AV Distribution

From Zanecorpwiki

Signal distribution means taking a source signal and distributing to multiple sinks. In terms of home audio-video distribution, this means watching the same DVD on multiple screens throughout the house.

There are two basic distribution regimes: analog and digital. They both do the same thing, and in all but the last details, they do it in much the same way. An analog distribution system has all the same components as you would find in a digital system. Sometimes they have different names, you'll find it common to combine two components in one box or not, or other such cosmetic differences, but they're by and large very similar animals.

Digital is newer, can provide higher quality, and is much cheaper at the high end. Digital can be daunting to deal with, if for no other reason that the multitude of formats. Analog is much more manual and often simpler. Perhaps surprisingly, analog is easier to use and understand for the most part--if for no other reason that it's been around so long.^{[notes 1]}

Now-a-days, there's no reason not to do both. Your home should have both analog and digital distribution. This works because we've finally merged the computer screen and tv monitor into one device. Most every computer monitor has both digital and analog inputs. The same is true of TV.^{[notes 2]}

Contents 1 Distribution Structure 2 Analog 3 Digital 4 Notes

Distribution Structure

Analog

Warning: this part is based on research, not experience.

Analog signals are sent over coaxial cable, which is designed to carry a huge amount of high frequency data. (Consider that you have hundreds of TV channels piped through that one cable). In most cases, you'll have one or more external sources, such as a traditional cable, satellite, or over the air transmission. You'll then want to combine these with local sources, such as a DVD player, DVR, etc.

There are two basic strategies one can follow. The first is to take the incoming external signal (satellite, cable, etc.), cut out the low channels (which are usually unused), then add in local sources on those channels (DVD player on channel 3, DVR on 4) and distribute that signal throughout the house. The second strategy would be to feed the external signal into a receiver (with one or more tuners) and then distribute the output of that tuner.

The advantage of the first is that you can have an large number of viewers all watching whatever they want. The downside is that each monitor needs to be paired with a tuner--which due the economics of perception more than actual cost can add a great deal of money into the system. The second approach allows you to use "dumb" monitors as sinks and centralize everything else.

• Distribution kit with external IR repeaters
• Distribution kit with in-wall IR repeaters

Digital

Notes

1. ↑ In the societal/legal/cultural sense, there's also an interesting interplay of freedoms in the two regimes. Digital frees the production, but is vulnerable to capture and control in distribution. Analog is hard to produce, but also hard to cage. I find this so interesting that I had to make a note even though it has nothing to do with the current discussion. I'm truly sorry.
2. ↑ It used to be that computer screens had digital displays while TVs used an analog process. The digital display is now nearly universal and dominates both the high and low end. The only remaining difference between the two is that TVs have a built in receiver while monitors need to be hooked to an external receiver.