***TOTAL NEWB HERE!***

First, I want to tell everyone that I have searched these forums for about the past hour in search of my answer. Most of this stuff is so over my head, I realized I dont even know what I am looking for. Let me explain....

Just bought a new house (yipee!).

Have a full basement that I plan on furnishing with no expense spared. First and most importantly, my Televisions.

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I would like to know how I go about setting up a network of televisions (4-8 TVs) that adhere to these guidelines:

- all TVs will be sharing the same cable input

- all TVs will change channel via one remote, with one button press

- all TVs (at some point) will be HD

- all TVs volume will be able to be controlled via one remote, with one button press

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I picture my basement Entertainment System being very similar to a local bar's ES, in that one remote changes the picture on EVERY tv in the bar, or that a person can change the channel on his/her TV seperately from the system.

I hope i explained this well enough. As you can see, I am n00b. I am really geeked about this whole setup but am flabergasted as to how I go about it. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

I will be checking this thread very regularly. Any posts you make will be answered within one day.

What you are trying to do is farily easy.

You need to buy the following:
1 Xantech RT-8 Infrared Router
1 Xantech 782 Power Supply
8 Xantech CB-12 Infrared Connecting Block
8 Xantech 283m Emitters
1 Xantech 480B Infrared Receiver
1 Xantech RC68+ Remote Programmer
8 Xantech MS-1 Mouse Emitter Shield
1 Programmable, Learning Remote Control
1 8-way splitter
1 Cable amplifier (Probably needed)
8 Cable patch cords (RF to RF)


Go to Xantech's website, www.xantech.com, for a diagram. It's pretty straight forward.

Assuming that you are new at this, the IR receiver picks up the infrared signal
from your remote and converts it to electrical pulses. The signal is routed to one of eight (or all of eight) outputs of the IR router, based on the output selected by the remote. You will put an emitter on each TV, each of which is connected to an output of the router. You will have to cover up each of the infrared sensors on the TVs, so that your remote can only affect the TV that you want to change, without affecting all of the others. You can also go to an "all outputs" mode, or a "no output" mode with the simple push of a button.

You will have to buy Xantech's programmer remote, the RC-68+. If you don't want to program a custom integrated remote, you could just use the RC-68+ as the remote that switches the remote to each TV.

If you want the IR sensor to be utilized for source equipment, such as a DVD, VCR, or Cable Box, add a Xantech 789 and additional emitters to the input of the RT-8 .

Check out the Xantech site. I believe that they will show application examples on their website.

If all else fails, there are many custom installers available all over the country. I'm sure that one of them would love to install such a system, and get paid for it. You shouldn't have to look too far for help if you can't get it to work. If you have to call an installer, make sure he has experience with IR routers. If he doesn't, he's probably not the right guy for the job.

You are also always able to ask me or all of us for help on this website.

Good Luck

Stu

Thank you, Thank you...Thank you!

Nice site. I will be referncing this come next paycheck.

Man, what did peeps do before the net?

Thnx again!

I would consider bringing in a pro to help with this one. You may end up way over your head.

Def. would look to hire someone. Although the zantech stuff should work. Good luck installing it as a newbie consumer.

what did we do before the net?

Well.. we banged our heads against brick walls out of frustration

we yelled and screamed

then we did some southern engineering, and fumed because it didn't quite work right.

We also were able to sell at full retail without having 70 percent of our customers say "I can get some of the items on your proposal for a lot less so I'm just going to order those off the internet and have you install them."

Do they say that right after they say "Thanks!" when you hand them an equipment list with every nut & bolt in it?

Don't do it! (Do what?) Don't hand over equipment lists with detailed, part by part equipment callout. Don't install stuff you didn't sell. Don't, don't, don't......

Yep it is our policy not to. We had one customer a couple of years ago buy exactly what we bid online. We installed it at an increased rate. Turned out the subwoofer was bad and he had the balls to ask me to pelace it for him.

Ouch

Sorry to bring up such a sore subject.

All advances come with their pros and cons.

I looked at that site provided. Doesnt seem too difficult. I think I might buy some components and try to hook the system up BEFORE actually installing to just see if it works (more like if i can do it).

Let ya know.

You know, it just occured to me...

I envisioned a system much simpler than this.

Bare with me....

I pictured one single unit, we will call it UNIT.

This UNIT would be central to the system. The UNIT would have a cable input, and saaaaaay however many outputs (6-12 I guess).

