LCD Monitors 200 ft. From PC at DVinfo.net

Matt DeJonge · November 5th, 2007, 02:27 PM

Hi all,

I hope this post fits in here... I need some help.

I have a Windows XP Pro SP2 computer with 6 video outputs (3 x dual head VGA PCI analog video cards). I need to attach 6 LCD TVs. Here are the "gotchas":

- The TVs have YCbCr, S-Video, and RCA inputs
- The TVs will be up to 200 feet away from the PC
- There is already RG6 run throughout the building (but there are no ends crimped yet)

How would you set this up?
Should I switch over to different video cards?
Can I send DVI or VGA signal over the RG6?
Would I need adapters or converters to attach the cables to the PCs?
Would I needs signal boosters?

Any help would be greatly appreciated. I'm not fully up on how to do this these days... Thanks in advance!

Chris Soucy · November 5th, 2007, 04:01 PM

Without knowing the exact type of install for the RG6, I'm going to assume that it's a multi - drop from a single feed source at the PC's location.

If this is correct, the only way I can think of to use it (the RG6) for this would be 6 individual "Composite to VHF/UHF" modulators set to 6 different channels, a 6 channel to single channel VHF/ UHF mixer/ amp, and squirt all six frequencies down the chute. Tune each telly to a different channel and hey presto.

Not cheap to implement, not particularly good quality (Composite) and does depend on having 6 free channels not used by local TV stations (preferably with a free channel either side of the 6 you're using). There may well be units available now that accept Component, but think you'd need an adapter for each VGA output to achieve it.

If the RG6 install is different than above then other options may be available.

CS

Matt DeJonge · November 6th, 2007, 07:20 AM

Hi Chris,

Thanks for the info. Yes, all of the RG6 drop originate from a single location (where the PC is) and fan out to different TVs. I'm not opposed to yanking the RG6 out, if there's a better way to do this. I'm wondering maybe if there's a some sort of VGA to RGB (Coaxial with BNC maybe?) adapter or cable out there... I've looked and haven't really seen much.

Does anyone know what the maximum length of VGA (analog) or DVI is? We may even consider getting different TVs (ones that have DVI or HDMI, etc...).

Chris Soucy · November 7th, 2007, 05:29 PM

You haven't mentioned what sort of resolution you want to use on these screens, tho' the absence of any mention makes me believe SD 16:9.

There is a Gizmo I've seen mentioned here on DVinfo to convert VGA to RGB (think you might have to Google it), tho' what RGB would be like after 200 feet is anyones guess.

If you can stand the pain and want HD, DVI - HD - SDI converters may be the go, which gets you back to the RG6, tho' if the picture on each screen is different you're going to need 6 seperate co - ax feeds.

I vaguly remember there are Cat 5 systems for this sort of job, for running information displays at airports and the like, but can't think of a name off hand.

Sorry to be so terribly vague.

CS

PS: Matt, it has just occurred to me (Duh!) I hadn't asked the obvious question here.

3 seperate Graphics cards, 6 seperate output streams? Hang on, what are you running this off if each O/P stream is different - a Cray III?

If you simply want the same, single picture stream on each of 6 different sceens, that is another kettle of fish all together and much easier to arrange. If it is indeed 6 totally different streams to 6 different screens, we're back to vague again.

Matt DeJonge · November 13th, 2007, 04:38 AM

Hi Chris,

This is actually a lot simpler that I've led you to believe. We're trying to just push 6 different signals from a PC, each display doing an "HD" resolution (1024x768, most likely). The setup is just a PC with 3 video cards, each card with two heads.

As for the content, we're just going with something simple at first: auto-refreshing web pages with simple HTML statistics. Ultimately, we're going to do video (720x480), but not right now. Each of the 6 monitors will have different content.

I'll definitely do some more Googling now that you've given me some info. Thanks!

Gerry Gallegos · November 19th, 2007, 10:38 AM

First is answers for your questions:

How would you set this up? I would use a twisted pair solution to get you a clean signal at that distance.

Should I switch over to different video cards? doesn't matter unless they can give you a different format like an RF Modulated output.

Can I send DVI or VGA signal over the RG6? NO... Both DVI and VGA can be extended that far but only with scan converters and DAs (Distribution amps)not to mention VERY expensive RGBHV cable (about $3 per foot)and youre still past the theoretical limits of the signal.

Would I need adapters or converters to attach the cables to the PCs? Yes and no.

