Fiber optic to coax

[laterose]

So this may be a dumb question but I am moving into a new house that has fiber optic to deliver internet, cable tv, and phone from a county cable company and the cable configuration doesn't make sense to me. I am only using their service for internet. Currently they deliver to the house via fiber optic cable (not sure the type at this time), it goes to a converter box and enters the house at a coax cable that goes to a splitter to all the rooms via coax. I only need internet in the office which is only 1 room over from the cable entry/splitter (in the storage room). The internet speed is only 20 Mb x 10 Mb but they boost to well over 40 at times just to get the delivery over the coax line. I am incredibly confused why a system would operate this way. Is there a way to run fiber or better cables into the house to get the direct rather than dampened feed? I know there are not really fiber optic modems but I am not sure if what options I have.

Any advice/help? Or is coax the best that can be done? (I am on a pretty basic level so please keep the terms decently basic)

 

[IntelFanboy417]

I think many Fiber Optic networks are set up like this. Even though that the signal is coming to your house via coax, I'm assuming that since the large wire outside is fiber and thats where you get the speed. I see what you mean about having a direct line rather then a dampened line and I agree, however Im guessing that its probably hard to run fiber to the house. You would have to put up all new wires, and god know what type of converter modem you would need. I dont know if I helped at all but in conclusion I dont think its just you I think many networks are set up this way.

 

[KSoD]

Not to mention the company wouldnt want you to have an free and clear connection to the fiber network. I am guessing you only pay for a 20Mb connection and getting anything more would be out of your package range. It is for that reason that they do this, so they can limit what you are getting for the package you are paying for. To get more, you pay more. Instead of a direct connect that gets you a much larger connection speed.

 

[Lexluethar]

Fiber can travel MUCH MUCH further than Coax cable. Some fiber can go from 10 to 40km in distance before any data loss. Coax can only travel a few hundred feet.

That reason alone is why you see fiber installed into certain areas, then branched off into coax cable and other media before reaching your house.

There are some companies that are now installing fiber into houses though. I live in Kansas City and Google Fiber has been installed in some portions of the city. I mean true fiber not just 'fiber speeds.'

 

[I am confused2]

I work in the industry. Here is the way fiber systems to home work.

First, a single fiber cable (the size is about the same as a single hair), can pass up to 500x the data, (phone, tv, data) that any other cable can do.

In the past, telco, cable co. ran a true cable to your home and it was termanated in what is called a NID (network interface device), then all your outlets in the house were feed from this NID.

Now, fiber is being brought to the home and it also has a NID that has a background seral number, (just like a cell phone) that the system knows belongs to both you as a customer and the main network.

The system, (in your case the cable co.) is able to send you the service that you sign up for based on this serial number.

If you signed up for 20mb service, then that is what is sent to your house and even thu it is converted to a RG cable inside the house, you should still see close to this 20mb.

This is the the way of the future and it is coming to the point that both the cable company and the phone company will be joining together to run a single fiber to the house as a joint service but both providers will do their stand alone thing.

You have nothing to worry about with the new service setup.

 

[laterose]

The company is a really small local company and doesn't offer any higher than 20 Mbs so I am not cheating the company out of money by not getting their higher package. On the line itself they boost the signal up to try and get the 20 Mbs signal through the coax lines of the house. So if we are really close the line itself (maybe 20 feet of coax cable) we might see higher signals anyway. This company is extremely localized. It's the Ralls County Electric Co-op and they would probably work with me if I wanted to put fiber in the house because it is that local. It doesn't sound like it would gain me all that much though if they are only sending close to 20 Mbs anyway. I just thought with the way they were talking the coax had a huge dampening effect (ex 50 Mbs on fiber to the house and only 20 Mbs on the coax in the house) so getting the direct feed made a lot more sense and would be much faster.

 

[Lexluethar]

Depends on the house too - not all houses or new developments have fiber. A lot of areas may have fiber going into the neighborhood but not up to the individual houses.

In the case of Google Fiber, they charge a fee to actually install the fiber because most of the time it's not coming up to the actual house. You'll see this a lot in old neighborhoods.

 

[KSoD]

the same thing can be said of Verizon FiOS. A buddy of mine got that installed in his house when he bought it quite a few years back and it was $600 to get the hardware needed to get the fiber connection needed to run FiOS. I am sure prices have dropped, but not to the point that it would be worth the effort.

