Belkin RF Modulator ( F8V3063 ) Review

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(More customer reviews)An RF modulator lets you connect various inputs to feed into the coaxial cable or antenna input on a television. It's the solution to the problem of having a TV that doesn't have inputs for what you want to connect, or doesn't have enough inputs. So, if you have a video input cable from a DVD or a camcorder, but only an antenna connection on the TV - an RF modulator lets you feed the video to the TV.
Feeding video over this kind of cable isn't going to give you the best video quality, but it should be acceptable. (To get the best quality, you need a better input - s-video, component or HDMI - and probably a newer TV!) I didn't notice any particular issues with the video quality, it seemed OK to me.
The back of the Belkin RF modulator has:
- a number of inputs: s-video; RCA jacks for video and audio (left and right); and a coaxial cable for a TV antenna or cable source
- a switch to set the output to channel 3 or channel 4
- a coaxial cable output to go to the TV
- an ohms switch for 75 or 1K
- a jack for 9V DC input, for the included AC/DC adapter
Not included is any cables at all, not even a short cable to run from the RF modulator to the TV. That can be inconvenient if you're setting this up, so plan ahead. monoprice.com and partsexpress.com are good cable sources.
The box is about 6" long by 3.5" deep (plus you'll need room at the back for the cables you're plugging in) by 1" wide (wider if you use the stand). So it's not tiny, but it's about as small as it can be and still offer all those input jacks.
Audio is output only in mono, even with a stereo source.
You can leave various inputs connected. But you'll probably have to or want to turn off the video feed when you're using the TV antenna, as it may lower the signal quality (or completely overpower it) coming from the antenna.
By the way, if you're wondering why a simpler adapter won't do the job ... the video input (from a DVD player, for example) isn't tuned to a TV channel. The RF modulator tunes it (to channel 3 or 4, in this case) so your TV can pick it up properly.

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Channel Plus 3025 All-in-One Multiroom Video Distribution System with Dual Input Modulator Review

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(More customer reviews)Bought this unit to distribute the signal from an HDTV cable box to several TVs throughout the house. The cable box is connected to an HDTV normally but I wanted to be able to see the movie, music, and HDTV channels on my other TV sets without having to rent additional cable boxes (my other TVs are cable-ready but do not have HDTV tuners).
My first impression of the box was disappointing. Since all my TVs have cable tuners, I connected the incoming coax into both the HDTV cable box and the 3025 so that I could still tune channels independently from the cable box. The composite video output from the cable box went into the 3025. At this point you are ready to select the channel that the 3025 will use and this is where the fun starts. You are then supposed to set your 3025 to an "empty" channel in your system. After going through all the supposedly empty channels in my system, I could not find a channel that would give me a decent picture. I was able to get a picture from the cable box but it was always full of snow and interference.
After further research at the Channel Plus site, I decided to try a low-pass filter, a Channel Plus LPF-750. This filter passes only CATV channels 2-116, allowing me to use channels 121 to 124 on the 3025.
Well, after ordering this rather expensive filter, SUCCESS! Now I can view HDTV and encrypted channels in any room, not with the same quality as on my HDTV of course. I have not been able to pass stereo, it seems to convert everything to mono and have not had time to determine if this is normal. I am also using the Channel Plus 2173 and 2133 infrared units to control the cable box remotely successfully.
Overall, I am satisfied with the system. Just remember that if you have CATV you may also need a low-pass filter.

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The Channel Plus 3025 multiroom video distribution system converts audio/video signals from a pair of video sources--such as a VCR, DVD player, satellite dish, cable box, or video camera--and modulates them into two user-selected channels (UHF or cable). As a result, you can view each video source on up to five TVs at once. The perfect system for large homes with several TVs or taverns that want to show video on several screens at once, the 3025 distribution system's digital programming is easy to set up. Simply push a channel select button to choose the unused channel, and the internal microprocessor digitally sets the modulator to the exact FCC channel specification. From that point forward, you can switch any connected TV to one of the two "in-house" channels and watch DVD movies, cable or satellite channels, and virtually anything else. As a bonus, the channel settings are retained in the memory during a power failure, so you don't have to reprogram the unit after an electrical storm.
The 3025 also offers an optional infrared (IR) control option, which lets you operate connected video sources from a different room. To activate the IR control, users will need to purchase a model 2133 set-top IR target, which connects to the 3025 amplifier on one end and the TV set on the other. When the viewer presses a button on the remote, it sends an IR signal to the 2133 target. The target then passes the signal to the 3025 video hub via its coaxial cable. Finally, the hub routes the signal through an IR emitter (also sold separately), which repeats the remote control signal back to the original video source. The end result is the ability to control a DVD player or cable box from several rooms away.
The model 3025 distribution system is pre-engineered to provide optimal signal levels to each TV for clear, crisp picture quality. While it's possible to add a splitter and route the signals to additional TVs, viewers should note that the image quality will suffer. The 3025 also requires that two of the TVs be located within 35 feet, while the other three TVs must sit within 150 feet.
The 3025, which measures 5.5 by 6.8 by 2 inches (W x H x D), requires separately sold coaxial cables and A/V cables for connection and is backed by a one-year warranty.
What's in the BoxBase unit, power supply, four mounting screws, user's manual.

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