We had this question in from Mark Evans about the differences between digital radio on DAB and on Freeview:

“Could you tell me facts about the difference between a DAB signal and a Freeview Radio signal. I was under the impression that both of these signals were the same.

Is Freeview a better quality than DAB?”

Our Answer

There are two questions here:

1. Is the audio quality better on  DAB or Freeview? Freeview offers better audio quality. See below
2. Is the UK coverage of radio better on DAB or Freeview? More homes are able to get Freeview than DAB. See below

UK Coverage

More homes in the UK are able to get Freeview than DAB. At the time of writing, the UK has just over 100 digital radio transmitters. There are over 1,000 Freeview transmitters and relay transmitters in the UK.

According to a report by Ofcom at the end of 2011, here is how well DAB covered the UK:

• BBC National DAB Station: Reach 92.2% of UK homes
  National Commecial Stations: Reach 84.6% of UK homes
  Local stations: Reach of only 66.2% of UK homes

By comparison, over 93% of UK homes were able to get Freeview, increasing to a much higher percentage at the end of the TV Digital Switchover in October 2012.

Audio Quality

Many think that DAB audio quality is inferior to that of FM and Freeview. This is to do with the way that the signals are encoded and compressed.

The majority of radio stations on DAB are transmitted at a bitrate of between 112 kbits/second and 128 kbits/second. Additionally, some stations are only transmitted in mono on DAB (notably Radio 4 Extra).

By comparison, the BBC national stations on Freeview are transmitted at 192kilobits/second. Radio 4 Extra is in stereo on Freeview.

Summary

Radio stations on Freeview are available to more people, and the audio quality of radio on Freeview is generally better. (It’s not as portable as DAB though!)