Joseph Cornwall will present an introduction to MATV technology. MATV systems distribute signals such as broadcast TV, radio, satellite IF, and broadband data over coaxial cable. The presentation will cover what MATV is, the RF spectrum, coaxial cable, headend components such as amplifiers and filters, distributing signals, and balancing the system. Key aspects of MATV include using coaxial cable to distribute signals with much higher bandwidth than twisted pair, designing the system for unity gain to maintain consistent signal levels, and incorporating various source signals like broadcast, satellite, and locally modulated content.

1. Your Presenter Today is…
Joseph Cornwall, CTS, ISF-C, DSCE
Technology Evangelist
Email - jcornwall@lastar.com
Twitter - @JoeCornwall
LinkedIn - /in/josephcornwall
Today’s Presentation:
An Introduction and Overview of MATV Technology

2. Our Agenda…Our Agenda…

3. Our Agenda
• What Is MATV?
• Bandwidth And The RF
Spectrum
– What Does An MATV Installation
Distribute?
• Understanding Coaxial Cable
– The Basic MATV “Pipe”
• Head-End Building Blocks
– Amplification, Equalization
And Notch Filters
• Distributing The Signal
• Balancing An MATV Installation

4. What is MATV?
• Master Antenna Television
System
– A System By Which A Building Or
Zone Is Fed From A Common Set
Of Antennas
• MATV Systems Can Distribute
Many Different Signals
– RF Broadcast TV And Radio
– Locally Modulated Sources
– Satellite IF
– Bi-Directional Broadband Data
• Coax Provides From 370 To
1,000 Times More Capacity
Than Unshielded Twisted-Pair
(UTP)

5. Broadcast Spectrum – Off Air
• OTA (Over The Air) Broadcasts
Encompass “Channels” 2 Thru 51
– Channels 52 To 69 No Longer Operate Due
To The Transition To Digital TV
• In Most Regions, New Digital
Television Stations Are Placed On
UHF Or High-VHF Channels
– 7 To 13 And 14 To 51, Except 37
– VHF 2 To 6 Are Rarely Used Due To Impulse
Noise
– VHF /H Or Channels 7 To 13
Broadcast From 174 To 216 MHz
– UHF Channels 14 To 36 Broadcast
From 470 To 608 MHz
– UHF Channels 38 To 51 Broadcast
From 614 To 698 MHz
– In Comparison, FM Radio Broadcasts
From 87 To 108 MHz

6. Broadcast Spectrum - CATV
• Subband “T”
– Used By Cable Modems For Sending Upstream
Data To The Headend's CMTS (Cable Modem
Termination System)
• Cable Channels 2 Through 13 Operate On
The Same Frequencies As Broadcast
Television (The VHF Band)
• Cable Channels 14 To 22 (Mid Band)
Operate From 123 to 171 MHz
• Cable Channels 23 to 36 (Super Band)
Operate From 219 To 297 MHz
• Cable Channels 37 To 64 (Hyper Band)
Operate From 303 to 465 MHz
• Cable Channels 65 To 94 (Ultra Band)
Operate From 471 To 645 MHz
• Cable Channels 100 To 158 (Jumbo Band)
Operate From 651 To 999 MHz

7. Satellite Television
• C-Band TVRO Broadcasts From 4 To
8 GHz
• Ku-Band TVRO Broadcasts From 12
To 18 GHz
– DirecTV, Dish Network
• Satellite Signals Are “Folded” To A
Lower Frequency By The Low Noise
Block Amplifier (LNB) At The Receiving
Dish
– Superheterodyne A Wide Block Of Relatively
High Frequencies, Amplify And Convert Them
To Similar Signals Carried At A Much Lower
Frequency (Called Intermediate Frequency
Or IF
• Satellite IF Frequencies Operate From
950 To 1450 MHz
– Can Be Piggybacked In The Same Coaxial
Cable That Carries Lower-Frequency
Terrestrial Television From An Outdoor
Antenna

