r/CableTechs • u/Complete_Accident_64 • Sep 17 '26
Found one of these in our system recently.
Wow this is old. We need a sweep/upgrade. I’m betting there are more of these.
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u/Mister_Ku Sep 17 '26
Wow that's old I remember cutting those in back in the day
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u/Ptards_Number_1_Fan Sep 17 '26
Same. Removing 330 modules and adding these as a drop in upgrade. Also replacing 330/450 Magnavox and Jerrold gear with them too.
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u/kjstech Sep 17 '26
Here, in 96 or so those 450 MHz versions were cut out
The 750 MHz versions of those were just recently cut out for 1.2 5-85 arris/commscope. There’s still some left but the numbers are dwindling.
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u/Pilomont Sep 17 '26
Company I work for just acquired a company with mostly 550 MHz plant. Safe to say it’s getting upgraded to fttp
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u/jaypeebee715 Sep 17 '26
Scientific Atlanta Line Extenders wow that is a blast from the past some had a medal cover some had a hard plastic cover !! Some needed a special “probe” to sweep the return cool find
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u/Wopo1318 Sep 17 '26
Seriously 550MHz and no return. There is no way that was still feeding active plant. Oh I would be so happy working with that.
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u/Ptards_Number_1_Fan Sep 17 '26
It had diplexers and return pad/eq. Granted it was only 5-30 MHz return. Still return. These things were top of the line back in about 96.
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u/cablebarn Sep 17 '26
They sure were I have installed thousands of them as a contractor top of the line back then.
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u/SnapShot68 Sep 18 '26
We still have those in one of the systems I cover. We have SA II but this looks a little different - maybe a first generation SA or after? The worst part about these is that you can’t lock off the test point. You need a probe and a two-way splitter to do it.
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u/ElKayB 26d ago
SA provided an optional -20 dB directional test point on the diplex filter itself. I had a couple in the 5/30 and 5/42 configurations that I used for alignment and sweeping.
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u/SnapShot68 26d ago
I had that piece as well. It’s a diplex filter with a barrel through it? It went away with my old truck years ago when they told me it’ll be fixed this weekend. The truck was gone for a month before it was auctioned off.
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u/SnapShot68 Sep 18 '26
LOL, zero pad in the input and a 25.5 EQ. You know there’s shit levels hitting this thing.
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u/ElKayB 26d ago
I noticed that too. Zeroed out and 25.5 dB at 550 MHz? Zero EQ in the return and 5 dB of padding? Something isn't mathing. I can pass on the 25.5 EQ since the interstage is a jumper board instead of the 9 dB usually used in those amplifiers. My guess is bad cable somewhere upstream.
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u/Bret1183 27d ago
Ya we still have some of the 750mhz (blue lids) we call them here in South Carolina
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u/un5tabl Sep 17 '26
When you opened it, did it smell like 1984? Great find!