Splitter or Amplifier

[zoink]

I am having my house re-wired and currently have installed coax cables in 4 rooms.

As the Sky dish is on the garage side, all of the cables will come to my new data comms cabinet where I will also have patch panels, etc.

I don't know what I need to distribute Freeview chanels to the 4 rooms and Sky+ HD to the living room.

Can I get a amplifier and connect all of the cables to that? Or do I need a splitter? But isn't a splitter the same as an amplifier to some extent?

 

[ChrisFrost]

For a DIY job an amp is the safest choice. Make it has Sky pass.

 

[Sam Gangee]

You can't split an LNB signal. Your Sky+HD Digibox requires two double-screened cables connected from the LNB.

The aerial signal, ideally, should be fed into a 4-output masthead amplifier situated near to the aerial. However, if the aerial signal is strong enough, you can get away with a distribution amplifier situated away from the aerial.

It is possible to combine an aerial feed and LNB feed into one cable by using diplexers, if necessary (i.e. bad planning!)

Chris' suggestion of a SkyLink amplifier (with bypass for remote signals) assumes that your TV aerial is connected first to the Sky Digibox aerial input and the Digibox RF2 output is connected to the amplifier.

Consider a multiswitch system for maximum flexibility.

See the SatCure web site for more details.

 

[zoink]

Thanks for your replies guys!

It is fine if the Sky signal cannot be sent through an amplifier.

Can I connect two coax from the living room straight into Sky's LNBs box? And then (if I have a big LNB box) connect the others to an amplifier for just simple Freeview?

Is that possible?

 

[ChrisFrost]

If you go for the sky pass amp as I suggested in the first post you can take the roof aerial feed to the Sky HD box, then take the aerial RF output from the Sky box RF2 and feed that to the distribution amp. This will give you Freeview on all TVs with a Freeview tuner and that Sky box signal when you switch to the analogue tuner. Stick some Sky eyes on to the TVs and you'll be able to fully control the Sky box from any TV.

Getting a HD signal to a TV that doesn't have a Sky box near it means sending a HDMI signal some distance. This is doable and relatively inexpensive if it is just one TV. Things get a little trickier with multiple TVs, but let's cross that bridge once you explain exactly what you want room by room.

 

[zoink]

Sorry for the delay in getting back! Thanks for the info, cleared it up nicely!

Now what distribution amps can you guys recommend please?