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RVStitchy · 08-19-2022, 07:11 AM

Still under warranty and going to add this to my list but wondering if others have experienced something similar.

I consistently have less cable or OTA channels programmed to the televator and outside TV compared to bedroom and front windshield TV. I have documented the number of channels that the TV will program over 12 different campgrounds/locations and the data is consistent.

For example: OTA for the bedroom and front TV yields 35 good channels after programming. The televator TV only gets 20 channels and the outside TV will get 25 channels. All programming within minutes of each other. Each TV is turned off after programming. This is a consistent pattern.

I have also noticed similar problems with camp ground cable. Although at some campgrounds all 4 TV's have the same number of channels after programming. Maybe some campgrounds have a stronger signal overcoming a signal loss in the system? I have hunted down and tightened every coax fitting that I could find include behind the wineguard panel above the driver seat.

I also read where someone added a booster to the coax under the kitchen sink. If it is something simple I would like to fix it myself rather than waiting til November - my next & final warranty trip to the dealer.

twojayhawks · 08-19-2022, 07:40 AM

I can't comment on the outside TV as we almost never watch it. But I typically do see less channels picked up by the televator TV as well. Also maybe once a year the picture quality gets poor & tightening the connection at the back of the TV fixes that.

PanJH · 08-19-2022, 09:06 AM

I had the same issue. Check and see if there is a splitter under the sink. On mine, there was a 4 way splitter servicing the televator and outside TV but the 2 unused terminals were not capped. This causes loss of signal. If that is the case, you can either replace the splitter with a 2 way splitter or put terminators on the unused terminals of the 4 way
https://www.amazon.com/Terminator-RF...07VXHD94X?th=1

Bobby Dowdle · 08-19-2022, 12:59 PM

You have a longer coax run going to those tv's. The splitter for the coax is in the plumbing bay above the peg board on the passenger side. Wiring comes from the booster to there and then out through the coach. It then has to route into the passenger slide and around all of the electrical for the kitchen and slide room. Then it has to go to both tv's. By the time it gets this far you have signal lose. You can make sure all of your connections on the splitter are tight and at the tv.

mahdi · 08-19-2022, 10:18 PM

I have noted the same but I thought it was because the televator TV is only digital while the other are digital and analog.

RVStitchy · 08-24-2022, 10:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PanJH

I had the same issue. Check and see if there is a splitter under the sink. On mine, there was a 4 way splitter servicing the televator and outside TV but the 2 unused terminals were not capped. This causes loss of signal. If that is the case, you can either replace the splitter with a 2 way splitter or put terminators on the unused terminals of the 4 way
https://www.amazon.com/Terminator-RF...07VXHD94X?th=1

Thanks PanJH, I did have a 4 way under the sink and added the caps you suggested. That made a nice improvement and worth the time and expense ($6). Here are the channel results before and after the coax caps - Coach is in the exact same spot in storage and did not move.

Front TV before caps - 85 channels. After caps - 85 channels.
Bedroom TV before - 85 channels. After - 85 channels.
Outside TV before - 75 channels. After - 85 channels.
Main Televator TV Before - 58 channels. After - 71 channels.

So I am still having a slight loss to the Main TV but much improved. I understand NIRVC Bobby's explanation of the coax run to the main TV. But I am still in search of improving the Main TV. I wonder if there is a high quality coax that I can run from the sink to main TV or add a booster.

Here is a pic of my splitter for those not familiar with the setup. BTW - you need to be medium size or smaller body with long arms to reach past the sink drain. I almost had to call in someone else to reach back there.

joedep · 09-06-2022, 01:15 PM

If your coach is wired the way my 2016 DS 4018 was (no longer own), there are two 4 way splitters and signals to the televator and outside TV are split twice. Using 4 way splitters, splitting a signal once results in ~1/4 of the signal strength to each output. Splitting it again with another 4 way splitter results in ~1/16th the original signal strength to each output. In my coach, the master bedroom and front TVs got ~1/4 original signal strength and the televator and outside TVs got ~1/16th. Because of signal strength loss, the receivers in these TVs did not pick up the "weaker" stations.

