Cable is essential for television quality. The modern choice confuses not only ordinary users, but also professionals. If you intend to conduct a television cable in your apartment yourself, carefully consider all the points, since after plastering the floor or closing the walls with drywall it will be difficult to change anything. This is an important point. It is worth carefully considering how to connect a television cable, what footage is needed, whether the characteristic matches.
Kinds
Today there are 3 types of these products:
- Coaxial.
- Composite
- Component
- HDMI or DVI.
Each has its pros and cons. Which television cable to choose depends on the meter, location and conditions of use. To connect an analog, digital or satellite television to a TV, only 1 cable option is used. The rest are designed to connect additional devices, stereo, audio equipment to the TV, so their overview will be short.
Coaxial television cable
This is the most common, universal form used since the beginning of the advent of cable television. It consists of four main components:
- Central vein. It is ideally copper, but there are good cables with aluminum or steel copper-plated core. So, the base metal is coated with a thin layer of copper. The quality of the incoming signal, which means the quality of the image on the screen, depends on the material of the central core. The center wire of a television cable can be stranded or single-core. This affects the image quality: the thicker the central core, the better the image. If the distance between the antenna and the TV is less than 50 meters, then it is safe to purchase a television cable with steel centering. If the distance is large and the cable partially runs horizontally, then the center core should only be copper, otherwise the signal level will decrease by at least 20 percent and will decrease every day along with cable wear.
- Dielectric. The material may be different. More often it is foamed polyvinyl chloride or fluoroplast. The immobility of the conductors located above depends on the dielectric layer.
- Braid or outer conductor. It protects the signal transmitted by the cable from external interference. As a rule, it is made of a plastic film over which a metal coating is applied. This increases cable mobility. Extremely rare foil. It increases the price of the cable, but practically does not affect its quality. Copper-coated foil is even less common. When buying a cheap cable, you should pay attention to this parameter, because very often in their composition it is an ordinary silver-colored film that does not fulfill its functions. The braid is made of aluminum or copper. The better it is, the better the signal will reach.
- The outer shell is made of polyethylene or polyvinyl chloride. The sheath protects the internal components of the cable. It is worth paying attention to the thickness of the outer layer. This directly relates to cable quality. Be sure to find out what weather conditions the shell withstands. It is also worth paying attention to how to connect a television cable, since the thicker the outer layer, the more difficult it is to lay. The cable will give a sufficiently large resistance when bent. In addition to protecting the cable itself, the outer shell protects the TV to some extent. There are cases when the integrity of the outer shell has been violated, water has got into the cable and the glass product has exactly hit the TV. The consequences are very unpleasant. With a more favorable outcome, water can simply drain into the room.
Basis of choice
When choosing a television cable, it should be remembered that the signal depends on the quality of the components that are used in the manufacture. When choosing cheap products, in no case should you wall them in or position them in such a way that replacing the cable will be a problem. The cheaper the material, the faster its wear, therefore, the worse the signal and image. It is better to take a high-quality cable from the beginning than to change a cheap one twice. It is also imperative to pay attention to the resistance indicated on the outer shell. For modern television should be at least 75 ohms.
Now there is such a wide range that it is very difficult to stop a choice on something. The market is filled with manufacturers from different countries, with different price categories, etc. Which TV cable is better to choose? In Russia, the most common were several firms and models.
Rg-6
It is produced under the Russian brand, and manufactured in China. According to pricing, the cheapest. The central core is copper-coated steel. Foil screen, aluminum braid.
According to professionals, this type of cable is the least preferred. It’s better to overpay and buy a better cable. The same crumbles into pieces during stripping, and the outer shell quickly fails.
RG-59
The manufacturer is the same, the filling is slightly worse than that described above. The thickness of the central core is only 0.5 mm. The image is distorted for every meter stretched cable. According to customer reviews, the cable breaks quickly, especially if corners come in the way of laying. How to connect a television cable? Choosing this model, it is better to use special adapters at the joints.
SAT-50
Country of origin - Italy. The central core is copper. Braid - reinforced. Suitable for both cable and satellite television, and for terrestrial and digital TV. According to consumer and professional reviews, this is a reasonably good television cable in terms of price and quality.
