Best brand coax and F connector for HD cable?

Jim, I don't want the cable company to do it because they won't run the wiring in the wall. They will staple the coax to the baseboard.

Have a look at this tool and the associated F-connectors on the same page:

I bought that tool, along with a few dozen of those connectors. Worked really well so far (it's probably a water-proof connection).

Have a look at coax prices on this page:

Here are the specs on the Beldon Duobond III:

I think you're looking at P/N 9118 ($32 for 100 ft, $83 for 500 ft).

I'd go for Duobond 4 (quad shield) P/N 1189A which, for some reason, is $27 for 100 ft.

This page has some Beldon specs:

A few years ago, I bought a box of Beldon 9060. I did some research and determined it was the best RG-6 available. When I went to order it, I think I was told it wasn't in production any more, but that there were a few boxes left, and I got one. I believe the graph in the link above shows that the 9060 (95% braid, 2 foil shields) was the best at shielding from external ambient noise. If 9060 is really no longer available, you might want to look at 9058, 9056 or the 1189A.

Here's another Belden link:

You might want to look at some RG-6 plenum cable with good shielding (90% and more) on that page.

Thanks Cable Guy. I'm just a layperson and like I said, I'm not looking to cheap out but I would only use the tool once, maybe twice in the foreseeable future.

Do you think there would be a quality difference between these 3 choices (meaning is Beldin so superior over SCP or Perfect Vision, and are PermaSeal-II connectors way better than Snap n Seal?):

Choices:

1. Make my own length of Belden Quad Shielded with the connectors you indicated (F RG6-Quad PermaSeal-II ). Would have to buy the compression tool, the coax striper, the cable, the connectors.

1. Buy a custom made length of SCP quad shield with Thomas & Betts Snap n Seal connectors from the ebay guy.

2. Buy a custom made length of Perfect Vision quad shield with Thomas & Betts Snap n Seal connectors from the ebay guy.

I can buy #2 & #3 options from this ebay guy who makes up custom lengths of coax with the Snap n Seal connectors attached for about $30 for 75 feet.

I would use this tool only once, maybe twice in the forseeable future (I'm not a cable guy, you see ;). Should I just go with the stuff from the dude selling custom lengths on ebay, and skip the whole part where I try to be The Cable Guy myself? thanks!

PPC EX6 XL connectors (100 for $35). I think you're going to have a hard time finding a compression tool for those.

At the very least, you will need this coax stripper:

You can get that same exact stripper from many vendors. It looks like $10.

A cable cutter like this is optional. $7.

Here's your Thomas & Betts stuff:

I don't know if I like that tool. Lots of stuff on that page - don't necessarily know which items to get.

Are you running coax in walls and stuff, or short lengths out in the open to connect between various A/V components? You're gonna need some flexibility if this is for short lengths out in the open, because the RG-6 stuff doesn't like to be bent in too tight a circle (limited bend radius).

If you're running coax inside walls, then the connectors go on last.

I think that tools are a good investment, so I'm biased towards buying the tools even if you *think* you'll only use them once. More than likely you'll want to update/improve or add to the cable plant in your house at some point later.

Get the cable for $30 and be done with it. Either brand will provide excellent performance. If it doesn't, call the cable company and make them boost the signal coming in to the house. In fact, that may be all you really need. Has the cable company told you to replace the cable or are you guessing that's the problem? Do replace your old splitters with

1000Hz ones though - cable company will give them to you.

>

I'm sure service varies between providers, but my local comcast guys have been very good. They even terminated a run I made (because it wasn't accessible when they were here to do the other runs). They also installed an amplifier near the entry point and better quality splitters, all for nothing (extra). I did pay $14.95 per new run, but the old ones they cleaned up for free. I couldn't even think about running it myself for $15.

So, I'd certainly give them a call.

radio shack

When I bought this house 20 years ago now, I had to put connectors on the cheap RG6 cable they prewired with. I used the Radio shack cheap connectors that were about a buck for a pack of 10. Cut and trimmed the cable with a pair of dikes and crimped the connectors with a pair of channel locks. They still work fine today. It aint brain surgery, just do it right. Now, if someone used those screw on non crimp type that cost more and aren't worth a crap....

Did the cable guy install this, or did you pick it up? If you picked up the box and installed it yourself, how were the pictures before you got the cable box? Generally, if you have good analog pictures (I know that's a highly subjective statement), digital signals should work just fine. However, if you notice a big difference between analog and digital picture quality (look for noise in the picture, kinda like VHS versus DVD), or the analog pictures get worse as you flip to the higher channels, it is likely you have signal problems, possibly due to bad connectors, old/*mart splitters, or other junk in the house. If a cable guy came out and installed the box, did he check the signal with his meter? Was he a cable company employee or a contractor (if it was a contractor, I'll guess the answer to the meter question was no).

