Commercial installers are familiar with DIRECTV’s SWM-30 multiswitch. It’s been the go-to multiswitch for DIRECTV systems for close to a decade now. Yet, there are always new questions that pop up, and in order to answer this one, I need to take you on a little journey.
I go into more detail here, but essentially cascading is connecting something to another one of the same thing. It’s a well-used practice in certain kinds of installs, especially satellite multiswitches. Let’s say you needed 32 satellite outputs for your international (non-DIRECTV, non-DISH) TV system. You could connect two of these Televes NevoSwitches together by going from the output of one into the input of the other. It’s easier than using splitters and many of these generic systems do allow it.
At one time DIRECTV sold this beast of a multiswitch, which gave you 32 SWM outputs and let you cascade to another multiswitch, for a total of 64 SWM outputs from one cable run. That was great, but on the other hand these things were gigantic and ran hot. The power supplies were prone to failing and all things considered I’m glad they’ve been discontinued.
If you look at this photo of a SWM-30, you’ll notice that it has satellite inputs on the bottom and SWM outputs on the right. There’s a power-in connector and you can also run a low-voltage device off the PWR OUT connector on the left. But there are no ports which let you cascade. There’s just no way to wire it so it works. It just can’t be done.
Check out this SWM Expander from DIRECTV.
It’s designed to let you connect 4 SWM-30s to one set of inputs. The entire thing is powered by a pair of generic SWM power inserters. It allows for better heat dissipation and gives you the ability to run 120 H26K Commercial Receivers from one set of satellite lines. In case you’re counting, that’s almost double what you could do with those old cascading multiswitches and it’s done in a fraction of the space. The SWM Expander is designed to mount on a backplane with the SWMs sticking out so that the whole thing takes up the same footprint as just one SWM-30.
For years, I told people that you could cascade older multiswitches like the DIRECTV SWM-16, but I did it through gritted teeth. I knew that it wasn’t the best option because the power level going into the second SWM wasn’t that good. I’m glad we’re past the says of cascading multiswitches. I really am.
If you want to know all about how to use and install the SWM-30 and SWM Expander, check out our award-winning white paper! It’s full of parts lists and installation diagrams. It’s like taking a $5,000 course, but it’s free! Hundreds of thousands of people have downloaded and used it over the years.
If you want help planning a commercial install, call us! We can also help commercial installers with activations and service changes. Call the experts at Signal Connect. We’re here for you during East Coast business hours. The number is 888-233-7563. If it’s after hours, fill out the form below. We’ll get right back to you!
The post NICE AND EASY: Can you cascade a SWM-30? appeared first on The Solid Signal Blog.
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What is cascading?
I go into more detail here, but essentially cascading is connecting something to another one of the same thing. It’s a well-used practice in certain kinds of installs, especially satellite multiswitches. Let’s say you needed 32 satellite outputs for your international (non-DIRECTV, non-DISH) TV system. You could connect two of these Televes NevoSwitches together by going from the output of one into the input of the other. It’s easier than using splitters and many of these generic systems do allow it.
At one time DIRECTV sold this beast of a multiswitch, which gave you 32 SWM outputs and let you cascade to another multiswitch, for a total of 64 SWM outputs from one cable run. That was great, but on the other hand these things were gigantic and ran hot. The power supplies were prone to failing and all things considered I’m glad they’ve been discontinued.
No you can’t cascade SWM-30 multiswitches and here’s why.
If you look at this photo of a SWM-30, you’ll notice that it has satellite inputs on the bottom and SWM outputs on the right. There’s a power-in connector and you can also run a low-voltage device off the PWR OUT connector on the left. But there are no ports which let you cascade. There’s just no way to wire it so it works. It just can’t be done.
But, there’s a better way.
Check out this SWM Expander from DIRECTV.
It’s designed to let you connect 4 SWM-30s to one set of inputs. The entire thing is powered by a pair of generic SWM power inserters. It allows for better heat dissipation and gives you the ability to run 120 H26K Commercial Receivers from one set of satellite lines. In case you’re counting, that’s almost double what you could do with those old cascading multiswitches and it’s done in a fraction of the space. The SWM Expander is designed to mount on a backplane with the SWMs sticking out so that the whole thing takes up the same footprint as just one SWM-30.
So, I don’t miss cascading
For years, I told people that you could cascade older multiswitches like the DIRECTV SWM-16, but I did it through gritted teeth. I knew that it wasn’t the best option because the power level going into the second SWM wasn’t that good. I’m glad we’re past the says of cascading multiswitches. I really am.
Want to know more?
If you want to know all about how to use and install the SWM-30 and SWM Expander, check out our award-winning white paper! It’s full of parts lists and installation diagrams. It’s like taking a $5,000 course, but it’s free! Hundreds of thousands of people have downloaded and used it over the years.
If you want help planning a commercial install, call us! We can also help commercial installers with activations and service changes. Call the experts at Signal Connect. We’re here for you during East Coast business hours. The number is 888-233-7563. If it’s after hours, fill out the form below. We’ll get right back to you!
The post NICE AND EASY: Can you cascade a SWM-30? appeared first on The Solid Signal Blog.
Continue reading...
