i added a cable outlet in a room so that i can have my computer with cable internet on one side and a cable tv on the other. in the basement below there was a cable line split from 1 to 2. so i took that off and put a splitter from 1 to 3 and ran my new outlet. worked for a bit but the internet started getting really slow. call time warner and the guy comes out (unfortunately i was at work and did not get to talk to him directly) but was informed that he basically scoffed at my work. said you can not put on a three way splitter and that i used cheap cable. so he put back on a 2 way splitter (disconnecting a currently not used cable outlet and put on a new line that does look like a nicer product. but i asked my roommate to inquire about where to get the right products and the cable guy blew him off and said they should do all installs.
i am not surprised at the cheap comment, i bought everything at home depot, but i did not know any better. does anybody know a good resource on how to properly run cable lines. i am having trouble finding one and was hoping to add more cable lines in the near future for another room but want to do it right this time.
thanks much.
Replies
what city and state are you in???
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming
WOW!!! What a Ride!
Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!
cincinnati ohio
use suppliers such as ...
Rexall...
CES...
Fluke...
CIS...
Fastline...
Synergy....
thes are all national supply outfits and will have everything ya need...
Plan "B" is to look under Telecommunications Suppliers / wholesalers in the phone book...
Ideal make a very good tool for that mission... what you see as brass is more likely brass (of sorts) plated or anodized steel which is way better than plain or chromed steel...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming<!----><!----><!---->
WOW!!! What a Ride!Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!
HAD SAME PROBLEM, its the splitter. you need a bi direction splitter. and its not the high dollar one, some work and some dont. you got to keep switching them till you find one that the modem like. You can get two splitter from same brand, same company at same time, one will work one wont. I ended up with a cheap 0.99 cent one that work
The cable modem needs to be as tightly connected to the outside line as possible. Ideally there should be only one splitter between it and the outside line and that should be a 2-way splitter, with everything else in the house being split off of the other leg of the 2-way.
The reason is that every time you split a cable signal you weaken it, and a 3-way splitter weakens the signal more than a 2-way.
The quality of the splitters and cable does make a difference, but not nearly as much as folks would like you to believe.
TS,
I agree with DanH that the quality of the cable and spiltters do matter but not excessively. I have a 6 way splitter TWICE (and no amplification) on my home runs and have great quality throughout the house...and yes, did it all myself with cable purchased at HD and Lowes.
I bet you just had one bad connection (the stripping and connection quality are more important than the actual cable and connectors themselves). And also, don't let it get to you as no offense to anyone in the cable industry but many of the guys in our area are kids who think they know more than the NEC when it comes to wiring. So I pretty much don't take stock in anything they say. And of course they ALWAYS refer you to have THEM do the install as our cable company gets over $100 per drop! Ridiculous.
Mike
One thing I'd add, any runs you do should be with the higher quality cable, the RG6, instead of the cheaper RG59, which allows more interference. Poor quality connections can introduce a lot of problems as well. The cheap quality screw on ones aren't worth a darn when it comes to cable internet because they don't always form a tight enough connection. I usually buy a premade RG6 cable with ends on it when I run, since I don't have the crimpers to do a good connection. A 3 way splitter shouldn't make a big difference, but if you weren't using another outlet, I'd stick with the 2 to avoid extra interference.
Another thing to keep in mind is that unused unamplified splitter outputs should be terminated. (But just try to find terminators at HD or even RS.) An unterminated output can really muck up the signal.
What is wanted is not the will to believe, but the will to find out, which is the exact opposite. --Bertrand Russell
And if you dont cap the unused terminal ends, the signal will spill out and ruin the carpet
Depends on what you watch.
What is wanted is not the will to believe, but the will to find out, which is the exact opposite. --Bertrand Russell
The prooblem is not what you watch. It is what you are not watching.With say 200 channels and you only watch one, you have the othe 199 spilling out on the carpet..
.
A-holes. Hey every group has to have one. And I have been elected to be the one. I should make that my tagline.
So it's better to watch as much #### as possible.
