Wrexham-Rhos Relay
Encyclopedia
The Wrexham-Rhos transmitting station is a digital television
relay
of Moel-y-Parc. Despite its name, the station is situated in Moss Village
and serves Wrexham
and its surrounding villages. However, the area is predominately served by English
transmitters at Winter Hill
and The Wrekin
as they historically provided Channel 4
(whilst Wrexham-Rhos gives Welsh
variant, S4C
), and Five on analogue television. Additionally, both Granada Television
and ATV
, (received from Winter Hill and The Wrekin respectively) were on air significantly earlier than Welsh ITV
contractor, WWN
. Since then, WWN has been replaced by TWW
and later HTV Wales, while ATV has been replaced by Central
. The mast was constructed to offer Welsh television channels to the area, initially just S4C
and BBC One Wales
.http://tx.mb21.co.uk/gallery/wrexham-rhos.asp. Since then however, both HTV Wales
and BBC Two Wales
have been broadcasting from the mast, most recently being HTV in 1997 http://www.ofcom.org.uk/static/archive/itc/uploads/HTV_APR_text.doc. The relay is maintained by transmission company, Arqiva
. Its tower
is a free-standing lattice structure. Despite the poor reception, Moel-y-Parc is the nearest main transmitter to the Wrexham area, but its line of sight is disrupted by local terrain, predominately Hope Mountain.
standards, whilst the HD multiplex, BBC B, uses DVB-T2
.
, while S4C was broadcast at 400W. In 1998, due to the upcoming launch of ONdigital from neighbouring transmission site, Winter Hill
, S4C from the relay was required to change frequency (from UHF Channel 67). A message was displayed telling viewers to re-tune their televisions of the channel were carried for a couple of months. When the original frequency was switched off, the power on the newer version was increased.
Digital television
Digital television is the transmission of audio and video by digital signals, in contrast to the analog signals used by analog TV...
relay
Relay
A relay is an electrically operated switch. Many relays use an electromagnet to operate a switching mechanism mechanically, but other operating principles are also used. Relays are used where it is necessary to control a circuit by a low-power signal , or where several circuits must be controlled...
of Moel-y-Parc. Despite its name, the station is situated in Moss Village
Moss Valley, Wrexham
The Moss Valley is an area and country park in Britain. It is in the county borough of Wrexham, in north Wales. The area is also informally known as "The Moss" and The Aggey amongst locals. It is most well known for its extensive coal mining history...
and serves Wrexham
Wrexham
Wrexham is a town in Wales. It is the administrative centre of the wider Wrexham County Borough, and the largest town in North Wales, located in the east of the region. It is situated between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley close to the border with Cheshire, England...
and its surrounding villages. However, the area is predominately served by English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
transmitters at Winter Hill
Winter Hill transmitting station
The Winter Hill transmitting station is a broadcasting and telecommunications site situated on Winter Hill, at the southern boundary of the Borough of Chorley, and above Bolton in Greater Manchester, England...
and The Wrekin
The Wrekin Transmitter
The Wrekin transmitting station is a telecommunications and broadcasting facility on the The Wrekin, a hill in the county of Shropshire, England. It includes a tall free-standing lattice tower with transmitting antennas attached at various heights. The analogue transmitting arrays add about...
as they historically provided Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
(whilst Wrexham-Rhos gives Welsh
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
variant, S4C
S4C
S4C , currently branded as S4/C, is a Welsh television channel broadcast from the capital, Cardiff. The first television channel to be aimed specifically at a Welsh-speaking audience, it is the fifth oldest British television channel .The channel - initially broadcast on...
), and Five on analogue television. Additionally, both Granada Television
Granada Television
Granada Television is the ITV contractor for North West England. Based in Manchester since its inception, it is the only surviving original ITA franchisee from 1954 and is ITV's most successful....
and ATV
Associated TeleVision
Associated Television, often referred to as ATV, was a British television company, holder of various licences to broadcast on the ITV network from 24 September 1955 until 00:34 on 1 January 1982...
