Splitters, Diplexers, Separators…What Is the Difference?
The first of these to be discussed will be the splitter. A splitter actually “splits” the signal of a coaxial cable. This is so you can redirect it to another room or another part of the same room. Understand though that when you do this you will partially lose the full strength of the signal.
Splitters come in many shapes and sizes, and forms as well. To keep it simple, a two way splitter will be used as an example. Say you want that cable television to be viewed in another room as well. Hopefully your coaxial lines are going down the inside of your walls from the attic. Should this be the case, make that dreaded visit up there and find where that line goes. Say that line comes close to your attic access then cut it somewhere along the way to connect the splitter.
Wait? Do you have the tools to make new connections? You will need a dike cutter (this is a coaxial cutter), coaxial cord stripper, and a crimper. You may also need a 7/16″ nut driver, which has a handle like a scrwdriver. You may need this to push the F connector onto the end of the coaxial cord. The white part, dialectric, will need to be flush with the well of the F connector for a good connection. Take your time practicing with some old coaxial to get the hang of this.
Once you have made your new connections on the line you just cut connect the one going to the wall to the “out” side of the splitter, and the other line to the “in” side. The second ouput can now be used for another room. This method of splitting the signal is called “mirroring.”
Before mentioning diplexers, separators need to be discussed. Many of you know what a dual tuner (receiver) is. For those who do not know, a dual receiver needs two lines going from a satellite to the tuner. Instead of having two lines run to it, you may run one line to it if you use a separator. Separators need two pieces of coaxial cable equal lenghts on the output side – satellite one and two – and the line into it coming from the satellite. Separators lose the least signal strength, and need to be 4″ to 8″ from the tuner. In essence, a separator is like a splitter, but it is for true digital input / output only.
Diplexers can only be used with separators. The reason why is because they allow what is called a “backfeed” to a second television. On one side is a single connection, while on the other side there are two. This is the only way they are designed. The single side is the in / out side, which runs into the other diplexer being used (which is usually in the attic). This is the mediation line which allows signals to travel both ways.
The other side of the diplexer has a SAT side (satellite), and a VHF / UHF side. The reason for this is the SAT side has the higher frequency of the satellite going out through it while the VHF / UHF side has the lower frequency of the satellite coming into it to the other television. The VHF / UHF will connect to TV 2 on your tuner, and the SAT connection will connect directly to the separator.
Confusing? You betcha. The diplexer is the only one of the three that can send signals back and forth on the IN / OUT side. The one up in the attic will have the SAT side running to the satellite, and the VHF / UHF will go the the television that will receive the backfeed.
As mentioned earlier, the differences can be confusing if you have never done this before. Take your time to plan out on paper how you need to set up your coaxial lines for your receivers / tuners, and you will save yourself the heartache of having to buy all that equipment over again just because you were not paying attention to what you were doing. Remember, using diplexers requires a separator. Otherwise keep it simple with separators and splitters. Good luck on installing your satellite system.