8. The Nature Of Coaxial Cable
• One Conductor Is Formed Into A
Tube And Encloses The Other
Conductor
– This Confines The Radio Waves
From The Central Conductor To The
Space Inside The Tube
• Dimensions And Spacing Of The
Conductors Must Be Uniform
• All Components Of A Coaxial
System Should Have The Same
Impedance
– Reduce Internal Reflections At
Connections Between Components
– Abrupt Change May Reflect Signal
Causing Standing Waves

9. Frequency Loss And Coax
• Cable Television Systems Consist Of UNITY GAIN Building Blocks
– Every Run Is Followed By An Amplifier With A Compensating Amount Of RF Gain And Equalization
• Capacitive Losses In Cable Reduce High Frequencies More Than Low Frequencies
– Low Pass Filter
– Compensation Requires Tilt Adjustment
– Head End Output Level Of +42 dBmV On Cable Channel 118 And A Level Of +35 dBmV On Channel 2

10. Types Of RF Coaxial Cable
RG-59u RG-6u RG-11u
Characteristic
Impedance 75Ω 75Ω 75Ω
Propagation
Velocity 0.66 0.75 0.66
Diameter 0.242 in 0.270in 0.412in
1GHz Loss @
100 Feet -8.09dB -6.54dB -4.23dB
1GHz Loss @
100 Meters -26.54dB -21.46dB -17.22dB
3GHz Loss @
100 Feet -14.29dB -11.45dB -7.8dB
3GHz Loss @
100 Meters -46.88dB -37.57dB -25.29dB
• RG-59/U
– Coaxial Cable With 20 AWG Center
Conductor And 75Ω Characteristic Impedance
– Used For Low-power Video And RF Signal
Connections At Short Distance , High-
Frequency Losses Are Too High To Allow Its
Use Over Longer Runs
• RG-6/U
– Coaxial Cables With An 18 AWG Center
Conductor And 75Ω Characteristic Impedance
– CATV Distribution Coax Typically Has A
Copper-Coated Steel Center Conductor And
A Combination Aluminum Foil/Aluminum
Braid Shield
• RG-11/U
– Coaxial Cable With A 14 AWG Center
Conductor And 75 Ω Characteristic
Impedance
– The Correct Choice For Runs Over 300 Feet

11. MATV System Parameters
• Measurements Are Done With A Signal Level Meter
– Determine If Levels Are Sufficient For Further Processing, Amplifying
And Distributing
– If Needed, Preamplifiers Should Be Used
• All Programs Should Have The Same Power Level
– Maximum Differences Between Signal Levels
• - 3dB For Neighboring Channels
• - 6dB (Within Any Band 60 MHz Wide)
• - 10dB (Within The Whole Spectrum)
– Minimum Isolation Between Two Receivers: -44 dB
• All Parameters Of Distributing Installation Should Be Kept
At 95% Stability
– As Ambient Temperatures Increase, So Does System Loss
• Gain Of The Antennas Used Shouldn't Change More
Than 0.5 dB Within 1 TV Channel

12. Thoughts On Antennae
• There’s No Such Thing As A
Digital HD Antenna!
– Now That The Spectrum Is
Compressed , Antennae Are Easier To
Select
• Most Suburban Or Urban
Installations Will Benefit From
Simple Vertically-Stacked Dipole
Designs
– Omni-Directional Reception Optimizes
Easy Installation In Areas With Low
Multipath Interference
• Yagi Antennae Offer The Highest
Gain
– Decreased Bandwidth And High
Directionality

13. Television Standards
• The Days Of Analog And NTSC Are
Over
• ATSC Is A Set Of Standards
Developed By The Advanced
Television Systems Committee For
Digital Television Transmission Over
Terrestrial, Cable, And Satellite
Networks
• Terrestrial (Local) Broadcasters Use
8VSB
– Sufficient To Carry Several Video And
Audio Programs And Metadata
• Cable Television Stations Use 256-
QAM

14. Amplification
• Signal Processors (Strip Amplifiers)
Are Single Channel Amplifiers
Designed To Receive A Single
Television Signal From An Antenna
And Control Its Output To A Steady
Level.
– Strip Amplifiers Do Not Alter The Input
Frequency Of The Received Television
Signal
• Broadband Amplifiers Boost Gain
For All Channels In The System
– Most Feature Tilt Compensation
– Broadband Amplifiers Also Boost System
Noise!