, (received from Winter Hill and The Wrekin respectively) were on air significantly earlier than Welsh ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
contractor, WWN
Wales West and North Television
Wales Television, known on screen as Teledu Cymru and often abbreviated to WWN, was the Welsh "Independent Television" contractor awarded the franchise area serving 'North and West Wales', from 1962-68...
. Since then, WWN has been replaced by TWW
Television Wales and the West
Television Wales and the WestTelevision Wales and the WestTelevision Wales and the West , accessed 19 August 2006, accessed 19 August 2006 was the British "Independent Television" contractor for the franchise area serving 'South Wales and West of England' 1956–68 Television Wales and the...
and later HTV Wales, while ATV has been replaced by Central
Central Independent Television
Central Independent Television, more commonly known as Central is the Independent Television contractor for the Midlands, created following the restructuring of ATV and commencing broadcast on 1 January 1982. The station is owned and operated by ITV plc, under the licensee of ITV Broadcasting...
. The mast was constructed to offer Welsh television channels to the area, initially just S4C
S4C
S4C , currently branded as S4/C, is a Welsh television channel broadcast from the capital, Cardiff. The first television channel to be aimed specifically at a Welsh-speaking audience, it is the fifth oldest British television channel .The channel - initially broadcast on...
and BBC One Wales
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
.http://tx.mb21.co.uk/gallery/wrexham-rhos.asp. Since then however, both HTV Wales
HTV
HTV, now legally known as ITV Wales & West, is the ITV contractor for Wales and the West of England, which operated from studios in Cardiff and Bristol. The company provided commercial television for the dual-region 'Wales and West' franchise, which it won from TWW in 1968...
and BBC Two Wales
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
have been broadcasting from the mast, most recently being HTV in 1997 http://www.ofcom.org.uk/static/archive/itc/uploads/HTV_APR_text.doc. The relay is maintained by transmission company, Arqiva
Arqiva
Arqiva is a telecommunications company which provides infrastructure and broadcast transmission facilities in the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland. The present company, with headquarters located at Crawley Court in the village of Crawley, Hampshire, was formed by National Grid Wireless...
. Its tower
Radio masts and towers
Radio masts and towers are, typically, tall structures designed to support antennas for telecommunications and broadcasting, including television. They are among the tallest man-made structures...
is a free-standing lattice structure. Despite the poor reception, Moel-y-Parc is the nearest main transmitter to the Wrexham area, but its line of sight is disrupted by local terrain, predominately Hope Mountain.
Digital
At present, the station broadcasts three of the six national digital terrestrial television multiplexes on the "Freeview Lite" service. The station switched over to digital transmissions from analogue throughout November 2009, and remaining analogue services ceased at midnight on 25 November 2009. BBC A and Digital 3&4 broadcast using MPEG2 compression on DVB-TDVB-T
DVB-T is an abbreviation for Digital Video Broadcasting — Terrestrial; it is the DVB European-based consortium standard for the broadcast transmission of digital terrestrial television that was first published in 1997 and first broadcast in the UK in 1998...
standards, whilst the HD multiplex, BBC B, uses DVB-T2
DVB-T2
DVB-T2 is an abbreviation for Digital Video Broadcasting – Second Generation Terrestrial; it is the extension of the television standard DVB-T, issued by the consortium DVB, devised for the broadcast transmission of digital terrestrial television....
