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Can't get OTA feeds to all three rooms with a big house's existing coax cable setups?

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Ant

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Apr 26, 2012, 5:01:23 AM4/26/12
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Hello.

When a new attic antenna (RCA ANT-751) was attempted to connect to a
existing main coax cable line that was used for the previous owner's
Dish TV service, it only worked in the big house's family room but not
the other two smaller rooms.

I would assume OTA still work after disconnecting Dish satellite to an
attic antenna. Others and I could not figure out why these two rooms
don't get anything. We don't know if there are disconnected cables
inside the walls. Or maybe these coax cables are too old? The previous
owner said that all three rooms worked with his Dish service before he
moved out several months ago.

Does OTA need something special for these splitters and shared main coax
cable line? I did notice one room had a coax cable device with its power
AC connector for a power outlet. I don't know if that is the problem.

Thank you in advance. :)
--
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men; as a self-educated specialist in several arts she is the superior
of any savage race of men; and in one or two high mental qualities she
is above the reach of any man..." --Mark Twain
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Jim Wilkins

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Apr 26, 2012, 7:28:16 AM4/26/12
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"Ant" <a...@zimage.comANT> wrote in message
news:eMKdnXLg5MN-kwTS...@earthlink.com...
> Hello.
>
> When a new attic antenna (RCA ANT-751) was attempted to connect to a
> existing main coax cable line that was used for the previous owner's
> Dish TV service, it only worked in the big house's family room but
> not the other two smaller rooms.
>
> I would assume OTA still work after disconnecting Dish satellite to
> an attic antenna. Others and I could not figure out why these two
> rooms don't get anything. We don't know if there are disconnected
> cables inside the walls. Or maybe these coax cables are too old? The
> previous owner said that all three rooms worked with his Dish
> service before he moved out several months ago.
>

The signal from the antenna is probably -much- weaker than from Dish,
and it decreases fairly rapidly as it passes down a long run of cable,
plus you lose >1/2 the signal strength wherever it's split. I see a
considerable difference in dropout rate between the TV close to the
antenna lead and another across the room, even with RG-6 quad shield
cable (Comcast remnants).

The answer for me was a Radio Shack amplifier 15-321, more because I
could return it easily than for price or quality. I put the preamp
inside the basement where the downlead enters so I can disconnect it
from the outdoor antenna when thunderstorms approach, and the
variable-gain distribution amp near the TV.

If your antenna is in the attic the preamp could be attached to it to
give you more signal and less noise, but I need it only for a few
difficult stations.

jsw


Ant

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Apr 26, 2012, 10:07:34 AM4/26/12
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On 4/26/2012 4:28 AM PT, Jim Wilkins typed:

> The signal from the antenna is probably -much- weaker than from Dish,
> and it decreases fairly rapidly as it passes down a long run of cable,
> plus you lose>1/2 the signal strength wherever it's split. I see a
> considerable difference in dropout rate between the TV close to the
> antenna lead and another across the room, even with RG-6 quad shield
> cable (Comcast remnants).
>
> The answer for me was a Radio Shack amplifier 15-321, more because I
> could return it easily than for price or quality. I put the preamp
> inside the basement where the downlead enters so I can disconnect it
> from the outdoor antenna when thunderstorms approach, and the
> variable-gain distribution amp near the TV.
>
> If your antenna is in the attic the preamp could be attached to it to
> give you more signal and less noise, but I need it only for a few
> difficult stations.

Well, the room that worked is the same results I get if DTV is connected
directly to the antenna without the splitters and extended cables so I
doubt it is the signal strength issue.
--
"When many work together for a goal, great things may be accomplished.
It is said a lion cub was killed by a single colony of ants." --Saskya
Pandita

GMAN

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Apr 26, 2012, 12:29:01 PM4/26/12
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In article <eMKdnXLg5MN-kwTS...@earthlink.com>, Ant <a...@zimage.comANT> wrote:
>Hello.
>
>When a new attic antenna (RCA ANT-751) was attempted to connect to a
>existing main coax cable line that was used for the previous owner's
>Dish TV service, it only worked in the big house's family room but not
>the other two smaller rooms.
>
>I would assume OTA still work after disconnecting Dish satellite to an
>attic antenna. Others and I could not figure out why these two rooms
>don't get anything. We don't know if there are disconnected cables
>inside the walls. Or maybe these coax cables are too old? The previous
>owner said that all three rooms worked with his Dish service before he
>moved out several months ago.
>
>Does OTA need something special for these splitters and shared main coax
>cable line? I did notice one room had a coax cable device with its power
>AC connector for a power outlet. I don't know if that is the problem.
>
>Thank you in advance. :


The dish network dish most likely was fed thru a multiswitch, then the down to
the various rooms. You most likly put the antenna before the multiswitch, so i
am suprised you even got a signal to the main TV. The multiswitch needs to be
replaced with a regular splitter.

Steve Stone

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Apr 26, 2012, 2:26:25 PM4/26/12
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Are you sure the coax connected to your attic antenna is also attached
to the coax going to the other rooms?

