receiving fm via set-top box

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I have a couple of good tuners - Quad FM4 and Leak TroughLine, and am
having touble getting an aerial to work with either (have no access to
roof). I have heard that it is possible to utilize an existing TV
aerial to receive FM broadcast via a (television) "set-top box" Any
comments, folks?
 
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"SimoninEaston" <simonhpainter@yahoo.co.uk> wrote in message
news:d7o8600jp5@news4.newsguy.com...
>I have a couple of good tuners - Quad FM4 and Leak TroughLine, and am
> having touble getting an aerial to work with either (have no access to
> roof). I have heard that it is possible to utilize an existing TV
> aerial to receive FM broadcast via a (television) "set-top box" Any
> comments, folks?

Depends.

First, you've got to have analog, not digital cable. Or if you have
digital, then you've got to tap off of a coax output following the
decoder...not terribly likely as most tv's these days don't use a coax input
from the cable box.

But assuming you have a coax cable, analog input, no filters anywhere in the
line (cable companies often install them at their junction box and will only
remove them if you pay extra), then you can do it.

You need an FM/TV splitter (not filter, splitter). This feeds the FM out on
its own (usually coax) line and the tv on another. You'll need an extra
cable. Finally, if the FM out of the splitter is coax and you have only a
300 ohm antenna input, you will need a conversion transformer/adaptor for
the final connection to the tuner.

But it can be done. I did it once, years ago. Reception was okay, but
occassionally had a "gritty" quality that I've never had over the air.
 

chung

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Harry Lavo wrote:

> "SimoninEaston" <simonhpainter@yahoo.co.uk> wrote in message
> news:d7o8600jp5@news4.newsguy.com...
>>I have a couple of good tuners - Quad FM4 and Leak TroughLine, and am
>> having touble getting an aerial to work with either (have no access to
>> roof). I have heard that it is possible to utilize an existing TV
>> aerial to receive FM broadcast via a (television) "set-top box" Any
>> comments, folks?
>
> Depends.
>
> First, you've got to have analog, not digital cable.

Does existing TV aerial mean cable feed to you? He perhaps is talking
about aerials, meaning antennas. Not the cable feed. In any event, the
cable feed carries both digital and analog channels. There is no cable
feed that only carries digital. The cable feed contains signals from
about 50 MHz to as high as 850 MHz in the US. Usually the cable feed
does not carry FM (at least in the US).

> Or if you have
> digital, then you've got to tap off of a coax output following the
> decoder...not terribly likely as most tv's these days don't use a coax input
> from the cable box.
>
> But assuming you have a coax cable, analog input, no filters anywhere in the
> line (cable companies often install them at their junction box and will only
> remove them if you pay extra), then you can do it.

Not sure if he's talking about cable TV feeds.
>
> You need an FM/TV splitter (not filter, splitter). This feeds the FM out on
> its own (usually coax) line and the tv on another. You'll need an extra
> cable. Finally, if the FM out of the splitter is coax and you have only a
> 300 ohm antenna input, you will need a conversion transformer/adaptor for
> the final connection to the tuner.
>
> But it can be done. I did it once, years ago. Reception was okay, but
> occassionally had a "gritty" quality that I've never had over the air.

To the original OP, it is easy to get FM out of the existing TV roof
antenna feed, unless the antenna only receives UHF channels. VHF TV
antennas receive the 88-108MHz FM band. You can simply plug the roof-top
TV antenna feed into the FM receiver. That works for me. In some cases,
where there are very strong TV stations, you might need an FM filter
between the TV feed and the FM receiver so that the TV signals are removed.

But you probably were asking a different question. Is there any set-top
box that has an FM output? I do not know of any in the US. But then you
can just split the antenna signal so that one output goes to the FM
receiver.
 
G

Guest

Guest
Archived from groups: rec.audio.high-end (More info?)

Cor - sounds a bit complicated! The extra complication in my case is
that I don't use a television... I've got a TV aerial, with what I
assume is analogue co-ax coming down from it, which at the moment is
coiled up and hanging from a hook in the attic. Presumably the only way
I could see the set-top box settings is by viewing the menu on a
television, which I don't want to do (no licence, for starters) Do FM
aerials ever work OK installed inside attic (in inner city
surroundings) or should I bite the bullit and pay a professional to
install an outdoor aerial???