SAT 703-N Cable
Country producer - also Italy. The core material is copper. The cost is slightly lower than that of the above model, but the characteristics are no worse. It affects the experience of the manufacturer (more than 40 years in the market). According to customer reviews, this is a good television cable: the signal is not lost, the outer shell does not deteriorate for a long time. Bonus - a guarantee from the manufacturer for 15 years.
What to choose in the end?
Which television cable is better, choose directly to the user. The main thing is to pay attention to the quality of manufacturing materials. When calculating the footage, remember that it is better to take with a margin of several meters.
It is also worth remembering that the differences between cable for satellite television and cable are tricks of marketers. A television coaxial cable is perfect for any of these options. Which brand to choose? According to reviews from various sites and online stores, as well as a survey of professionals, the best cable to date remains Sat TV cable. This is an element of Italian production.
How to facilitate the connection of a television cable?
If the repair is just beginning, it is better to think in advance how the cable will pass - in the channels made in the wall, or in the channel of a plastic baseboard. Be sure to carefully measure how much material is needed, taking into account angles, bends, styling. It is better to take 2-3 meters more. When buying a cable, you should pay attention to its mobility. If the material bends poorly or exhibits great bending resistance, subsequently this will cause damage to the finish or cable. If the material passes through the external wall of the room, the hole must be drilled obliquely, from top to bottom. This is necessary so that during rainfall water does not enter the room. When laying a television cable, you need to consider the distance to the wiring.
Electricity will interfere. If the material passes through a window or door, you can use special adapters. But you should remember that the more integrated the cable, the better the signal. It is better to conduct the wiring of the television element around the room with ready-made adapters. Homemade twists or devices can degrade signal quality. If a large length of cable passes outside in an environment where it is easy to damage (for example, the external corner of the room, a drainpipe, a metal window sill), it is recommended to fix the product with special plastic clips.
Composite
Popularly known as a tulip or bell. It does not fit perfectly to transmit a modern cable television signal, but in combination with audio connectors it is used to connect players, various consoles and video projectors. High definition images will not transmit. This will not be allowed to do the component components. Color reproduction also leaves much to be desired. In many ways, this element is inferior to the component cable. When choosing such a product, you should also pay attention to the components. In low-cost models, manufacturers fill the empty space between the case and the connector with polyethylene or plastic.
And the main problem of the connectors of these cables is a very low heat resistance. Plastic and polyethylene quickly melt from heating the plug, fusing the internal insulation. There are times when the wear of such a cable damaged the TV. In models of average pricing policy, the void is filled with washers made of PCB or pressed fiberglass. Such products will last much longer and are quite suitable for average use. In expensive models, heat-resistant Teflon or ceramic is used to fill the space between the cable body. Of course, the wear of the cable with these materials is several times lower, but for use in an apartment it is not necessary to shell out for such a cable.
Manufacturers and reviews
Consider some good manufacturers of these products:
- COLD RAY. Country of origin - Sweden. Belongs to expensive cables, but the quality really deserves attention. According to customer reviews, this cable is purchased once and for a long time. Unlike cheap Chinese counterparts, you will not need to change the cable every six months, a year.
- VIEWCON. Country of manufacture - Taiwan. Good cable in the middle price segment. According to reviews, customers are satisfied with this product. The quality of the cable, image and sound is quite satisfactory.
- ATCOM. Country of origin - China. This is the most popular manufacturer among cheap models. ATSOM products are distributed not only in Russia, but also in the USA, Europe, and Central Asia. For an inexperienced user, the cable is quite good. According to customer reviews, a very decent image and sound quality. But the heating temperature must be carefully monitored.
Component
What it is? In fact, this is a significantly improved version of the composite cable. Here are exactly the same specifications. The only difference is image quality. It is much better than composite cable. In all other respects, the difference is not significant, even manufacturers are sometimes identical.
DVI and HDMI cables
Used to transfer video to digital devices. It can be televisions, projectors, modern monitors and laptops.
In fact, there is no difference either in the cable device or in the quality of the transmitted image. The only difference is which port is available on the connected device. Relay products analog signal to digital. In everyday life, an HDMI cable is more often used. DVI is preferred for professional computer equipment.
Conclusion
So, we found out what a television cable is and which one is better to choose. A purchase is worth making, focusing not only on the material of the product, but also on the manufacturer itself. The highest quality is Italian products. But you should refrain from buying domestic cables. Such products do not have reliability and do not guarantee a good image at the output.