Full Freeview on the Sandy Heath (Central Bedfordshire, England) transmitter
 | Google Streetview |  | Google map |  | Bing map |  | Google Earth |  | 52.130,-0.242 or 52°7'47"N 0°14'33"W |  | SG19 2NH |
The symbol shows the location of the Sandy Heath (Central Bedfordshire, England) transmitter which serves 920,000 homes. The bright green areas shown where the signal from this transmitter is strong, dark green areas are poorer signals. Those parts shown in yellow may have interference on the same frequency from other masts.
Are there any planned engineering works or unexpected transmitter faults on the Sandy Heath (Central Bedfordshire, England) mast?
Sandy Heath transmitter - Sandy Heath transmitter: Possible effect on TV reception week commencing 29/05/2023 Pixelation or flickering on some or all channels 
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Digital television services are broadcast on a multiplexes (or Mux) where many stations occupy a single broadcast frequency, as shown below.
64QAM 8K 3/4 27.1Mb/s DVB-T MPEG2
H/V: aerial position (horizontal or vertical)
Which Freeview channels does the Sandy Heath transmitter broadcast?
If you have any kind of Freeview fault, follow this Freeview reset procedure first.Digital television services are broadcast on a multiplexes (or Mux) where many stations occupy a single broadcast frequency, as shown below.
64QAM 8K 3/4 27.1Mb/s DVB-T MPEG2
H/V: aerial position (horizontal or vertical)
Which BBC and ITV regional news can I watch from the Sandy Heath transmitter?
BBC Look East (West) 1.0m homes 3.7%
from Cambridge CB4 0WZ, 29km east-northeast (66°)
to BBC Cambridge region - 4 masts.
70% of BBC East (East) and BBC East (West) is shared output
ITV Anglia News 1.0m homes 3.7%
from Norwich NR1 3JG, 119km east-northeast (60°)
to ITV Anglia (West) region - 5 masts.
All of lunch, weekend and 80% evening news is shared with Anglia (East)
How will the Sandy Heath (Central Bedfordshire, England) transmission frequencies change over time?
| 1965-80s | 1984-97 | 1997-98 | 1998-2011 | 2011-13 | 12 Feb 2020 | ||||
| VHF | A K T | K T | K T | W T | W T | ||||
| C6 | ITVwaves | ||||||||
| C21 | C4waves | C4waves | C4waves | +BBCB | BBCB | ||||
| C24 | ITVwaves | ITVwaves | ITVwaves | D3+4 | D3+4 | ||||
| C27 | BBC2waves | BBC2waves | BBC2waves | BBCA | BBCA | ||||
| C31 | BBC1waves | BBC1waves | BBC1waves | ||||||
| C32 | com7 | ||||||||
| C33 | SDN | ||||||||
| C34 | com8 | ||||||||
| C35 | _local | ||||||||
| C36 | ArqA | ||||||||
| C39 | C5waves | C5waves | |||||||
| C43 | _local | ||||||||
| C48 | ArqB | ArqB | |||||||
| C51tv_off | SDN | ||||||||
| C52tv_off | ArqA | ||||||||
| C55tv_off | com7tv_off | ||||||||
| C56tv_off | COM8tv_off |
tv_off Being removed from Freeview (for 5G use) after November 2020 / June 2022 - more
Table shows multiplexes names see this article;
green background for transmission frequencies
Notes: + and - denote 166kHz offset; aerial group are shown as A B C/D E K W T
waves denotes analogue; digital switchover was 30 Mar 11 and 13 Apr 11.
How do the old analogue and currrent digital signal levels compare?
| Analogue 1-4 | 1000kW | |
| BBCA, D3+4, BBCB | (-7.4dB) 180kW | |
| SDN, ARQA, ARQB | (-7.7dB) 170kW | |
| com7 | (-13dB) 49.6kW | |
| com8 | (-13.1dB) 49.1kW | |
| Mux 1*, Mux 2*, Mux A*, Mux B*, Mux C*, Mux D* | (-17dB) 20kW | |
| Analogue 5 | (-20dB) 10kW |
Local transmitter maps
Sandy Heath Freeview Sandy Heath DAB Sandy Heath TV region BBC Cambridge Anglia (West micro region)Which companies have run the Channel 3 services in the Sandy Heath transmitter area
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Friday, 20 November 2015
L
Luis10:24 AM
Wisbech
Hi, for the last 2 weeks I have my freeview completely disrupted, even now. It's all weak signal to no signal at all and when there is signal it's all pixelated with intermittent sound. I have no one to check if they are having same problems. I live in Wisbech PE13 2JA. I need to know if this is the transmitter. Any help would be appreciated.
