Question on Wall Outlet Networking

[mman74]

Sorry, I don't even know the correct name for these things.

I am in Hong Kong and basically the cable TV comes over the broadband connection. The set-top box connects to my ADSL modem via a CAT5 cable.

What I want to do is watch cable in the bedroom but the modem is stuck in the living room. I have a wireless router, but I am not even sure that would be of help here especially since there are a number of walls between.

Now I have heard of - only in passing - devices that give an Ethernet connection over your electrical wiring but I don't even know what they are called.

1. Could I connect the modem to the Ethernet device to a wall socket in the living room, then take a wall socket in the bedroom and connect that to the set-top box - would that work?

2. I also have LCD TV with one of those surge protector / power cleaner power board thing. Will the Ethernet over the power cables mess with that?

3. What brand do you recommend?

4. Can I network other computers around the house with this network, or does it only act as a point to point LAN connection?

Appreciate any answers. Thank you.

 

[g-paw]

The easiest and lest expensive way to do this would be to get a splitter, which you can either run from the wall directly to the TV, won't get channels that require the box, or run it off the box. The other option would be to get a device that will wirelessly send the signal to the TV, basically it's an antenna for the TV but much more expensvie

 

[gse1]

I have some Homeplug connectors (as named by NetGear) because my flat is in a very old building and I have only one problem with them, which is... drum roll please.... streaming TV over IP.

In particular I watch the odd footy match and getting it to work on any PC connected to the internet via my Homeplug adapters is highly problematic, whereas getting TV streaming onto my main desktop PC which is connected via standard ethernet is a doddle.

I haven't done conclusive troubleshooting with this but I believe the problem is that that homeplug adapters effectively give you a hub and not a switch over your electrics. I could explain the ins and outs but if you don't know anything about networking I may confuse you. The upshot is that homeplug adapters may not give you the kind of connection you need for situations where high-speed and time-dependent network traffic is critical i.e. streaming TV.

*My* problem may be exacerbated by the fact that I have several devices plugged into several homeplug adapters as they are fine for everything else. If you just have two adapters with one connected to your internet connection and the other one connected to the set top box it may work out much better for streaming TV.

Other notes:

- Plugging the adapters into extension cables and especially surge protectors reduces the quality of your homeplug network, your adapters should be plugged straight into the wall if possible. Having other stuff plugged into surge protectors isn't a problem as long as you don't have homeplug adapters plugged into surge connectors.
- Streaming TV will almost definitely not work if you have other devices sending and receiving lots of traffic on the homeplug network, they will interfere with each other.
- I've only used one brand, NetGear, and they seem decent enough. I can't recommend them over other models, though, as I haven't used any other models.