This UNIT is controlled via Remote of owners choosing or manufacturer.

The input is connected from Line. Outputs are connected to TVs.

The TVs are all set to saaaaaaaay Video1 (an aux connection). Voila!

Now, everytime you change the station on the UNIT, the televisions do the same.

Is this possible? Or am I so out of touch here that Im being laughed at? (lol)

Thoughts? Suggestions?

DarkReign,

I dont think you are being laughed. There are products on the market that will 'fit the bill' of what you want to do. "UNIT", however, doesnt exist. Since you are wanting to distribute HD material at some point you will need to pull a multi-conductor cable to each location. It would be best to look into something like RGBMini6 w/ a CAT5E in the same outer jacket. I hope you are good at soldering and LOVE to do it because thats a LOT soldering for a DIY'er. You are going to need a 1 in/8 out Component with Stereo Audio Distribution Amplifier. Your sat receiver or digital cable box will feed the DA. You will still need the Xantech IR system to control the televisions and the sat/cable box. You may need a learning universal remote as well, to allow you to change the channel on the sat/cable box and also raise/lower the volume on the televisions. You could substitute the remote for a wall mounted keypad. That is on the low end of the spectrum and the simplest way to do this. That said, what will you do when you want ADD another source, have two different channels on in two different areas of your bar?
I would suggest that you at least meet with a Custom Installer in your area. Get pricing on the system as a whole, installed. Two quotes should do it. One for a basic system and one utilizing a control system and a matrix A/V switcher with a touchscreen or similar remote.

Just my $.02

sounds like a cable box, an amp and a 8way splitter.
However, this post is portraying a different result than your first post.

In your first post you referenced to money not being an object, then hire someone that can get this accomplished. That firm may also be able to give you some better ideas.

UNIT would likely be an 8 input, 8 output multi-zone video tuner with one remote to operate any zone at any time or all zones at once....

No, it does not exist, nor will it ever exist.

The annual sales of such a product would be ONE, to you... and then what about next year??
What manufacturer is going to R&D, and then tool up manufacturing for that kind of steady volume??

Nobody.

This is where CUSTOM comes in, and why you are asking this question in the CUSTOM installer's lounge.

Stew was kind enough to lay out the control for you,
but you still need 8 video tuners and possibly a matrix if you want to ever see different items on different screens...

Questions you SHOULD be asking and determining...

Should you use the tuners in the individual TVs??
(not if you're going HD someday, keep it external and make it simple)

Should you use 8 identical VCRs instead and set up a matrix switcher??
(yes, because you can swap out the VCRs for the HD Cable boxes someday)

What happens when you want to switch service and subscribe to DirecTV or Dish Network??
(doesn't matter what boxes are there, the matrix will switch them)

Even if you find all the answers to "what should I buy", and you can get the answers at places like this, setting this up isn't for the faint-hearted.

If you want a super basic "all sets, same picture" set up, you will not need a matrix switcher.
I would recommend installing component video cables (for HD future use) to each set from an area deemed to be the equipment location.

Today it will be just a VCR or cable box, and an audio system (below) but tomorrow it might be a full blown matrix with multiple HD sources.
Use the ONE of the leads of the component as a composite feed and split it to the various locations from a video distribution amp (DA).
Later, you can replace the composite video DA with a component video DA, and replace the VCR with the HD cable box of the day, or put in the matrix if it makes sense then.

As for sound, don't use the TV sound AT ALL.
Send the audio to a stereo receiver and put speakers throughout the space. Use a speaker selector for impedance matching, preferably one with VCs to tailor the volume in each area, and the receiver's volume will set the overall volume.

This message was edited by 2nd rick on 02/15/05 01:25 ET.

Can you imagine a video wall controlled by an MX-850 with an MRF250 (with ir routing)? Each TV & Sat receiver identical. One main TV with an added DVD (why? Because it's cool!) All sound routing thru the A/V system. This really works. Simple to operate. Really cool. The posibilities are intruiging.

I would, however, recommend you call around locally and specifically ask dealers if they have done what you see in your mind. If they have, let them spec it out and hand them your wallet. Remind them that price is no object.

Otherwise, when you order the laundry list of equipment on e-bay, be sure to ask the power seller to scrawl the simple diagram and automation design on an old donut napkin and toss it into the box for you.

Best of luck.