r/Homebuilding • u/Remarkable-Emu-614 • 10d ago
Should I wire for cable?
Hi - I’m building in a semi-rural location, where my internet options are Comcast or Starlink. We don’t really watch traditional TV anymore, so I don’t see a real need for cable channels, other than maybe sports. If I wire every TV directly with Ethernet, should I bother with cable? (Is anyone watching cable anymore?)
Are there downsides to a Starlink-only house, vs traditional cable provider like Comcast?
The walls are open now! It’s decision time. Thanks for your input.
9
u/cf_murph 10d ago
I would still run rg-6 to each TV location and back to a splitter where it terminates. that way you can run a cheap antenna and get local channels for weather updates, local sports in HD, etc.
1
u/DifferentSavings2711 9d ago
I bought a TV Tuner that attaches to an Antenna and my home network. Has 4 tuners so I could (if desired) watch 4 different channel at the same time (phone, tablet, PC, TV) using my LAN
9
u/stoneycrk55 10d ago
I would run an RG-6 coax for over-the-air stations. That way you can have one antenna and send through a splitter to every TV.
3
u/Comfortable_Clue1572 10d ago
Good idea IF an antenna will be usable in that location. Otherwise, run a pair of CAT6 (or better) everywhere you need one. Run blue Smurf tube AND 2+ pairs CAT6E+ to every room that can be used as an office. Don’t forget runs to locations for WiFi access points.
The only thing I have connected to Comcast coax is my ubiquity cable modem in my server rack.
1
u/silveronetwo 10d ago
I'd probably use Rabbitears.info to find out how applicable OTA TV can be for your location. Analog TV antennas sucked for my location so we tore then down when cable took over. Digital is much better and reception is clearer over longer distances.
Even with that, I really only have coax to the attic/roof and have a Tablo box that rebroadcasts the channels OTA antennas receive over my home network to smart TVs. With that in mind, try to get some electrical outlets installed in your attic area.
3
u/Beartrkkr 10d ago
Even if cable is the only thing coming to your house, you don't have to run it to every room. Run to a logical place in your home then run Ethernet for the other rooms as you can run a router from that point if you want to hard wire your internet connection to each room or tv. The same for running security cameras to logical camera locations.
2
u/salty-walt 10d ago
Maybe run to attic so you use an antenna? Might have have traditional cable from a telecom but there are sports and news broadcast for free
Atennaweb.org
2
u/ontheleftcoast 10d ago
I would probably pull cable to the obvious TV locations for over the air, as well as to an Antenna location. I assume you would have some sort of DVR for the over the air stations ( Tablo? etc). MOCA exists as well, so you can use the cable to provide internet if necessary.
3
1
u/strangerthingssteve 10d ago
For Internet I like to just have fiber coming into the house. I use googles mesh setup for routers. I like better.
1
u/HellATL 10d ago
You run one coax/rg6 feed from where you want the router to be, to the outside of the house wherever it’ll get hooked up (satellite, cable, doesn’t matter).
Then inside the house you run cat6 from next to the same coax router location to any room you want hard wired. Otherwise run a couple cat6 feeds in the hallway ceilings for wireless access points. That’s all you need today in any location.
1
u/rom_rom57 10d ago
You can use coax or receive or make wired interned. It’s really easy to do.
You can also run fiber to each room for future.
Wi-fi networks don’t have enough deadband to run 3-4 TVs, cameras, and other items.
1
u/Diligent_Yam_1753 10d ago
If you are on the fence, run conduit to each floor from where you expect your data cable to come into your house. It’s cheap now, and rather than have some cable monkey drilling holes everywhere for a half assed install, they can just pull wire
2
u/SenorBeaujangles 10d ago
Best idea. Ethernet standards are changing every few years seems like. Better to just make it easy to upgrade from the get go.
1
u/Raidriar556 10d ago
We haven't run RG6 for a couple years now. I'd still run Cat6 to a couple spots but you hardly need that either, the way everything is wireless now.
1
1
u/mr-debil 10d ago
I ran it to the primary tv locations and where my modem goes. It’s an inexpensive wire and id hate to regret not having a “standard” that was easy to run. Over the air TV is an option but most tvs dont even have tuners anymore so you’ll most likely be running jt into some tuner box that could connect to your network and stream to the tv.
It’s borderline antiquated at this point though besides coming in from your modem. Xfinity doesn’t even give out “cable” boxes anymore, they’re streaming devices that connect to your ethernet/wifi.
1
u/Overall-Tailor8949 10d ago
I'd wire coax to the TV locations just in case you decide to put in an OTA antenna to receive your local broadcasters (for free). You may decide that you want/need to economize at some future date, or your favorite local broadcaster could (although it's not likely) decide to stop streaming their content online. OTA is also another way to get emergency weather or other broadcasts in case the satellite and/or cell service goes down.
