Question Need some advice on ethernet and coax

[Brian76]

Now that we're all staying at home I've run into some lagging when multiple people are streaming on my wifi network. I think my best solution is going to be to wire in some of the connections. So here's my challenge. I don't want to tear into my walls and ceilings to pull Cat5/6. I have an OnQ panel with coax connections to nearly each room(I don't use those cables) and a measly 3 ethernet rj45 cables.
My question is, could I run ethernet to that panel, connect it to a hub or switch and then put adapters on the coax cables to plug them into the same hub/switch? I believe that I would also need an adapter on the other end of the coax to plug into the rj45 plug on the smart tv or streaming device.
If you know more about this than me could you please let me know if this would work and what parts I would need?

I was thinking these adapters would work with an adapter for the BNC to male:
https://www.amazon.com/Passive-Exte...94469&sprefix=coax+to+etherne,aps,174&sr=8-14

And a hub like this:
https://www.amazon.com/Ethernet-Spl...1&keywords=ethernet+hub&qid=1588694721&sr=8-3

 

[USAFRet]

For converting ethernet (RJ-45) to coax and then back out to ethernet (RJ-45), you use MOCA adapters.
Such as this:
https://www.amazon.com/Actiontec-Bonded-Ethernet-Adapter-ECB6200K02/dp/B013J7O3X0

 

[Brian76]

Thanks for the reply .

If I use those, would I need one pair for each coax connection? I'm picturing from the hub I would need a short Cat5 to the Moca adapter then the coax into the same adapter and then at the other end of each coax cable I'd need another adapter.

If that's correct then this is gonna get pricey really quickly. Is there a more economical option I haven't thought of?

 

[USAFRet]

You need one to connect to the router.
Then another one in each location you want the ethernet in.
Not pairs all over.

The one next to the router injects the signal into the coax wiring. The others extract it out to an ethernet signal.

This is assuming that all the coax is connected up.

 

[Brian76]

Does anyone have a cheaper suggestion for me?

 

[SamirD]

Does anyone have a cheaper suggestion for me?

Moca is a solid solution for this and is pretty much the only one. You can only get 10Mbps over coax just using passive adapters and that's only in theory too.

This is why wiring for ethernet is the best solution because if you have a lot of points you want wired, moca does add up in cost.

Although you should check out the gocoax brand as they are cheaper and faster at 2.5Gbps of backbone bandwidth.

 

[BlueCat57]

At $170 per MOCA adapter pair, I'd tear into my walls. A professional might cost about that per ethernet run.

To some degree coax is dead, so you might be able to use the coax to pull ethernet cable if the coax isn't stapled to the studs internally.

Measure a thousand times and cut once. Map out your plan. Sleep on it. Map it again. Ask the others where they will use their computers in 6 months. A year. Then map again. I've been thinking about wiring up our upstairs for several years and things keep changing so I haven't done it yet. Right now I'm just trying to figure out where to find a 3" long ethernet cable to connect wall plates from one room to the other through the wall. Weird that they don't make those. Maybe I'm using the wrong terms. That's how I found your post. Note: Technically outlets shouldn't run directly through a wall from one room to another for noise and fire safety reasons. Done all the time, but technically, no.

Any way you look at it SPEED costs MONEY.

I bought an older MOCA adapter set but haven't gotten around to installing and testing it. My usage has shifted since the wonderful Chinese Virus arrived in our country. I now have spouse and child at home and have binge-watched nearly every show worth watching (I have high standards and only do comedy.) So, I no longer want to use the MOCA adapters to connect from upstairs to downstairs.

If you are on one level and have a crawl space or easily accessible attic the cost of ethernet might not be that bad. The question is how ugly an installation can you stand? If really ugly is OK, holes through the floor and ceiling would be quick and dirty. It doesn't look that hard to DIY, but a professional will knock it out in a day or two. The trick will be finding one that will do the work within a reasonable timeframe. Those that are working around here are scheduled out weeks to months because of the volume of work. Maybe you could learn a new skill and start your own company.

