Forum Discussion

tex_wardfan's avatar
tex_wardfan
Explorer
May 26, 2016

Couldnt get cable tv to work

I remembered to buy a cable for our latest trip but when I hooked it up it did not work. I put it in the cable tv port on the outside of the trailer. I was wondering if I should have put it in the satellite port instead and hooked the tv on the inside to the satellite port. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. The tv works with the roof antenna.
  • Every cable end connector was loose from the factory. I had to redo them all to get a signal through to the TV.
    Run your cable from the CG box through a window and directly into the back on the TV. If it works, that tells you if it's a problem inside.

    Also, my TV has a NTSC digital tuner (not a QAM digital tuner). At some campgrounds, I can't receive anything because the signal from the cable provided requires a QAM tuner.
  • wa8yxm's avatar
    wa8yxm
    Explorer III
    I have three TV's one will not receive ATSC (over the air transmissions) when on cable or QAM on "Antenna" the others could care less, the settings only determine which frequencies they scan.

    But one more thing that I just recalled.... helping a woman with her Cable TV here in the park I"m in where cable is included... Turns out a prior owner had ripped out the cables.
  • You might also check to make sure the "source" in you tv menu is properly set...sometimes going from one source to another will locate which is required for your particular setup.
  • wa8yxm's avatar
    wa8yxm
    Explorer III
    Inside the RV is one of two switches. one is a wall plate, 12 volt outlet, light, switch and antenna connection. SWITCH (And light) must be off, NOTE if light does not work you have a problem that needs fixing.

    The other is a box of many buttons (Matrix Switch) and you must press the correct button(s) (Marked Main TV/Cable)

    Finally. In this case I do not think a prior owner would have messed it up.. but it's possible.
  • Yes, I turned off the power boost button but it still said no input. They don't charge extra where I stayed for cable. I never did try using the satellite connection but I will next time. I get a real good picture down in Galveston from the Houston stations with the power boost and the exterior antenna.
  • Does the CG require an extra fee for TV cable service? They may have their end of the cable turned off.
  • If its not the power boost button then try using the satellite connection. The last two rigs I purchased had the cable and satellite connections on the rig wired backwards. As soon as i swapped they worked properly.Then just changed the labels!
  • There is probably a switch/button to power boost the antenna. This must be off when using cable. Also, the TV may have a cable/antenna menu, and with modern TVs you must go through the search mode every time you relocate. Yeah, real pain. But I'm betting it I the power boost antenna button.
  • Did you make sure the roof antenna power was switched off? That also switches the TV connection to the cable input. The TV does need to do a channel scan of course.