Harry Lavo wrote:
> "SimoninEaston" <simonhpainter@yahoo.co.uk> wrote in message
> news:d7o8600jp5@news4.newsguy.com...
> >I have a couple of good tuners - Quad FM4 and Leak TroughLine, and am
> > having touble getting an aerial to work with either (have no access to
> > roof). I have heard that it is possible to utilize an existing TV
> > aerial to receive FM broadcast via a (television) "set-top box" Any
> > comments, folks?
>
> Depends.
>
> First, you've got to have analog, not digital cable. Or if you have
> digital, then you've got to tap off of a coax output following the
> decoder...not terribly likely as most tv's these days don't use a coax input
> from the cable box.
>
> But assuming you have a coax cable, analog input, no filters anywhere in the
> line (cable companies often install them at their junction box and will only
> remove them if you pay extra), then you can do it.
>
> You need an FM/TV splitter (not filter, splitter). This feeds the FM out on
> its own (usually coax) line and the tv on another. You'll need an extra
> cable. Finally, if the FM out of the splitter is coax and you have only a
> 300 ohm antenna input, you will need a conversion transformer/adaptor for
> the final connection to the tuner.
>
> But it can be done. I did it once, years ago. Reception was okay, but
> occassionally had a "gritty" quality that I've never had over the air.
 
G

Guest

Guest
Archived from groups: rec.audio.high-end (More info?)

"SimoninEaston" <simonhpainter@yahoo.co.uk> wrote in message
news:d7qcvp014kl@news2.newsguy.com...
> Cor - sounds a bit complicated! The extra complication in my case is
> that I don't use a television... I've got a TV aerial, with what I
> assume is analogue co-ax coming down from it, which at the moment is
> coiled up and hanging from a hook in the attic. Presumably the only way
> I could see the set-top box settings is by viewing the menu on a
> television, which I don't want to do (no licence, for starters) Do FM
> aerials ever work OK installed inside attic (in inner city
> surroundings) or should I bite the bullit and pay a professional to
> install an outdoor aerial???
>

As Chung correctly pointed out, I assumed you were talking about a cable tv
cable when you mentioned "set top box". These to the best of my knowledge
are only used for cable tv or satellite tv. And a rotor box is used for
rotating a rooftop TV antenna. Other than that, I don't know what you mean
by a "set top box".

Do you have an antenna on the roof? Is that where the cable wire is coming
from? If so, does that antenna have a rotor on the pole (underneath the
antenna...looks like a big "bulge" on the pole)? More infor would help us
give you guidance.

Or were you in fact talking about cable TV?


> Harry Lavo wrote:
>> "SimoninEaston" <simonhpainter@yahoo.co.uk> wrote in message
>> news:d7o8600jp5@news4.newsguy.com...
>> >I have a couple of good tuners - Quad FM4 and Leak TroughLine, and am
>> > having touble getting an aerial to work with either (have no access to
>> > roof). I have heard that it is possible to utilize an existing TV
>> > aerial to receive FM broadcast via a (television) "set-top box" Any
>> > comments, folks?
>>
>> Depends.
>>
>> First, you've got to have analog, not digital cable. Or if you have
>> digital, then you've got to tap off of a coax output following the
>> decoder...not terribly likely as most tv's these days don't use a coax
>> input
>> from the cable box.
>>
>> But assuming you have a coax cable, analog input, no filters anywhere in
>> the
>> line (cable companies often install them at their junction box and will
>> only
>> remove them if you pay extra), then you can do it.
>>
>> You need an FM/TV splitter (not filter, splitter). This feeds the FM out
>> on
>> its own (usually coax) line and the tv on another. You'll need an extra
>> cable. Finally, if the FM out of the splitter is coax and you have only
>> a
>> 300 ohm antenna input, you will need a conversion transformer/adaptor for
>> the final connection to the tuner.
>>
>> But it can be done. I did it once, years ago. Reception was okay, but
>> occassionally had a "gritty" quality that I've never had over the air.