Would I needs signal boosters? depends on which solution you utilize.

Second are questions I have to be able to answer more thoroughly.

1. you mention sending HD resolution video, this limits your format choices to RGBHV(VGA), Component, or HDMI/DVI. Having said that ... do your TV's have any of these inputs?

2. what is your budget for accomplishing this?

3. can you take the RG6 out and install CAT5 or 6?

4. Can you use computer monitors instead of TV's?

OK.. RG6 is designed mainly for distribution of CATV frequency range signals and some networks as well. (Not direct video)

I believe your best bet is to get a Twisted pair (cat5 or 6) solution. you will need 6 VGA or DVI to CAT5 Transmitters at the head end (where computer lives) and then get 6 CAT5 to VGA or DVI receivers at the display devices, the gottcha here is that you cannot display HD on a Plain 'ol TV very well. at that resolution the immage will be very bad on top of that you would need a scan-converter to change DVI or RGBHV to composite, component or S-vid.these boxes are "VERY" expensive (definitely worth more than a basic TV) at least the ones that do this job well. so you're better off utilizing a monitor that has RGBHV (VGA) input instead of TV's.

Any other solution that I can think of will NOT get HD to the TV no matter how hard you want it to. and you still need expensive scan converters.

Look into twisted pair products from Magenta, Extron among others most of these TP solutions also can deliver audio to the monitor as well. something that other solutions except for RF cannot do without running another cable along with the RG6, and that is another ball of wax there.

I have been part of design team in several commodity trading environments where the need to send out several display signals to several banks of plasmas around a trading floor was necessary. and the Twisted pair solution was always the better solution due to distances not to mention they are alot cheaper to set up than an analog (RGBHV/VGA) solutions. TP is the way to go , for this or digital signage in a building.

November 5th, 2007, 02:27 PM	#1
Matt DeJonge Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 37	LCD Monitors 200 ft. From PC Hi all, I hope this post fits in here... I need some help. I have a Windows XP Pro SP2 computer with 6 video outputs (3 x dual head VGA PCI analog video cards). I need to attach 6 LCD TVs. Here are the "gotchas": - The TVs have YCbCr, S-Video, and RCA inputs - The TVs will be up to 200 feet away from the PC - There is already RG6 run throughout the building (but there are no ends crimped yet) How would you set this up? Should I switch over to different video cards? Can I send DVI or VGA signal over the RG6? Would I need adapters or converters to attach the cables to the PCs? Would I needs signal boosters? Any help would be greatly appreciated. I'm not fully up on how to do this these days... Thanks in advance! __________________ AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 4200+ / 2GB RAM / nVidia 7900GT Dual Head, 3x500GB HD Adobe CS3, LightWave 3D 9.3

November 5th, 2007, 04:01 PM	#2
Chris Soucy Inner Circle Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Fairfield, Dunedin, New Zealand Posts: 3,689 Images: 18	Hi Matt............. Without knowing the exact type of install for the RG6, I'm going to assume that it's a multi - drop from a single feed source at the PC's location. If this is correct, the only way I can think of to use it (the RG6) for this would be 6 individual "Composite to VHF/UHF" modulators set to 6 different channels, a 6 channel to single channel VHF/ UHF mixer/ amp, and squirt all six frequencies down the chute. Tune each telly to a different channel and hey presto. Not cheap to implement, not particularly good quality (Composite) and does depend on having 6 free channels not used by local TV stations (preferably with a free channel either side of the 6 you're using). There may well be units available now that accept Component, but think you'd need an adapter for each VGA output to achieve it. If the RG6 install is different than above then other options may be available. CS

November 6th, 2007, 07:20 AM	#3
Matt DeJonge Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 37	Hi Chris, Thanks for the info. Yes, all of the RG6 drop originate from a single location (where the PC is) and fan out to different TVs. I'm not opposed to yanking the RG6 out, if there's a better way to do this. I'm wondering maybe if there's a some sort of VGA to RGB (Coaxial with BNC maybe?) adapter or cable out there... I've looked and haven't really seen much. Does anyone know what the maximum length of VGA (analog) or DVI is? We may even consider getting different TVs (ones that have DVI or HDMI, etc...). __________________ AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 4200+ / 2GB RAM / nVidia 7900GT Dual Head, 3x500GB HD Adobe CS3, LightWave 3D 9.3

