getting cat5/6 network setup - final step

bonkers

So both my brother and parents have houses that have cat5/6 cabling all aroudn them but the builders are asking for insane amounts to get them connected and their virgin/eir modems moved to the area where all the wires are.

Is this a difficult thing to do or is there a cheap service avaulable in meath/dublin?

thanks

ptogher14

Any electrician will do this, or anyone knowledgeable in IT etc. Can you give more detail on what's there and what you're looking to do

wexfordman2

bonkers wrote: »

So both my brother and parents have houses that have cat5/6 cabling all aroudn them but the builders are asking for insane amounts to get them connected and their virgin/eir modems moved to the area where all the wires are.

Is this a difficult thing to do or is there a cheap service avaulable in meath/dublin?

thanks

Some cheap tools, a bit of practice, and if you are anyway handy you could make these off yourself.

If you can wire a three pin plug, you can make off a cat5 cable


Drop in to napkin, buy an rj45 crimp and ten meters of cable and a few packets of connectors. Spend an evening masking up leads and test them to get some confidence

Rgb.ie

bonkers wrote: »

So both my brother and parents have houses that have cat5/6 cabling all aroudn them but the builders are asking for insane amounts to get them connected and their virgin/eir modems moved to the area where all the wires are.

Is this a difficult thing to do or is there a cheap service avaulable in meath/dublin?

thanks

What is an "insane" amount?

bonkers

thanks all, both cases different, something like 400 was mentioned to my parents and was thinking it can't be an issue. Main issue is moving the eir modem to the comms area, which probably means asking eir to come out, which might take 12 months given their experience.

Can send some photos when im there next cheers

wexfordman2

bonkers wrote: »

thanks all, both cases different, something like 400 was mentioned to my parents and was thinking it can't be an issue. Main issue is moving the eir modem to the comms area, which probably means asking eir to come out, which might take 12 months given their experience.

Can send some photos when im there next cheers

400 euro does not sound insane TBH, it's likely a days work and might include materials beyond typical consumable items etc.

The modem issue should not need eir to be involved, you either leave it where it is, and extend an Ethernet port from it back to your wiring closet, or else you just extend your phone line to your wiring closet and install the modem there.

Moving the modem will also impact your Wi-Fi range, so you might want to consider that.

Nelbert

bonkers wrote: »

So both my brother and parents have houses that have cat5/6 cabling all aroudn them but the builders are asking for insane amounts to get them connected and their virgin/eir modems moved to the area where all the wires are.

Is this a difficult thing to do or is there a cheap service avaulable in meath/dublin?

thanks

To clarify the wiring is all done and they are looking to charge for faceplates in the rooms and a patch panel and switch in the comms area? If so while €400 is a bit on the high side it's not too bad. You'd be looking at €100 for materials and a switch possibly more depending on number of ports.

wexfordman2

Nelbert wrote: »

To clarify the wiring is all done and they are looking to charge for faceplates in the rooms and a patch panel and switch in the comms area? If so while €400 is a bit on the high side it's not too bad. You'd be looking at €100 for materials and a switch possibly more depending on number of ports.

To be honest, the patch panel is probably ott for a house as well, I would just spend the money in the switch and ensure there are enough ports on it to support the number of cat5 points around the house. A patch panel and then all the required patch cables is rarely justified for a typical house.

Nelbert

wexfordman2 wrote: »

To be honest, the patch panel is probably ott for a house as well, I would just spend the money in the switch and ensure there are enough ports on it to support the number of cat5 points around the house. A patch panel and then all the required patch cables is rarely justified for a typical house.

Agreed but if I was paying a pro to do a pro grade job it would be a reasonable expectation and would would be neater.

Aka Ishur

Jayz you'd want the patch panel alright. I have one in my place for just 10 drops and it makes life much easier. Still an easy thing to DIY.

wexfordman2

Aka Ishur wrote: »

Jayz you'd want the patch panel alright. I have one in my place for just 10 drops and it makes life much easier. Still an easy thing to DIY.

Not that I disagree, it's all down to the individual I suppose, but with just ten drops, would a 16 port switch or better, a 24 port switch not have done the job, and neater?

ted1

bonkers wrote: »

thanks all, both cases different, something like 400 was mentioned to my parents and was thinking it can't be an issue. Main issue is moving the eir modem to the comms area, which probably means asking eir to come out, which might take 12 months given their experience.

