Author Topic: What is a standard home television aerial RF coaxial connector called?  (Read 688 times)

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Offline jj5Topic starter

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Can anyone tell me what the following standard connector is called? I've shown a photo of the male and female variants. This is just a standard home aerial cable. It doesn't appear to be F-Type, BNC, SMA, N-Type... so, what is it?

 

Online Ian.M

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Online soldar

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Huh. I've been using them all my life and had no idea.
All my posts are made with 100% recycled electrons and bare traces of grey matter.
 

Offline vk6zgo

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Can anyone tell me what the following standard connector is called? I've shown a photo of the male and female variants. This is just a standard home aerial cable. It doesn't appear to be F-Type, BNC, SMA, N-Type... so, what is it?



I would call them "the work of the devil!".
They make SCART connectors & PL259/SO239s look like masterpieces of engineering!

The modern versions are even more horrific than the original ones.
 

Offline thermistor-guy

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Can anyone tell me what the following standard connector is called? I've shown a photo of the male and female variants. This is just a standard home aerial cable. It doesn't appear to be F-Type, BNC, SMA, N-Type... so, what is it?

In Australia they are also called PAL connectors e.g.:
    https://www.4cabling.com.au/tv-antenna-cable-adapter-f-type-female-to-pal-female-adaptor-straight.html
    https://bitek.com.au/products/connectors-adaptors/pal-connector/


 

Offline vk6zgo

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"But wait!---there's more!"

Sadly, in Oz, TV sets are delivered with an antenna input consisting of a female Belling-Lee.
That should be the only place such a horror exists, as TV antenna cabling uses the much superior "F" connector.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/F_connector
Use the compression type F connectors on all the fixed wiring, which will ultimately appear on your wall as a female "F".

The final flexible coax to your TV should have a male "F" type both ends, then fit an "F" female to "Belling Lee" male adaptor.
The "Belling Lee" end of the adaptor is a far better engineered connector than the original could be even in the wildest dreams of the B/L designers back in 1922.

The silly thing is that a much-improved version of the B/L original could have been designed at any time since 1922, but they stuck to the horrible original "through thick & thin".

Unfortunately the plastic so-called "PAL connectors" you can buy these days are even worse than the original!
 

Offline CaptDon

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As soon as I saw that connector I knew the post was non-U.S. We used that exact same connector on Iceland where the analog television standard was also P.A.L. Here in the states I have made use of the threaded female 'F' connector to 'push on' male connector adapter. Makes it so much easier to move equipment out of place for dusting, cleaning or P.M. issues. Cheers mate!
Collector and repairer of vintage and not so vintage electronic gadgets and test equipment. What's the difference between a pizza and a musician? A pizza can feed a family of four!! Classically trained guitarist. Sound engineer.
 

Offline madires

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Over here we call it IEC antenna connector. F connectors are primarily used for satellite TV/radio.
 

Offline Edison

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It is an IEC connector + number according to the construction type.
It is used for both 75 Ohms - TV and radio - only in the opposite design - for the TV there is a pin at the connection point on the outside and in the TV there is a socket, for the radio it is the opposite

EDIT: they can also be found in a metal pro version
« Last Edit: March 08, 2024, 02:26:43 pm by Edison »
Everything works as the weakest link in the chain
 

Offline thermistor-guy

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...
Unfortunately the plastic so-called "PAL connectors" you can buy these days are even worse than the original!

I haven't owned a TV in about 15 years, so my experience with the "PAL" connectors is limited.

But years back, I did install a PAL compression connector on RG6 quad coax for a relative, and it proved reliable.

OP: if you do need to use PAL connectors, you can get high-quality compression types.
Example (not a recommendation): https://www.selby.com.au/cables/connectors/antenna-connectors/10pk-tv-antenna-pal-male-compression-rg6-connectors-ap1cq10.html


 

Offline vk6zgo

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Re: What is a standard home television aerial RF coaxial connector called?
« Reply #10 on: March 09, 2024, 12:36:47 am »
...
Unfortunately the plastic so-called "PAL connectors" you can buy these days are even worse than the original!

I haven't owned a TV in about 15 years, so my experience with the "PAL" connectors is limited.

But years back, I did install a PAL compression connector on RG6 quad coax for a relative, and it proved reliable.

OP: if you do need to use PAL connectors, you can get high-quality compression types.
Example (not a recommendation): https://www.selby.com.au/cables/connectors/antenna-connectors/10pk-tv-antenna-pal-male-compression-rg6-connectors-ap1cq10.html

It is still easier to standardise on compression type "F" connectors & just use "F" to "PAL" adaptors.
Jaycar do a nice space saving "L" shaped one.
 

Offline vk6zgo

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Re: What is a standard home television aerial RF coaxial connector called?
« Reply #11 on: March 09, 2024, 01:03:54 am »
Over here we call it IEC antenna connector. F connectors are primarily used for satellite TV/radio.

When I was replacing the old TV antenna & coax in my house some years ago, I found that all the antenna splitters, etc which were available used "F" connectors.(I have so much signal level, that I could afford to use passive splitters)

RG6 was also the standard, although it is lossier than the old style "semi- air dielectric stuff we used to use.
The latter had a horrible wispy shield which would not be very effective in noisy locations, whereas RG6 has a very effective shield.

Compression "F" connectors are also made for RG59, but that cable has quite high attenuation at UHF.

Back in the day, my old work "piped" RF from off air around the building (mainly so the "suits" could see what the competition were up to).

We also had a couple of modulators so making the outputs of various studio available.
Some of the channel outputs used (then) "unused" UHF channels.

I had reason to replace a longish run of the old "antenna cable", but had run out, so tried using RG59.
On UHF, it was like fitting an attenuator, taking even the strong local modulator signal down into the noise!
 


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