I'm looking to extend my cable converter unused component output to my bedroom about 75 feet of cable or so... maybe a little further. (the cable box runs HDMI into the main tv so the component outputs are not being used)

I've tried simple cutting and splicing (cutting a component cable and soldering the cat5 inline to extend it the needed length), and while that "works" technically, the PQ has interference.

Is this my only option???  I'm only using the CAT5 because I have a half used box of 1000ft so, why not! :)

Araltd:

I'm looking to extend my cable converter unused component output to my bedroom about 75 feet of cable or so... maybe a little further. (the cable box runs HDMI into the main tv so the component outputs are not being used)

I've tried simple cutting and splicing (cutting a component cable and soldering the cat5 inline to extend it the needed length), and while that "works" technically, the PQ has interference.

Is this my only option???  I'm only using the CAT5 because I have a half used box of 1000ft so, why not! :)

It is possable, I used it on one of the jobs I did for a client. It will work, PQ is great, can't go through a switch or anything like that.

You need an adapter on each end of the cable for it to work. Do I have a link ? no, if I can find it I'll post it...I forgot the brand I used, it was about year ago...

All I remember, it was not cheap ($250+ at dealer cost, that I can't access any more).....

Edit: Here's one for $99 each (you need 2), but, only up to 300 feet...

http://www.cablestogo.com/product.asp?cat_id=3109&sku=41165

You'll need something like this to do it...but, I think this is more of a basic one...this will give you an idea on what to look for...

It is possible with out "Baluns", it is just not the recomended method.  I have a couple runs at my house done this way.  I ran 2 Cat5e cables (One for Component, One for Audio), and then soldered on RCA jacks from Radio Shack.  One of my runs is probably around 75 feet and it looks great.

It was something similar to these.  http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2103424  There were multiple colors in each pack.

Otherwise you could look at getting pre-made cable like one of these.  http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10235&cs_id=1023501&p_id=2672&seq=1&format=2 

 

What kind of interference were you seeing with the ones you made?

Originally I ran 2 cat5e cables, one for video the other for audio.  I had this ugly lime green component cable with audio jacks from an xbox 360 gadget we bought somewhere - if I remember right, it was some kind of a cooling fan thing with component outputs so it came with this cable, which we were not using...

ANYWAY: I cut that cable, and all the ground leads were wrapped together - this was a little shocking to me.. And yes, ground was common on this cable from all 5 jacks, 3 video and 2 audio - the ground leads were all wrapped around the main ("+hot") feeds..  So I thought, ok - I'll go with it.

I tried that on a single Cat5E cable, 5 +hot (Y, Pr, Br, L & R) and then the ground(s)... this gave TERRIBLE results.   So then I re-ran with a different cable, where none of grounds were common (even though they probably ARE common inside the motorola 6412 cable box I'm using as a source for this project). ANYWAY: I ran the video with seperate grounds on 1 cat5e, and the audio with seperate grounds on the other cat5e and the PQ increased, but I'm still getting diagonal scrolling lines as interference, especially when watching SDTV (480i) stuff......... Looks horrible.  The HDTV 1080i stuff is actually pretty good, some horizontal scrolling lines of interference, very faint....

The cat5e box looks great and thank you very much for the information, but I really don't want to spend $200+ to make this 75ft run.... if I can avoid it.


Oh, and by the way, all my connections are soldered and shrinkwrapped - not that it matters, but its not just twisted together... I actually took the time to do it right :)

You can use baluns but to save money go to a local custom a/v store or look on the internet for mini RGB5 cable.  It is one cable that houses five cables, three can be used for video and two for audio.  Each has a proper ground shield and the cable is just over 5/8".  The drawback is the ends have to be put on with a proper tool and cable strippers, but if you know the distance you can probably get it preterminated for about 1.50 ft.     We have used this for runs up to 150 ft before with no pq issues.

What are BALUNS exactly?   Can you "make" them yourself, or what???
Are they like Ferrite beads???

Gentlemen... i'm afraid you've made me cringe and I had to jump on this one...

Component Video is high bandwidth analogue transmission of the YPbPr parts of the video signal. Take care using analogue because you might get problems with HDCP compliance.

CAT5 is used to extend Digital signals (like HDMI, DVI etc) over long distances.

