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Question about my cable TV Help?

TwiceOver

TwiceOver

Lifer
So I recently got TiVo and to enable me to watch TV while it records I chose to have a second line installed into my living room. When the installer came he decided the signal was strong enough just to split the current line into two.

Now when I am watching TV the audio is queit especially on the higher channels. This wouldn't be a problem but when I turn up the volume to compensate I can hear the standard TV High Pitched whine noise louder than normal (You know what whine I am talking about?) Has anyone else had this problem or know of a solution? Do they make such a thing as a Signal booster?

Any ideas are helpful, I don't have a lot of cash to spend and I am in a rental in which my landlord shot down the idea of adding a second line to this room (unnecessary).
 
i think Nik (formerly ffmcobalt) worked for a cable company as a tier 1 or 2 modem tech. He seemed to be pretty knowledgeable on the cable subjects. I'm sure you either need an amplifier or a filter.

-=bmacd=-
 
Ex cable tech here....how many outlets total are there? You might be able to juggle the combination of splitters (like the one feeding the line going to the living room) around to get better signal to that outlet.

Also, do you have digital cable? Amplifiers (especially the cheap ones that most folk buy) can cause problems with digital cable/internet (they usually block the return signal--necessary for 2 way communication).

Do you have a digital camera btw? It's a lot easier to see if everything's hooked up right with a picture (vs a thousand words).

So it worked okay before the split, right? You've had cable in this room for awhile, but the TiVo and split cable line are new?
 
Originally posted by: bmacd
i think Nik (formerly ffmcobalt) worked for a cable company as a tier 1 or 2 modem tech. He seemed to be pretty knowledgeable on the cable subjects. I'm sure you either need an amplifier or a filter.

-=bmacd=-
Click to expand...


Bah. You shouldn't need an amp until you're getting into the 8 outlets and greater territory. Depends on the signal in the area, how far the cable has to run, how many outlets are using digital/hsi, quality of fittings/splitters/cable.
 
ok. I have 3 lines coming into the house. 1 to the den for my modem, 1 to the bedroom for small tv (straight TV no digital box), and one into the living room.

The one in the living room is split with a small cable splitter right where it comes in, 1 length goes straight to the TV (No Digital Box) the other goes straight to the digital box. The digital box is controlled by my TiVo all.

from the digital box, RCA out to Tivo then RCA out to TV.

I have a digital camera, but there's no way I can move my ENT. stand to take the pic.
 
Originally posted by: TwiceOver
ok. I have 3 lines coming into the house. 1 to the den for my modem, 1 to the bedroom for small tv (straight TV no digital box), and one into the living room.

The one in the living room is split with a small cable splitter right where it comes in, 1 length goes straight to the TV (No Digital Box) the other goes straight to the digital box. The digital box is controlled by my TiVo all.

from the digital box, RCA out to Tivo then RCA out to TV.

I have a digital camera, but there's no way I can move my ENT. stand to take the pic.
Click to expand...

I highly doubt that you have three seperate lines coming from the cable company's block amp. Most likely you are getting those three lines from a three way splitter that outside in the little box on the outisde of the house. So, that means that signal to the two way splitter inside the house is already down about 4.5db to 7db, depending on if the 3 way splitter is a balanced splitter or not. The two way splitter inside the cuts down the signal about another 2.5db to 3.5db. Thats a lot of signal being cut.

EDIT: on second thought, i reread your post and you say you have a cable modem. the line from teh cable block amp prob goes into a two way splitter; your cable modem is the most sensitive to signal loss and a two way splitter cuts down the least. One of the outputs goes to the cable modem, then the other goes to another two way which feeds the small bedroom and the living room.
 
Originally posted by: TechnoKid
Originally posted by: TwiceOver
ok. I have 3 lines coming into the house. 1 to the den for my modem, 1 to the bedroom for small tv (straight TV no digital box), and one into the living room.

The one in the living room is split with a small cable splitter right where it comes in, 1 length goes straight to the TV (No Digital Box) the other goes straight to the digital box. The digital box is controlled by my TiVo all.

from the digital box, RCA out to Tivo then RCA out to TV.

I have a digital camera, but there's no way I can move my ENT. stand to take the pic.
Click to expand...

I highly doubt that you have three seperate lines coming from the cable company's block amp. Most likely you are getting those three lines from a three way splitter that outside in the little box on the outisde of the house. So, that means that signal to the two way splitter inside the house is already down about 4.5db to 7db, depending on if the 3 way splitter is a balanced splitter or not. The two way splitter inside the cuts down the signal about another 2.5db to 3.5db. Thats a lot of signal being cut.
Click to expand...


yeh, it's all coming up from the box in the basement. Any solution?
 
