RV Cable Issues

[ztoddb]

I purchased my 2014 class c rv used. Ever since purchasing, I never get cable in any campground I hook up to. I purchased a new Wineguard antenna and thought having a new panel in the RV (Where you switch the antenna on and off) would fix the problem. I have tried different cables to hook up the campground cable to the RV. I have also put the RV in the shop and had them test the cable from the exterior to the cable panel in the RV. The shop states that when they hooked it up to a cable box, it worked. I am not looking to purchase a Direct TV plan or satellite.
What type of Cable Box do I need to put in my RV that will allow me to get the cable signal in the campgrounds?
Thanks
Zach

[Sam_Spade]

TechWriter wrote:

Wrong.

Give it rest please.

He was...and IS....not wrong.
He said nothing about digital CABLE signals.

All Tvs for the last 10 years or so have tuners capable of receiving analog or digital OVER THE AIR signals.

And that is exactly what you need to connect to most RV parks cable connection.

[TechWriter]

Bill.Satellite wrote:
A 2014 coach is certainly going to have digital tuners in the TV's.

Wrong. A 2014 coach will probably have flat screens with over-the-air ATSC tuners, but not necessarily digital cable QAM tuners.

A lot of inexpensive RV TVs (Vizio, etc) don't have QAM tuners.

[Bill_Satellite]

A 2014 coach is certainly going to have digital tuners in the TV's.

[TechWriter]

Bill.Satellite wrote:
Very few RV parks would have or even want cable service where a set top box is required. Since he has run into the problem at multiple parks including Disney World then we know it's not a problem related to any kind of set top box.

OP might have stopped at parks with digital cable TV service & his TV's may not have a QAM (digital cable TV) tuner.

OP, when you scan for cable TV channels, do you have the option to scan for "analog" AND "digital" cable stations?

[Bill_Satellite]

Very few RV parks would have or even want cable service where a set top box is required. Since he has run into the problem at multiple parks including Disney World then we know it's not a problem related to any kind of set top box.

[wa8yxm]

Several possible issues.

First. assuming you have the standared WINEGARD wall plate with an antenna connector on the front along awith a 12 volt outlet, Switch and light and 3 more cables on teh rear the center one is PARK CABLE IN.. This is the normal. if you have a different arrangement (Example A Matrix switch or Box of Many Buttons) well the cable port is clearly marked.

NOW.. On MY RV.. I have a problem with that cable.. I did some damage, fixed that but there is another break somewhere.. I use cable so little I've not yet gotten around to fixing it.. Will some day but alas. Not this week.

Many owners re-wire the switch (The wall plate) for Sat TV use re-routing cables.


Finally.. Some cable companies (I THINK Cox is one but dont' quote me) have gone from unencoded to all encrypted TV.. THeir reason.. PROFIT. back in the days of unencrypted TV you could put in a splitter and add more televisions but with ENCRYPTED you need a SET TOP BOX for each and every TV and thus they can rent you more boxes for a small additioanal fee.

Me I use Over the Air TG and skip the fee entierly.

[Bill_Satellite]

K Charles wrote:
If no one else needs a cable box you shouldn't need one either. Run the wire straight to one tv from the post and that will bypass any the wrong in your camper.

I didn't know there was room for 4 TV's in a class C. All with something different on?

You need to start by connecting a working campground cable connection directly from the power pole to the back on one of your TV's. If you can get that TV to work then you know you have a good working signal and you have the TV setup properly. You would then take that same cable and connect is directly to the back of the wall plate that you turn on and off to make the switch between OTA TV and Cable TV. Disconnect the coax labeled Cable on the back of that plate and plug the same direct run coax cable into that port. Ensure the power button on the front is off and go to each TV and repeat the setup routine. If that works then you need to reconnect the coax connection in the wall plate and take the cable outside and connect it to the connection in the wet bay or outside that's labeled Cable (not Satellite or Aux or anything else) and repeat the process. If you now do not have a signal then you know you are either plugged into the wrong connection or your dealer lied to you and there is an issue with the cabling between the outside connection and the interior wall plate.

[Bill_Satellite]

ztoddb wrote:
So then the question becomes, is there a universal box I can buy that will allow me to receive/convert cable in the campgrounds?

No, there is no box you can buy that will make your cable work. The boxes are not required for campground cable and even if you could buy one, they are all different from provider to provider so one you used in one campground would not work in the next. That assumes they are even necessary and they are not. They are sometimes offered at parks with permanent residents to allow additional premium services and sometimes internet service as well.
For you, it would not be of any value.

[1492]

[Mandalay_Parr]

If the cable company scrambles the signal you must get a box or M card to decode it.
Like I said before many campgrounds do not have scrambled signals.
The campground owner can advise you the proper way.

For a good test run the cable direct to your TV and bypass your whole rv.
Jerry Parr

[ztoddb]

Yes. Its a bunkhouse RV so it has bunkbeds like a train would have. (2 Tv's there) then one tv in the rear bedroom and one tv in the front living room.

[Sam_Spade]

ztoddb wrote:

Is there not just one box I can hook into the antenna panel that will allow all 4 TVs to receive the campground cable?

You are going off on the wrong path here.

The vast majority of campgrounds do NOT have cable that requires any kind of "box" or converter.

The few that do usually will loan you a box for the duration of your stay.

It appears that you are not getting a signal from the outside cable input through the "amplifier switch" to your sets. That should happen automatically when you turn the antenna amplifier switch to OFF.

I don't think you said but: With the amp ON, do all of your sets have access to "off the air" stations ?

I see what might be a clue in your last post.
You should NOT be changing the "input" setting on your TVs. That should stay at "antenna"....because the signal still comes into the TV on the coax antenna input. You might need to change the type of scan you are doing but probably not.

Try leaving the setting just as they are for "over the air" signals from the antenna and just do a new scan.

[enblethen]

The basic box should be in the TV.
I would re-check the cable my self. Use a continuity test with an Ohm meter.
Disconnect cable from TV, Connect the core and the shield of the cable together. use an Ohm meter on the other end to verify cable.

[K_Charles]

If no one else needs a cable box you shouldn't need one either. Run the wire straight to one tv from the post and that will bypass any the wrong in your camper.

I didn't know there was room for 4 TV's in a class C. All with something different on?

[ztoddb]

We have tried all of that. Antenna is turned off, Tvs are set to cable and scan is done. None of the Tv's gets anything. The RV shop has done a test on the wire running from the exterior of the RV to the antenna/cable panel in the RV and they get a tone showing the wire was fine. Then they hooked the cable up through the cable box in their shop and it worked. They have a specific brand of cable like Comcast. I agree, the cable should work with no cable box. It works on everyone elses motorhomes. But on my RV, I never get any cable in any campgrounds, including Disneyworld Campground.
So then the question becomes, is there a universal box I can buy that will allow me to receive/convert cable in the campgrounds?