Can send some photos when im there next cheers

You don't have the move the modem into the comms area. Just put a 24 or 8 port hub in the comms area and connect the eir router to it via the closest access point

Aka Ishur

I have the 16 port router under the patch panel. It just makes the setup much easier with the heavy cables coming up from the drops. For me anyways. And what Ted1 says above is the setup I went for. (roughly)

Stoner

Aka Ishur wrote:

Jayz you'd want the patch panel alright. I have one in my place for just 10 drops and it makes life much easier. Still an easy thing to DIY.

Yeah I've one too. Wasn't easy to get it back then. It's really just a steel box with 20 euro modules punched out on it

Tazium

Just moved to a new build with all rooms prewired for Cat5e. Unfortunately only faceplates and all drops returning to the utility room.

eBay got me 5 rj45 faceplates with keystones for 10 euro. Also used eBay for a punch down tool - a couple of euro. Amazon for a 12 port patch panel @ 12 pounds and 8 port netgear GB switch @ 20 pounds.

Spent a couple of hours last night putting it together and wiring it up for 2 rooms, living room has the broadband entry point and an upstairs room is used as an office.

The price of 400 seems expensive given the parts needed were less than 60 euro delivered. It's time consuming though so labour costs can add up. If you've the inclination give it a go yourself. Feel welcome to PM for eBay sellers I used.

bonkers

Thanks for all the advice might just try it myself

Some images from the parents place


http://imgur.com/a/IfcdB

http://imgur.com/a/M72GF


http://imgur.com/a/WrCMS

Seems theres a lot of tv points in the mix and the eircom guy has just connected what looks like the main incoming cable to the one that leads to the kitchen where the modem is. So perhaps i need just to get a patch panel and connect the modem in there and patch each of the cat5 cables into that?

cheers for all the help

Anything else i should be doing with this to help with other stuff, father has the amazon echo now and is mad into IOT

wexfordman2

bonkers wrote: »

Thanks for all the advice might just try it myself

Some images from the parents place


http://imgur.com/a/IfcdB

http://imgur.com/a/M72GF


http://imgur.com/a/WrCMS

Seems theres a lot of tv points in the mix and the eircom guy has just connected what looks like the main incoming cable to the one that leads to the kitchen where the modem is. So perhaps i need just to get a patch panel and connect the modem in there and patch each of the cat5 cables into that?

cheers for all the help

Anything else i should be doing with this to help with other stuff, father has the amazon echo now and is mad into IOT

Do you have a spate cat5 cable coming back from where the router is at the moment?

If you give a list of how many cables you have and where they go to also, it looks like you only have 5 or 6 cat5 altogether,?

2011

I bought this neat little kit for punching down and testing CAT5 cabling for just €20 from Eurosales:

jester77

wexfordman2 wrote: »

Not that I disagree, it's all down to the individual I suppose, but with just ten drops, would a 16 port switch or better, a 24 port switch not have done the job, and neater?

Go with at least the 24 port switch. You will have a lot more things connecting to the switch than just the patch panel end points. If you were to just have a simple server with 4 LAN ports, you have 4 gone straight away. UPS is an absolute must have, another port gone, ATA box for VOIP and you have a few more gone, and so on.

I have a 24 port switch and I am out of ports, have a router attached that provides 5 more, not very neat but does the job for now.

Aka Ishur

jester77 wrote: »

Go with at least the 24 port switch. You will have a lot more things connecting to the switch than just the patch panel end points. If you were to just have a simple server with 4 LAN ports, you have 4 gone straight away. UPS is an absolute must have, another port gone, ATA box for VOIP and you have a few more gone, and so on.

I have a 24 port switch and I am out of ports, have a router attached that provides 5 more, not very neat but does the job for now.

Would have to agree, I have a regular 3 bed 100m2 family home thought that 16 port would be fine, however adding 6 more drops there now to an extension so will have to upgrade switch. 24 port is not too pricey and gives more than enough for the average networked home.

OU812

I've recently put in a network in my house - we were having some building work done & the floors had to come up so I took the opportunity to run some cable.

I bought a cabinet, patch panel, switch, 3 x 10 small patch leads, 8 plug board, box of CAT 5e cable, and 12 keystone plates (with 24 keystones) for about €350 all in. the cost you're being quoted seems fair if the equipment is supplied.

