All About The Heathfield(Main) Freeview TV Transmitter

I spend half my life pointing aerials/ antennas for Freeview to the Heathfield transmitter, with it being the main transmitter for the East Sussex, so I thought I should probably write an article on it. In this blog, I discuss where it is located, what frequencies it broadcasts on, what channels can be received from it and best TV aerials for reception from it. Without further ado, lets begin.

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Location Of The Heathfield Transmitter

The main TV transmitter in Heathfield that is responsible for the vast majority of Freeview reception in the area is located just off the A267 in Cross in Hand near the Esso petrol station and opposite from the Cross In Hand pub. You can't miss it if you're near these locations and like most TV transmitters it is lit up in red lights at night time. 

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Best TV Aerial For Heathfield Transmitter

If you have found this article through searching for the best TV aerial for the Heathfield TV transmitter, I congratulate you as the installation dictates which aerial to use and not the other way around. I see many people wanting to purchase the best TV aerial that money can buy and inevitably ending up with a large high gain model, which when installed in a high signal area could cause signal problems with the signal being too strong and you may need to install an attenuator to reduce it.

For Heathfield reception I advise a Group K aerial now as this will reject out soon to be sold of frequencies in the 700Mhz range for 5G, as well as 4G interference in the 800 Mhz range. A Group B aerial would still be fine to use but with the Group B entering into the 700 Mhz range you could need an additional filter to remove unwanted signals in the future. Old Wideband (UHF21-69) and new Wideband LTE Group T (21-60) will still be fine for reception but just bare in mind that you could need to install 4G or 5G filters to remove unwanted interference. This isn’t to say you’re completely free from interference with a Group K aerial as interfering signal strength, proximity to phone masts and amplifiers in your system could mean that that you still need to install a filter.

Specific Manufacturers/ Aerial Types For Heathfield 

Please use the following as a rough guide only, as there are many things that could affect which TV antenna should be used for Heathfield. I recommend the following:

Strong signal areas – Optima K Band Log Periodic or similar

Medium signal areas – Vision 32 or Wolsey HG5

Weak Signal Areas – Antiference XG10 or Wolsey HG10

I recommend reading this blog on best TV aerials for why I recommend the antennas above.

What UHF Aerial Group Is The Heathfield Freeview Transmitter?

The Heathfield transmitter is a broadcast on frequencies between 626Mhz and 682Mhz, this is UHF channels 40-47. This makes the transmitter a Group B transmitter. The Group B is between 532Mhz to 734Mhz, UHF channels 35-53 and is represented by the colour yellow which many manufacturers have as a tip on the aerial itself.

Prior to the auction off of the 800Mhz band for 4G mobile internet signals and before the digital switch-over the transmitter used to broadcast as high as 839 Mhz (UHF 67) which meant that this used to be a Group C/D band transmitter. This means that many aerials that many people who have old TV aerials actually have the wrong TV aerial now installed. This isn’t to say that it won’t work, but that the aerial will not be picking up as much signal as it should, this is will be particularly noticeable the further you drift out of the group C/D group. This means that a Group C/D on Heathfield usually will perform better on the highest Heathfield frequency, UHF 47 than the lower end, UHF 40, 41 etc.

Heathfield Transmitter Broadcasting Frequencies & Channel Allocations

For information on specific frequencies that Heathfield broadcasts on and channel Allocations please see below. Please note that unlike old analogue signals, digital multiplexes on a single UHF channel will broadcast multiple TV channels and services. By using the information on the TV services from Heathfield below you will also be able to perform a manual tune on your TV to make sure that the TV has the correct TV channels stored.

Multiplex             UHF Channel        Frequency            Polarisation (H/V)     Standard

PSB1 – BBCA      41                         634Mhz                  H                               MPEG-2

PSB2 – DC+4     44                         658Mhz                  H                               MPEG-2

PSB3 – BBCB     47                          682Mhz                  H                               MPEG-4

COM4 – SDN     40                          626Mhz                  H                               MPEG-2

COM5 – ArqA    43                          650Mhz                 H                                MPEG-2

COM6 – ArqB     46                         674Mhz                  H                               MPEG-2

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To receive the multiplex on UHF channel 47 broadcast in the MPEG-4 format, that you will need a compatible Freeview HD TV to be able to receive this. Most of these services on this multiplex are the High Definition (HD) Freeview services, plus one or two more.

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Please note that the Heathfield transmitter does not broadcast the COM7 & COM8 multiplexes like other main transmitters, such as Bluebell Hill & Crystal Palace, this means that you will not be able to access services like BBC 4 HD, E4 HD, 47 HD & Channel 4+1 HD among others.

What Polarisation Is Heathfield TV Transmitter?

It’s important when installing and aligning TV aerials that the polarisation is set correct, to get this wrong will see a huge reduction is received signals strength and quality. Most main transmitters (not all)broadcast in a horizontal polarisation and most relay transmitters (not all)broadcast in a vertical polarisation. There are exceptions to this like the Rowridge Transmitter which uses both.

The Heathfield transmitter broadcasts in the horizontal polarisation.

Signal Problems From The Heathfield Transmitter

If you’re having problems with reception from the Heathfield transmitter, I recommend getting your TV antenna inspected by a professional installer who has appropriate test equipment to measure the signal. Problems with the transmitter are not as common as what people think and nearly all reception issues are localised to the aerial reception system in place. Any sort of problem with Freeview or digital TV signals will present itself the same way, pixelation or complete loss of signal/ picture.

From time to time transmitter works are carried out which could mean temporary loss of signal or a change in broadcasting frequencies which may mean that you need to retune your TV. I recommend going to the Freeview website to find scheduled transmitter works.

Heathfield Transmitter Questions – In Blog Comments Section Only Please 

If you have any questions arising from this blog please do POST THEM IN THE BLOG COMMENTS SECTION BELOW and I will get back to you ASAP.

I welcome telephone calls for those looking to book in an installation or a quote, but please bare in mind that we are a small business operating in Sussex/ Kent only and cannot help you outside of this area.

PLEASE DO NOT CALL US WITH GENERAL QUESTIONS OR ADVICE – Our phone-lines are plagued with people looking for advice of some sort and it’s making our day to day running of our business very difficult. Our blog now has a huge following and I guess, that’s one of the downsides. The only way you will get a response to general support questions is by posting them in the Blog Comments section below.

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There’s no real hardship our end in receiving these and our day to day enquiries for installations and quotes will always take priority. If you choose to send you questions this way it is highly likely that you will not receive a response. By posting your questions/ comments in the Blog Comment section below you will:

Help the blog.

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All that being said, I will help where I can. Until next time,

Tom