If the cable company won't wall fish, you can get cable, with connectors, from them. The best way is to flag down a cable guy in the area and ask him. Most* of them should be happy to provide you with some cable, but look for an installer, not a line tech (most line techs are older, and may have a bucket truck and have a surly attitude from years of not dealing with the public). The other option is to stop by the local office, so long as there are technicians dispatched from there. Try to go there in the morning or close to 5:00, as the girls at the counter won't know what to do and will hopefully be able to get a tech to make up a cable for you. There may be a charge, but I doubt it will be more than what RS charges, and will be much better cable**. Have a good idea of how long a pice you'll need, and add a few feet just to make sure. Get a splitter if you need it as well. Get a splitter with only the number of ports you need to minimize signal loss (IE if you have 2 outlets, don't get an 4-way splitter. the extra 3 dB loss can make all the difference).

Eric (a cable guy who lurks a lot)

*Make sure they are a cable company employee and not a contractor. ** Gave this advice to my dad, who was charged $7 for a 3 way splitter and about 40 feet of coax, with digicon/equivalent ends.

BruceR, The splitters are from the cable company. They are the type they use for broadband. But my intention is to eliminate the splitters and do a homerun. Don't need the splitters anymore. Have only 1 TV now.

When a person has interior wiring, whether done by homeowner or even by a licensed contractor, the cable company will say "the problem is your internal wiring and cable company is not responsible. Goodbye." They have done this to me before, even though the internal wiring was in place for a year and no problems, they insisted it was the internal wiring.

So, that is why I will try everything *I* can do to resolve the problem before calling the cable company.

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Eric, Thanks! Excellent idea. I hadn't thought of trying to get a long run of cable with connectors from the cable company or from an installer.

I picked up the HD box myself 3 months ago. That's when the problems started, when I got HD. I exchanged that box for another, but the problems continued.

Previous boxes were not HD boxes and never had signal loss.

The previous boxes were not HD but they were digital. In fact since being in this house, 5 years, the cable company has always claimed we have digital service. At least that is what they have billed us for.

It's real easy to test coax. Short one end to the shield and test with an ohm meter at the other end.

That only tests the DC characteristic of the coax.

Signal degradation across coax can occur when that simple test says things are fine. To really test it you need to do more....

That's true but how many people have access to a TDR (Time Domain Reflectometry)? About all the average guy can do is hire someone to check out the cables.

Well, there is that... ;-)

Depending on how wire is routed, it probably is cheaper and easier just to replace it if you are convinced that the cable is the issue. Of course, if you have an in with a cable guy that actually has good equipment, testing of the cable might be pretty cheap.

Around here, most of the cable installers don't have much in the way of equipment, let alone a TDR.

There may be several reasons the HD feed is having problems:

1) The channel displayed on the box (IE: channel 6) may actually map to another channel, likely a HD feed of the same channel.

2) The HD feeds are at a much higher frequency than any of the other channels (likely)

3) The HD feed uses a 256 QAM signal. The normal digital channels are on a 64 QAM signal. The 256 QAM is much more sensitive to noise and impedance mismatches. Noise can come from many sorces, but ususally there just isn't enough signal to get above the noise floor. Impedance is how much "resistance" there is in the cable, measured in Ohms. TV cable is 75 Ohms, but improperly installed connectors, moisture in the dialectric (white plastic), kinks and staples, and of course those junk splitters, can all change the impedance. Again, the 64QAM and analog TV are much less suceptable to missmatches (although analog tv can get gosting), but 256 can get picky.

Hey Eric, I didn't so much understand the mapping issue you mention in #1. But 2 and

3 make sense. I currently have 2 splits and 4 unterminated outlets, which could be adding noise. That's why I'm going to run new wire and do a homerun. Hope it will help.

Start by running a direct link from the outside cable installation point and the box. Move the box or string some cabling directly. See if that solves it. If it does then consider abandoning and removing all interior coax. There's probably some tees, splitters and splices somewhere buried along the various runs. It's often safest to start from scratch.

Crimping is easy. If you try going with fixed length cables you'll undoubtedly end up with either in-line splices or extra lengths stuffed somewhere inside a wall. Neither are a good idea and both are a waste of money. If you redo this stuff you'll know what's where and even with the crappiest of crimping skillz you'll still end up with a better solution than what you've got now.