I put minimum two connections in each room (one room has 6 & one has 3). I've the downstairs connected up already & have yet to do the upstairs - will do on an ad-hoc basis as I have to lift floors to make it tidy. I even have cable running to the hall to have a connection out there and am planning on a couple in the attic which is only storage for future proofing.

The room with three connections has the router in it going back to the switch so that's the extra one taken care of, leaving two for use (one currently in use). The room with six has currently one in use with a computer, shortly adding an apple tv to a different location and am saving one point for a sonos (yet to be purchased). that leaves me with a spare three in there.

It's very easy to do, just watch a couple of youtube videos first, then take your time & make sure you label everything.

If I was going from scratch again, I'd put a minimum of two locations of two each in every room on opposite walls.

It really makes a

Stoner

OU812 wrote:

The room with three connections has the router in it going back to the switch so that's the extra one taken care of, leaving two for use (one currently in use). The room with six has currently one in use with a computer, shortly adding an apple tv to a different location and am saving one point for a sonos (yet to be purchased). that leaves me with a spare three in there.

Just a difference of opinion but in a house I'd never have that many points in one location. I'd use a 25 euro 5 or 8 port switch , household device don't use much bandwidth imo and there is decent diversity on them I've several switches in my house.

OU812

The room with three are all on the one patch point, one for BB & the other two for TV usage - apple TV in one currently & if I upgrade, the other is for a smart TV. The room with six are in different locations in the family room. It's the width and half the depth of the house so I've got two in one corner (to be purchased Sonos), another two in an opposing corner (computer) & the other two in the middle high up on the wall with a power outlet (TV).

I wanted to keep them neat so wanted everything in the wall. The walls were being plastered as well as the floors being up, so it was the perfect opportunity. I'm kicking myself I didn't double up though for the relative small cost involved.

bk

Stoner wrote: »

Just a difference of opinion but in a house I'd never have that many points in one location. I'd use a 25 euro 5 or 8 port switch , household device don't use much bandwidth imo and there is decent diversity on them I've several switches in my house.

But you can use cat6 cable for things other then just ethernet.

HDMI over cat6 is a great option for multi-room distribution. You can also distribute audio for speakers and multiple phone lines.

My place comes with two cat5e in each room. It isn't enough, I really wish there was 4 cat6's in each room, it would allow me to do a great AV distribution system through the whole house with Harmony.

Putting in extra drops is so cheap and easy when the building is being built and so incredibly hard and expensive to do later that I think it is a serious mistake not to put as much cable in place when you can.

Sure, no need to terminate them all if not initially needed and no need to buy a massive switch up front. But at least put as many cables in the wall as you can reasonably afford.

jester77

Stoner wrote: »

Just a difference of opinion but in a house I'd never have that many points in one location. I'd use a 25 euro 5 or 8 port switch , household device don't use much bandwidth imo and there is decent diversity on them I've several switches in my house.

I have 8 points behind my TV, all used. I think it is better than having an extra switch hanging around, which will be most likely blinking, distracting if you have no where to hide it.

Roen

I have a 16 port netgear 1Gb switch with 8 of those ports PoE.
In addition to that I have an NVR which also provides 4 more PoE ports.
I could have used the netgear switch to power the cctv cams but chose to keep the security stuff on its own separate physical network.

In terms of household devices not using much that might be largely true for phones and fridges, but my NAS, NUC and laptops all benefit from having large throughput when yapping to one another.
I'll be slowing down on adding stuff but as it is I have one spare PoE port on the NVR and 6 on the 16 port switch.
If I was to go again I'd likely go for a 24 port switch and an 8 port NVR.

OU812

Roen wrote: »

If I was to go again I'd likely go for a 24 port switch

I'd go for 48 & double up all round. I'd rather have it & not need it than vice versa. As it stands if (when) I fill everything, I'll have one spare port on my switch

Stoner

jester77 wrote:

I have 8 points behind my TV, all used. I think it is better than having an extra switch hanging around, which will be most likely blinking, distracting if you have no where to hide it.

That's fine behind your TV and justified, but other devices simply don't need a dedicated point and will work just fine from a switch. I'd use all 8 too if I had them. But two does the job too.

Stoner

jester77 wrote:

I have 8 points behind my TV, all used. I think it is better than having an extra switch hanging around, which will be most likely blinking, distracting if you have no where to hide it.