Okay....odds are the cable modem is either split on the "short" (-3.5db) leg of a 3 way splitter, or there is a 2 way splitter with 1 line feeding the modem, and another feeding the 2 TV's, which is split again in the living room.

The line in the den only feeds the modem right? (like it also isn't split to feed a tuner card or TV, right?)

If there's a 3 way splitter, you should be able to switch the modem off the short leg and put the living room line onto it. The modem should be fine with a little less signal as long as it's still coming off the first split.
 
The cable modem is on it's own. This sounds like a good idea but it also sounds like a lot of coax running all over the house since there would be a line coming and going from the living room all the way through the kitchen, dining room, and to the den. Any other possibility?
 
Bah. I type slow.

Okay, well, you say there is a box in the basement? Can you get in it?

Check PM's
 
Originally posted by: psiu
Okay....odds are the cable modem is either split on the "short" (-3.5db) leg of a 3 way splitter, or there is a 2 way splitter with 1 line feeding the modem, and another feeding the 2 TV's, which is split again in the living room.

The line in the den only feeds the modem right? (like it also isn't split to feed a tuner card or TV, right?)

If there's a 3 way splitter, you should be able to switch the modem off the short leg and put the living room line onto it. The modem should be fine with a little less signal as long as it's still coming off the first split.
Click to expand...

i disagree with taking the modem off the 3.5 leg if it is a unbalanced three way splitter. The other legs on a unbalanced three way splitter cut down 7.5db. the cable modem may not like that as far as the upstream (return) power/signal to noise ratio is concerned.
 
Originally posted by: psiu
Bah. I type slow.

Okay, well, you say there is a box in the basement? Can you get in it?
Click to expand...


Nope, rather large lock on it and the key is held by the cable company. Another factor is that there are 5 apartments in the buiding, would one line be split to all of these apartments? Could that be the underlying problem?
 
Originally posted by: TechnoKid
Originally posted by: psiu
Okay....odds are the cable modem is either split on the "short" (-3.5db) leg of a 3 way splitter, or there is a 2 way splitter with 1 line feeding the modem, and another feeding the 2 TV's, which is split again in the living room.

The line in the den only feeds the modem right? (like it also isn't split to feed a tuner card or TV, right?)

If there's a 3 way splitter, you should be able to switch the modem off the short leg and put the living room line onto it. The modem should be fine with a little less signal as long as it's still coming off the first split.
Click to expand...

i disagree with taking the modem off the 3.5 leg if it is a unbalanced three way splitter. The other legs on a unbalanced three way splitter cut down 7.5db. the cable modem may not like that as far as the upstream (return) power/signal to noise ratio is concerned.
Click to expand...

They are lot more resilient than most people think....it takes a lot of shoddy cable work to knock one offline.
The signal coming in should damn well be good enough to take a 7 db hit. There's bigger problems if it's not.

Nope, rather large lock on it and the key is held by the cable company. Another factor is that there are 5 apartments in the buiding, would one line be split to all of these apartments? Could that be the underlying problem?
Click to expand...

Ah. Well, that means there is a splitter probably behind a wall plate somewhere in your apartment. Got a screwdriver?

EDIT: There's probably a tap, and possibly a line amp in there. (the box in basement with lock)
 
Actually all lines come up from the basement and then bare cable comes through each of my window sills. Charter doesn't do in-wall wiring.
 
In the case of my cable modem there is a barrel connector also bridging two chunks of coax, and in the bedroom also. But in the livingroom it comes straight in and dircectly to the splitter sitting on the floor, the on to the ENT center.
 
Originally posted by: TwiceOver
Actually all lines come up from the basement and then bare cable comes through each of my window sills. Charter doesn't do in-wall wiring.
Click to expand...

In the case of my cable modem there is a barrel connector also bridging two chunks of coax, and in the bedroom also. But in the livingroom it comes straight in and dircectly to the splitter sitting on the floor, the on to the ENT center.
Click to expand...

So......................................................ghetto.

Hell, just call em up and say the audio is out.

Or even better, say the picture is fuzzy. Make sure to tell them it's on both TV's, though.

When the tech shows up, just explain the situation to him, he should be able to get better signal for you (whether by rearranging the splitters, or installing an amplifier (which could cost money, I usually put em in for free when I did it)).
 
Suck, I hate it when the charter guys come here. Well, if that's the solution, that's the solution, thanx for all the help.

I went and checked out the box downstairs and I can't make heads nor (or) tails of it. I can't even find the main one coming in. Maybe charter will do me right (for once).
 
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