Cable

[clones_jer]

I'm trying to decide the best way to split a cable signal in my house. Is it better to have 1 massive 6 way splitter to 6 tvs (or potental tv outlets anyway) with long coax runs or a four way then two of those lines split again with two-ways with shorter cable runs?

The cable splits right outside my house to two ways. I've run one to my modem and am trying to split the other "half" amongst all my potential tv locations.

for the record there are only 2 in my house right now, just trying to get it right before I drywall one room while I have the access.

 

[Clonefan94]

I would say split them as you need them. If you can get the right splitters. A few years ago, we switched to a new cable company in the area. They re-ran all the cable in our house for free, to make sure we had good signals. I had one main coming in and they put a split in the line wherever it was needed to branch to a new TV. I've never seen the splitters in the store but they were using ones where all the loss was taken by the new branch, and the mainline was supposedly jsut a straight through, no loss of signal. If you look most splitters will tell you the db you lose coming out of each split. There will be a little number there. i.e. -.8 db or something like that. The ones the cable company were using and gave me a few extra of were -0 db and -1.6 db. That seemed to have worked pretty well.

If you don't can't find those, you're best bet would probably to have one main split and run all your cables from there. Splitting the signal as you go can give you a pretty crappy result at the end. Especially if that last TV you are trying to get a digital HD picture.

 

[jumbopackage]

If I were you, I'd have one big splitter. Also, if you're running new cable, make sure it's RG6.

That way, if you ever decide to go to satellite, you can just swap out the splitter with a multiswitch and run all your satellite stuff to one place.

Generally speaking, though, the insertion loss from a big splitter is higher than multiple small splitters.

It's sort of 6 of 1, half a dozen of another, IMO.

 

[DaddyMac]

I have the cable split all over my house, probably 8-10 (not all being used, but they're there). I got one of those big block splitters you'd find at Radio Shack and had all kinds of problems.

Actually, I split it to two - one going straight to my broadband modem, the other to the block. I'd have dropouts on my cable modem and alot of picture issues.

MediaCom came out, and although I think there were external issues they resolved out on the pole, the tech installed a powered splitting block that replaced my Radio Shack version. Problem solved. Again, that amplifier is after the modem - and I was having issues there as well. So I think there was more to it than just an unpowered large splitter.

However -my understanding is that once all channels are digital and off analog, the degradation in the signal is no longer an issue. That digital quality isn't affected by these types of things? The signal gets there, or it doesn't - and the "power" signal that was a factor with analog is no longer relevant. So if that's true - you could probably do whatever works easiest.

 

[pulse]

It depends on how much you lose via the 6-way and 2-way splitters. The more times you split, the more signal loss you get. Of course you can always get them to boost the signal if there is too much degradation.

 

[jumbopackage]

I have the cable split all over my house, probably 8-10 (not all being used, but they're there). I got one of those big block splitters you'd find at Radio Shack and had all kinds of problems.

Actually, I split it to two - one going straight to my broadband modem, the other to the block. I'd have dropouts on my cable modem and alot of picture issues.

MediaCom came out, and although I think there were external issues they resolved out on the pole, the tech installed a powered splitting block that replaced my Radio Shack version. Problem solved. Again, that amplifier is after the modem - and I was having issues there as well. So I think there was more to it than just an unpowered large splitter.

However -my understanding is that once all channels are digital and off analog, the degradation in the signal is no longer an issue. That digital quality isn't affected by these types of things? The signal gets there, or it doesn't - and the "power" signal that was a factor with analog is no longer relevant. So if that's true - you could probably do whatever works easiest.

If anything, digital is MORE sensitive to this sort of thing than analog. What used to manifest itself as "snow" or "noise" will manifest itself as "no picture at all" with digital.

If you were having issues with your internet, you will certainly have the same issues with digital.


The splitter blocks work fine as long as you have shortish runs of cable coming out of them (you lose about 6db for every 100ft of cable roughly), OR they are powered. They generally introduce around a 10-12db insertion loss, and that's enough (especially with a weak signal) to cause problems.

The little 2 way splitters generally only introduce 2-4 db insertion loss and are therefore a bit less hard on the signal.

So with your 2 way splitter, and then another 8-way splitter, you were probably introducing as much as 22db worth of signal loss before it got to your receivers (if one was, say, 100ft away from the splitter). That's a LOT of loss.

 

[clones_jer]

If I were you, I'd have one big splitter. Also, if you're running new cable, make sure it's RG6.

That way, if you ever decide to go to satellite, you can just swap out the splitter with a multiswitch and run all your satellite stuff to one place.

Generally speaking, though, the insertion loss from a big splitter is higher than multiple small splitters.

It's sort of 6 of 1, half a dozen of another, IMO.

Also with this route adding an amplifier would seemingly be easier, as long as I put it near an outlet correct?

Are there lower loss splitters that can be purchased anywhere or are they all pretty much the same?

 

[kingcy]

Also with this route adding an amplifier would seemingly be easier, as long as I put it near an outlet correct?

Are there lower loss splitters that can be purchased anywhere or are they all pretty much the same?

Add an amplifier for certin. Split them in one place off the main line. Do it all in one place so it is easy to make changes to. If you have to split a line more than once I would be sure the double split cables are not going to my main TVs.