Also if you are using all 8 points you have plenty of kit there with lights etc no ? Lots of opportunity to hide it too

For example

I've a switch in my office under the desk, it feeds a PC for herself and myself and a printer with zero issues, it's in alightwaverf socket and I switch it all off in one go.

Main AV cabinet
I've two data points here. One feeds a switch for iot, lightwaverf , hue, smartThings, the iot wifi point it's on all the time

The other feeds
TV,
Amazon fire TV
PS4
Media PC
Amp
rPi
Etc

It gets switched on and off with all the power at the cab


I've got blinking lights coming out of my backside at this stage and I'd say anyone with 8 used data points in a corner will have kit to match it too.

IMO in a home the diversity of data points is huge. On the second switch most items are used very little at the same time.


I'm not saying that data points are not needed and I'm well aware of their multiple uses, I recommended extra data points over "smart " AV cabling installations many times on many development where 10/15 years later house owners have 20 data points, 10 coax points and speaker cabling in the living room instead of the alternative that would be bulky composite and components av cabling looped all over the house.

But if you keep your main points in an equipment location so you have your CCTV ,NAS etc all local to each other it is imo acceptable to have an even distribution of twin data points around a house (main location aside) where a switch can be used to offer a diversity and flexibility to a building so you don't "have "to put 8 data points in any position you might want your TV or your TV where you have 8 data points

On that in my place my AV equipment in my living room is not beside my TV it's in the corner with an arc HDMI, cat6 and speaker cable to the centre speaker being the only cables linked to my TV location .

All the other kit ( bar Chromecast) is in the decorative cab from Ikea that matches the TV unit. This includes all the speaker cables all the. HDMI switching is at the amp.

I've had to move the location three times

Roen

OU812 wrote: »

I'd go for 48 & double up all round. I'd rather have it & not need it than vice versa. As it stands if (when) I fill everything, I'll have one spare port on my switch

My favourite saying: "I'd rather be looking at it than for it".

donspeekinglesh

bk wrote: »

Putting in extra drops is so cheap and easy when the building is being built

Not always!! We bought a new build house and we had to use the site electrician only - couldn't do it myself or get another electrician.
He charged €60 per run, and didn't even terminate them - just left them in a blank box.

Only ended up getting 4 cables run back to what was the office (now a bedroom), 2 from the living room, main bed and box room.
Now have 3 switches and a Powerline adapter holding the whole thing together - switch under the TV for all the devices there; switch at the other living room point for the NAS boxes, and the powerline, and a switch in the former office.

bk

Stoner wrote: »

On that in my place my AV equipment in my living room is not beside my TV it's in the corner with an arc HDMI, cat6 and speaker cable to the centre speaker being the only cables linked to my TV location .

All the other kit ( bar Chromecast) is in the decorative cab from Ikea that matches the TV unit. This includes all the speaker cables all the. HDMI switching is at the amp.

I've had to move the location three times

I've all my AV equipment (sat box, AV, mac mini, Nvidia TV, Now TV, PS3, PS4, Xbox) all hidden away in the study/server room

All controlled by the Harmony Hub.

I've a single HDMI cable running from the AV to the TV in the living room. The 5.1 speakers also run from the AV to the living room and I've the satellite cable runs from the living room (it enters the house there unfortunately) running to the study. All these cables are hidden very nicely in some ducting.

It is a fantastic setup. The living room looks much nicer without the dozen blinking boxes, noise of fans and my AV gear is safely away from sticky fingers.

It is a great setup, but not perfect. I've a cat5e port behind the TV, but if it had been two cat5e ports or a single cat6 port, then I could have done HDMI over ethernet and I wouldn't have needed the long HDMI cable.

I'm also thinking of getting rid of the 5.1 setup as I rarely use it and instead move to a sound bar, would be neater and remove the need for the 5.1 audio cables too.

If the house had extra cat6 cables everywhere, then I could also switch the output of the HDMI from the living room to the bedroom when I wanted to watch TV or play games on the projector there.

jester77

bk wrote: »

I've all my AV equipment (sat box, AV, mac mini, Nvidia TV, Now TV, PS3, PS4, Xbox) all hidden away in the study/server room

All controlled by the Harmony Hub.

I've a single HDMI cable running from the AV to the TV in the living room. The 5.1 speakers also run from the AV to the living room and I've the satellite cable runs from the living room (it enters the house there unfortunately) running to the study. All these cables are hidden very nicely in some ducting.

