Advice on multiple TV connections to one cable box

[JimBeam]

Hello Audioholics:
As a very unsophisticated a/v user I am seeking advice regarding connecting 3 or 4 TVs to one cable box.

Here is my situation:
I live alone
I have TV's in the living room, bedroom, office, and basement [exercise bike]
I am a Cablevision (SW Connecticut) subscriber
I have one Scientific Atlanta Explorer 8300HD with DVR, and a remote

I want be able to view cable tv from all rooms but I can't afford 4 cable boxes
I'm not trying to beat Cablevision out of anything as I can only watch one set at a time. I used to be able to connect my extra TVs directly to the cable and get "basic" broadcasts, but with the advent of the all digital era they tell me every set needs its own cable box.

I figure if I put a 4-way splitter on the cable box I could send the cable signal to all rooms, problem is if I go to bed I can't change the channel without going back to the living room because the remote is InfraRed and must have a line-of-sight. With a RadioFrequency remote system (ie Next Gen 418 Plus Remote Extender Kit with a couple of extra transmitters) I can control the cable box from any TV that I happened to be watching. I've talked to NextGen and they said that I would have no problem controlling the box with their system.

My concern is whether or not I would lose picture and sound quality if I'm sending the signal through coax to each tv set; instead of the five heavy gauge wires going from the box to the TV that I now have. I don't expect theater quality but then again I'dont want ghosts, fuzz, or general louziness.

If anyone has any advice or opinions on all this I hope that you will pass it along. I appreciate your indulgence and thank you in advance for any help that you can give me.

Regards to all, JimBeam

 

[highfigh]

Hello Audioholics:
As a very unsophisticated a/v user I am seeking advice regarding connecting 3 or 4 TVs to one cable box.

Here is my situation:
I live alone
I have TV's in the living room, bedroom, office, and basement [exercise bike]
I am a Cablevision (SW Connecticut) subscriber
I have one Scientific Atlanta Explorer 8300HD with DVR, and a remote

I want be able to view cable tv from all rooms but I can't afford 4 cable boxes
I'm not trying to beat Cablevision out of anything as I can only watch one set at a time. I used to be able to connect my extra TVs directly to the cable and get "basic" broadcasts, but with the advent of the all digital era they tell me every set needs its own cable box.

I figure if I put a 4-way splitter on the cable box I could send the cable signal to all rooms, problem is if I go to bed I can't change the channel without going back to the living room because the remote is InfraRed and must have a line-of-sight. With a RadioFrequency remote system (ie Next Gen 418 Plus Remote Extender Kit with a couple of extra transmitters) I can control the cable box from any TV that I happened to be watching. I've talked to NextGen and they said that I would have no problem controlling the box with their system.

My concern is whether or not I would lose picture and sound quality if I'm sending the signal through coax to each tv set; instead of the five heavy gauge wires going from the box to the TV that I now have. I don't expect theater quality but then again I'dont want ghosts, fuzz, or general louziness.

If anyone has any advice or opinions on all this I hope that you will pass it along. I appreciate your indulgence and thank you in advance for any help that you can give me.

Regards to all, JimBeam

You should be OK with a splitter and if you lose some signal strength, you can add an amplifier before the splitter. Or, you can get an amplified splitter which, hopefully, will have variable gain adjustment. Either way, if the runs aren't too long, you shouldn't have a problem with doing this, although you could just use the timer control on the TV if you want to turn it off- there's no appreciable difference in power used when the box is on or off. If you want to control the box form other locations, you will need the RF remote or additional boxes.

I'd be more concerned with the average price of cable than how much each box costs. Call their customer retention department and get them to give you a better rate- if they get the impression that you're willing to switch to another provider, they'll often drop it. If not, switch and get the best package price with installation and hardware included. If they give you a better rate, wait a little while and add a box or two.

 

[MDS]

I want be able to view cable tv from all rooms but I can't afford 4 cable boxes. I'm not trying to beat Cablevision out of anything as I can only watch one set at a time. I used to be able to connect my extra TVs directly to the cable and get "basic" broadcasts, but with the advent of the all digital era they tell me every set needs its own cable box.

You need a cable box to view HD, premium channels, and any channels that are scrambled. Basic cable doesn't require the cable box as long as the TV has an ATSC tuner.

You can split the cable 4 ways at the source (where it enters the house) but one leg will feed the cable box and the others will go directly to the other TVs. Only the TV with the cable box will get all channels you pay for.

If you use the RF out on the cable box and split it there, you'll still only get basic cable but the signal is modulated on channel 3 or 4 and the TV will have to be tuned to that channel. Then you'll have to change the channel on the cable box - not the TV.