RG-6 vs RG-59
Bluesters
Enthusiast - Level 1

I recently purchased a new surge protector, the protector has outlets for Cable in/Out, it also came with a RG-59 coaxial cable.

Question, will the RG-59 suffice (very short run) or should I purchase an RG-6, this is strictly for FIOS TV.

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Re: RG-6 vs RG-59
eljefe
Enthusiast - Level 3

Signal loss in coax is determined by the type of coax, the length of the run, and the frequency of the signal being transmitted.  It sounds like you already know that.   If you want specifics, you can do a search and find any number of coax loss calculators.

The key is how short is "short."   If you're talking about a lengh of RG-59 10 feet or so long, the difference between the RG-59 and RG-6 will be very small, in the order of .5 dB, even at the higher channel frequencies.  The longer the run, the bigger the difference and the more important lower loss cable becomes.  And the end result will always be affected by how much signal is being fed at the source end of the coax.

Since you already have the RG-59 what I'd suggest is try it.   It won't break anything and will either work or not.   If you have any problem with certain channels, especially those in the higher frequency range, replace the RG-59 with a run of RG-6.

For whatever it's worth, I have an old run of RG-59 going to one TV in our house.  It's about 50 feet long.  The STB and TV it feeds work great except on channel 576, the HD Yankees channel.  I'm just living with that problem being too lazy to replace that run of coax. Smiley Wink

Re: RG-6 vs RG-59
Bluesters
Enthusiast - Level 1

Thank You very much.

So far so good just using the R-59 coaxial cable, the run is only about 4 feet

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Re: RG-6 vs RG-59
PJL
Master - Level 3

@Bluesters wrote:

I recently purchased a new surge protector, the protector has outlets for Cable in/Out, it also came with a RG-59 coaxial cable.

Question, will the RG-59 suffice (very short run) or should I purchase an RG-6, this is strictly for FIOS TV.


You should not route the FiOS coax through a surge protector unless it does not filter the specifc frequencies required for FiOS, which many do.   There are threads on multiple forums that discuss this if you want the details.

Re: RG-6 vs RG-59
eljefe
Enthusiast - Level 3

I can see questioning why a surge protector would be needed, but as far as it causing a problem, my take is the same as it was for using RG-59.   If a user feels more comfortable with a surge protector inline and every works when it's in place...what harm is done?

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Re: RG-6 vs RG-59
PJL
Master - Level 3

@oldguy69 wrote:

I can see questioning why a surge protector would be needed, but as far as it causing a problem, my take is the same as it was for using RG-59.   If a user feels more comfortable with a surge protector inline and every works when it's in place...what harm is done?


You make a good point that if it works it's okay.  My post just pointed out the risk of using a surge protector that filters aspects of the FiOS signal which the OP's apprarently doesn't have since it's working.  But in the future, if they start having problems with pciture quality, dropouts, VOD problems, etc, the first thing they should do before they call Verizon is take the surge protector out of the coax signal path. 

Re: RG-6 vs RG-59
lasagna
Community Leader
Community Leader

PJL's caution is valid.   Many surge suppressors only pass frequencies below 900Mhz and are not digitally rated.   This would allow a STB to potentially function, but would cause issues with the guide data and VOD services since they rely on MoCA to establish and ethernet channel to the internet via the FiOS router and this runs at approximately 1000Mhz.

If everything works with the surge gear in place, then there's no harm to doing so.   But if things stop functioning, then this is certainly the first place to look.

The arguments for/against the surge gear on the coax stem from the fact that the signal to the home is delivered via fiber which is non-conductive and the electronics which process the signal are inside the home already -- so if one were to place a surge suppressor on the power supply to the ONT, you would seem to have essentially provided the necessary suppression to prevent any damage except for a direct strike to the home -- in which case surge equipment or not, you're like replacing just about everything electronic anyhow.

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