Re: Cable TV options?

On Mon, 03 Apr 2006 20:02:17 GMT, "mgarvie" <mgarvie@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
wrote:

I'm trying to figure out the best way to wire my home for cable TV. Read
some conflicting opinions on some web sites and thought I would ask here.
Which option would be best or is there a third? Or doesn't it make a
difference?

1. Have one central location where the main cable comes in the house.
Split everything from that location and run seperate cables to each outlet

2. Split the main cable where it comes in the house and run cables to
general locations in the house. From there split it further and run cable
to each outlet.

I don't see any difference between these two choices, except that in
the second one, the first one or two splitters will be outside the
house.

Why might that be bad? Well, I had my cable (which I no longer use or
pay for) run through the window frame of the basement window, and
another lead run up to 2nd floor (along the downspout so it isn't
visible) and through the overhanging closet floor.

I put the box in the closet and ran to a splitter one part went to
the tv and other parts went up to the attic (to the bathroom with the
tub, and to another bedroom) and another part down into the living
room, which had a tv, and then down to the basement family room, to
the laundry room and to the kitchen. TV's in all these places.
Every second splittler or so (that means I could have a tv on one amp
output, and a tv on the other output with a splitter that went to a
2nd tv, and I *didn't* need another splitter for that leg. Add a
third tv to the second leg, and I would need an amp probably.) Every
second splitter or so seemed to require a signal amp (mostly from
Radio Shack) but I never bought an amp until I needed one. If the
picture was weak, I needed one.

Later I put my vcr on the other side, my side of the bed, so I could
put tapes in and out without getting up, and then I could use the same
cables to watch the same movie from any room in the house (except one
bedroom and two bathrooms.) One time I had a party and about 33
people stayed to watch the movie I showeed, 16 in the living room, 7
in the kitchen and 10 in the basement family room.

I've been using the various amps (I think I have 3) for between 18 and
20 years, and I never give them any thought.

Whenever they enforce Digital TV, I'm not going out and buying 9 new
tvs, so I'll buy a converter and put it next to the vcr. One
convertor will serve the whole house. I'll have some sort of Rabbit
thing to change channels with when I'm not in the room with the
converter, like I do know with the vcr. I have an antenna in the
attic that feeds the vcr, and if if the vcr is off or set on "tv" the
antenna feeds through to the tvs all over the house. The signal from
cable works the same way as the signal from the antenna.


As to doing it the second way.
I think you can successfully run the signal backwards through the
splitter, put something in an output, and the same thing will come out
the other output and the input. For details check with
sci.electronics.repair . I think I've done this. A splitter is just
3 or 5 coils in proximity to each other.


Not sure about a cable connection for the computer. check if you can
split that too, but I'm pretty sure it's the same as tv.



Speaking of techs, at first installation I asked the tech if, for the
sake of appearance, the cable box (used at the time) could be in my
closet instead of on the same table as the little tv, about 6 feet
away. He said he wasn't sure, but he did it for me and it worked
fine. Later when I was snaking cable to the kitchen, I had it running
down two flights, then from the rear of the house to the front, back
to the back, and to the front again, and up one flight, at least 125
feet, and it worked fine. If the tech had doubts about 6 feet, he
didn't know very much. (Later after I finished the snaking, the 125
feet dropped to about 55 feet.

.

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