It is a fantastic setup. The living room looks much nicer without the dozen blinking boxes, noise of fans and my AV gear is safely away from sticky fingers.

It is a great setup, but not perfect. I've a cat5e port behind the TV, but if it had been two cat5e ports or a single cat6 port, then I could have done HDMI over ethernet and I wouldn't have needed the long HDMI cable.

I'm also thinking of getting rid of the 5.1 setup as I rarely use it and instead move to a sound bar, would be neater and remove the need for the 5.1 audio cables too.

If the house had extra cat6 cables everywhere, then I could also switch the output of the HDMI from the living room to the bedroom when I wanted to watch TV or play games on the projector there.

Is the ethernet to HDMI reliable?

I've an empty duct and a power point near the ceiling for installing a projector. It would be much easier to run a cat 6 cable through it than HDMI, but what would be needed on both ends? Is this possible to do without requiring an extra power point or adaptor on the projector side?

bk

jester77 wrote: »

Is the ethernet to HDMI reliable?

I've an empty duct and a power point near the ceiling for installing a projector. It would be much easier to run a cat 6 cable through it than HDMI, but what would be needed on both ends? Is this possible to do without requiring an extra power point or adaptor on the projector side?

Well I'm not currently using it as my cable is unfortunately only cat5e, but over cat6 it is very reliable. Generally more reliable then HDMI over long distances and the cat6 is much easier to push through ducts, etc.

It does require baluns on both ends, though I believe you can get them to be powered off USB on the projector if that is available.

Some examples here:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Extender-Esynic-Repeater-Ethernet-Function/dp/B00YC3BWL2/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1483727919&sr=8-3&keywords=hdmi+over+cat6
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Neet-HDMI-Extender-Single-Control-x/dp/B013T5IQH6/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1483727919&sr=8-5&keywords=hdmi+over+cat6

bittihuduga

bk wrote: »

I've a single HDMI cable running from the AV to the TV in the living room. The 5.1 speakers also run from the AV to the living room .

how far is it from your study to TV? running one HDMI plus speaker cables (6 of them)?
how did you hide it?
i want to do the same but my store room has to go through kitchen, dining and then to living.

bk

bittihuduga wrote: »

how far is it from your study to TV? running one HDMI plus speaker cables (6 of them)?
how did you hide it?
i want to do the same but my store room has to go through kitchen, dining and then to living.

Actually 11 cables total, believe it or not!
- HDMI
- 5 speakers cables + one much thicker cable for the subwoofer
- 3 coax cables for satellite
- 1 audio cable which allows me to put one of the Harmony Hubs IR repeaters under the TV in the living room so that the harmony hub can control the TV too, while the Harmony Hub is actually in the study.

A total pain in the ass to squeeze all those into the trunking!

My setup is in a study, which backs onto the kitchen, the kitchen and living room are then shared. I simply drilled a whole in the wall from the study to the kitchen beneath the kitchen cabinets, run the cables along underneath the kitchen cabinets (attached to the underneath of the kitchen cabinets and in tubbing to avoid damp, wetness underneath the cabinets) and then it breaks out from the cabinets and run along about two meters of cable trunking to the TV.

The trunking just sits on top of the baseboard, but it mostly runs behind a table, so you would barely notice it unless you specifically went looking. While not perfect, it is still a million times neater looking then a dozen black, blinking noisy boxes under the TV in the living room, so a very fair trade off IMO.

The HDMI cable is 10.5 meter long and is this one:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B005LJQM3Y/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&th=1

It also comes in 15 meters length, if you need a longer run, then I'd recommend HDMI over ethernet as it is thinner and more flexible over long distances.

This is the trunking I use from D-Line, 50x25 version, white:
http://www.av4all.co.uk/cable-management-dline-50x25mm-c-1_125.html

The rounded nature of it looks nice IMO and fits well. However all those cables barely fit in it, where it goes around corners in particular isn't great with all those cables, but if you have a few less or use a more flexible ethernet cable they would be fine.

I think if I was going to do it again I would simplify things a bit. Instead of the 5.1 speakers in the living room and AV in the study, I would instead use a 6x2 HDMI Matrix in the study and just a soundbar under the TV (+ subwoofer).

