Why do cables have F connectors?
Admit it, you’ve sat down and thought about this on a slow Friday afternoon.
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What is the skin effect?
Learn about this tricky little term.
What should you do with old RG6 cable?
Is it really worth hoarding a lifetime full of old cables?
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The most important part of any setup!
Why is RG58 cable so expensive?
RG58 cable can be really pricey. Take for example this 500-foot spool, which at over $300 is a real price premium over a RG6 cable, which can generally be found at less than half the price….
CABLES 101 – How to choose the best cable: Part 5: Putting it all together
If you’ve been reading our series, you probably learned a lot about cables. You’ve learned how a well-built cable with a firm connector can keep your signal nice and strong while a poorly built cable can…
CABLES 101 – How to choose the best cable: Part 4, Signal Loss
It’s just a fact of life… signal loss happens. Of course, the image above would result in complete, 100% signal loss. However, there is a lot more to the idea of loss than just broken cables….
CABLES 101 – How to choose the best cable: Part 3, connectors
When you think about it, a cable isn’t just the wire. The ends are important too. They’re the point of contact between the wire and everything else, and if that connection isn’t very good, then you’ll…
CABLES 101 – How to choose the best cable: Part 2, technical specs and terms
There’s a lot to learn about cables. Before we go too far, we need to look at the parts of a cable and why they’re important. Center Conductor The center conductor, marked “D” in the…
CABLES 101: How to Choose The Best Cable
Are you using the best cable for the job? You may have heard terms like RG59, RG6, RG11, and Slim RG59 but you didn’t know what they meant. There is actually a real difference between these…
What is a dB and why is it so confusing?
This is Alexander Graham Bell. He gets the credit for inventing the telephone, although it’s possible he doesn’t deserve it. Still, history is written by the winners, and it was the Bell Telephone Company that dominated the…
Can you use RG59 cable for satellite TV?
All cables are not made equal. Even two cables that look identical could still be completely different. When it comes to the coaxial cables you find in your home, they tend to fall into one of…
What is a dielectric?
Easy answer: It’s the thing marked “C”. Dielectric is the term used for the layer of plastic or foam between the center conductor wire of a cable and its outer braid. Coaxial cables are designed so…