DIGITAL CABLE?
>With regard to the installation of the TV-Link extender unit, just a quick question.
>Can I use ordinary aerial cable (which I have about a 25m roll left after
>installing a new TV aerial) or does it have to be higher quality (like
>the cable used for the satellite installation) ?
Interesting question but there's no quick answer. In the good old days before satellite, you could get away with almost any crappy coaxial cable. However, satellite receivers, TV sets, computers, lamps and DVD players tend to radiate some interference, locally, so it's best to use good quality, double-screened cable within a couple of metres of such equipment - otherwise its radiated "noise" gets into the cable through the poor outer screen. This problem also suggests that coaxial wall sockets should either not be used or should be of the fully-screened type. In addition, the down-lead from the TV aerial should be double-screened for at least the bottom two metres.
This brings up another point: terrestrial digital TV transmissions are terribly susceptible to problems with car ignition interference and of switching transients within the building. This fact dictates that the complete run of cable from the aerial down to the first box that it plugs into should be double-screened and *without* any in-line connectors or sockets. NO coaxial cable should be run close to any mains power cables since these radiate switching transients which can knock out a digital picture and even "lock up" the receiver.
Taking both factors into account, it seems that ALL coaxial runs within the building ought to be of double-screened cable *without* any in-line connectors or sockets. If that is impractical, then any socket/plug arrangement should be fully screened. This is most easily arranged by stripping the guts out of a wall plate socket and glueing in a suitable female coaxial plug. (This can be of the usual TV "IEC" variety or the satellite type "F" connector, as used extensively for TV in the USA. The wall cable fits directly into this female plug before the plate is screwed onto the wall. It does present a problem because extra depth is needed behind the wall plate to allow the cable to curve gently. I'll look into this and see if I can find a suitable female plug.)
So, in answer to your question: if the installation already uses single-screen cable you can try it and see if it is OK. If it is not OK or if you are installing new cable then always play safe and use double-screened cable. We sell RG6 coax which is perfectly OK for indoor use (aluminium foil shield and quite flexible).
If you need to use a distribution amplifier then at least two factors must be considered.
1. It must be suitable for digital signals, if that is what it is distributing. (The signal from the terrestrial aerial must be considered "digital". The RF1 output from a digital box is currently NOT digital - goodness knows what it will be in the future when all TV sets accept a digital signal).
2. It must be able to pass the signals from a "SkyLink Remote Eye" or TV Link extender - even if you don't use one now, you might want to in future. Alternatively, you could fit a "Bypass" unit but this might have a detrimental affect on the signal because it adds two in-line connectors.
DOWNLOAD our PDF instructions (52k)
