Links to earlier threads :
http://forum.tvfool.com/showthread.php?t=15812
http://forum.tvfool.com/showthread.php?t=15800
http://forum.tvfool.com/showthread.php?t=15777
Now, I would like to apologize in advance for the long-winded nature of the following, but I would like to describe my situation exactly in order to receive specific advice.
First off, I would also like to apologize for not yet sharing the results of my antenna installation -- I receive exactly what I expected as per my TV fool report --- all broadcast towers along the 191 degree direction line -- WRGB, WXXA, WTEN, WNYT, WCWN, WMHT, WNYA, and all associated sub-channels -- for a total of 21 channels....crystal clear, and all in Hi-def.
Now, to delve into my situation -- firstly, as I mentioned in an earlier post, I initially only fed two television inputs --- my 60" main LCD TV, and a tuner dongle on my computer so I can watch my football while I play on the computer
I was told that with the hi-gain Channel Master CM-7777 pre-amp, I should not have any problems feeding those two inputs, and a few more if needed......and that was exactly correct --- I had excellent reception at both inputs. Then I figured --- hey, wouldn't it be great if I could stream that OTA signal delivered to my computer out over the internet so I could watch that football game on my tablet or laptop while at work
And so I did......AND IT WORKED GREAT !
So, on now to my issues, and how I got there
....To begin with, I just HAD to show off what I could do with my tablet and antenna installation to my sister
who is located 40 miles further north in the wilds of the Adirondacks -- totally out of reach of any antenna reception with anything less than a 200' tower
She rather wistfully mentioned she wished I could send that antenna signal to her, as she had recently become disabled and is now on a fixed income, requiring her to cut back on her expenses -- cable for one. I told her nothing could be easier, I can stream the OTA signal directly to her ROKU --- and so I did.
The issue -- in order to be able to stream OTA to my sister AND watch TV on my computer AND potentially stream a separate OTA signal to me or my wife whilst at work (or otherwise away from home), AND provide DVR capability to all involved, I had to add some tuners to my computer/server setup -- a BUNCH of tuners --- and so I did.
Here is what I threw on my computer to accomplish what I wanted (what I had accumulated in my parts box over the years
):
One Hauppauge 1595 dual tuner dongle (ATSC/QAM)
One Mygica U6102A Hybrid Tuner Dongle (Digital ATSC/QAM, Analog Tuner for FM)
One Avermedia A180 PCI tuner card (ATSC/QAM)
All fed through a 3-way RCA splitter.
(oh, and by the way --- I am receiving FM signals remarkably well -- pulling in stations 75 miles away -- even with the FM signal trap on the Channel Master Pre-Amp enabled)
Now, what is happening here is --- although I receive even the marginal stations acceptably on my main LCD tv --- the more marginal signals are not being received on the tuners connected to my computer properly -- they are pixellating and tearing pretty badly --- which did not occur before I added the 3 way splitter and the extra tuners. This lead me to believe that I now need some sort of distribution amplifier to service the 4 ATSC, 4 QAM, and one analog tuner connected to the computer.
My question is --- will not the hi-gain output of the Channel Master CM-7777 pre-amp overdrive any distribution amplifier I add to the tuners on my streaming setup -- is there a way to annenuate the feed to the distribution amplifier from the hi-gain pre-amp so that the signal does not overdrive the distribution amp ?
What should I do here ? What CAN I do here ?
