The Mynydd Pencarreg transmitting station is a broadcasting and telecommunications facility located on high ground about south of Lampeter, in Ceredigion, Wales. The site has a guyed lattice mast erected on land that is itself about above sea level. It was originally built by the GPO as a telecommunications relay, and (amongst other things) was responsible for handling the microwave feed carrying the now-defunct 405-line VHF BBC television service to the television transmitter at Blaenplwyf about to the northwest near Aberystwyth. Despite this, Mynydd Pencarreg was never a 405-line TV broadcast site.
Broadcast UHF television was added to the site in early 1981, launching with just the three programme services that were active at the time. S4C was added in 1982 when it launched.
Currently, the transmitter provides DVB-T digital television to the Lampeter area, along with FM radio.
Services listed by frequency
Analogue television
February 1981 - 1 November 1982 When 625-line colour television came to the area, the site became a relay of Preseli about to the southwest.
FrequencyUHFkWService580.12BBC1 Wales610.12HTV Wales640.12BBC2 Wales
1 November 1982 - 19 August 2009 Channel 4 was added to the set transmitted from the site when it launched in November 1982. Being in Wales, Mynydd Pencarreg radiated the S4C variant.
FrequencyUHFkWService540.12S4C580.12BBC1 Wales610.12ITV1 Wales (HTV Wales before 2002) 640.12BBC2 Wales
Analogue and digital television
19 August 2009 - 16 September 2009 The UK's digital switchover commenced, mirroring the changes taking place at the parent transmitter at Preseli. Analogue BBC Two Wales closed on channel 64 and ITV1 Wales took over on that frequency for what would be its final 3 weeks of service, vacating channel 61 as it did so. The new digital BBC A multiplex started up at full power in 64-QAM mode on channel 61.
FrequencyUHFkWServiceSystem540.12S4CPAL System I580.12BBC One WalesPAL System I610.024BBC ADVB-T640.12ITV1 WalesPAL System I
Digital television
16 September 2009 - 31 October 2012 All the analogue television services closed and the new digital multiplexes took over their frequencies.
FrequencyUHFkWOperator540.012BBC B580.012Digital 3&4610.012BBC A
31 October 2012 - present OFCOM have announced that channel 61 is also to be cleared so as to make space for future 4G mobile phone services. At Mynydd Pencarreg, BBC A was moved from channel 61 to channel 49.
FrequencyUHFkWOperator490.012BBC A540.012BBC B580.012Digital 3&4
Analogue radio (FM VHF)
August 1981 - Late 1980s FM radio from Mynydd Pencarreg launched in 1981, initially with just the three services that were typical of the time. For radio, the site was an off-air relay of Blaenplwyf.
FrequencykWService89.7 MHz0.2BBC Radio 291.9 MHz0.2BBC Radio 394.1 MHz0.2BBC Radio Cymru
Present FrequencykWService89.7 MHz0.2BBC Radio 291.9 MHz0.2BBC Radio 394.1 MHz0.2BBC Radio Cymru96.6 MHz0.2Nation Radio Wales99.3 MHz0.2BBC Radio 1103.7 MHz0.2BBC Radio 4
See also List of masts List of radio stations in the United Kingdom List of tallest buildings and structures in Great Britain
References
External links The Transmission Gallery: Photographs and Information The 'ukfree' listing for Mynydd Pencarreg