Digital TV antennae cable question:

J

JOhnH

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I have Spectrum internet service, and occasionally I rent one of their TV set top boxes for a few months. They have a coax cable that connects to a box by my electric meter and then into the house, through the ceiling and wall to my TV. When I rent their set top box I hook it to that coax and then I have to call them and they remotely activate the box.

If I install a digital TV antennae on the outside of my house, can I piggyback that antennae signal over the Spectrum Coax?
 
It's a separate signal - you can get over-the-air content anytime regardless of any cable subscription.
Unless I'm misunderstanding the question?
 
I think he’s saying can he run an OTA signal and cable internet over the same coax?
I think the answer is yes.
 
If both cables are receiving a signal simultaneously then you should get an A/B switch. Two inputs, one output. And you choose which is actively providing a signal to your TV.
 
Baked Potato said:
If both cables are receiving a signal simultaneously then you should get an A/B switch. Two inputs, one output. And you choose which is actively providing a signal to your TV.
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Good. But actually I don't want to do both simultaneously. I want to stop using Cable TV and just use their coax to move my antennae signal to my TV without running another cable through the attic and walls. I want to use an OTA antennae to supplement a few streaming internet channels that feed wirelessly through my ROKU device. I almost didn't even ask because it seems so obvious that "cable is cable". I just wanted some assurrance I wasn't missing something before I buy the antennae and equipment.
 
Oh, yeah. If both devices use coax cable, then no need to run another. If you're no longer interested in getting a cable signal through their box, just connect via female-to-female connector, or a splice them if there's not an end already terminated where you want to put the antenna.
 
JOhnH said:
Good. But actually I don't want to do both simultaneously. I want to stop using Cable TV and just use their coax to move my antennae signal to my TV without running another cable through the attic and walls. I want to use an OTA antennae to supplement a few streaming internet channels that feed wirelessly through my ROKU device. I almost didn't even ask because it seems so obvious that "cable is cable". I just wanted some assurrance I wasn't missing something before I buy the antennae and equipment.
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Absolutely. Coax is coax, nothing proprietary about what Spectrum is using it for versus the antenna. The only thing I'd add is that long cable runs between the antenna and the tuner can result in signal loss so you may need a powered signal amplifier if you have trouble picking up OTA stations. I run a large OTA antenna in the attic/crawlspace and send the signal to an HDHomeRun tuner in the server closet. The HDHomeRun then send the signal over the home network which I can then access from any tv in the house using any number of SmartTv apps (Plex, Channels, HDHomeRun app, etc.). Just throwing that out there as a solution if your cable run is too long.
 
JOhnH said:
I wasn't missing something before I buy the antennae and equipment.
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FYI: when I dropped my Cox cable, I installed a VHF/UHF antenna in the attic and connected it to my existing coax cable (CAT5) system. Be sure to select the right type of antenna for your area and station distances if you want to pick up the most options. Also if the run from your antenna to the TVs are on the long side you may need to get a signal booster as well. But you can always add that later if needed. There's a guy on youtube who covers this topic pretty good and offers some advice on setting things up. His channel says it all: Antenna Man.
 
A good site for antenna selection is:
https://www.antennaweb.org/
I'll second the advice to look at "Antenna Man" on You Tube. He also offers a service to pick the antenna for your address. I presume there is a charge for this.
Don't pay any extra for a "digital" antenna; that is just marketing hype.
Probably the most important thing is to find out if any channels in your area are VHF (RF channels 2-13) and if so pick an appropriate antenna. Note that the channel number promoted on the station is NOT likely the actual RF channel number, that went away with analog broadcasting. Antenna Web lists the actual RF frequencies.
 
I have the exact same setup as @SoonerAviator . Hopefully there's a mostly direct line from your antenna and receiver. Too much splitting etc. will degrade the signal. Fortunately, amplifiers are not expense. Here is a good site on expected antenna signal strength and where you might need it pointed.
 
HDHomerun has 4K tuners now too. I was having trouble getting a new dedicated coax run from the attic to the tv. Just threw a Flex 4K on the network and any device in the house can display 4K tv.
 
manac said:
HDHomerun has 4K tuners now too. I was having trouble getting a new dedicated coax run from the attic to the tv. Just threw a Flex 4K on the network and any device in the house can display 4K tv.
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Only downside is that there isn't much of anything being broadcast in 4K over-the-air at the moment, despite having some stations using the new frequency band. Not bad to future proof it though. I know Plex is still not able to pass through the audio from the HDHR Flex 4K units because of a licensing/tech issue with ATSC 3.0. Hopefully they sort that out quickly, but I think the major stations have to broadcast ATSC 1.0 through 2023 before they are forced to move to the newer spec so it isn't going away for a bit.
 
Bell206 said:
There's a guy on youtube who covers this topic pretty good and offers some advice on setting things up. His channel says it all: Antenna Man.
Click to expand...
flyingbrit said:
I'll second the advice to look at "Antenna Man" on You Tube.
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Thanks for that recommendation for Antenna Man. I checked his channel and he does have some good advice. I first watched one of his videos about what NOT to buy.

I already knew that I had misused the term "digital" antenna. It was just easier to get my idea across because that is what is so heavily advertised.

But right after dispelling that myth he talked about the junk some places try to sell. I was already considering some of that junk. He said most people just search Amazon or head to Best Buy. That was my plan, but he stated "DON'T DO THAT" and explained why and gave advice on what to look for. I might still buy from BB or AMAZON if I find one that he recommends, but probably not. I still have more research to do, but I feel I am on the right track.
 
Good advice. Here is a site that will tell you what Broadcast TV Stations are available in your area: https://www.rabbitears.info/sitemap.php As mentioned in another post, be sure to determine if channels of
interest are VHF or UHF. You will probably have some of each, although many former VHF channels have migrated to the UHF Band (but are still known by their former channel number - a stupid idea IMHO).
Another thing you will discover is that many, if not most, Digital TV channels have multiple subchannels (so more to choose from).

I would recommend that you get a quality antenna with a built-in preamplifier. I have one of these and am happy with it: https://www.amazon.com/Televes-DiNova-Antenna-Filter-144282/dp/B07PH46Z65?ref_=ast_sto_dp
You can mount it inside or outside (but I would recommend the latter). Mine is on a 10-foot section of chain link fence top rail, clamped to a vent pipe that emerges from my roof. I can pick up 60 to 80 channels (counting
subchannels) on most days, including many from Mexico. Admittedly, my situation is unusual, looking down the Coast as I do - but i think you will be pleased with what you find to watch.

Dave
 
Speaking of Best Buy, I tried to buy some lithium button cells there yesterday, and they didn't have any. Lot's of empty spaces on the battery rack, which made me wonder what's going on with them. The neighborhood hardware store had plenty.
 
Palmpilot said:
Speaking of Best Buy, I tried to buy some lithium button cells there yesterday, and they didn't have any. Lot's of empty spaces on the battery rack, which made me wonder what's going on with them. The neighborhood hardware store had plenty.
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I suspect that the hardware store doesn't sell that many. When they run out of current inventory they may have trouble replacing them too. The last time I bought batteries at my favorite ACE hardware store, the newest ones were approaching expiration.

I tried to purchase batteries yesterday at Walgreens. They generally have tons of every size in stock, and they sell a lot of batteries. Their battery shelves were practically bare too.
 
I use a coax cable broadcast HDTV feed to my television, along with a network connection to my fiber (via coax feed from the other side of the street) also plugged in to my TV. It seems to be able to parse whether I want streaming network or broadcast by the stations that I select.
 
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