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Podcast #564: Introducing Wolfpack Matrix Switches

Signal Connect has partnered with Sports Bar World to offer the Wolfpack line of matrix switches. Listen in to find out why this is so important to the world of bars and restaurants. When you’re ready to learn more and get great customer service, call us at 888-233-7563. Listen to the podcast your way! Just choose one of the following: Option 1: Click on the image above to stream the podcast in your browser. If you use the YouTube player above, be sure to subscribe to get future videos delivered to you! Option 2: The Solid Signal Podcast is available on several podcast aggregators. Search for us, or tap on the links below on your mobile device. If you want us to add another aggregator leave a comment below. Amazon iTunes Overcast...
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Here’s the most important thing you need to know before putting Starlink in your RV

At this point do I even need to explain what Starlink is? It’s revolutionized the way that people connect to the internet when they’re away from major cities. It’s still not perfect compared to traditional fiber internet or even cellular, but when those options aren’t there, Starlink can definitely fill the need and fill it well. Why Starlink is brilliant Starlink, in fact all low-earth-orbit internet systems, are a brilliant combination of two technologies. Traditional satellite internet has been around for decades. It’s really not terribly different from any other sort of satellite communication. You have a fixed satellite dish that sends information up and pulls information down. This was a pretty brilliant idea in the 1990s but...
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How worried should you be about old Wi-Fi equipment?

OK, fess up. You probably don’t have the latest wireless networking gear. Or, I should say, you might have some current stuff but you probably aren’t current with all of it. Even if you have a relatively modern mesh networking set up, it’s probably hooked up to the router you got for free from the cable company. How worried should you be? First, a look at the current landscape It seems like it’s getting harder and harder to remember where we are in the evolution of Wi-Fi. In the beginning, there were two competing standards, 802.11a and 802.11b. But that was 20 years ago. The first router you probably used most likely supported 802.11g, which is still actually fast enough for most things you’re going to do. But all of those standards...
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Can you use DIRECTV’s Gemini for Satellite with long network runs?

Even though it’s been with us for almost a year, people are still discovering DIRECTV’s Gemini for Satellite. DIRECTV has been hitting it out of the park with new products and services, and perhaps none is as popular as its Gemini series. There’s the satellite version, linked above, and also a version called the Gemini Air which works on the company’s streaming-only service. Both have been so popular over the last several months that we at Solid Signal struggle to keep them in stock. Why is Gemini so popular now? We’ve launched other DIRECTV boxes over the years (including the recent H26K Commercial Receiver) but it’s been a long time since we’ve seen something that captivates enthusiasts’ imaginations quite like the Gemini. I think...
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DisplayPort: The standard that just won’t die

Ask most people how they connect their computer monitors or TVs, and the answer will come back the same: HDMI. HDMI cables are the standard because they’re everywhere, the cables are cheap, and pretty much everything supports it. But, as I explain here, HDMI has a dirty little secret. It often carries content protection, and that can be a problem. When HDMI was new, there was a competitor called DisplayPort that came out at roughly the same time. DisplayPort has been left for dead several times by the media, but here we are in 2023 (almost 2024) and not only can you still get DisplayPort stuff, there are times when you almost have to. Here’s the real reason why DisplayPort refuses to die. It’s not the copy protection, but… HDMI was...
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Should you be worried about a raw materials shortage for electronics?

We don’t spend a lot of time thinking about what our stuff is made of. Oh sure, Apple gets its fair share of attention every so often for a bonkers decision like making a phone out of titanium. (It’s a bold choice, and it does make the phone lighter, but it scratches and discolors. But that’s a topic for another article.) For the most part, though, we tend to not think of our electronic devices being made of anything but magic. That’s nowhere true of course. Once you get past the traditional plastic and glass on the outside of stuff, there are a few materials that you find over and over again. Silicon It’s probably no surprise that you’ll find a lot of silicon in electronic devices. Silicon is still the most common component of...
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Is there a better dish to use with DISH TV?

A customer recently called us and asked if there was a better satellite dish to use for DISH Western Arc. They were not necessarily looking for something that pulled in more signal, they were looking for something that would hold up to weather a little bit better. We can help Here’s a picture found on the internet of DISH’s commercial grade satellite antenna. This is a genuine DISH product and can be configured for Western Arc or Eastern Arc. It acts just like a traditional non-hybrid dish. It can be used with DPP44, DPH42, or a mix of both multiswitches. It’s exactly what the customer wants. And our Signal Connect team got it for them. Why is something like this better than a regular dish? First of all, it has a larger reflector...
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What happened to the good old RCA connector?