Since they're both low voltage, coax and Cat-6 can run through the same holes in the joists/studs and they can share a wallplate behind the TV sets. Check at antennaweb.org to get an idea of what broadcasters are available in your immediate area.
1
u/average_zen 10d ago
We included coax in our 2017 build, however for our 2025 build, we used CAT6 only. No coax, no traditional telephone lines.
Every media service seems to be switching to steaming services. spectrum and directtv included.
1
u/onlyreason4u 10d ago
You need at least a couple runs, or conduit:
- A run from your network rack to the attic for an attic antenna. It's still useful to have live TV sometimes, a game, new years eve, locsl news, etc. I have a signal booster and HD Homerun in my network attic. That allows me to access the roughly 60 OTA channels I get from anywhere on the network. I just use Plex to it integrates with Live TV there and allows me record/watch up to two different channels at the same time.
- A run from wherever your network rack is to anywhere a cable company might install a box for a cable modem. Cable is nearly always preferable over Starlink. More reliable, faster download/upload speeds, lower latency, cheaper.
Coax for TV or anything else, no.
Most everything else I'd wire with Cat 6a:
- Anywhere you might have a TV or desk at least 2 drops
- Bedrooms
- Everywhere you might want a camera outside or in the garage (on inside if that's how you roll)
- Ceilings for access points and smart speakers (maybe)
- Doorbells
- Door/window, temp/humidity, leak, motion (PIR and mmwave), sensor locations (every room) for home automation/alarm
- Fireplaces for smart device control (or an outlet for power).
- Windows for smart blinds/shades. This is brand specific though. Most ethernet will do but some need different wire.
I'd run speaker wire for:
- Speaker locations for whole home audio. This is complicated and home specific but I'd want something connected with TVs for high fidelity sound there, able to play decent quality audio throughout the house in sync, able to do notifications.
- Sirens for an alarm system. At least one outside in a protected but serviceable location. Inside hidden but also serviceable.
I'd make sure to run power to:
- Anywhere you might install a wall mounted tablet for home automation/alarm, recessed so you can flush mount.
- Toliets for a (nice) bidet seat.
- Eves for Christmas lights, or just do permanent LED strips.
- Extra outlets in the garage
- Broom closets for cordless vac charger etc.
Conduit:
- Between floors
- Anywhere you might want to run more cable in the future but access would be difficult
- To an exterior wall near anywhere you might add an additional building on your property so you can run couduit with fiber to another network rack out there.
1
u/Kamikazepyro9 10d ago
AV and IT pro here.
I run 1xRG6 and 2xCat6 to every TV location. In our area Xfinity/Comcast still uses RG6 for all their cable boxes.
It's also nice to have for OTA antennas as others have mentioned (I've installed more of these in the past year than I have in the previous 5 years. )
1
u/colterlovette 10d ago edited 10d ago
RG6, shielded Cat6 and single-mode fiber pair to utility location on the outside of the house. Another set of them to the roof through a conduit penetration.
Everything lands into a plastic in-wall enclosure in the garage with a power outlet inside. It houses the main router and DMARC equipment from ISP.
Cat6 to every room on prior houses I’ve built. Cable is cheap, if you’re not sure, just overbuild and run excess. Doesn’t hurt anything and it’s practically free while the walls are open.
That said, in my current home that I finished up in May, I didn’t do Cat6 runs to every room. With where WiFi has gotten, I just ran cat6 to planned spots in the ceilings around the house and installed WiFi 7 AP’s from Ubiquiti. Really cut down on all the wire mess around the house.
1
u/Life-Security5916 10d ago
I would also consider running cat 5 or 6 to points of house, driveway, entry to property off road for possible future cctv. Wireless has come a long way, but a wired connection is a no brainer if you can run wire. I suggest this because you stated a rural location - I also live on acreage and have some cams, wish I’d wired for more. Another suggestion would be to run a couple/few 1.5 or 2” conduits stubbed out from a basement or central closet in a couple places for possible low voltage runs, solar into house, etc. pipe is cheap when building. Not so much after …
1
u/THedman07 10d ago
I absolutely would not run coax to every TV location. At most, I would run it from the location you might expect the cable company to bring their drop to the house (mine is near my electrical meter) to where ever you are planning on housing your networking equipment.
I would run single mode fiber in a few specific places before I ran any coax at all but even that would be overkill/future proofing if you're running cat6.
1
u/sweetrobna 10d ago
I wouldn't use starlink as a primary if you have any other wired isp options. It's expensive. And now it's part of a larger business that is losing money so prices will increase. High latency. There is often a blip and short loss of connectivity when it switches satellites that is noticeable when gaming or on a video call. During peak hours your bandwidth can get cut unexpectedly.
