An apparatus for detecting a channel in a tuner (1; 1A) comprising: a channel search circuit that searches a channel in the tuner through a search sweep using a frequency sweep signal, wherein said channel search circuit comprises a search sweep circuit that generates the frequency sweep signal which is supplied to the tuner for searching the channel, wherein said search sweep circuit comprises a sweep signal generator (300; 300A) that is capable of generating the frequency sweep signal at a first sweep speed and a second sweep speed lower than the first sweep speed, and wherein said channel search circuit includes a search sweep controller, said search sweep controller comprising: a sweep stop timing circuit that has an input connected to the output of the tuner, and generates a sweep stop timing signal supplied to the search sweep circuit that stops the search sweep when an output from said tuner is generated in response to the search sweep using the frequency sweep signal, wherein a detected frequency for the channel is a frequency of the frequency sweep signal when the sweep is stopped; and a sweep resume timing circuit that generates a sweep resume timing signal at its output to be supplied to the search sweep circuit which resumes the search sweep by determining that the detected frequency does not fall within the frequency range associated with the channel in the tuner when a level of the output of the tuner generated in response to the frequency sweep signal fixed at a frequency at the time of stoppage of the sweep is below a threshold. a channel search circuit that searches a channel in the tuner through a search sweep using a frequency sweep signal, wherein said channel search circuit comprises a search sweep circuit that generates the frequency sweep signal which is supplied to the tuner for searching the channel, wherein said search sweep circuit comprises a sweep signal generator (300; 300A) that is capable of generating the frequency sweep signal at a first sweep speed and a second sweep speed lower than the first sweep speed, and wherein said channel search circuit includes a search sweep controller, said search sweep controller comprising: a sweep stop timing circuit that has an input connected to the output of the tuner, and generates a sweep stop timing signal supplied to the search sweep circuit that stops the search sweep when an output from said tuner is generated in response to the search sweep using the frequency sweep signal, wherein a detected frequency for the channel is a frequency of the frequency sweep signal when the sweep is stopped; and a sweep resume timing circuit that generates a sweep resume timing signal at its output to be supplied to the search sweep circuit which resumes the search sweep by determining that the detected frequency does not fall within the frequency range associated with the channel in the tuner when a level of the output of the tuner generated in response to the frequency sweep signal fixed at a frequency at the time of stoppage of the sweep is below a threshold. a sweep stop timing circuit that has an input connected to the output of the tuner, and generates a sweep stop timing signal supplied to the search sweep circuit that stops the search sweep when an output from said tuner is generated in response to the search sweep using the frequency sweep signal, wherein a detected frequency for the channel is a frequency of the frequency sweep signal when the sweep is stopped; and a sweep resume timing circuit that generates a sweep resume timing signal at its output to be supplied to the search sweep circuit which resumes the search sweep by determining that the detected frequency does not fall within the frequency range associated with the channel in the tuner when a level of the output of the tuner generated in response to the frequency sweep signal fixed at a frequency at the time of stoppage of the sweep is below a threshold.