 

[SamirD]

Not sure where you found your mocas that expensive. I've found whole sets of 3 for less than that. And gocoax has the 2.5Gbps moca units for less than that too.

Easiest way to plan and not have any issues--put an ethernet jack on each wall and a ceiling outlet of every room--that should give you a jack everywhere you could possibly need one. But I've yet to see any place wired up like this. (The closest was probably certain rooms in my parents house that have dual ethernet jacks on opposing walls.)

The shortest ethernet cable I've found ready made is 6", and should do the job:
https://www.monoprice.com/product?p...MIt7qS3tHB7AIVgo7ICh3a8wnOEAQYAyABEgIkg_D_BwE

If you have moca 2.0 bonded adapters, they're pretty much full speed ethernet. That's one of the best ways to traverse floors without much work.

And there are very few 'professionals' when it comes to ethernet wiring as many are a much of electrical yahoos that think that wiring a phone jack makes them qualified for cat6a.

 

[USAFRet]

My MOCA device was free from the FiOS installer.
Because I did most of the initial work, and because I'm a nice guy...

 

[Brian76]

thanks for responding. I found a couple moca devices on eBay for $20 each and ran them via coax through my onQ panel. It’s not super fast but I’m getting 60mb/s at each node and that’s plenty fast for a 4K stream.

At $170 per MOCA adapter pair, I'd tear into my walls. A professional might cost about that per ethernet run.

To some degree coax is dead, so you might be able to use the coax to pull ethernet cable if the coax isn't stapled to the studs internally.

Measure a thousand times and cut once. Map out your plan. Sleep on it. Map it again. Ask the others where they will use their computers in 6 months. A year. Then map again. I've been thinking about wiring up our upstairs for several years and things keep changing so I haven't done it yet. Right now I'm just trying to figure out where to find a 3" long ethernet cable to connect wall plates from one room to the other through the wall. Weird that they don't make those. Maybe I'm using the wrong terms. That's how I found your post. Note: Technically outlets shouldn't run directly through a wall from one room to another for noise and fire safety reasons. Done all the time, but technically, no.

Any way you look at it SPEED costs MONEY.

I bought an older MOCA adapter set but haven't gotten around to installing and testing it. My usage has shifted since the wonderful Chinese Virus arrived in our country. I now have spouse and child at home and have binge-watched nearly every show worth watching (I have high standards and only do comedy.) So, I no longer want to use the MOCA adapters to connect from upstairs to downstairs.

If you are on one level and have a crawl space or easily accessible attic the cost of ethernet might not be that bad. The question is how ugly an installation can you stand? If really ugly is OK, holes through the floor and ceiling would be quick and dirty. It doesn't look that hard to DIY, but a professional will knock it out in a day or two. The trick will be finding one that will do the work within a reasonable timeframe. Those that are working around here are scheduled out weeks to months because of the volume of work. Maybe you could learn a new skill and start your own company.

 

[SamirD]

thanks for responding. I found a couple moca devices on eBay for $20 each and ran them via coax through my onQ panel. It’s not super fast but I’m getting 60mb/s at each node and that’s plenty fast for a 4K stream.

Nice. If you ever need to upgrade the speed, you can get the gocoax 2.5Gbps ones for like $55/ea new.

 

[BlueCat57]

Nice. If you ever need to upgrade the speed, you can get the gocoax 2.5Gbps ones for like $55/ea new.

Thanks for the tip. You still need a PAIR (ie 2) so the cost is $110 per coax run. That is better than the $170. Remember too that Black Friday is coming and some stores are already offering deals.

 

[SamirD]

Thanks for the tip. You still need a PAIR (ie 2) so the cost is $110 per coax run. That is better than the $170. Remember too that Black Friday is coming and some stores are already offering deals.

Yep, but that's also for a 2.5Gbps pipe. If you look for used moca 2.0 units you can find them cheap too. I got my actiontec set for $70 for the pair.

