Issues with splitters

Playground Hardware
#1

Hey guys, I'm hoping to get some advice from the wealth of experience you all have.

My house's network backbone is mostly Moca. I have plenty of ethernet runs, but when it comes to getting data to them, I use Moca 2.0 adapters because running ethernet to the primary spots isn't really possible. I've diagrammed how this is laid out with the attached image.

My problem is, I'm not getting the signal quality I should be. It's around 80% and I'm seeing macro blocking because of it. I know it's because of the splitters in the basement.

I'm wondering if you guys have any advice on how to split the coax in a way that:

  1. Ensures a fast link on Moca so my networking from basement to attic is as fast as possible
  2. My tuners have strong signals

I'm not sure if it means to split the incoming coax twice: once to give a powerful signal to the moca adapter, and then again to the tuners. Or if I need a signal booster. What are the options for signal boosting?

Thanks a ton for any help you guys can provide to get my setup a little more stable!

Network Graph

moca-graph
moca-graph.png758×941 40.3 KB

1 Like
#2

its because you are splitting the signal 6 times once you get to the basement.

do the moca adapters have a coax in and out? if so, swap the splitter with the moca adaptor in the basement rack.

middle splitter -> coax in moca adaptor -> -> ethernet to switch / coax out to splitter -> coax to 3 hdhr's / ethernet to switch

#3

Yeah they do. They're the Actiontecs. It's weird because their docs say not to use the Out, and to just use the included splitter. Weird that they have the out anyways. I haven't tried it. I'll give it a go to see if it helps.

51T32RPqcRL._SL1001_.jpg1001×1000

#4

If the tuners are on the splitter, won't they still have the same issue as they do now? I can see how this might guarantee a cleaner signal for the moca, but I think the tuners might still have a weak signal.

#5

wait a sec. the quatro is ATSC only, are you pumping QAM, MOCA, and ATSC through the same coax? that might be your issue. ATSC and Qam dont play nice through the same pipe.

#6

No antenna, with my FIOS I can get clear qam on my locals.

#7

If you're not using an antenna on the Quatro, could you move all the HDHRs to the basement close to your cable feed, and have them hard wired to your switch down there. Less bandwidth will be consumed over your moca connections, and eliminates multiple splits between Moca devices. Not sure if the Moca devices show any type of signal quality in dB, but with a 2 way plus a 4 way splitter you're dropping at least 10dB.

#8

This is how it's set up right now. Moca from garage to basement.

#9

Because of signal issues in the line coming in from the main super-drop in our neighborhood to the local flowerpot, I had to resort to a powered drop amplifier.

My setup was something like:

 Incoming Cable
         |
         v
    2-Way Split
         |
  +------+--------+
  |               |
  v               v
Modem         Drop Amp
                  |
     +------------+------------+
     |            |            |
     v            v            v
2-Way Split  2-Way Split  2-Way Split
     |            |            |
   +-+--+       +-+--+       +-+--+
   |    |       |    |       |    |
   v    v       v    v       v    v
  TA  Prime    TA  Prime    TA  Prime
#10

OK, so you amp it at the source to push it through the house. So that'd be a better idea for me rather than doing it at my Rack?

#11

I amped it after the first split, because otherwise it was a little too strong for the modem. (Also, my modem and rack holding the Primes were on different sides of the office.)

I had to spend a weekend playing with the setup, moving the splits and amp to different locations in the chain in order to find what worked best. I am not a network engineer by any stretch, so I just had past experience and trial & error to guide my setup.

(Of course, now that I'm transitioning from cable to OTA, all of that work was for naught, but oh well ...)

#12

I have one of these things that my FIOS installer gave me once at my old house. I wonder if it would help.

It's not a splitter, it's more just a line amplifier. I wonder if I should put this on the line that's running down to my basement.

#13

That might work. I can't honestly say, because I haven't really used MoCA, so I'm not certain what effect the network transmission places on the lines.

#14

Sorry, mistyped, meant to say move the HDHR's to the garage, where your feed is to avoid the splits between MoCA

#15

Yes because you are amping a cleaner signal.

1 Like
#16

I agree, I would move the Primes and Quartro to the garage and eliminate one split with a larger splitter maybe even powered such as this: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002M1EPL0/ref=twister_B00C9UJLOU?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

#17

I may be missing something here but the OTA UHF TV spectrum is 470 mhz to 700 mhz
at least one of the moca bands uses 500-850 MHz
since they are on the same coaxial cable, there may be some interference.

#18

I don't use an antenna.

#19

I just saw the Quatro and assumed

#20

The Quattro can also decode ClearQAM signals ... the problem is that very few cable providers offer unencrypted channels any longer.