composite cable signal booster

drballard33

I tried searching but found no luck. I have two runs of digital composite cable running the video of my DVD player and my HD Cable box to my HD TV. I just bought an HD DVD player and want to hook up using the same cables, my current DVD player uses and get rid of the old DVD player. The runs are about 50 feet in cable length each. I never used a signal booster but think it might be a good idea so I do not sacrifice the signal. Has anyone used one before, if so any suggestions? I really do not want to pay too much money for one because I plan to go with HDMI when I move. I cant now because my current house doesnt have the room for my AV next to my bigscreen, and 50 foot ruins of HDMI are expensive. I appreciate any help provided.

SolidSqual

http://www.bluejeanscable.com/store/dvi/index.htm

You can get 50 ft of excellent HDMI cable from BJC for $134.50. It may be a little more than a booster, but it will be a helluva a lot more affective.

drballard33

SolidSqual wrote: »

http://www.bluejeanscable.com/store/dvi/index.htm

You can get 50 ft of excellent HDMI cable from BJC for $134.50. It may be a little more than a booster, but it will be a helluva a lot more affective.

now that I think of it I am only running 25 foot cable so I may not need a booster. I hate my current setup for two reasons, first my receiver is a bit outdated second, I only have one HDMI input on my bigscreen. I did not know HDMI was that cheap. If I get an HDMI receiver there should be an input HDMI and an output correct? could I feasbly run HDMI from my HD DVD player, and from my HD cable box, then run one line to my TV? I hate how quickly technology changes.

SolidSqual

yeah most people think HDMI is expensive as hell because MOnster Cable sells equal lengths for hundreds of dollars. The fact of the matter is that most of it is hype and companies like BJC tell you the truth of what you can get for a reasonable buck. Cable makes a difference, but you don't have to spend more than your whole HT is worth.

WilliamM2

I did not know HDMI was that cheap.

It's actually even cheaper,
50ft.
http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10240&cs_id=1024002&p_id=2110&seq=1&format=1#largeimage

25ft.
http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10240&cs_id=1024002&p_id=2109&seq=1&format=2

drballard33

Thanks for your help, the cables are so cheap you have convinced me to go out and buy a new receiver! before I do however, to hit on my question above, most receivers have two HDMI inputs and one output, can I plug my HD Cable box into the receiver and my HDDVD player into the receiver and just have the output go to the HDTV? how does the TV know what signal to use, does the receiver automatically switch?

Thanks I think I found a great receiver for a great price.

SolidSqual

The Rceiver knows which signal to use. Its like switching from video 1 to video 2 on your TV. The receiver will have CD,DVD, Video1 and Video2 on it(or some variation of this). Whatever the HDMI slots refer to on the receiver, just click whichever one you want on the remote and the receiver will send tht signal to your TV.

shack

Be aware that 50' is right at the maximum recommended length for HDMI cables. Beyond that, there could be some issues:

One of the drawbacks of this technology is that the HDMI cable is not suggested for long cable runs, due to the fact that HDMI cable is manufactured out of twisted pairs of copper conductors that are small-gauge, instead of the usual coaxial cable, and this can cause problems when the HDMI cable needs to be run over 50 feet in length.

When an HDMI cable length gets too long the signal starts to lose strength. This results in a picture distortion, sparklies, which is where single pixels drop out of the picture, or no picture display at all, only sound capabilities.

drballard33

Thanks for the heads up. I think I will need a 25ft run of the HDMI cable. This will help me reduce the two sets of composite cables I have ran right now. I appreciate everyones help, now I have to talk the wife into me buying a new receiver.

engtaz

I always heard that adding a cable or signal booster tends to add noise to the system. FWIW

engtaz

shahmichael@com

I just started using a Electroline Cable amp and it works very well and did not add any noise at all,it has 15db gain.It cost 25.00 on e-bay.