 

[BlueCat57]

Yep, but that's also for a 2.5Gbps pipe. If you look for used moca 2.0 units you can find them cheap too. I got my actiontec set for $70 for the pair.

In some areas of computing, I've never really understood the need for speed.

You have to perform something that saves you 30 seconds a Million times to save ONE year's worth of time.

I understand that in competitive gaming you need speed, but for the normal, average user, you are unlikely to ever need a 2.5Gbps pipe for anything.
Then again, I'm still upgrading 4-year old systems in 7-year old cases using 10-year old power supplies.

And I still say that MacWrite is more word processor than 90% of users need and it fit on a 3.5" SINGLE-density floppy WITH the MacOS. OK, you actually needed a second floppy drive and disk to print anything but once the system went to double-density, a single floppy did the job.

Just some of my thoughts. You are welcome to offer your uses for the fastest hardware out there for non-gaming applications that everyday, normal, average users might use.

And I do understand this is off-topic, but since I doubt that there will be more than one more reply, I don't feel too guilty about that.

 

[USAFRet]

In some areas of computing, I've never really understood the need for speed.

You have to perform something that saves you 30 seconds a Million times to save ONE year's worth of time.

I understand that in competitive gaming you need speed, but for the normal, average user, you are unlikely to ever need a 2.5Gbps pipe for anything.
Then again, I'm still upgrading 4-year old systems in 7-year old cases using 10-year old power supplies.

And I still say that MacWrite is more word processor than 90% of users need and it fit on a 3.5" SINGLE-density floppy WITH the MacOS. OK, you actually needed a second floppy drive and disk to print anything but once the system went to double-density, a single floppy did the job.

Just some of my thoughts. You are welcome to offer your uses for the fastest hardware out there for non-gaming applications that everyday, normal, average users might use.

And I do understand this is off-topic, but since I doubt that there will be more than one more reply, I don't feel too guilty about that.

I do a lot of hobbyist level photography.
100 pics a day is completely within normal bounds.

Previous system:
i5-3570k, 16GB RAM

Current system:
i7-4790k, 32GB RAM

All solid state drives in both cases.

Importing 100 pics into Adobe Lightroom was literally 50% faster with the upgraded 4790k system. Yes, I timed it before and after.

 

[gggplaya]

Now that we're all staying at home I've run into some lagging when multiple people are streaming on my wifi network. I think my best solution is going to be to wire in some of the connections. So here's my challenge. I don't want to tear into my walls and ceilings to pull Cat5/6. I have an OnQ panel with coax connections to nearly each room(I don't use those cables) and a measly 3 ethernet rj45 cables.
My question is, could I run ethernet to that panel, connect it to a hub or switch and then put adapters on the coax cables to plug them into the same hub/switch? I believe that I would also need an adapter on the other end of the coax to plug into the rj45 plug on the smart tv or streaming device.
If you know more about this than me could you please let me know if this would work and what parts I would need?

I was thinking these adapters would work with an adapter for the BNC to male:
https://www.amazon.com/Passive-Extender-Ethernet-Transceiver-Connector/dp/B07GKHSPXR/ref=sr_1_14?crid=2A7G81IT0WT4B&dchild=1&keywords=coax+to+ethernet+adapter&qid=1588694469&sprefix=coax+to+etherne,aps,174&sr=8-14

And a hub like this:
https://www.amazon.com/Ethernet-Spl...1&keywords=ethernet+hub&qid=1588694721&sr=8-3

What's your ISP's internet plan for download and upload? When you say multiple people streaming, I assume zoom/skype/teams video conferencing? It might now be a wifi issue at all, but rather an upload bandwidth issue. You might just not have enough.

The only fair solution I could give is to use a router with FQ_codel. What router do you have?

 

[SamirD]

In some areas of computing, I've never really understood the need for speed.

You have to perform something that saves you 30 seconds a Million times to save ONE year's worth of time.