Then I wouldn't have the 6 audio cables running to the living room, nor the complicated, slightly unsightly 5.1 speaker setup in the living room. Instead just one HDMI from the HDMI Matrix to the soundbar and use the soundbar to process the audio and use as a speaker. It would simplify things a bit. Though I'd still would need all the other cables for my setup, so it wasn't really worth investing in a soundbat and HDMI matrix, but might suit others better.

BTW while all of this might sound super complicated, it only took about half a day to set it all up and in the end wasn't particularly hard or expensive (maybe €100 in cables and ducting) and makes the living room look so much nicer and gained me serious cookie points from my better half

Dr_Colossus

Excellent stuff bk and really interesting. Could you post a few pictures of your setup in both the study and living room please.
I'm all new to this but currently renovating the house a little so trying to plan ahead and keep things minimalist looking.

wexfordman2

bk wrote: »

Actually 11 cables total, believe it or not!
- HDMI
- 5 speakers cables + one much thicker cable for the subwoofer
- 3 coax cables for satellite
- 1 audio cable which allows me to put one of the Harmony Hubs IR repeaters under the TV in the living room so that the harmony hub can control the TV too, while the Harmony Hub is actually in the study.

A total pain in the ass to squeeze all those into the trunking!

My setup is in a study, which backs onto the kitchen, the kitchen and living room are then shared. I simply drilled a whole in the wall from the study to the kitchen beneath the kitchen cabinets, run the cables along underneath the kitchen cabinets (attached to the underneath of the kitchen cabinets and in tubbing to avoid damp, wetness underneath the cabinets) and then it breaks out from the cabinets and run along about two meters of cable trunking to the TV.

The trunking just sits on top of the baseboard, but it mostly runs behind a table, so you would barely notice it unless you specifically went looking. While not perfect, it is still a million times neater looking then a dozen black, blinking noisy boxes under the TV in the living room, so a very fair trade off IMO.

The HDMI cable is 10.5 meter long and is this one:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B005LJQM3Y/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&th=1

It also comes in 15 meters length, if you need a longer run, then I'd recommend HDMI over ethernet as it is thinner and more flexible over long distances.

This is the trunking I use from D-Line, 50x25 version, white:
http://www.av4all.co.uk/cable-management-dline-50x25mm-c-1_125.html

The rounded nature of it looks nice IMO and fits well. However all those cables barely fit in it, where it goes around corners in particular isn't great with all those cables, but if you have a few less or use a more flexible ethernet cable they would be fine.

I think if I was going to do it again I would simplify things a bit. Instead of the 5.1 speakers in the living room and AV in the study, I would instead use a 6x2 HDMI Matrix in the study and just a soundbar under the TV (+ subwoofer).

Then I wouldn't have the 6 audio cables running to the living room, nor the complicated, slightly unsightly 5.1 speaker setup in the living room. Instead just one HDMI from the HDMI Matrix to the soundbar and use the soundbar to process the audio and use as a speaker. It would simplify things a bit. Though I'd still would need all the other cables for my setup, so it wasn't really worth investing in a soundbat and HDMI matrix, but might suit others better.

BTW while all of this might sound super complicated, it only took about half a day to set it all up and in the end wasn't particularly hard or expensive (maybe €100 in cables and ducting) and makes the living room look so much nicer and gained me serious cookie points from my better half

Would it not me 4 coax cables for sattelite to allow for one additional return feed for distribution to the rest of the house?

bk

Dr_Colossus wrote: »

Excellent stuff bk and really interesting. Could you post a few pictures of your setup in both the study and living room please.
I'm all new to this but currently renovating the house a little so trying to plan ahead and keep things minimalist looking.

I'm afraid I'm away for the next two weeks, will do when I get back.

wexfordman2 wrote: »

Would it not me 4 coax cables for sattelite to allow for one additional return feed for distribution to the rest of the house?

Yeah, just my setup, it is actually:
- 2 x satellite feeds coming in the front wall, heading too the study + sat box
- 1 Virgin Media feed going from the back of the apartment to the TV for their analogue TV service.

It is an apartment with a shared dish system, so only have two sat drops coming into the home.

I can currently do multi room with the linux sat box turning the feed into a digital IP stream and then "transmitting" it to an app on the fire TV in the main bedroom. It works ok, but a little slow.

In time I plan I putting a HDMI splitter in the study, and HDMI over ethernet to the bedroom, so I can access all the entertainment devices in the study in the bedroom too.