Do aerial boosters work?
I have poor reception and my father suggested I try one. He is adamant they work as certain TVs he has tried won't display any picture without them. What is the science behind them? How and why do they work?
I'm thinking I might be better off paying for a proper aerial installation (currently in the loft) and better wire to shield from the mopeds that whizz by the house.
By far the best thing to do.
An aerial just converts radio waves into electrical voltage, and an aerial booster/amp just increases this voltage further. (NOTE: Everything picked by the Aerial gets amplified)
Have a word with your local aerial installer as to the best route to take, as too much signal (Fitting a bigger aerial than necessary) can be just as bad as not enough signal.
Hope this helps
Bill
'Boosters' ideally shouldn't be used in anger, i.e to compensate for poor signal as they amplify everything including 'noise'.
Ideally they're used to compensate for losses from long cable runs etc or to distribute the signal to multiple points.
a properly installed external aerial is the best solution, unless you're in a poor reception area, then satellite may be a better option
Agree with everything daveh75 has said above.
Booster amps should be treated as 'worth a try if all else fails' for poor reception issues. If you get an external aerial fitted and still have problems then a booster is worth a go. It should, ideally, be fitted as close to the aerial as possible.
Rich
AFAIK they do work, i have one it's split between my tv (i don't use often as i use freesat) & my tv tuner in my pc which i use more often & i get an excellent picture every time, for around £20 i don't see any reason why you shouldn't try it.
formerly known as slewis ---
simon's system