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Monday, 23 November 2015
C
coach8:58 PM
Luis: I'm also having problems. Been over two weeks. Mainly BBC1HD, BBC2HD, ITV HD & Channel 4HD. Not far from you in Newmarket. Freeview via Sandy Heath.
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Tuesday, 24 November 2015
C
Coach7:11 PM
Can someone assist please? I've had trouble with the breakup of picture on some HD channels for several weeks. Signal jumping around from 60 to 70% with signal quality at 100%. Other HD channels where the picture does not break up is around 90 to 95% with signal quality at 100%. This Web site has reported that Sandy Heath "maybe" at reduced strength. What does that mean because neither the BBC or Freeview state this. Thanks
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Wednesday, 25 November 2015
Transmitter engineering
4:31 AM
4:31 AM
SANDY HEATH transmitter - Possible weak signal [DUK]
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M
MikeP2:57 PM
Trowbridge
Coach:
The transmitters are not operated by either the BBC or Freeview but by a private company Arqiva. The source of engineering work information is, I believe, drawn from them.
60-70% is borderline for some TV sets but 95% is rather too high! That suggests there may be a problem with your aerial installation or with the cables from the aerial to your TV set. That would also account for variations. It's worth noting that another enquirer eventually found that having his HiFi speaker wires running alongside and touching the aerial feed was the cause of a similar problem, so worth check where all the wires are running so they are clear of the aerial leads.
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Friday, 27 November 2015
C
Coach4:56 PM
Thanks MikeP, All ok now. Just wondering why only 1 mux carrying the hd channels was breaking up? Thanks again.
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Monday, 30 November 2015
G
Gordon3:00 PM
I'm on the Sandy Heath transmitter.
Yesterday afternoon (Sunday, 29 Nov) I noticed that COM7 had zero signal on both my TV and PVR.
Today it's the same. I've checked with a neighbour and she has no signal on COM7 either.
Does anyone else have this problem?
And if there is a problem, to whom does one report it? (DigitalUK can't handle it.)
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Monday, 7 December 2015
C
Coach6:02 PM
Can anyone assist please. Is it possible that a specific mux may be more susceptible to atmospheric interference over another. Had problems with some HD channels and on Saturday it was particularly bad with picture break up. Now all fine again! Could it be a faulty tv? Im about to contact John Lewis.
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M
MikeB9:35 PM
Coach: Before you ring technical support, start with the basics. We really could do with a postcode, because we have no idea where you are. We need a location, becuase if you have a problem, knowing what transmitter are where you are in relation to it is very useful.
HD channels are really hit by signal strength being too high, so check what the strength is (what the TV model, thats also a help). If its about 90% or above, then the tuner is screaming - see this page - Freeview signals: too much of a good thing is bad for you
If its too low, then check through your equipment. Is the aerial lead properly attached? Have you had high winds that might have caused a wire to become loose or break, etc? If you have a problem with your system, dont expect it to be logical! A dodgy wire might still show a one mux OK, while another has totally gone. Replacing an aerial lead is an easy way to check if its that - they are really cheap.
TV tuners tend to be really reliable, and obviously if its only happening on a terrestial TV, rather than on a Blu Ray, Iplayer or something recorded earlier, then its much more likely to be your system.
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C
Coach10:04 PM
MikeB: Thanks for your response. My post code is CB25 nr Newmarket and I pick up signal from Sandy Heath. I've changed all the cables and the problems started last month. I connected another tv (same make but smaller screen) and no problems. That's why I'm starting to think it may be the tv. I have an internal ariel and signal strength is at 90% and 100% signal quality. All my other tv's are ok. Thanks.
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