The venerable RCA connector, pictured above, was a staple of video equipment for decades. It was first used by the RCA corporation as a connection between radios and amplifiers in the 1930s. Its use for video seems to have really taken off in the 1970s when it was used for VCRs. Why was it the connector of choice? Easy to use RCA connectors give a very strong connection that’s also easy to remove with a pull. That makes them very versatile for home theater connections, where they are still sometimes used for audio. The connector is fairly small compared to other connectors in use in the 1950s and 1960s as well. Big center conductor The center pin of an RCA connector is big, compared to the bare wire of an RG6 coaxial cable (see...
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What’s the longest cable you can attach to an antenna?

Your antenna is on the roof. Your TV is all the way on the other side of the house. Is it going to be a problem? Unless you’re living in the old Aaron Spelling mansion, probably not. Let’s take a look at why. TV signals are pretty strong compared to… The average TV signal coming in is much, much stronger than a satellite signal. This isn’t surprising since satellite signals come from 22,000 miles away give or take, and TV signals are much closer than that. Satellite signals are so weak they need to be amplified before they even go on a cable. While you can amplify an antenna signal before it goes to the wire (that’s called a preamplifier) you don’t always have to. It depends on your situation. I’m bringing this up because satellite...
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STREAMING SATURDAY: Aging streaming equipment is a drag

Friends, I got my first smart TV in 2011. I’d hoped at that time that it would be the only streaming device I would need. I soon learned, just like all of you did, that streaming TVs of that era suffered from poor organization, a lack of popular apps, and were dog slow. By 2014 it had gotten to the point where I more or less gave up on that dream. That was ten years ago. In 2017, I was looking for a low-cost TV for a spare room and decided on a Roku TV, which was a pretty new thing at the time. I didn’t worry much about the “smart” features, which were not the reason I bought it. I bought it, as opposed to any other TV, because I figured if any smart TV had a chance of lasting more then three years it would be Roku. The operating...
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Scanners for fun and for work

Ever been told something is on a “need to know basis?” That makes you want to know it even more. People like that crave a bigger, better look at the world, and there’s a perfect tool for them: the scanner. A radio on steroids A scanner is a radio that lets you listen and monitor all the ham radio and public service bands. You can find out what your local police and fire are up to, get weather broadcasts, and build that really complete picture you crave. A scanner looks at frequencies far beyond the basic AM and FM. Like an AM or FM radio, it’s receive-only. Some of those frequencies have restrictions. Only the police and military can broadcast on them. Other frequencies work with ham radio equipment, and if you want to open yourself...
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Another year, another big game without 4K over-the-air reception

Well friends, it’s 2024. That means a lot of things, for sure. But in the context of this article, it means another year without 4K over-the-air reception for the biggest sporting event in the US. In fact, this is the 57th consecutive year without 4K over-the-air reception for that particular, if you think about it. Out of what our lawyers would call an “abundance of caution,” I’m not going to use the name of the event, although you know when it is and you know it comes on a Sunday every year about this time. The lawyers tell me that because this blog is used to sell things, using the name could imply some sort of endorsement. I think that’s silly but whatever. You all know what I’m talking about anyway. I don’t generally care about 4K...
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FUN FRIDAY: How Clark Kent fools us into believing he’s not Superman

Superman, at least the idea of Superman, isn’t unique to the 20th century. You can find plenty of cases throughout history of a mythic figure who is in some way larger than life, and comes in to save the day. Superman isn’t a god, he’s a regular person who is at the same time more that regular. In that way, he’s similar to a lot of the heroes of Greek, Roman, and Celtic mythology. One of the things that is interesting about Superman is that he doesn’t always present himself as Superman. Most of the time he presents himself as Clark Kent. There’s a lot of psychoanalysis that could come into play here as to which is the “real” persona and which is fake. My favorite analysis comes from Kill Bill, Vol. 2. In it, the titular Bill talks...
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Looking for the best deals? Visit Solid Signal’s deal hub!

Why shop at weird international shopping sites when you can shop somewhere you trust? The folks at Solid Signal have put together a curated list of the best gadgets all in one place. It’s updated daily so you’ll always have a great selection of the coolest stuff. Not to say anything bad about other retailers but… Look, even the largest US-based shopping sites are known for having a problem with knockoffs and poor quality goods. Yes it’s true that those places you shop at are convenient, and the free shipping is great. But with millions of items, the companies just can’t keep up with all the things coming in. Every year those sites delist and remove hundreds of companies selling counterfeit or fraudulent goods. It’s barely a drop in...
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