.
| Frequency | UHF | kW | Operator |
|---|---|---|---|
| 482.0 MHz | 22 | 0.08 | Digital 3&4 Digital 3&4 Digital 3&4 is a consortium consisting of regional Channel 3 companies and Channel 4 Television Corporation, which operates a multiplex broadcasting from a number of transmitter sites in the UK, carrying television and radio channels from both ITV and Channel 4; however three per-cent of the... |
| 506.0 MHz | 25 | 0.08 | BBC BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff... B |
| 530.0 MHz | 28 | 0.08 | BBC A |
Analogue
Prior to analogue switch-off, Wrexham-Rhos broadcast four of the five national terrestrial stations. Channels 1 to 3 were broadcast at 200W ERPEffective radiated power
In radio telecommunications, effective radiated power or equivalent radiated power is a standardized theoretical measurement of radio frequency energy using the SI unit watts, and is determined by subtracting system losses and adding system gains...
, while S4C was broadcast at 400W. In 1998, due to the upcoming launch of ONdigital from neighbouring transmission site, Winter Hill
Winter Hill transmitting station
The Winter Hill transmitting station is a broadcasting and telecommunications site situated on Winter Hill, at the southern boundary of the Borough of Chorley, and above Bolton in Greater Manchester, England...
, S4C from the relay was required to change frequency (from UHF Channel 67). A message was displayed telling viewers to re-tune their televisions of the channel were carried for a couple of months. When the original frequency was switched off, the power on the newer version was increased.
| Frequency | UHF | kW | Service |
|---|---|---|---|
| 503.25 MHz | 25 | 0.4 | S4C S4C S4C , currently branded as S4/C, is a Welsh television channel broadcast from the capital, Cardiff. The first television channel to be aimed specifically at a Welsh-speaking audience, it is the fifth oldest British television channel .The channel - initially broadcast on... |
| 527.25 MHz | 28 | 0.2 | BBC Two Wales BBC Two Wales BBC Two Wales is the national variation of BBC Two for BBC Cymru Wales. It is broadcast to Wales from Broaadcasting House in Cardiff. The channel can opt out from the main BBC Two schedule to show Welsh made programming, however this is used less frequently than in the past.Between 5 November 2001... |
| 559.25 MHz | 32 | 0.2 | ITV1 Wales |
| 615.25 MHz | 39 | 0.2 | BBC One Wales |
Analogue
| Frequency | kW | Service |
|---|---|---|
| 95.4 MHz | 0.7 | BBC Radio Wales BBC Radio Wales BBC Radio Wales is the BBC's national radio station broadcasting to Wales in the English language. Operated by BBC Wales, it began broadcasting on 12 November 1978 following the demise of the old "Radio 4 Wales" when BBC Radio 4 became a national network and moved from medium wave to long wave... |
| 103.4 MHz | 1.4 | Heart North West and Wales Heart North West and Wales Heart North West and Wales is an Independent Local Radio station broadcasting to Cheshire, the Wirral Peninsula and North Wales. The station began broadcasting on 2 July 2010 as a result of a merger between Heart Cheshire and North East Wales , Heart Wirral and Heart North Wales Coast... |
| 88.0 MHz | N/A | Real Radio Real Radio (Wales) Real Radio Wales is a Regional Radio station owned and operated by GMG Radio and forming part of the Real Radio network. The station broadcasts from studios at Morganstown in Cardiff on various FM frequencies, DAB via the MXR Severn Estuary multiplex and across the UK on digital satellite TV... |
Digital
| Frequency | Block | kW | Operator |
|---|---|---|---|
| 215.072 MHz | 10D | N/A | MuxCo Wrexham MuxCo North East Wales & West Cheshire MuxCo is the DAB multiplex operator for North Wales, Cheshire and Merseyside. It is a consortium made up of four companies - Dee 106.3, UTV Radio, Town & Country Broadcasting and transmitter company National Grid Wireless all owning 25%.... (awarded but not yet on air) |
See also
- Winter Hill transmitting stationWinter Hill transmitting stationThe Winter Hill transmitting station is a broadcasting and telecommunications site situated on Winter Hill, at the southern boundary of the Borough of Chorley, and above Bolton in Greater Manchester, England...
- The Wrekin transmitting station
- Moel-y-Parc transmitting station