As far as getting fiber into the house, most likely they would only do it if you bought a business package. They probably only offer coax to residential users. I know the backbone of my network is fiber, or so they say, and I have coax to my house. I get speeds way above what my package offers. Even via my WiFi. So maybe just a switch to a more durable coax would boost your signal. Try to get the quad shielded coax cable. That is what I made sure was used on the install of the coax in my place and I have no issues at all with getting the full speed of my package.

 

[I am confused2]

As I stated earler, I work in the industry, have been for over thirty five years.

I see that eveyone is still confused about "FIBER TO THE HOUSE".

If you mean by damping effect, the slowing of service, then you have the wrong thinking.

Fiber IS NOT installed INSIDE THE HOUSE, it is ONLY installed to the OUTSIDE WALL by your electrical and phone.

Their is a SINGLE device that then converts from fiber to coax and or either line.

Up about 150 feet, cable will pass just about what ever speed is sent to it, up to about 3gig of data.

Their are no reasonable cost fiber devices available for inside the house.

The converter device that is used normally has the ablity to pass much greater speeds then what your service provider can give you.

The speed you see on your computer depends on several factors.

If you are using a wireless device, the normal average wireless found in homes will only connect/pass 54mbs, and the more device's and the greater the down load, the slower (reduced) down load will be.

This also holds true for the main "pipe" from your provider.

If you are getting 20mbs, and you connect 5 devices, then divide the 20 by 5.

Now, with 5mbs to each device, if one or two are playing heavy grafic games you are likely to be down to 1mb on those devices and maybe 3 mb on all the others.

Most of the newer DSL and CABLE modums that have come out in the last 2-3 yrs now have the ablity to CONNECT at up to 1gig BUT that does NOT mean they PASS DATA at 1 gig, as most computers do nor have the ablity for that speed, especialy wireless.

Even your 4g phone does not pass data at greater then about 10-15 meg.

Remeber the old saying, "THE CHAIN IS ONLY AS STRONG AS THE WEAKEST LINK".

Fiber is faster then cable which is faster then CAT6 which is faster then CAT5 which is faster then CAT 3 which is faster then the old CAT1 one pair phone line.

A 1gig DSL or CABLE modum is faster then the average in home router or wireless which is faster then average dialup.

Bottom, line, relax and enjoy. Your putting to much into all your thinking.

 

[PP Mguire]

As I stated earler, I work in the industry, have been for over thirty five years.

I see that eveyone is still confused about "FIBER TO THE HOUSE".

If you mean by damping effect, the slowing of service, then you have the wrong thinking.

Fiber IS NOT installed INSIDE THE HOUSE, it is ONLY installed to the OUTSIDE WALL by your electrical and phone.

Their is a SINGLE device that then converts from fiber to coax and or either line.

Up about 150 feet, cable will pass just about what ever speed is sent to it, up to about 3gig of data.

Their are no reasonable cost fiber devices available for inside the house.

The converter device that is used normally has the ablity to pass much greater speeds then what your service provider can give you.

The speed you see on your computer depends on several factors.

If you are using a wireless device, the normal average wireless found in homes will only connect/pass 54mbs, and the more device's and the greater the down load, the slower (reduced) down load will be.

This also holds true for the main "pipe" from your provider.

If you are getting 20mbs, and you connect 5 devices, then divide the 20 by 5.

Now, with 5mbs to each device, if one or two are playing heavy grafic games you are likely to be down to 1mb on those devices and maybe 3 mb on all the others.

Most of the newer DSL and CABLE modums that have come out in the last 2-3 yrs now have the ablity to CONNECT at up to 1gig BUT that does NOT mean they PASS DATA at 1 gig, as most computers do nor have the ablity for that speed, especialy wireless.

Even your 4g phone does not pass data at greater then about 10-15 meg.

Remeber the old saying, "THE CHAIN IS ONLY AS STRONG AS THE WEAKEST LINK".

Fiber is faster then cable which is faster then CAT6 which is faster then CAT5 which is faster then CAT 3 which is faster then the old CAT1 one pair phone line.

A 1gig DSL or CABLE modum is faster then the average in home router or wireless which is faster then average dialup.

Bottom, line, relax and enjoy. Your putting to much into all your thinking.

I was pretty much going to say the same thing.

I'll also add, that more than likely they use coax for inside the home because their equipment to convert to something you can use is cheaper than having a bigger box on the side of your house which will have a single ethernet line going to a different modem like a FiOS setup.
As was said, coax isn't a problem with speed, as even cable companies themselves like Charter can offer up to 100Mb and the DOCSIS 3.0 standard is capable of 300Mb as a standard cable service through coax. If you are being limited to 20Mb, then that is because you are paying for 20Mb. If they boost your speeds, just appreciate the fact that they do that.