Russian analogue TV to close in June 2019
 

We have heard that Russia is to close down analogue by 3/06/19 apparently Ukraine closed analogue last Sept so this leaves us with little time to see the last of analogue as season starts late May.

I will post when there is any activity.

Andy

Re: Russian analogue TV to close in June 2019
 

Ah, the answer to the question I asked a few threads down.

I have a suitable receiver, it's small, red, but unfortunately not a Rigonda.

Re: Russian analogue TV to close in June 2019
 

I predict a business opportunity for anyone prepared to scour local car boot sales for DTT boxes (quite abundant now all new TVs have inbuilt freeview tuners) and get a container load sent over there!

Re: Russian analogue TV to close in June 2019
 

Sad news indeed, I shall lash up a dipole in a few weeks and give it a go one last time. Is there a definitive list of countries still using analogue?

John Joe.

Re: Russian analogue TV to close in June 2019
 

I still have a suitable loft mounted band 1 aerial pointing east feeding my TV/DX D100 tuner. Hopefully I might catch a few Sporadic E openings during May.

Re: Russian analogue TV to close in June 2019
 

That sounds like a nice idea, but probably won't work in practice. Different countries have different standards for digital TV, just like they used to for analogue TV.

In the UK, the original Freeview boxes used MPEG2 video. Some countries that went digital later than the UK have used the newer and more efficient MPEG4 codec which is not backwards compatible. For example, Ireland uses MPEG4 ; original UK Freeview televisions and boxes cannot receive Irish TV. Some countries use DVB-T2 : UK Freeview HD boxes receive both DVB-T and DVB-T2 but old SD Freeview boxes are DVB-T only. Some countries have completely different standards, not DVB at all. I'm not sure exactly which standard + variant Russia will be using, or if it's in any way compatible with UK standards.

Even if a UK box could receive Russian TV, there are other subtle differences. No menu or on-screen display in Russian, mains plug will need to be changed, UK boxes do not scan VHF channels, only UHF ... etc. This would make it not worth the effort of exporting them from the UK. I am sure the Russians could obtain set-top boxes from China that would be 100% compatible and just as cheap when ordered in large quantities.

As an example, I bought a bargain-priced TDT box from a flea market in Spain while on holiday. It receives TV and radio channels in the UK and even has an English language menu option, but there is no 'red button' or teletext in the UK due to technical differences. That doesn't bother me, though it's worth pointing out that it's not 100% compatible with the UK.

Going back to the subject of DX-TV, now that analogue signals are disappearing, it may still be possible to receive foreign terrestrial digital TV given the right conditions. You will need a box or receiver that is compatible with the foreign country's standard (as mentioned above). The signal will need to be strong enough and stable enough to be picked up in a channel scan. This is not impossible, though it's a lot more difficult.

Re: Russian analogue TV to close in June 2019
 

I don't think a digital TV signal would cope with the complex and rapid fading/multipath effects you get with Sporadic E. It struggles enough with the more stable tropo openings.

Re: Russian analogue TV to close in June 2019
 

Aaah, so the Ukraine has already gone - that explains the lack of signals for me.

By the way, are the Russians actually going to go digital on Band I ?

Re: Russian analogue TV to close in June 2019
 

Re #6, my UK-bought Icecrypt T5000 scans both Band III VHF and UHF frequency bands when tuning. While its default is UK PAL, its modulator can also output European PAL as well as NTSC. These features are not mentioned in its instruction manual.

Re: Russian analogue TV to close in June 2019
 

Hi All
Just when i thought it was all over I had my little panasonic running in my shed
at 21;23 ( BST) today i logged a very weak picture on 49Mc/s it only lasted for about
a min& half it faded very quickly . The pic was that weak no ID was made.
Did any one else see this.
Regards
Derrick

Re: Russian analogue TV to close in June 2019
 

Quite a bit of SpE activity here (albeit Band II) - Italian station on 88.1 and 'Radio Monte Carlo' ident on 106.1 (?Milan?).

So is there anything in Band 1 of interest to you, Steve(CG) and others?

Guy

Re: Russian analogue TV to close in June 2019
 

Nymrod121. No, nothing on Band 1, R1, R2 vision carrier frequencies. I check most days and there was nothing there - apart from low-level interference - this morning at about 9 AM BST.

Re: Russian analogue TV to close in June 2019
 

I've been keeping an eye on band 1 when in the workshop over the last few weeks, sadly no luck. I think it's all over..

Re: Russian analogue TV to close in June 2019
 

Will there still be any analogue transmissions left in the world after Russia shuts off? I am surprised that analogue TV still exists.

Re: Russian analogue TV to close in June 2019
 

There are a few low power ones in the States still. Some in rural parts of Canada, South America and I believe some Asian countries, although I would say all are on borrowed time.

Re: Russian analogue TV to close in June 2019
 

It would appear that analogue tv (PAL, 576i) is the only system permitted in North
Korea, and watching anything else may be illegal !

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television_in_North_Korea

Re: Russian analogue TV to close in June 2019
 

Isn't South Africa still using analogue transmissions?

They were supposed to switch a few years ago but the digital uptake was slower than expected.

Re: Russian analogue TV to close in June 2019
 

Never let the facts get in the way of a good story eh (even on Wikipedia).

Having been to N Korea a few years ago I can say the TV's in the hotels I stayed in were multistandard full band tuning and were not hobbled. I did a full scan but only the 3 local stations were available. But I was a long way from the borders.

The standard is PAL D/K as in China which is convenient for people near that border. In the town of Sinuiju across the border from Dan Dong, China, where we entered by train there were many aerials pointing at China.

I understand, but have not confirmed, that near the southern border they have a transmitter operating in NTSC for the "benefit" of the south.

South Korea has also left its NTSC transmitters near the border running for the "benefit"of the north.

There is a thriving black market in USB sticks containing Chinese TV smuggled across the border.

I read somewhere that digital TV is coming. Yes here it is:

https://www.northkoreatech.org/2013/...ng-digital-tv/

On the standards front, North Korea is likely to be testing one of two standards: the DVB-T format used in Europe and much of Asia, or China’s DTMB system. South Korea uses the American ATSC system, which is unlikely to be used in the DPRK.

"If the country goes for DVB-T, television sets won’t be able to receive broadcasts from either neighbouring country. Selection of the Chinese system will mean the potential of receiving Chinese broadcasts in the border area"

Re: Russian analogue TV to close in June 2019
 

Analogue is still up and running in Hong Kong but I believe it will be switched off in 2020. They've been pushing it back since 2012.

Re: Russian analogue TV to close in June 2019
 

I think Moldover is still putting out analogue on band 1 R2 and R3.
Also There has still been some sightings of Russian analogue on band 1 channels R1, R2, and R3 since the switch off date of 03/07/19.