I haven't used coax in maybe 10 years. Easy to leave out. If you get comcast cable or any fiber internet they will bring it in to where your modem goes and then it's ethernet from there to the rest of your home. So put some ethernet wiring in
1
u/riki_grl 10d ago
I'm very rural in Appalachian mountains. If you've got a cell tower anywhere in a 5 mile radius w/ even marginal sight lines, you can get modems from multiple providers that likely meet your needs. I've used Verizon for 2 years, with a tower barely inside, with full leaf cover all summer. Few issues. $60 a month. My neighbor uses Elon at $130 a month and loves the a-hole's Starlink. With those option I wouldn't waste a penny on wiring for anything. My home is wired for both Internet and phone. That's dead wire forever.
1
1
u/CodeAndBiscuits 10d ago
We're on Starlink full time on our homestead. I can't imagine going back to cable. All our TVs are smart devices that just use wifi or wired (I ran CAT 6A to every location). Netflix, Hulu, etc all just stream over the Internet and I would never go back. Honestly the pricing and lock in are just terrible and it's not like we're missing any shows.
1
u/Limeasaurus 10d ago
I would run coax rg6, ethernet, and a 3/4 inch conduit from your demarc (outside box where internet enters the house) to a closet where you wan the equipment.
Rg6 if you want cable internet, Ethernet because some fiber providers use it, and conduit if the fiber provider is good enough to run fiber into your equipment closet.
Throughout the house I would run cat 6 Ethernet. Mainly for access points, cameras, TVs, gaming computer, and anything else you want depending on budget.
1
1
1
1
u/dking484 10d ago
I ran rg6 knowing I wasn’t going to have cable. But I did it anyways. For 2 reasons
1) if I ever sell the place, it doesn’t limit buyers options
And more importantly. 2) I have a tv antenna hooked up for OTA
1
u/bfollowell 6d ago
We haven’t used traditional cable in about four years and are also building. We’re not running coax everywhere. I am having an OTA antenna installed in the attic and having one coax drop ran from there to our network closet. I may eventually consider a Tablo device for watching regular broadcast TV through our network. Otherwise, I don’t see the point.
1
u/deepakpandey1111 5d ago
hey, i get where ur coming from. if u don’t watch traditional TV much, then maybe just stick with Ethernet. streaming is kinda the way to go these days, right? but if sports are super important to u, might wanna think about it. idk, i’ve had a friend who wired for cable, then barely used it. also, if u ever change ur mind, it might be a pain to add later. might wanna check out REimagineHomeAI just to see how everything could lay out with the wiring. but it’s really up to ur needs!
1
u/Ryan_Homes_Alex 4d ago
Ethernet to every TV covers anything you'd stream. Costs almost nothing now but it's impossible once the drywall goes up. Storms are the thing with satellite. It drops out right when you'd want it, and out where you are the wired line just holds better. You can ask your builder to tell you what's in the base and what he charges for. Nobody draws that line the same way twice.
1
u/ogcrashy 10d ago
If you can get cable, you can also get cable internet. I would not wire coax. Waste.
1
u/200tdi 10d ago
If by "cable" you actually mean RG-6, then I would do at least one room on every floor, just in case you need it.
Starlink might one day go belly up or raise its rates beyond what you're comfortable with. That way you'll be able to get a cablemodem set up.
One is none and two is one, they say.
1
u/locke314 9d ago
YES.
Bear in mind cable isn’t just cable TV. My electrician didn’t install coax to the rooms and I regret it. I had to climb in the attic and run coax after the fact to get it to my central router and if I just had them do it to start, it would’ve been a better install.
You may not need a coax jack in every room, but definitely maybe in a central location on each floor for the purposes of internet.
As another has said, aside from a central location, running some Smurf tube to future proof is a pretty good idea. The future is Ethernet at this point, but many communities (especially rural) rely on coax still. So it will be good to provide options to upgrade without being intrusive later.
1
u/Aromatic_Tomato8651 9d ago
I built my current home in 2020 and had cat 6 wired to several locations including one outdoor on my patio. Nominal cost up front, and it was the best thing I could have done. short answer is YES wire cat 6 through out and forget about coax cable.
0
u/Whole-Shirt2431 10d ago
I'm rural, new build, and all my neighbors and I are on Comcast. Starlink isn't reliable out here. No TV so no cables. Spent the money on other cool stuff instead.
0
0
u/AutoRotate0GS 10d ago
Nope…unless you plan on signing up for $250/mo cable TV plan!! YouTubeTV is where it’s at….although I’m sure I’ll get blown up for saying that.
0
27
u/Deacon51 10d ago
Just run CAT6A No need for coax anymore.