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TV interference suppresser


S&D Stephen
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I run my layout on Analogue.  A lot of my older locomotives (and maybe more modern ones as well) are fitted with resisters ? To reduce TV interference.   Since Radio and TV transmission has changed from Analogue to Digital are these little things redundant.  Should I remove them ?

 

Please don't blind me with science that I won't understand.   Yes or No will suffice.

 

thanks Stephen.

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Stephen,

 

If it ain't broke don't fix it. They are not necessarily redundant and there is no need to remove any existing interference supression capacitors on your locos. TV may have gone digital but not all broadcast radio and a lot of radio communication services and amature radio users are still using analogue.

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23 hours ago, S&D Stephen said:

I run my layout on Analogue.  A lot of my older locomotives (and maybe more modern ones as well) are fitted with resisters ? To reduce TV interference.   Since Radio and TV transmission has changed from Analogue to Digital are these little things redundant.  Should I remove them ?

 

Please don't blind me with science that I won't understand.   Yes or No will suffice.

 

thanks Stephen.

Not resistors, but inductors, small coils of wire that look like resistors. Also capacitors, that look like a small Smartie with legs. Both these stop any RF enegry getting out into the ether and causing interference.

 

It makes no difference whether the receiver is analogue or digital. If RF energy is generated it can/will cause interference.

 

No need to remove them if sticking with analogue control.

 

Rob

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And, strictly speaking, legally required. (Though whether you really would be challenged is another matter). Any radio interference could be investigated if reported. I have known those with model railways (way in the past) have a knock on the door!

 

Stewart

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1 hour ago, stewartingram said:

And, strictly speaking, legally required. (Though whether you really would be challenged is another matter). Any radio interference could be investigated if reported. I have known those with model railways (way in the past) have a knock on the door!

 

Stewart

In days gone by Radio Frequency Interference (RFI) complaints were dealt with by Post Office Telecommunications and then BT. A whole host of goodies were available to help people sort out any issues they might have. At some point it was decided (1990s springs to mind) the BBC?or HMG? who provided the funding bailed out. Unsurprisingly BT ceased providing the service unless it was a problem upsetting their own equipment.

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I remember in the days of 405 line TV our picture turning to snow when a neighbour 6 doors down (honestly) revved his car.

 

You will find very few cases these days. A lot of cases of interference, especially TV, are due to poor receiving equipment, e.g., years old, corroded, aerials and downleads. Wires just poked in the back of the aerial socket, etc. The move to digital caused a lot of such stuff to be upgraded, e.g., where the digital signals were in a different channel group, so TVs are a lot less receptive to interference.

 

In the digital world, fitting a decoder means that the wires from the motor are much shorter and not directly attached to the track, so the facility for commutation noise to be broadcast via a layout sized aerial is much reduced.

 

<pedant mode> Suppression components are not actually a legal requirement. The legal  requirement (when sold)  is that the equipment (i.e., the loco) does not radiate excessively. What you do to it in your own home is up to you, so long as you do not spoil other peoples enjoyment of the Archers :) </pedant mode>

 

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I had a neighbour a few years ago beside my last house who played with old bangers and they ruined the digital TV signal when he was running them. It was very difficult getting him to understand or accept the problem as he claimed not to have a television

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