4 way splitters in my coach were located in the 3rd PS bay and under the kitchen sink.

Terminating unused splitter outputs reduces signal strength loss as does switching from a 4 way to a 2 way splitter under the sink. To get the theoretically most equal signal strength to all 4 TVs, it's best to use just one 4 way splitter (one coax to each TV) which is what is shown on a schematic I got from Newmar. I chose to run an additional coax from the 3rd PS bay to under the kitchen sink in order to duplicate Newmar's schematic. That took care of the differences in performance of the TVs. Running this new coax wasn't that difficult. I just followed the existing run of coax between the splitters. The most difficult part was exposing and pushing it through a flexible chase in the kitchen slideout which took the better part of an hour.

Why Newmar chose to use two 4 way splitters in series when one would suffice is hard to understand. The choice is certain to degrade the performance of some of the TVs.

RVStitchy · 09-07-2022, 03:44 PM

Was at the Coach in storage this afternoon. There is not an additional splitter in the lower storage. On mine it is a single connector in passenger door #4.

I suspect they use the splitter under the kitchen sink so they can build and wire the kitchen slide as a production module. Then they only have one coax to connect when the slide is added to the final assembly.

joedep · 09-08-2022, 08:17 AM

RVStitchy:

I suspect you are right about Newmar's decision making when it comes to their coax routing choices. When I called them to ask for the wiring schematic, they were at first reluctant to supply and it was only after I persisted that they agreed. Customer service also warned me that it might not accurately reflect the "as built" coach wiring because workers on the line had the authority to make changes they felt were appropriate or necessary. In both of the Newmar coaches I've had, the schematic and actual coax wiring have not matched. TV output from the Winegard head above the driver's seat has been split by two splitters- not one- to feed all four TVs.

When they wire the kitchen slideout, all the wiring for the televator TV, outside TV, AC devices, 12v lighting, etc. obviously has to be made to move in and out with the slide. On my 4018 DS, I found a flexible wire chase under the floor of the cabinet below the sink which made it possible for wires, including coax, to move in and out in a controlled way. It was exposed by unscrewing the plywood on the bottom of the cabinet. There were *lots* of wires running through it. It is possible the workers on the line felt there wasn't enough room for an extra coax, so they decided to feed the televator and outside TVs with only one coax. Just my speculation. Could also have been for ease of construction as you suggest. Regardless, the choice resulted in degraded reception to these TVs. To make matters worse, they used a 4 way splitter (when a 2 way was all that was needed) and left two outputs unterminated just like what you found under your sink.

The single coax feeding the kitchen slideout TVs has to be split somewhere along the way from the Winegard feed otherwise there would no way to feed TV signals to the other TVs in the coach. After a frustratingly long search and by process of eliminatiion, I found a second splitter in my current coach (2022 MA) hidden near the holding tanks in the fourth bay behind the pegboard. To access it, I had to remove the black plastic plate above the pegboard, pull on visible coaxs, and dig around somewhat blindly. It is not a pretty sight behind my pegboard--wires in a disorganized pattern and not easy to find things. This splitter accepted the coax feed from the Winegard and split the signal into three outputs-master bedroom TV, front TV and second splitter beneath the sink as depicted in your picture. Unused fourth output was unterminated as is their usual practice. No guarantee this is the "hiding place" for your other splitter, but it's where Newmar decided was a good place to put it some of the time on their DPs of the same vintage. If not out in the open on your coach, my guess is it is well hidden somewhere behind the pegboard.

Hope this helps.

RVStitchy · 09-08-2022, 09:27 AM

Thanks Joedep,

There is a connection behind the pegboard but don't recall if it was a splitter. I found all (?) of the connections a few months ago on my first go-around just looking for loose cables. Did not know to look for quad splitters.

Will have some time during our trip next week to go around searching again. Will post if I find the other splitter. As you mentioned there must be at least one splitter to service the two remaining TV's: bedroom and front windshield.