UCLAN

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Apr 26, 2012, 3:13:26 PM4/26/12
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On 4/26/2012 2:01 AM, Ant wrote:

> When a new attic antenna (RCA ANT-751) was attempted to connect to a
> existing main coax cable line that was used for the previous owner's Dish TV
> service, it only worked in the big house's family room but not the other two
> smaller rooms.
>
> I would assume OTA still work after disconnecting Dish satellite to an attic
> antenna. Others and I could not figure out why these two rooms don't get
> anything. We don't know if there are disconnected cables inside the walls.
> Or maybe these coax cables are too old? The previous owner said that all
> three rooms worked with his Dish service before he moved out several months
> ago.
>
> Does OTA need something special for these splitters and shared main coax
> cable line? I did notice one room had a coax cable device with its power AC
> connector for a power outlet. I don't know if that is the problem.

In a previous post, you mentioned you had analog CRT type TVs. The signals
from the antenna will be 8VSB ATSC, and will not be receivable by your
analog TVs without a converter. The output from the DISH receivers *is*
analog, and therefore was received by those analog TVs.

Ant

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Apr 27, 2012, 1:08:47 AM4/27/12
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On 4/26/2012 9:29 AM PT, GMAN typed:

> The dish network dish most likely was fed thru a multiswitch, then the down to
> the various rooms. You most likly put the antenna before the multiswitch, so i
> am suprised you even got a signal to the main TV. The multiswitch needs to be
> replaced with a regular splitter.

Yeah, I didn't know multiswitch. It totally looked like a splitter. I
will have to try that (am using a three way splitter in the old house
right now for my two HDTV tuner cards and CRT TV [actually a VCR]).
--
"Every ruler sleeps on an anthill." --Afghani

Ant

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Apr 27, 2012, 1:10:24 AM4/27/12
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On 4/26/2012 11:26 AM PT, Steve Stone typed:

> Are you sure the coax connected to your attic antenna is also attached
> to the coax going to the other rooms?

It should be for Dish TV since previous owner used all three rooms and
TVs for his Dish service. Many replies seem to point to Dish's
multiswitch so I am going to try that part.
--
"Above ground I shall be food for kites; below I shall be food for
mole-crickets and ants. Why rob one to feed the other?" --Juang-zu (4th
Century B.C.)

Ant

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Apr 27, 2012, 1:12:19 AM4/27/12
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On 4/26/2012 12:13 PM PT, UCLAN typed:

> In a previous post, you mentioned you had analog CRT type TVs. The signals
> from the antenna will be 8VSB ATSC, and will not be receivable by your
> analog TVs without a converter. The output from the DISH receivers *is*
> analog, and therefore was received by those analog TVs.

Right, I have the converter boxes already in the old house. However,
we're planning to not to bring them and just buy HDTVs in the new house.

For the test in the house, it was with a two years old portable DTV
(ATSC) to test in each room.
--
"Ladies and gentlemen, er, we've just lost the picture, but, uh, what
we've seen speaks for itself. The Corvair spacecraft has been taken
over--'conquered', if you will--by a master race of giant space ants.
It's difficult to tell from this vantage point whether they will consume
the captive earth men or merely enslave them. One thing is for certain,
there is no stopping them; the ants will soon be here. And I, for one,
welcome our new insect overlords. I'd like to remind them that as a
trusted TV personality, I can be helpful in rounding up others to...toil
in their underground sugar caves."--Kent Brockman in The Simpsons' Deep
Space Homer (1F13) episode.

GMAN

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Apr 27, 2012, 12:13:47 PM4/27/12
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In article <1PWdnQP5kvDUtwfS...@earthlink.com>, Ant <a...@zimage.comANT> wrote:
>On 4/26/2012 11:26 AM PT, Steve Stone typed:
>
>> Are you sure the coax connected to your attic antenna is also attached
>> to the coax going to the other rooms?
>
>It should be for Dish TV since previous owner used all three rooms and
>TVs for his Dish service. Many replies seem to point to Dish's
>multiswitch so I am going to try that part.
You want to remove the multiswitch and use a regular splitter.

Ant

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Apr 28, 2012, 12:07:24 AM4/28/12
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> You want to remove the multiswitch and use a regular splitter.

Right. That is what I am planning to do. I hope that's the problem! :)
--
"Fall in those single lines like army ants..." --unknown

G-squared

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Apr 28, 2012, 12:06:29 AM4/28/12
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You really need to know what exactly is in the signal path. If there
is any corroded connectors, that can wreak havoc. A failed or powered
down amplifier would do the same. If you're getting diffraction
(antenna lower than an obstruction) you may not have much signal to
begin with. I run a VERY low gain antenna (Winegard SquareShooter +4.5
dB but very good VSWR) at 35 miles out with no preamps and split 4
ways. The old ATI tuners report as low as 66% signal on channel 9 but
the Hauppauge tuner says the carrier to noise >25 dB (15 dB is the
minimum usable). There are no stutters on any channel in any weather
BUT I have line-of-sight to Mt Wilson.


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