TV/FM how to ?

moghm

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I have recently installed a loft aerial. This has been very successful as I was able to pick up freeview, no probs and also was able to find a wire going to a socket in the bedroom. This means no visible wires, which I am very pleased at.

I am thinking of going one step further and installing an FM aerial in the loft and using the cable that is already there to send the FM signal along with the TV signal.

I have a few questions:-

(1) Do i need an FM aerial, can I not use the existing TV aerial ?

(2) If I attach a new FM aerial then us a splitter to use the existing cable going to the socket in the bedroom, terminate this with a TV/FM plate, will I lose any signal quality doing it this way ? Is there an alternative to this ?

many thanks
 
(1) Yes, you need an FM aerial as arials are designed for a specific frequency range.

(2) You need a passive coupler (not a splitter) to "merge" the TV (UHF / VHF) and FM signal. There are specific devices for this purpose. For the bedroom you will then need a socket with TV and Radio (FM) out.
 
There will, of course, be losses within the diplexer and the wall plate. If you have a relatively high gain aerial then it won't matter, I doubt you'd lose much more than 3db total in comparison to your original setup. If losses are a problem, just install an amp straight after your aerials to boost the signal and make up for cable and connector losses.
 
thanks,

So, I should do the following:-

* Install an FM aerial in the loft

* Send the wires from the TV aerial and FM aerial to a passive coupler

* Send the signals down my existing single co ax cable

* terminate this with a TV / FM plate

* If loss of quality is noticed then use a signal booster

Where can I get a passive coupler from please ?
 
I searched for tv/fm and it brought your thread up, I am looking to do something similar but it will involve an existing outdoor TV aerial and a new FM aerial.
My problem is a very bad reception area due to a large building directly in the signal path which means the use of an amp to boost the signal.
My question is what do I need to do in this situation given that I need to use the single coax to combine both TV and FM ?
Regards Kevin.
 
I would advise one of these from Maplin product code YZ86T, price £39.99

It's a six-output wideband amplifier with two inputs which will handle TV, FM radio, Freeview and DAB, so it's fairly "future proof".
 
* Install an FM aerial in the loft

* Send the wires from the TV aerial and FM aerial to a passive coupler

* Send the signals down my existing single co ax cable

* terminate this with a TV / FM plate
Correct.

* If loss of quality is noticed then use a signal booster
Normally this shouldn't be required.

Where can I get a passive coupler from please ?
From the same place where you buy the aerial. Usually it's a small, waterproof plastic box that will be mounted directly below the aerials at the mast/boom.
 
why can i not use a diplexer to send fm aerial and tv aerial to one coax cable and terminate by fm/tv socket ?

thanks
 
You can, but you'll lose about 1dB at each end of the diplexer. If your TV and FM signals are strong, you should not notice. If you're already splitting to go to other sockets in your house, you may end up with too much attenuation.
 

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