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OTA and internet feeds to 2-story rental house

1071 Views 3 Replies 3 Participants Last post by olyteddy, Aug 16, 2011

powersmo

Discussion Starter · Aug 14, 2011

I am new on the forums and have need of help. I am just moving to the Bettendorf Iowa area and Mediacom is the only choice for tv and internet other than OTA for my rental house. I know that my job here will only be for about 20 months so my family is living in a two story rental house for that reason.

I will be hooking up a computer on the first floor and a second computer in the game room in the basement. I intend to co-locate an lcd hdtv television close to each of those computers. Ideally, I would like to connect cable internet to the house on the first floor and then run that to the one computer through a router and then to the basement computer via a powerline connection.

Due to the high costs/ reliability of Mediacoms cable tv, I would like to use my internet connection to stream Hulu or Netflix thru the computers to the 2 tv's. Also, I would like to connect the tv's to OTA and possibly the stations that are available thru PlayOn's software.

I am looking for information on the way that would best set this network up. Thanks!

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LithOTA

· #2 · Aug 14, 2011

I would forego the power line connection for the LAN. WiFi or plain old Cat 5 works better.

As for OTA, you have WHBF for CBS, but they are way down on RF 4, so you need an old-style big wide antenna for that. You may be able to get their low-power translator on RF 26, if so then you only need a much smaller UHF antenna. To find out, go to www.tvfool.com and enter the address; it will show you how strong each station is at that location.

Most of the QC transmitters are located SE of Bettendorf in Aledo, Illinois, but if your location is on high ground, you may be able to get stations from the Cedar Rapids market. Again, TV Fool will show you if this is possible.

As for the antenna cabling, use only RG6 cable, prefferably with the connectors pre-installed at the factory. Keep the cable run from the antenna to the TVs as short as possible, as long cable runs can weaken the signals.

And one more thing- if you are going up on the roof, please be careful.

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powersmo

Discussion Starter · #3 · Aug 15, 2011

Thanks for the input. Any recommendations on the best wired router to use and even a recommendation on a cable modem?

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olyteddy

· #4 · Aug 16, 2011

Quote:
cable modem?

They're all pretty much the same, as long as it's DOCSIS3 compatible. I bought a Motorola to save me $7 a month rental. Paid $70 for it so payoff is less than a year. You can also get the Motorola with built in wireless and wired router for about $50 more. If you don't need wireless, or need more ports, MonoPrice has a pretty cheap 8 port switch: http://www.monoprice.com/products/pr...seq=1&format=2

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