Broadcast 1 TivoHD to 3 Televisions - Possible?

[cgloede]

Hello everyone. I'm facing an exciting new home challenge and could use some advice.

I'll be moving into a condo next month and doing some renovation. My dream is to set up one TivoHD (already own that) and have it broadcast to the 3 TVs in the apartment. I'm the only one living in the place, I just want to be able to run around between the bedroom, the office and the kitchen with the same show playing (not competing with wife/kids over which show should play).

I'm considering:
* Place the TivoHD in the closet where the cable line enters the apartment
* Cable in to the TivoHD, then cable out to a 3 way splitter (with signal enhancers?) that run to 3 cable jacks in the apartment
* Putting some type of RF signal sender in each TV room that relays the signal back to the TivoHD in the closet

But:
* Big problem! I lose my HD signal in this approach!

My question:
* Is there a smarter approach that retains the HD signal but only uses 1 TivoHD? I generally would prefer a hardware solution (e.g. cables and splitters) over software (Slingbox, etc).

Thanks!!!

[sirbob]

If you want to go the fancy route, you can get a hdmi splitter from monoprice.com for a reasonable price. $70 for a 2 way splitter, $110 for a 4 way.

http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=101&cp_id=10113&cs_id=1011301&p_id=3049&seq=1&format=2

http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=101&cp_id=10113&cs_id=1011301&p_id=3655&seq=1&format=2

[RonDawg]

Cable in to the TivoHD, then cable out to a 3 way splitter (with signal enhancers?) that run to 3 cable jacks in the apartment

Problem right there. The TiVoHD does not have an RF out jack.

If you want true HD to all three areas, you will need some sort of amplification/distribution system, as the TiVo only has two HD-capable outputs (HDMI and Component). If you are willing to have at least one in standard definition, you can use s-video and composite as well.

[jcthorne]

We do this for 4 TVs in our home. 3 are HD.

We use a Component Video distribution amplifier from Radio Shack and an RF repeater in each location. Works very well.

[cgloede]

Thanks for the advice guys. I would like HD in all three TVs. If I use a splitter of some type (HDMI or Component Video) what type of cabling will I need to run? I shudder to think how much the HDMI cable could cost for a run from my closet (with the cable trunk) to the kitchen! Thanks for any advice.

[RonDawg]

Thanks for the advice guys. I would like HD in all three TVs. If I use a splitter of some type (HDMI or Component Video) what type of cabling will I need to run? I shudder to think how much the HDMI cable could cost for a run from my closet (with the cable trunk) to the kitchen! Thanks for any advice.

It is not recommended to split any sort of video connection (other than RF) without the use of an amplifier. It's OK for standard analog stereo audio, but not video, especially high definition video.

[WinBear]

Problem right there. The TiVoHD does not have an RF out jack.

If you want true HD to all three areas, you will need some sort of amplification/distribution system, as the TiVo only has two HD-capable outputs (HDMI and Component). If you are willing to have at least one in standard definition, you can use s-video and composite as well.

If you use the standard definition outputs, you must set the TiVo to 480i in order to see anything on them. You have to remember to bump it back up to your 720p or 1080i every time you are finished with the standard definition output.

[hmm52]

That's not necessary with my S3. Occasionally I make DVDs for some friends in Europe. The DVD recorder is connected by Svideo cable; 2 TVs by HDMI and component video. TiVo output is fixed at 1080i. The Sony DVRs also output on composite and Svideo at 480i regardless of setting - so a "VCR" can be used. Isn't that so for all such devices?

[RonDawg]

If you use the standard definition outputs, you must set the TiVo to 480i in order to see anything on them. You have to remember to bump it back up to your 720p or 1080i every time you are finished with the standard definition output.

The s-video and composite jacks always output a 480i signal regardless of the "Format" setting.

[kb7sei]

Monoprice sells HDMI cable for about $1/ft. The biggest one I saw was 131ft. They might be able to make you a longer one. I have no idea what the max length is on HDMI. I also saw a 500ft roll of bulk cable for about $450 somewhere else. Not sure how to get ends on it though.

I've heard you can do component over 3 RG6 cables. I'm not sure how long you can do with that either, but RG6 isn't too badly priced and it's easy to crimp ends on it. Then you can get a simple F-RCA adapter to get to the TV.

I've also seen converter boxes that can transmit an HD signal over CAT5. They are a little pricey, but the cable is cheap and available. I've got more CAT5 in my walls then I know what to do with, so if I ever need to distribute video, I might try that route myself. :)

I wonder if someone will make an ATSC transmitter that takes component or HDMI at some point and creates an RF signal from it so you can use single RG6 to transmit it around. Most HDTVs seem to come with an ATSC tuner these days........

[SMWinnie]

Hello everyone. I'm facing an exciting new home challenge and could use some advice.You have three basic technical requirements. There are solutions for each problem; you should provide a little more detail to help us help you determine whether any one solution solves all three problems.

1. You want to distribute an HD (HDMI or component HD) signal from one TiVoHD to three different HDTV monitors. The signals to each monitor should be simultaneously active. You want to watch a show in one room, walk to the next room and have the signal be identical.
Since you want multiple simultaneously active signals, you will need an active distribution amplifier. Example (http://www.digitalconnection.com/Products/Video/1394.asp).

2. The monitors are in remote locations _____, _____ and _____ feet away. The distances are "as the fox runs" and should include running cables through walls, etc.
If all the monitors are close to the source TiVoHD, you could just run HDMI cables and be done with it. If that's not the case, then you need some sort of low-loss transmission method, such as HDMI over fiber optic cable. The longer the run, the more expensive the solution. Here (http://www.practical-home-theater-guide.com/hdmi-cable-1.html), classified by distance, is a summary of the choices and available technology. If you would like more detailed advice, you should indicate how long each of the relevant runs is.

3. You want to be able to control the TiVo from any of the monitors' locations.
Easy solution: Use an RF universal remote or convert the TiVo remote to RF. Weaknees sells an RF conversion kit, as does TiVo (https://www3.tivo.com/store/accessories.do). Then remember where you left the remote.
Hard solution: Put in an IR repeater system with targets near each monitor. These work really well with SDTV distribution systems; plenty of RF-based distribution systems have an IR solution bundled. HDMI + IR over long runs is till new and expensive. Here (http://www.digitalconnection.com/products/Cables/fo2800.asp) is a package from Digital Connection. (100 feet, $600 plus a bit more for the Xantec IR gear. For one run.)

[cgloede]

You have three basic technical requirements. There are solutions for each problem; you should provide a little more detail to help us help you determine whether any one solution solves all three problems.


2. The monitors are in remote locations _____, _____ and _____ feet away. The distances are "as the fox runs" and should include running cables through walls, etc.

Thanks! The breakout by location:
TV Room: 20 feet from TiVoHD
Bedroom: 20 feet from TiVOHD
Kitchen: 75 feet from TiVoHD

I think the repeater makes sense...and the splitter/amp makes sense. The last question (to my amateur mind) is the best cabling approach. I have an old apartment (1924) so I will be running the cable behind the wood baseboards.

Thanks for your advice!