I understand that in competitive gaming you need speed, but for the normal, average user, you are unlikely to ever need a 2.5Gbps pipe for anything.
Then again, I'm still upgrading 4-year old systems in 7-year old cases using 10-year old power supplies.

And I still say that MacWrite is more word processor than 90% of users need and it fit on a 3.5" SINGLE-density floppy WITH the MacOS. OK, you actually needed a second floppy drive and disk to print anything but once the system went to double-density, a single floppy did the job.

Just some of my thoughts. You are welcome to offer your uses for the fastest hardware out there for non-gaming applications that everyday, normal, average users might use.

And I do understand this is off-topic, but since I doubt that there will be more than one more reply, I don't feel too guilty about that.

I'm also using some old stuff, some of it almost 20 years old at this point. But the one thing I've noticed is the more network bandwidth is has, the better it can 'breathe' with no restrictions on transfer speed.

I hear you! I still don't see the point of upgrading any word processor as they pretty much are doing the same thing they were on windows 3.1, even dos if all you need to do is type and save a letter--and all at a fraction of the storage space and memory requirements of today's behemoths. It would be one thing if all that bloat improved the core experience an order of magnitude, but it didn't.

Today's Internet access speeds exceed the original 10Mbps ethernet spec. You can have vpn tunnels between sites that even exceed these speeds. (And putting older devices on a lan and having it access stuff on the other side it was never built to is pretty neat.) But the acceleration is always more, moar, MOAR!! 16GB of ram?! I remember when 128MB was overkill like a nuclear bomb to swat a fly...

 

[BlueCat57]

I do a lot of hobbyist level photography.
100 pics a day is completely within normal bounds.

Previous system:
i5-3570k, 16GB RAM

Current system:
i7-4790k, 32GB RAM

All solid state drives in both cases.

Importing 100 pics into Adobe Lightroom was literally 50% faster with the upgraded 4790k system. Yes, I timed it before and after.

I'll buy that. I'm going to try and digitize and organization my photos, videos, and stuff so faster would be useful. Not sure what that speed is worth.
Is that an hour a day or just a few minutes. Is that 100 every day or once a week?

 

[USAFRet]

I'll buy that. I'm going to try and digitize and organization my photos, videos, and stuff so faster would be useful. Not sure what that speed is worth.
Is that an hour a day or just a few minutes. Is that 100 every day or once a week?

"worth" is all up to you.

That pic volume is a few times a week. Sometimes every day.

Next year sometime will be a whole new system.

If "speed" did not matter, we'd all still be on Pentium II 266MHz systems.
I have a couple of working laptops of that vintage in the stack out in the garage. I expect that same function with Lightroom, if it would run (and it won't), would take an hour or two, vs 5 minutes.

 

[SamirD]

I'll buy that. I'm going to try and digitize and organization my photos, videos, and stuff so faster would be useful. Not sure what that speed is worth.
Is that an hour a day or just a few minutes. Is that 100 every day or once a week?

This is going to be more storage intensive than anything so fast, large storage will be important. Once you get into it you'll know what you need. No need to buy it now since whatever you buy now will probably not be enough once you're in the middle of that task.

 

[BlueCat57]

This is going to be more storage intensive than anything so fast, large storage will be important. Once you get into it you'll know what you need. No need to buy it now since whatever you buy now will probably not be enough once you're in the middle of that task.

The need for speed was more about when I tried to "improve" them or work with the videos. I've done a little bit of that and get bored fast when I have to wait for something to happen.

 

[USAFRet]

The need for speed was more about when I tried to "improve" them or work with the videos. I've done a little bit of that and get bored fast when I have to wait for something to happen.

With that type of operation, just let it run in the background while you do something else.
Or let it run overnight.

 

[SamirD]

The need for speed was more about when I tried to "improve" them or work with the videos. I've done a little bit of that and get bored fast when I have to wait for something to happen.

So then you've got to pipeline the operation--have one setup to capture and another to remix.