Installing HDTV ... Cable Hook-Ups Power Surge Protection
Step #1: Where's Your Incoming Signal? No matter if you pick the best LCD TV that you can afford ... or you're considering a 2nd CRT TV set for the kitchen or a bedroom, you'll face basic issues such as "where's the signal coming from ... what type of signal input is coming into my house ... and how do I get it into the room?"
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* Cable Option. Pulling in coaxial cable from a street side junction box means that you'll be buying a cable package to connect to your LCD flat screen TV ... selecting channel content preferences such as HBO or Disney ... and then ordering a professional installation by the cable company's field service personnel.
* Satellite Option. A satellite dish requires professional installation in order to ensure structural integrity as well as optimizing the receiving dish's angle of reception.
* Antennae Option. Going onto the roof remains an option in many markets, for over-the-air broadcast content, and in some markets discounted HDTV broadcast content. Best advice is to obtain professional installation in order to get the optimum roof-top location, and safety set.
Step #2: Selecting The Best HDTV Cables. There's no single source industry standard for HDTV audio-video cables ... so you'll need to study the back side of your plasma television, or read the owner's manual in order to determine the style of connection available. You'll look for shielded cables.
Amongst the field of HDTV cable contenders, you'll see 3-pin component video cable sold in 1 to 2 meter lengths with major quality brands including Monster cable ... or twisted pair double shielded S-video cable ... standard audio-video RCA 3-pin cables ... for high speed computer-Internet connections you might look to 4-pin or 6-pin i.LINK or IEEE 1394 jacks ... DVI cables connect compatible DVD players to HDTV tuners and then to your high def TV ... or for new construction or remodeling consider in wall RF cables specially insulated ... decorative cable sheathing which can be painted or wall papered in order to hide messy wires and cables and create a finished professional look ... and of course whole-house audio-video system design and installation so that your HDTV can play in any room.
Step #3: Electrical Power Surge Protection. Connect all your components through a high quality surge protector, in order to avoid power surge "frying" your components, as could happen with lightning strikes or uneven power distribution. When shopping, you'll focus on surge protection devices specifically designed for audio-video signal processing.
Bottom Line: The Professionals Have The Advantage. Just like your car, which has transformed its technologies to the point where the ‘ordinary guy' can no longer do service, your high def TV ... whether plasma television or even old fashioned CRT TV tube TV ... generally require some advanced level of technical knowledge about signal source and handling procedures, testing tools, and de-coder "black boxes" for converting either analog or HDTB broadcast band width into HD-ready TV sets. You'll need pros to handle this stuff, unless you're geek-enabled and patient by nature.
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