CT100 cable or Co-Ax

newtosatellite

I recently had sky digitaled installed and the cable used was co ax, maybe superior to the ordinary co ax but not CT100 which I believe is recommended. When I pointed this out to the installer he said that it really made no difference. He also extended the cable to a bedroom but I'm not getting the same quality picture. The tv there is quite old. Could it be the TV or the cable. Does CT100 cable make much of a difference. The signal quality is around 70%. Any views anyone?

Tony

Originally posted by newtosatellite
I recently had sky digitaled installed and the cable used was co ax, maybe superior to the ordinary co ax but not CT100 which I believe is recommended. When I pointed this out to the installer he said that it really made no difference. He also extended the cable to a bedroom but I'm not getting the same quality picture. The tv there is quite old. Could it be the TV or the cable. Does CT100 cable make much of a difference. The signal quality is around 70%. Any views anyone?

The term Co ax (co -axial) refers to to a family of cable types. Ct 100 or H109 is the recommended minimum standard for digital satellite. It does make a difference especially over longer runs or where external interference is present. Official sky policy is that CT100 should be used. Signal quality of 70% sounds ok but check it again when rain is present. Its difficult to know what the problem is with the other tv without seeing the picture.

Regards Tony

newtosatellite

Thanks Tony. I don't know what type of co-axial cable has been installed. Is there any way of identifying it.

We had heavy rain here about two weeks ago and the picture went completely. There was no signal strength or signal quality showing - both were blank. After about 10 minutes the picture returned again and quality at that stage was about 30%- 40% before it went back to 70% when the rain eased further. Is it unusual for the picture to go completely during heavy rain?.

bkehoe

A 'higher grade' of cable will have some kind of shielding around the core; stripping the wire to see if there is any silver or gold foil will reveal this.

Yes, it is unusual to loose the picture. I've had Sky Digital for over a year, and the signal strenght and quality always stay at 80%. Worst I ever saw it was 80% signal, and 60% quality, and it was working fine.

Brendan

originally posted by: newtosatelite

I recently had sky digitaled installed and the cable used was co ax, maybe superior to the ordinary co ax but not CT100 which I believe is recommended. When I pointed this out to the installer he said that it really made no difference. He also extended the cable to a bedroom but I'm not getting the same quality picture. The tv there is quite old. Could it be the TV or the cable. Does CT100 cable make much of a difference. The signal quality is around 70%. Any views anyone?

Hi there-this is just typical of what I cal quick in and out job-I suppose,what Sky pay doesnt justify much else-there are lots of dedicated installers for each bad one though.
two important points
1. you should never lose the signal if the installer -if this happens in heavy rain-believe you me as we head into winter, its going to happen many times-my advice Reject the goods which you should be entitled to under one of the sales of goods acts ( check this out with your local citizens advice bureo).Also Complain to Sky and tell them that you are rejecting the goods as an installer and demand a proper instalation. -This kind of thing makes me mad:mad:
2.Regarding worse reception upstairs-if your downstairs tv is conected yto the digibox via scart-then it will always be streets ahead of the co ax connection upstairs.
But try changing the frequency the Digibox is outputed on-usually 68, bring it down to 22 or some inbetween as long as its not near your video channel or any tv channels frequency you have-It can make a difference.
mm

Looks like I'm a bit slleeppy today and typing too fast-I mean-
you should never lose the signal if the installer has done his job properly
and further down my post I meant Complain to Sky and tell them that you are rejecting the goods as a consumer and demand proper instalation!:o
mm

Tony

Originally posted by newtosatellite
Thanks Tony. I don't know what type of co-axial cable has been installed. Is there any way of identifying it.

We had heavy rain here about two weeks ago and the picture went completely. There was no signal strength or signal quality showing - both were blank. After about 10 minutes the picture returned again and quality at that stage was about 30%- 40% before it went back to 70% when the rain eased further. Is it unusual for the picture to go completely during heavy rain?.

You are welcome. The cable may have an identifying mark every few feet or so. Definitely get on to sky and tell them what the installer told you. Although what sky pay is not great thats the installers problem and he should not take on the work if he cannot do it to a proper standard. The tip on lowering the output freq is good advice as losses are lower on cheaper cable at lower freqs.

Regards Tony