Originally Posted By: tfabris
Originally Posted By: Archeon
For one, is the coax cable used for connecting a TV to cable the same coax cable which is needed for satellite? In other words, if I run one of these cables to the room, will I still have the choice of connecting them to either a dish or cable? Or is this a different type?


The RG-59 coaxial cable that was commonly used for regular television in many houses is a different grade than the RG-6 coaxial cable used to connect to DirecTV satellite dishes these days. I'm told that the RG-6 cable needs to be of a higher grade to carry power to the LNB of the dish itself, and that RG-59 will either not work or will melt through its insulation if you try.

Additionally, you can't just use a passive Y-splitter to connect multiple tuner boxes to satellite dishes, the way you could with regular TV cable. Instead, you need an active electronic device known as a multiplexer (sometimes mis-referred to as a 'splitter' by people talking about satellite dish installations).

And, of course, you need a receiver (tuner box) in each location you want to watch satellite TV.

Other than that, it's exactly the same as TV cable. smile


I wouldn't say they were 'exactly' the same. I find the sat cable is usually more sturdy with a better jacket, usually at least double screened with a solid dilectric and much better RF performance. I've used sat cable all over the house.

If you use a multiswitch then the current carrying capability of the indoor cabling is less important as the voltage and tone is there purely to tell the multiswitch what you want instead of powering the LNB as that's what the multiswitch does.
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Cheers,

Andy M