Splitting signal before the Box
BenS
Newbie

Once upon a time I had cable TV.  I split the cable before my box and ran it to several TV's and was able to get "basic cable" to my TV's without a cable box.   The TV connected to the box of course received all my "paid" channels.  When I had FIOS installed the installer said you could not do that anymore due to the new digital signal, even with cable.  I was speaking to a co-worker and also my sister and they both say they still get "basic cable" to their TV's without a STB. 

Question:  can I split my FIOS signal before the STB and run it to my other TV's without a STB.  Thanks......

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5 Replies
ekem015
Specialist - Level 1

Yes and no.

The installer is correct, in a sense. FiOS is all-digital, unlike other cable systems like Comcast that your friends probably have; those will have to be all-digital by 2012. That means if you do not use a STB and do not have a TV with a digital tuner (basically, any HD TV and all TVs built after 2004) then you will get no channels just connecting a cable wire to your TV with FiOS.

If you have a TV with a digital (QAM) tuner, then you are able to receive a limited number of channels (SD and HD) without a STB - only 1-49 on the Verizon lineup - since those are in "Clear QAM" (unencrypted digital). However, these will not be in their regular channel positions and could be Ch. #45-156 or random digital subchannels like that, and they do change. You will need a Verizon STB to receive any channels above 50, since they are encrypted digital (like Chs. 100+ on other digital cable systems).

Your friends are able to receive "basic cable" because their cable provider (e.g. Comcast) has kept their basic lineup - probably 1-100 in analog, not digital. Verizon opted against doing this the day they launched FiOS.

By 2012, and probably sooner, all other cable providers will be required to broadcast in all-digital. That means for people who have older TVs - any non-HD TV - they will be required to purchase/rent a digital converter from their cable provider to receive any channels.

Verizon already has gone all-digital and offers $3.99/month digital converters which will allow analog TVs (and digital TVs) to get all non-HD Verizon channels, but without a program guide or other features (you need a regular $5.99/month STB to do that).

The bottom line is, unless you have an HD/digital TV, "basic cable" will be a thing of the past very soon, no matter who your cable provider is. If you do have an HD/digital TV with these providers, then they will probably still offer a basic cable package (i.e. without a STB) in all-digital. Verizon has not and more than likely will not. They have an interest in being a higher-class TV service (like satelittle), and therefore they've protected their assets by encrypting as many channels that they can by law - leaving just the local channels available without a STB.

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BenS
Newbie

Thanks for clearing that up.  The TV's I would like to connect w/o a STB are non digital.  I have a digital converter box , not from Verizon.  I  got it when they had the coupon sale.  Will splitting the signal work using the converter?  Thanks..

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Keyboards
Master - Level 3

@BenS wrote:

Thanks for clearing that up.  The TV's I would like to connect w/o a STB are non digital.  I have a digital converter box , not from Verizon.  I  got it when they had the coupon sale.  Will splitting the signal work using the converter?  Thanks..


No.  The coupon boxes are for OTA (over the air) which is a different encoding (ATSC) than the signal on the cable (QAM).

BenS
Newbie

Thanks for your input.  Saved me lots of time connecting tv's that won't work....

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ekem015
Specialist - Level 1

They will only give you the clear QAM channels (1-49). You will need Verizon's digital converter to get all channels.

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