What is this? Some kind of tv aerial or cable?

Brain

Brain

Brain

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21 Oct 2002
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Looking round my flat for a tv aerial socket I cannot find one. So if I ever want to watch tv I have to use a portable aerial which is no fun at all.

However I did find this:

tvbox.jpg



but what is it? Never seen one of these before. Its old by the looks of it but what does it do? The only thing I can think of is that it maybe used to be a box for cable tv? Is there any way I can use this to get a signal?
 
Rediffusion were one of the first companies to suppy cable TV yonks ago & that switch used to select the TV & radio channels, the cables won't be active now though obviously:)
 
As silly as it sounds see if you can find the output, then whack your TV on autotune, it might still have analogue feeds into it.

I only say this as a few years ago my gran used to get a fair few analogue cable channels through an old old rediffusion outlet which she hadent been subscribed to for years.
 
Blimey, that takes me back!

Is is indeed an old cable television channel selector switch, we used to have one In the house where we lived when i was born (1981). However there should still be an aerial socket somewhere, the switch box would be pretty useless without one.

This was in Hastings, where apparently in those days it was the only option for TV of any type whatsoever!
 
Jez said:
As silly as it sounds see if you can find the output, then whack your TV on autotune, it might still have analogue feeds into it.
Click to expand...
I'll go with that, it'll probably be at the bottom of the circuit somewhere, seeing as there's a cable outlet at the bottom of the box.
 
I cannot find a socket anywhere in the flat. I thought the cable might have come out of this box originally?
 
I know I know - me me me.

As above - its Redifusion cable.

A B C D were the first four channels and the rest were radio channels.
During the 80's a company called Cablevision took it over and the first four were used. There was a sports channel (showed bullfighting on a friday), music channel and day to day channel. The 4th was a film channel which you paid extra for. You could easily bypass this by climbing up ladders, opening the box under the guttering and re-connecting the wire. I got caught and they put a seal on my box.
 
Ye olde Redifusion cable box, none of the ones around here are worth trying, ****** nicked the copper wire years ago :p
 
Here are a couple more pics:

tvbox_inside_closeup1.jpg



tvbox_inside_closeup2.jpg



Where should I look to try wiring this up to a tv aerial...is it possible? I would like to see if I can get any terrestrial signal though it.
 
Brain said:
Where should I look to try wiring this up to a tv aerial...is it possible? I would like to see if I can get any terrestrial signal though it.
Click to expand...

You won't do it.
As I said above - the box goes up to a black rectangular box under your guttering and it has the exact same connections in that. The cable from that goes all up and down the street under peoples guttering and some houses were paid rent to have amplifiers put on their walls. The cable ends up at the end of the street where it runs under the ground.
It is dead. It is an ex working cable. It is no more. You will get squat diddly.
 
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