What is wanted is not the will to believe, but the will to find out, which is the exact opposite. --Bertrand Russell
a bit more detail about the situation.i bought a large spool of wire, a cheaper crimping tool and connectors. because it was cheaper for all the things i wanted to do. (so i thought) i made sure after i crimped each fitting that it seemed snuggly connected, but since i had not done this before i might have not been doing a great job. question-
a cross section of the wire has copper in the middle. a white foam that appears foil covered on the outside. thats wrapped in a metal mesh/weave. then the black rubber outside. is the metal mesh/weave important to the crimping process. the cutter i bought had a setting that was supposed to only take the black layer off but it did not work the best. so they were not all great. my basic thought was if its connected solid and you have the copper center feed long enough your good to go. maybe thats wrong.also i got crimp style connectors but i noticed so others in my place are brass instead of steel. does that make a difference.thanks for the advice so far.
is the metal mesh/weave important to the crimping process.
yup...
the cutter i bought had a setting that was supposed to only take the black layer off but it did not work the best. so they were not all great.
a better tool will help here...
my basic thought was if its connected solid and you have the copper center feed long enough your good to go. maybe thats wrong.
the mesh need to encompass that post looking deal on the back of the connector... a little bit of mesh flods back over the "black rubber" and is under the collar of the connector...
also i got crimp style connectors but i noticed so others in my place are brass instead of steel. does that make a difference.
see comment posted on that one post up....
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming<!----><!----><!---->
WOW!!! What a Ride!Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!
It doesn't hurt (much) if you cut some of the wires of the shield during termination. You do need to be sure that there is SOME contact between the shield wires and the shell of the connector, though.The main problem with the cheap crimpers isn't that you'll get an electrically inferior connection but that it will be poorer mechanically and more inclined to break with use.AFAIK, all F connectors are brass. Some are just plated with silver or chrome.
What is wanted is not the will to believe, but the will to find out, which is the exact opposite. --Bertrand Russell
am not surprised at the cheap comment
Neither am I, that appears to be a universal training item for all cable techs. No matter what, anything found in your house is inferior product and run incorrectly.
Even if the work was done by one of the other technicians from the exact same-named company (different one, or old dba--naw, that was all junk, needs to go, and right now).
But, I may be biased--I know how to crimp, I know conductors, even have some opinions on proper layout from demarc. Others differ.
About a year ago had a problem with my cable modem. cable tech proceeds to come out and tell me the modem is #### and should be replaced with an upgraded unit and they no longer use that item. About a month later a buddy moved back to town and had cable modem installed, the same crappy model that the tech told me was no good anymore. I guess they weren't getting enough of my money on a monthly basis...
I'm using something similar to this: http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?&Partnumber=183-136
Works great and no speed issues with the cable modem (although admittedly we've got fiber running down our street, so I believe my cable signal starts out pretty strong).
What I've heard from guys more knowledgeable about this stuff than me, is that one of the key issues is the quality of the cable & connectors you use. Make sure you're using RG-6 coax, and some form of crimp-on connectors. The screw-on kind are prone to failure.
Edited to clarify URL: That's "parts express", not "part sex press" if anyone was wondering. :)
Reminds me of a computer programming help site called Experts Exchange. Their domain name used to be "expertsexchange.com". It took them longer than it should have to change to "experts-exchange.com". :)
Edited 5/6/2008 10:18 pm ET by mowog74
Coax video and signal cables are not like ac or dc wiring. They have an impedance (75 ohms) and it has to match at each connection or else some of the signal will be reflected at the connection. Bad crimp work on a connector or a kinked or crushed cable can reflect so much of the incoming signal that after losses in the splitters, there isn't enough left for devices like TV tuners or cable modems. The twist-on F connectors that used to work OK for analog video may not do so well for more modern systems with splitters and lots of drops
Remember too that if you are using a cable modem, the signal has to go both ways in the cable. Older amplifiers may not be designed to pass the outgoing signals, and splitters reduce its level as well.
Edited 5/7/2008 2:12 pm ET by TJK
The Home Depot stuff is fine, but you have to buy the right one. Look for RG6 quad shield coax cable. Buy the expensive crimping tool, it makes a difference. The distance between the center copper wire and the outer shield must be maintained. If you crush the ends with a cheap crimper, you change the impedence and can get all sorts of weird problems. Here is a typical hdtv quality splitter.
http://www.crutchfield.com/S-rKQ8R3JWVmL/App/Product/Item/Main.aspx?g=43200&tab=detailed_info&i=043561952#Tab
You may need an amplified bi-directional splitter depending on signal strength. Good luck.
If you need to use a three way splitter because you'll be adding things later, install a termination cap. This shorts that port and minimizes reflections in the lines, which mess up signal strength and data coherence.