How should I connect cables for TV?

[flobadob]

I have got an RF OUT cable carrying the picture from a Sky+ box meeting up with an coaxial cable coming from an aerial. From this point I've got a single coaxial cable running to a television.

At the moment if I want to watch Sky or Freeview I need to switch the cables over at the point where they meet using a through piece.

Is there any way I can connect the three cables at the point where they meet so that I can view what is coming from the Sky+ box or else Freeview without having to be switching the cables over and back?

[rojash]

Has your telly not got a SCART socket?

[flobadob]

Rojash, the tv does have a scart socket but don't think that helps.

The problem is that the lead carrying the Sky picture meets up with an aerial cable. Then from this point a single cable runs to the other tv. I need a connection that allows the tv to receive either of the cables signals.

[HowardKennitby]

are these any good

http://www.maplin.co....?criteria=coax+switch

[ChuckFickens]

"Rojash, the tv does have a scart socket but don't think that helps."

Why not, surely connecting the sky box to the TV using scart and getting rid of the RF lead from the sky box totally would be a lot easier (and give you better quality)

[flobadob]

Chuck, I should have mentioned. The single cable going to the other tv is going around ten metres from where the cables are meeting up.

[ChuckFickens]

Might have helped....

Generally you would daisy chain the devices together if you are using RF...so...

Aerial lead into sky box
Lead from RF out on skybox to RF in on freeview box
Lead from RF out on freeview box to aerial in on tv.

Then all you'd have to do is tune two channels on the TV, one for the sky box and one for the freeview box and they should both work without having to swap cables.

[flobadob]

But chuck, I don't think the RF Out on the back of the sky box carries the sky picture, it is just a loop through. There is a seperate RF Out for the sky picture. It is this that I need to run to the tv 20 metres away. Along with a cable from an aerial.

Can I join both these in to one?

[ChuckFickens]

The RF out does carry the sky picture and if you press Services, 4, 0, 1, Select you can change the RF channel the sky box uses (in case it clashes with something else in the chain)

and joining the RF lead to an aerial lead after the sky box will seriously degrade signal quality for both feeds

[flobadob]

Chuck, I did just connect them all using a 3-way connector one day but totally lost the freeview signal then. Perhaps it cannot be done the way I want.

[flobadob]

Still haven't tried that chuck but plan to later on today. I wonder does the sky box boost the aerial signal whenit is looped through?

[flobadob]

Just to update, I got it working now thanks chuck. By the way on the sky + box that I've got you have to press Services 0 0 1 Select rather than the process you explained. Thanks again.