Cable reception not clear on some channels

[rbp111]

I have a 3 year old fifth-wheel trailer. I have noticed that the reception on the television, that is when I have cable, varies quite a bit. The channels, say 2-10, are ok, a little bit fuzzy, but I can see it. The next channels, say 11 - 20 are hard to see as they don't come in clear at all. They are almost unrecognizable. the remaining channels are crystal clear.
I have checked the cable, replaced the external one 3 times. I have checked the connections on both ends and they seem to be ok.
Is it the cable inside the trailer? Why would it give different quality of the tv?

[Sam_Spade]

rbp111 wrote:
I have a LG tv in the living area and an Insigna in the bedroom area.

Are you going to the TV setup menu when you connect to each different cable system and doing a new CHANNEL SCAN ????

You must do this each time you move.

It sounds to me like you are trying to "watch" some extraneous signals from the cable that aren't really supposed to be watchable.

A re-scan should skip over that kind of stuff.

Having said that, there are a couple of KOA campgrounds that I visit which DO have a few really bad channels.....and the owners just say that the system is really old and can't be fixed (translation: they won't spend the money). Thankfully they have 40 or so channels that work good.

[wa8yxm]

ON a trailer that new I would not think anyting I am about to type would be the problem but there are several things that can affect reception

Cable quality. Cables that are good at VHF-LOW BAND (2,3,4,5,6) (Actually that is Low a and Low b if I recall correctly) all under 150 MHZ. may not be as good at 7-13 (VHF HIGH) or UHF (13 and up)

Of course today channel 2 may well be using carrier 7 or even 20
(In Detroit channel 2 actually is broadcasting on 7 and 7 on 41. where I am now 7 really is 7 on broadcast) on cable if it is analog .7 is still 7 and so on.

as losses go up. picture quality goes down

As cable gets older. espically if exposed to sun. losses increase but 2 years and protected as those are. (make the 10-20 years and this may apply)

The other thing I've heard of is failure to use a proper Splitter but again I doubt any one would be that stupid any more (Back in the days of 300 Ohm Flat lead it was common but most folks use a splitter with coax).


One thing that may affect.. When the cable wes assembled I've seen them cut the center wire a tad short. Now I know how to tell when that happend but it's a touch thing.. Hard to describe but the "Feel" is different

[rbp111]

I have a LG tv in the living area and an Insigna in the bedroom area. I am now at home, so I don't have a cable hookup. When I go out again, if the park has cable TV, then I am going to hook up the cable by going outside to the source and feed it through the window and hooking it up to the TV directly.
Yes I use RG 6 cables only.

[theoldwizard1]

First, my comments do not apply to any satellite TV system.

Second, modern digital TV can NOT get "fuzzy" pictures UNLESS there is something between the source of the signal and the TV that is analog. Pixelation yes, fuzzy, no.

There are no "over-the-air" (OTA) analog (NTSC) signals being broadcast since 2009. Very few if any cable companies send out an analog signal. All OTA broadcasts are digital. Most (all?) cable signals are digital. They may or may not be scrambled.

You say your source is cable TV. From your house or from where you are staying ? What type of TV do you have ?

If you have an old CRT non-digital television then you likely have a digital-to-analog conversion box "in the loop". Check the connections between the box and the TV set. And do yourself a favor and buy a new digital TV.

[B_O__Plenty]

Are you using RG6 (heavier) coax cable or the lighter weight stuff. I found that made a difference for me.

B.O.

[Tachdriver]

Possibly you may have interference inside the trailer affecting the signal.

Eliminating the causes would be helpful.

1. The suggestions to run separate cable is a good one.
2. Trying different sources.
3. Amplifier off/on
4. Tighten all connections

Etc....

[rbp111]

The reception is the same on the tv in the bedroom.
I have checked the antenna booster and it is off.

I guess the next step is to run a cable from the source at the place where the power is direct to the tv. Next time I go out I will do that.

I guess from the number of problems I have had with this trailer, it was one that was put together after all the good workers left and only the ones who put trailers together that would need repair were left.

[westernrvparkow]

rbp111 wrote:
I have a 3 year old fifth-wheel trailer. I have noticed that the reception on the television, that is when I have cable, varies quite a bit. The channels, say 2-10, are ok, a little bit fuzzy, but I can see it. The next channels, say 11 - 20 are hard to see as they don't come in clear at all. They are almost unrecognizable. the remaining channels are crystal clear.
I have checked the cable, replaced the external one 3 times. I have checked the connections on both ends and they seem to be ok.
Is it the cable inside the trailer? Why would it give different quality of the tv?

Is the antenna amplifier turned off? Is the television set to "Cable". The suggestion of running a direct cable would be my next check. And if all that fails, it is probably the tuner in the television.

[enblethen]

Could be setting on TV. Make sure in the setup that is set for digital and not analog.
Make sure antenna power supply is turned off, if equipped.

[RobWNY]

I would run a separate coax cable through a window and directly to the TV. If that fixes the problem, then you know it's the cable within the RV. If there's no change, I would try a different TV which is what I suspect is the problem.

[Big_Katuna]

All you can do is a process of elimination. Try a different tv or run a temp cable to your existing TV.

[Sam_Spade]

rbp111 wrote:
I forgot to say, it does not matter where I am. In different parks, it is the same thing.

Are you sure that the amplifier for the "over the air" antenna is turned OFF when you are using cable ??

Also.....do you do a new channel scan each time you change inputs (parks) ?

[rbp111]

I forgot to say, it does not matter where I am. In different parks, it is the same thing.

[rk911]

could be at the source. if you can try hooking up at at the post at a neighboring campsite.