November 7th, 2007, 05:29 PM	#4
Chris Soucy Inner Circle Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Fairfield, Dunedin, New Zealand Posts: 3,689 Images: 18	Hi again........ You haven't mentioned what sort of resolution you want to use on these screens, tho' the absence of any mention makes me believe SD 16:9. There is a Gizmo I've seen mentioned here on DVinfo to convert VGA to RGB (think you might have to Google it), tho' what RGB would be like after 200 feet is anyones guess. If you can stand the pain and want HD, DVI - HD - SDI converters may be the go, which gets you back to the RG6, tho' if the picture on each screen is different you're going to need 6 seperate co - ax feeds. I vaguly remember there are Cat 5 systems for this sort of job, for running information displays at airports and the like, but can't think of a name off hand. Sorry to be so terribly vague. CS PS: Matt, it has just occurred to me (Duh!) I hadn't asked the obvious question here. 3 seperate Graphics cards, 6 seperate output streams? Hang on, what are you running this off if each O/P stream is different - a Cray III? If you simply want the same, single picture stream on each of 6 different sceens, that is another kettle of fish all together and much easier to arrange. If it is indeed 6 totally different streams to 6 different screens, we're back to vague again. Last edited by Chris Soucy; November 7th, 2007 at 09:29 PM. Reason: I'm a clot!

November 13th, 2007, 04:38 AM	#5
Matt DeJonge Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 37	Hi Chris, This is actually a lot simpler that I've led you to believe. We're trying to just push 6 different signals from a PC, each display doing an "HD" resolution (1024x768, most likely). The setup is just a PC with 3 video cards, each card with two heads. As for the content, we're just going with something simple at first: auto-refreshing web pages with simple HTML statistics. Ultimately, we're going to do video (720x480), but not right now. Each of the 6 monitors will have different content. I'll definitely do some more Googling now that you've given me some info. Thanks! __________________ AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 4200+ / 2GB RAM / nVidia 7900GT Dual Head, 3x500GB HD Adobe CS3, LightWave 3D 9.3

November 19th, 2007, 10:38 AM	#6
Gerry Gallegos Major Player Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Houston, Texas Posts: 262	6 tv distribution. First is answers for your questions: How would you set this up? I would use a twisted pair solution to get you a clean signal at that distance. Should I switch over to different video cards? doesn't matter unless they can give you a different format like an RF Modulated output. Can I send DVI or VGA signal over the RG6? NO... Both DVI and VGA can be extended that far but only with scan converters and DAs (Distribution amps)not to mention VERY expensive RGBHV cable (about $3 per foot)and youre still past the theoretical limits of the signal. Would I need adapters or converters to attach the cables to the PCs? Yes and no. Would I needs signal boosters? depends on which solution you utilize. Second are questions I have to be able to answer more thoroughly. 1. you mention sending HD resolution video, this limits your format choices to RGBHV(VGA), Component, or HDMI/DVI. Having said that ... do your TV's have any of these inputs? 2. what is your budget for accomplishing this? 3. can you take the RG6 out and install CAT5 or 6? 4. Can you use computer monitors instead of TV's? OK.. RG6 is designed mainly for distribution of CATV frequency range signals and some networks as well. (Not direct video) I believe your best bet is to get a Twisted pair (cat5 or 6) solution. you will need 6 VGA or DVI to CAT5 Transmitters at the head end (where computer lives) and then get 6 CAT5 to VGA or DVI receivers at the display devices, the gottcha here is that you cannot display HD on a Plain 'ol TV very well. at that resolution the immage will be very bad on top of that you would need a scan-converter to change DVI or RGBHV to composite, component or S-vid.these boxes are "VERY" expensive (definitely worth more than a basic TV) at least the ones that do this job well. so you're better off utilizing a monitor that has RGBHV (VGA) input instead of TV's. Any other solution that I can think of will NOT get HD to the TV no matter how hard you want it to. and you still need expensive scan converters. Look into twisted pair products from Magenta, Extron among others most of these TP solutions also can deliver audio to the monitor as well. something that other solutions except for RF cannot do without running another cable along with the RG6, and that is another ball of wax there. I have been part of design team in several commodity trading environments where the need to send out several display signals to several banks of plasmas around a trading floor was necessary. and the Twisted pair solution was always the better solution due to distances not to mention they are alot cheaper to set up than an analog (RGBHV/VGA) solutions. TP is the way to go , for this or digital signage in a building.