15. Isolation Amplifiers
• Used On The Antenna Or
Incoming Cable Feed To Process,
Amplify And Isolate It’s Signal
– Relatively Low Gain Designed Into
System Only To Compensate For Near
Zero dBmV sources
– Prevents The Antenna From Becoming
A Sink For System Power
• Not All Systems Benefit From A
System Isolation Transformer
– Simple Two To Four Input Head End
Designs With A Single Off-Air Local
Antenna Will Not Typically Siphon
Power From The System

16. Notch Filters And Modulation
• Modulators Take Video And Audio Signals
From Satellite Receivers, Video Servers Or
Cameras And Produce A Standard
Modulated Television Channel
– The Signal Output Level From A Modulator Is
Constant And Can Be As Much As +60 dBmV
– This Value Is 60 Decibels Above 1 mV As Measured
Across A 75 Ohm Source Impedance
– This Value Is 1 Volt Of RF Carrier At The Peak
Amplitude Of The Signal
• A Notch Filter Or Band-rejection Filter Is A
Filter That Passes Most Frequencies
Unaltered, But Attenuates Those In A
Specific Range To Very Low Levels
– Often Used To Remove OTA Broadcast From An
MATV System To Improve Performance Or Replace
Content

17. Signal Combiners
• In MATV RF Installations, Addition Is The
Same As Subtraction
– An RF Splitter Is Composed Of Two
Transformers That Approximately Split Signal
Power While Maintaining 75Ω Characteristic
Impedance
– A Splitter Used “Backwards” Is A Combiner
• Signals Being Combined Must Be Of Similar
Power Levels As Measured In dBmV
• Signals Being Combined MUST NOT Have The
Same Channel Embedded

18. Splitting The Signal
• RF Distribution Scheme Is Based
On 75 Ohm Terminated
Transmissions
– Transmitting Side Interfaces With 75Ω
Load On The Receive End To Provide
Maximum Signal Power Transfer
• Splitters
– MTransformers That Split The Power In
The Input Signal To Multiple Outputs,
Whileaintaining The 75 Ohm
Impedance
• Directional Couplers, aka Taps
– Asymmetrical Splitter Where “Through
“ Port Exhibits Minimal Loss And Each
“Drop” Exhibits Multi-Decibel Loss

19. Calculating System Gain
• MATV Is A Game Of Unity Gain
– The Secret Is To End Up With The
Same Power Level In Each Band
And That Power Level Should
Match The Incoming Broadcast
Feed
• There Are Two Sections Of Gain To
Be Considered:
– Locally Modulated And Mixed
Sources Must Be Gain Matched To
The Broadcast Feed So One Trunk
Contains All Programming To Be
Distributed At A Constant Power
Level Across All Bands
– The Trunk/Zone/Room Delivery
Devices Must Have All Insertion
Losses Compensated

20. Calculating System Gain – Source Side
RF Amp
Antenna
Output to
Head End
Source 2
Source 1
Mod 2
Mod 1
100’
100’
Combiner
?

21. Calculating System Gain - Source Side
• Incoming Feed Measures +5dBmV
– FCC Cable Rules 76.605 Requires A Minimum Signal
Level Of 1 mV Across 75 Ohms, AKA 0dBmV
• Locally Modulated Sources Are Located In A Rack
100-Feet From RF Head End
– Output Of ATSC 8VSB RF Modulator # 1 Measures
+25dBmV
– Output Of ATSC 8VSB RF Modulator # 2 Measures
+25dBmV
• Modulators #1 & #2 Combined Through 3-Port
Combiner With -4dB Signal Loss Per Port
• +25dB + ( -6.5dB Cable Loss) + (-4dB Combiner
Loss) = +14.5dB When Signal Arrives At Head End
• +14.5dB Modulated Signal – 5dB Broadcast Feed
= +10dB Difference
• Use A 10dB Broadband Isolation Amplifier To
Achieve Balanced RF Sources At Head End
Combiner
+10dbRF Amp
Antenna
Output to
Head End
Source 2
Source 1
Mod 2
Mod 1
100’
100’
+25db
+25db
-6.5db
-6.5db
-4db
-4db
+5db

