Technetix Inc I 8490 Upland Drive, Suite 200, Englewood CO 80112, USA Tel: +1 866 956 5608 I info-usa@technetix.com I www.technetix.com

Jan/2016 - Version final 1.1

Description

When to Use a Cable TV Amplifier

Signal Amplifiers are used to increase your cable signal by amplifying it from 3dB to 20dB to help distribute signal throughout your home or office. Signal amplifiers help in those cases where longer cable runs or splitters with multiple “F” ports degrigate your signal to unusable levels. Adding a signal amplifier to your pixelating or static television may fix your solution to a better quality picture. It is important to remember to place your amplifier at the beginning of your cable structure to amplify the best quality signal.

Choosing the Correct Cable TV AmplifierWhen you determine that you need a cable TV amplifier within your CPE (Customer Premise Equipment) cable structure for increasing your signal level, it is very important to install the correct style of amplifier. With many different manufacturers offering a variety of amplification products, it is often difficult for the end user to know what is right for them. The first step in determining the amplifier type that you are going to use is to look at what broadband services (such as video, data, and telephony) you will be using now or in the future. There are four basic house amplifier types: Forward Gain, Return Gain, 2-Way Active-Return, and Bypass amplifiers, capable in both Forward Gain and 2-Way Active-Return. Each one of these amplifiers offer a different solution.

Cable TV Amplifiers

Technetix Inc I 8490 Upland Drive, Suite 200, Englewood CO 80112, USA Tel: +1 866 956 5608 I info-usa@technetix.com I www.technetix.com

Jan/2016 - Version final 1.1

© Copyright 2016 Technetix Group Limited. All rights reserved.This document is for information only. Features and specifications are subject to change without notice. Technetix, the Technetix logo, Ingress Safe, Modem Safe and certain other marks and logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of Technetix Group Limited in the UK and certain other countries. Other brand and company names are trademarks of their respective owners. Technetix protects its technology and designs by registering patents, trademarks and designs in Europe and certain other countries.

Cable TV Amplifiers

Forward GainForward Gain cable amplifiers can be used in a variety of different situations, from compensating for lower signal strength from your cable provider, raising the strength of the signal from your cable provider before a splitter with multiple “F” ports is connected. The forward gain amplifier works in providing an increased signal level into your home on the upstream band of 54-1000 MHz, and still allowing the 5-42 MHz return band to be passed on back to the cable provider with little or no loss in signal level. Things to look for when purchasing a forward gain amplifier are low noise figure, low distortion and a return loss level which should be about 20dB.

Return Gain Some cases that would require a return gain amplifier when your interactive TV services, such as on demand or a DVR, can’t communicate back to your cable provider due to signal loss caused by passives (cable TV splitters and directional couplers) installed in the home or those longer cable runs. Return Gain cable amplifiers are used to correct for a weak signal on the return path, within the 5-42 MHz band, that is being sent back to your service provider from your home for your high speed internet, interactive television, and telephony services. Things to look for when purchasing a return gain amplifier are to ensure that the down-stream or forward path (54-1000 MHz) from your service provider is allowed to be passed though the amplifier. Also look for a low noise figure, EMI (Electro-Magnetic Interference) Shielding of around 100dB, and a housing material that protects against corrosion.

2-Way Active-Return 2-Way Active-Return cable amplifiers are used to compensate for weak signal strength where both the forward path of 54-1000 MHz and the return path of 5-42 MHz would need to be increased for your high speed internet, interactive television, and telephony services. Active-Return amplifiers will amplify the forward path by 10dB to 15dB and the Return Path by about 10-11dB. This provides more signal strength in both directions to compensate for high losses incurred by using a large 8 to 16 way splitter combined with long cabling runs, a setup common in today’s “home-run” style of construction.

Bypass The difference between this and the forward gain amplifier is that the bypass amplifier has a built in relay switch designed to bypass the amplification circuitry and provide continuous uninterrupted telephony service in the event of a power outage. Without a bypass feature, an amplifier in a power-outage scenario will block the return path signal from reaching your cable provider. Bypass cable amplifiers work in the same way as standard forward gain amplifiers to increase the signal level on the 54-1000 MHz band for high speed internet, interactive television and telephony services, while still allowing the 5-42MHz return band to be passed on back to the cable provider with little or no loss in signal level.

Bypass with 2-Way Active-Return The difference between this and the 2-Way Active-Return is that the bypass amplifier has a built in relay switch designed to bypass the amplification circuitry and provide continuous uninterrupted telephony service in the event of a power outage. Without a bypass feature, an amplifier in a power-outage scenario will decrease the signal level to unusable strengths. Cable Telephony Modems (also known as EMTAs) require a back-up battery to work in power-loss scenarios. Both the battery, along with the bypass amplifier, are required to provide continuous telephone service when the power fails. Bypass cable amplifiers with 2-Way Active-Return will work in the same way as standard 2-Way Active-Return cable amplifiers to compensate for weak signal strength where both the forward path of 54-1000 MHz and the return path of 5-42 MHz would need to be increased for your high speed internet, interactive television, and telephony services. Bypass cable amplifiers with 2-Way Active-Return will amplify the forward path by 10dB to 15dB and the return path by about 10-11dB.