Have an installer running rg6 for video and cat5 as well as speaker wire it is retrofit. Im going to house all my equipment in my unfinished basement. I will have an lcd tv in my master bedroom and one in my family room there will be speakers in both rooms. Question
what type of ir controls can I buy that are moderatly affordable? I will need to control volume as well as dvd vcr cd player from each of the rooms. I know my installer mentioned some stuff but I am trying to search on my own as well thanks

RTI or Universal remotes. If your installer is a competent programmer, he can do things with these remotes that will make all your viewing and listening time even more pleasurable.

Remember to use 95% copper Braid RG59 for Video. I tried to send video down RG6 and All I had was a rolling picture.

Mike

I switched from MIT RG59 silver to Liberty rgb mini and love it. the mit was a little to stiff for me. both work well

I thought RG6 was for video.

You will want some sort of remote control, like the many that are discussed on this site, plus you will want some sort of I/R repeater system wired in, Xantech makes a couple that I am sure many people on this site are familiar with, fairly inexpensive, not too difficult to instal.

No. Actually, RG-6 is for RF, and its center is usually copper-clad steel, and the shield is usually aluminized mylar and/or aluminum braid.

RF signals are in the micro-volt range, and skin effect renders a solid-copper center conductor unnecessary.

All-copper RG-59 works better for everything else. Plus, it's solder-able, thinner and more flexible, and easier to fit with RCA and BNC connectors.

I'm confused. If RG6 is for RF, why do SAT and Cable companies use it for video?

Thanks for the info..are there any affordable inwall pads?

Think about it for a second......the coax input on your tv goes into a tuner......its not a straight video feed.

I have RG6 running from the monitor out on my AVR to monitor in on my TV and the picture is great. Would this be considered a straight video feed?

It would, but what kind of RG6 is it? We use a 3 gig 95% from Belden for interconnects like that. And cable companies will use just about any type of wire they can get cheapest. I've seen condo's that had RG6 coming into a splitter, then had a mix of 6 and 59 running all over the place. But I've also used standard 6 as a quick fix and had no real problems. A lot of variables can come into play there I guess.

Video over RG6 copper clad 60% alumium wire can send a Video signal through it. It is a matter of how far you can run it through the cable. I have ran it in the past for around 25 feet. I did one the other day trying to send a camera about 40 feet. No luck. Image was very dark and had rolling bands in it. Check to make sure camera was fine by pluggin a tv into the camera wire in the basement and the pix was fine. WE always use mini RGB, but this house was wired with copper clad RG6. For reliability I would recommend a 95% coper barid RG cable. Whether you sue RG6 or 59 it is up to you.

Mike

The main physical difference between RG-59 and RG-6 (and RG-11, for that matter) is the dielectric (foam between center and shield) thickness, and to a lesser degree, the center conductor gauge. The main performance difference between them is the signal loss per distance of run, typically expressed as X db/1000'.

RF signals are of extremely low power (voltage and current), but also of extremely high frequency (relatively speaking). Capacitance plays a more important role in the performance of RF transmission than does electrical (DC resistance) characteristics. In AV applications, the conductor material is more important.

Audio and video signals, typically in the 1-volt range, rely more on the DC resistance of conductors as well as their capacitance and inductance (collectively known as reactance). Even power wiring is affected slightly by these parameters. That's why all-copper cabling is more important for audio and video.

Of course, the higher the frequencies involved, the more reactance matters. That's why video performance is more dependent on cable characteristics than is audio, but again, a cable designed for RF use (with a copper-clad steel center and aluminum shielding) is different than one designed for audio and video.

Commscope #5729 and Coleman # 92049. Specs say these are both solid copper with 60% Aluminum Braid.