22. Calculating System Gain – Drop Side
Output of
Combiner
Distribution Amp
4-port
Trunk
Splitter
?
4-Port
Tap
4-Port
Tap50’
50’
4-Port
Tap
4-Port
Tap
50’
50’ 4-Port
Tap
50’4-Port
Tap
50’ 4-Port
Tap
50’4-Port
Tap

23. The Drop Side
• Now We Need To See The “Other” Side Of The Equation
– How Much Amplification Do We Need To Service All Displays?
• 4 Trunks Serve 4 Discreet Areas Of The Project Through A 4-Port
Splitter
– Assume Trunks Are All Identical For This Exercise
– 4-Port Splitter Has Insertion Loss Of -8dB Per Trunk
• Each Trunk Is 100-Feet With Two 4-Port Taps Spread Equally
– At 50-Foot And 100-Foot Point
– Each Tap Has An Insertion Loss Of 2dB
– Each Tap Port Is -12dB
• For Proper Calculations The Starting Signal Levels And Losses Must Be
Calculated At Several Frequencies To Determine Tilt Compensation
– For This Exercise We Will Assume A Tilt Of -6dB Across The Specified
Bandwidth

24. Calculating Gain
Of The Distribution Amplifier…
• Input Feed To Distribution Amplifier Is +11dB
• 4-Port Trunk Splitter Loss Is -8dB
• 50-Foot Cable Loss Is -3dB
• Unidirectional Coupler (Tap) Insertion Loss Is -2dB
• Second 50-Foot Cable Run Loss Is -3dB
• Unidirectional Coupler (Tap) Insertion Loss Is -2dB
• Tap-to-Port Loss Is -12dB
• Tilt Loss Is -6dB
• +11dB -8dB-3dB-2dB-3dB-2dB-12dB-6dB = -25dB
• Select A +25dB RF Broadband Amplifier To Provide +0dBmV Per Display
Drop

25. The Drop Side
50’
4-Port
Tap
4-Port
Tap
50’
50’
4-Port
Tap
50’4-Port
Tap
50’ 4-Port
Tap
50’4-Port
Tap
Output of
Combiner
Distribution Amp
4-port
Trunk
Splitter
+25dB
4-Port
Tap
4-Port
Tap
50’
75Ω
75Ω
75Ω
75Ω
-2dB-2dB
-2dB -2dB
-2dB -2dB
-2dB -2dB
-12dB -12dB
-12dB -12dB
-12dB -12dB
-12dB -12dB
-8dB
-8dB
-8dB
-8dB
-3dB
-3dB
-3dB
-3dB

26. In Conclusion…
• MATV Installations Offer Significant
Value In Distribution Of Cable And
Broadcast Video Sources Across
Multiple Displays And Devices In Any
Project From Small To Large Scale
• Coaxial Cable Offers Significantly
More Bandwidth Than Unshielded
Twisted Pair Making MATV
Installations A Cost-Effective And High
Performance Alternative To Distributing
Content Over An IT Network
– Ideal For Digital Signage (DOOH)
Installations
• MATV Systems Are Designed As A
Zero Loss (Unity Gain) Project Where
Signal Levels Are Not Allowed To Drop
Below 0dBmV At Any Point
• Success In MATV Installation Is Only
Ensured When You Know The Quality Of
The Starting Signal And Accurately
Account For All Insertion Loss, Slope Loss
And Drop Loss Across The Distribution
Network
• Satellite RF Signals Are Easily Incorporated
Into MATV Systems, Allowing For
Convenient Placement Of TVRO Set-Top
Boxes
• The Quality Of An MATV Installation
Depends On The Quality And Condition Of
The Coaxial Cable Used In The Project
• MATV Systems Are Flexible, High-
Performance, Cost Effective And
Adaptable!

27. Questions ?Questions ?

28. Thank You!Thank You!