight through another block of units, so most of my attempts didn’t work out too well..

However, this space age looking unit from Jaycar ( http://www.jaycar.com.au/productView.asp?ID=LT3134&form=CAT2&SUBCATID=1016#4 ) does the job where lesser antennae have failed – bit pricey but good quality. And looks nice and space age too!

It sounds like you haven’t chosen the correct region before scanning for channels – different regions use different frequencies which would explain the mixed results on the same equipment.

dtc said :

How many attennas will I need to deal with the TV in the main room, the one in the home theatre, the one in the guest room, my bedroom TV and the ones in each of the kids rooms. My house is going to look like a Defence facility and I will run out of roof space.

(/scarcasm)

What, no TV in the Kitchen?

How many attennas will I need to deal with the TV in the main room, the one in the home theatre, the one in the guest room, my bedroom TV and the ones in each of the kids rooms. My house is going to look like a Defence facility and I will run out of roof space.

(/scarcasm)

As with everything electronic, it’s a good idea to carefully RTFM when dealing with the switch to digital. It’s important to ensure that during the tuning process the correct region etc is selected. Some make it easier than others. I have had digital devices that have tuned in all channels perfectly first go, others, even of the same model, didn’t. One Sony HDD recorder needed to have the tuner manually offset by 0.125MHz or whatever in order to find the ABC on Black Mountain!

IMHO it’s rare for a digital signal to be harder to lock in than a reasonable analogue one but Murphy always hangs around looking for excuses to pop up.

If you have the luxury of being able to install a good antenna tuned to the Canberra transmitters then the $90-$150 cost (DIY price) is money well spent. Even if you’re renting you can often rig up something, a friend of mine was renting in Nicholls so didn’t want to install an antenna for the landlord, we simply bought a UHF/VHF antenna from Kaz and wedged it between the rafters inside the roof cavity. Worked a treat and when she moved so did the antenna.

A note for all the luddites who are ‘stuck’ with the old SD tuners… a cattle dog I was flicking through yesterday (Auspost?) had HD tuners for $49.00. Problem solved.

molongloid said :

A good time to refresh the antenna system meaning the antenna, mount, coax and connectors.

Ideally all of the following, but the reality is as long as it works it works….

(and assuming you’re pointing at Telstra Tower)

A short length of fencing wire stuck into the antenna socket of the lounge room TV seems to do the trick for me though. 🙂

You do realise its 2011 right? Call the antenna guy on your rotary phone and book an installation.

TV isnt a god given right

I can’t wait for the sh*tstorm in this forum when NBN becomes freely available.

A good time to refresh the antenna system meaning the antenna, mount, coax and connectors.

Ideally all of the following, but the reality is as long as it works it works….

Antenna: A high gain band 3,4&5 antenna will pick up the channels you want from the direction you point it and do a good job rejecting the rest (including impulse noise/glitches). (It doesn’t *have* to be high-gain if you’re close to black mountain, but a high-gain antenna will give better rejection than a smaller one – you just need to include an attenuator so you don’t overload the receiver).

Mount: Your old antenna may be blocked by trees that have grown up in the meantime. Review and relocate the mount. Clear line of sight best, but multipath is okay too as long as it’s off big fixed surfaces and the signal is stable (off buildings or hills). Band III is vertically polarized from Black Mountain, so make sure the larger VHF elements of the antenna can be set vertical and the antenna is on a stand-off arm.

Coax and connectors: Go with quad shielded RG6 and F-type connectors. Use the supplied boot and self-amalgamating tape at the antenna connection.

If you want to hook up multiple rooms to an attic splitter box then go with the higher gain antenna and a passive splitter over a small antenna and an amplified splitter. Better rejection and signal/noise.

[Antennas are] something the federal government hasnt factored in with its anologue switch off

Really? For something they haven’t factored in, there sure is a lot of information about it on the Digital Ready website (www.digitalready.gov.au). In fact, they even setup the Antenna Installer Endorsement Scheme to assist people with getting their antennas upgraded.

That BBC channel would have been Samsung’s internet connected BBC news widget.

If you’re getting everything on the TV and nothing on the STB first I’d be wondering what’s going on with your antenna connection(s).

steveu said :

You have highlighted a good point – and something the federal government hasnt factored in with its anologue switch off and the hand out of set top boxes. Alot of antennas and possibly the cabling needs to be replaced and this will come out of people’s hip pockets. There will be some unhappy taxpayers out there I think when they realise this.

TV is hardly a human right. Personally I think that they should have just switched off analogue years ago, and people who hadn’t got around to buying a set top box would have lived a more health life.

I find it really strange. I have/had 4 devices in my house that can ‘do’ digital. The TV and two set-top boxes/recorders could not get any SBS. On the other hand, my computer tuner card can get SBS with no problems at all. All run off the same aerial (with proper splitters), so … go figure.

johnboy said :

I find a power boost antenna ($20 dick smith) works a treat.

I’ve got a regular set of telescopic rabbit ears plugged into that back of the TV that work well.

EvanJames said :

It’s a nuisence that each station insists on broadcasting something in HD. Old TVs and non-HD STBs won’t get HD. So I can’t get Gem, Go, One or the ABC news thing.

As for why your new stuff won’t get certain things (or anything!) it’ll be good to hear the wash-up as to why etc.

It’s called progress, mate. Most of us would like to see programs in HD, especially since we’ve upgraded TVs.

The Samsung one is a pretty amazing device, picking up BBC channels when none are broadcast in the ACT region.

Generally speaking if your antenna gets a decent picture with all the analogue channels, it should pick up all the digital channels with no problem.

I find a power boost antenna ($20 dick smith) works a treat.

#1 – Personally I find it a nuisance that every station doesn’t broadcast everything in HD (Especially AFL).

I would be surprised if there’s any currently marketed DVB devices are SD-only any more.
Yes, pity the early adopters, who’ve got otherwise perfectly functional SD gear – I was one once too!

I used to work as “Something in the digital terrestrial TV game” and a significant portion of our support requests were from people upset at not getting a channel they used to get fine on analogue with bunny ears. The vast majority of these were fixed by getting a “proper” antenna.

So I strongly suggest that if you’re reading this and about to replace your analogue system with a shiny new digital combo, then get an external antenna installed at the same time. If you already have an external antenna, check it for digital compatibility. Most existing external UHF antennas should be OK (Most installed when SBS came to Canberra). It’s rare that anyone would still have an ancient VHF antenna that wouldn’t be much use for digital (These usually look like a big “H” and might have flat, parallel-wire cables rather than the round coaxial cables).

You have highlighted a good point – and something the federal government hasnt factored in with its anologue switch off and the hand out of set top boxes. Alot of antennas and possibly the cabling needs to be replaced and this will come out of people’s hip pockets. There will be some unhappy taxpayers out there I think when they realise this.

It’s a nuisence that each station insists on broadcasting something in HD. Old TVs and non-HD STBs won’t get HD. So I can’t get Gem, Go, One or the ABC news thing.

As for why your new stuff won’t get certain things (or anything!) it’ll be good to hear the wash-up as to why etc.