Home distribution help!

[bsobel]

Need some help figuring out how to broadcast some of my Dishnetwork receivers output around the house.

When my current home was being built, I *thought* I had planned ahead and ran 4 coax to my roof area and 2 coax feeds to each room where I would want to install a DishNetwork receiver.

Well, I didn't really plan for dual tuner units and realize I should have run 3 or even 4 coax to each room. What I have setup:

Family room: 721 both coax used
Office: 721 both coax used (had to move it here, too loud for the master bedroom)
Masterbedroom: 508 one coax free
Child's room: 508 one coax free

Dish500 and Dish300 feeding into a dual switch 64 config. Each primary output has a diplexer (e.g. the first output to each 721, and the only output to each 508). The 4 'antenna' sides of the diplexers are on a splitter. There is currently no 'input' to the splitter (figured I'd eventually need a modulator here?).

What I would like to do is send the signals from the FamilyRoom 721 (and possibly the office 721) so either of those other rooms could see it. But, since the 'extra' coax I had planned on using as a return run from the room is used, is there a way to feed the signal 'back' that line and 'distribute it' to the other tv's?

Bill

[Jacob S]

Use 2.4 GHZ wireless transmitters.

[Mike123abc]

I see 2 possible solutions:

1. Run an extra cable to each of these rooms. This may or may not be difficult. Then use the extra cable to feed back into the distribution system. This is how I did it. Each reciever has a drop for the satellite dish, then I use an RF Modulator to make a cable channel out of the reciever output and feed it back up to the entrance of the house.

2. You should be able to use diplexors to feed the signal back up the same line you feed the reciever from the dish. Essentially the dish to reciever goes down the wire at a very high frequency (this is normal) and the TV channel goes up the wire at the lower television channel frequency. This is pretty close to the same system where an outside antenna is combined with the dish signal and then spit off at the reciever. A diplexor simply separates or combines the TV and Dish bands in a single cable.

[Jacob S]

The extra wire to each room and diplexors ideas are good as well if he is willing to add wires to each room. Just make sure that RG=6 wiring is what was use in the prewire.

Also Terk Leapfrog system will allow you to watch and change channels in any room where there is a phone line without running additional coax.

[Bill R]

Originally posted by Jacob S
Use 2.4 GHZ wireless transmitters.

The 2.4 Ghz sender/receiver devices may not work in your area. I tried one and some of my neighbors have 2.4 GHz phones or other 2.4 GHz devices (like wireless networks) and there was just too much interference (on all four channels).

I know it is a pain, but you are better off running more wires.

[scooper]

There are a couple things you could consider, depending on how you actually ran the wires.

#1 - the ideas above on putting the modulators and backfeeding via diplexors. The way to hook this up would be to put the modulator at each receiver, then feed through the diplexor (and split out again). Eventually, you would then need to join all these RF outputs together and feed out again to all sites.

#2 - move all your receivers that you want to view other places all to a common "wiring center". Then all your modulators / combiners will be in the same location and you can feed out using your existing wiring.

Disadvantage of #2 is that stereo modulators are expensive - you might want to do a combination of the two.

[Jacob S]

I suppose if one lives in the city or community of houses that uses a lot of the phones then that may be a problem but if one lives in the country then that may not be as big of a deal.

Running wires is the best thing to do overall though. I seen where they have a 5.6 GHZ or somewhere in that area frequency for cell phones now, perhaps they could implement this with audio/video senders as well for less interference.

[bsobel]

> #1 - the ideas above on putting the modulators and backfeeding via diplexors. The way to hook this up would be to put the modulator at each receiver, then feed through the diplexor (and split out again). Eventually, you would then need to join all these RF outputs together and feed out again to all sites.

I understand putting the modulator at each receiver on the 'antenna' side of the diplexer. Where all the wires feedback to the switch 64's (where the other diplexers are), what would I need to do to 'join all these RF outputs together'. Would that be as simple as putting all 4 feeds from the antenna side of the diplexers at the wiring closet side on a splitter?

Thank you to everyone who's responded so far. To answer a couple other questions, I didn't really look at wireless due to my phones and 802.11 network. As for running more wires, I'm afraid at the office location it's close to impossible (might be possible in the family room, howerver).

Thanks!
Bill

[AllieVi]

Originally posted by bsobel
[BI understand putting the modulator at each receiver on the 'antenna' side of the diplexer. Where all the wires feedback to the switch 64's (where the other diplexers are), what would I need to do to 'join all these RF outputs together'. Would that be as simple as putting all 4 feeds from the antenna side of the diplexers at the wiring closet side on a splitter?[/B]Yes.

The device we typically think of as an RF "splitter" is really a "splitter/combiner." Wired one way, a single input is split into numerous outputs (with loss of signal strength at each output, unless amplified). Wired the other way, several inputs combine into one output (with little loss of signal strength - and be sure that the input signals are not the same frequencies).

[bsobel]

Ok, I played around a bit and just fed the channel 3 output of the 721 back via the diplexers. At the upstairs TV the signal quality is pretty bad (but it's there!). I do have two questions:

1) Where does the switch power inserter need to go when there is a diplexer on the line, I'm presuming it doesn't matter? Or must it go on the satellite side of the diplexer or on the 'combined line' specifically?

2) Will a 'real' modulator work better over the long cable run than the one built into the 721?

Thanks!
Bill

[Mike123abc]

I would try an amplifier on the output first.

I use modulators because I move the channels up to high UHF so that they do not interfere with OTA stations from my antenna and use a band pass filter on the OTA antenna to mask out UHF over channel 60. The problem with amplifiers is that unless you get a single channel amplifier that costs $$ you amplify everything, so you interfere with other merged signals.

In my system OTA comes in via antenna and then gets mixed with the return from my modulators using the band pass filter to mask off channels over 60 from the antenna (channel 44 is the highest station in town, but without the band pass filter the static on channels 60+ get amplified by the antenna amplifier and overpower the modulated signals).

[bsobel]

Mike,

Any references (manufacturers etc) for the single channel amps?

Thanks,
Bill

[waydwolf]

Originally posted by Jacob S
Use 2.4 GHZ wireless transmitters.

    Just be aware of interferrence issues with 802.11 b&g which operate in the same band, as well as 2.4Ghz cordless phones.

 

[Mike123abc]

Blonder tongue sells all sorts of head end equipment like single channel amps: http://www.blondertongue.com
http://www.blondertongue.com/media/pdfs/catalog_classes/strip_amps.pdf