You nearly made me cry when I read that you're trying to solder CAT5 to Component. CAT5 is twisted pair, and Component is screened coax. The two are just not compatible and you'll get all sorts of noise and degredation if you try to just solder the two types together.

Yes.. a Balun is an answer. A BALUN stands for BALanced to UNbalanced. It is used to transfer a positive only signal into a differential positive/negative signal (the theory here is that any noise on one signal will be negated or cancelled out by noise on the other signal). Baluns are used in the professional AV industry (I should know) and they are very successful at using cheap cabling to connect source to destination.

Another answer is to ditch your CAT5 drum and extend the Component signal using three screened coax cables. As it is an analogue signal you can transfer this over 50m easily without appreciable loss. The digital equivalent (DVI or HDMI) can only go 5m without losing 1080p (or using a BALUN).

Hope this helps...

I appreciate your opinion, but I have to disagree.

I know that CAT5 is not ideal by any means, and you can get interference.  But in many instances it can work fine.  Like I said earlier, I have a couple of runs in my house done with CAT5 with RCA jacks soldered on the end, and the picture looks great.

If you have not actually tried to make a cable this way, then I would give it a shot before you say that it absolutely will not work.

I used your approach and it worked great in my basement.  I sent an HD 3 component signal through my cat 5 for about 40 feet with no interference.  I made my own dongles...

However, now I have a current problem.

I am running cat5 from every room to the basement.  The purpose of my project is to create a video distribution system so that I can send one xbox or video signal from any room to any room.  What I discovered was that I was getting some small lines on the screen.  I would like to get a perfect picture.

Does anyone know if I used shielded cat5 if it would solve my problem?

Shielded cabling may help. Before you go that route, check to make sure that the cables stay away from electrical wires and that your ends are soldered on clean and properly.

You said you made dongles. Do you mean you terminated your cat5 cables in RJ45 jacks and then made smaller cables to convert that to component? If so, try it without the RJ45 jack in the middle. Solder the RCA ends right onto the cat5 cable that runs through the wall.

I used these face plates on the wall to keep it looking nice. http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=104&cp_id=10425&cs_id=1042502&p_id=2999&seq=1&format=2

Or just run 3 coax cables and either terminate them with RCA connectors or get those F-type to RCA adapters. Not sure if you can run more wires, but it's a cheap and easy fix.

Also, are you sure the box will output both HDMI and component at the same time? Some won't.

I appreciate all of everyone's input.  Perhaps we will be able to help each other out in the end.  I don't want to solder the ends of the RCA connection to the wire because I want to create a plug-play  type setup whereas I can always change the end connection by plugging a different dongle into my CAT outlet.

I am going to try to move my cables away from an electrical source that may be causing the interference, however I think changing to shielded cable is the best option because I will be sending many video feeds through multiple cables.  (and I don't want to run into problems once the drywall is already up and the walls are painted).

So far I have learned that composite uses 750 OHM and CAT 5 uses 1,000 OHM. As I understand I should be able to fix this by putting a resister in my dongle.

Also, I believe the second thing I need to accomplish is that I need to turn the signal from an unbalanced to a balanced signal ( which would get rid of the interference).  I read a post somewhere where someone recommended a 1:1 isolation transformer to solve this problem.  Now... I am a rookie at this stuff...so I don't know if my solutions would even work...I am simply sharing what I have found.

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2103994&tab=features

It would be really cool if I could build a dongle that worked.  :-)

bjdraw:

Or just run 3 coax cables and either terminate them with RCA connectors or get those F-type to RCA adapters. Not sure if you can run more wires, but it's a cheap and easy fix. Also, are you sure the box will output both HDMI and component at the same time? Some won't.

Anyone trying to run long runs of component HD with a CAT5 cable with out some type of device will notice a downgrade in picture, I've tried this before. In a pinch, RG6 cable running about 50-100 feet will carry a 1080i picture, I have used this before (cheap customer, but, it worked good). Simple F-type to RCA connectors (I walked into Ratshack and they wanted $6.99 for 2 of them, I poped on-line and was able to get 8 of them for $5.00 with $2 shipping). If you want 5.1 audio, run another RG-6 and do a Coax digital, should carry fine....