What makes this a success?

General Discussion
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I read the threads about people having issues. And it makes me think about WHY they have issues. And also makes me wonder what percentage of Tablo users actually have issues at all. I mean, it seems logical that people with some kind of problem would be the most vocal and those with no issues just go on about their day and maybe don’t ever visit the forums.

I don’t seem to be having any issues (knock on wood) so I thought I’d describe my setup a little…

Firstly, my whole house is wired with cat5. To every room (except bathrooms) and to several locations within each room. I did this when we bought the house. I also ran RG6 quad shield everywhere. So I have wall plates with multiple network and cable connections.
I have a 24 port gigabit switch in the basement “wiring closet” (really just a location where everything comes together… not actually a closet at all) and a 24 port patch panel where all of the cat5 connects.
So… I’m wired.
I have cable internet at 100Mbit down and 12Mbit up. Speed test shows me more like 120Mbit down.
My cable router is just the one supplied by Spectrum and has 2.4Ghz and 5GHz WiFi.
My Tablo is down in the basement connected directly to the Gigabit switch and the antenna.
My Antenna is an Antop AT-400BV mounted on the gable end of the house above the roof line.

  • After trying 2 different antennas and 3 different locations around my house, I’ve found a good placement and all of the stations I care about are coming in strong with SNR of 29.2 to 30.2. So I have good reception now.

Antenna cable run to the “wiring closet” is about 65 feet where it connects to the power inserter for the antenna’s amp and then into a 4 port distribution amp.
The Tablo Quad gets fed from that distribution amp as well as 3 of the 4 TVs in the house. So each TV has its own antenna connection. (except the spare bedroom because… it’s spare)
I use a Roku Ultra in the living room and that’s connected to ethernet. The other 3 TVs have Roku Streaming Stick+. 2 of those are on the 5GHz WiFi and one is on the 2.4GHz WiFi.

The system as it is now is responsive and I don’t get buffering. I don’t have failed processing of recordings for thumbnails or (now with the 2.2.26 firmware) commercial skip. It just works as described.

The ONLY issues I’ve had have nothing to do with the Tablo. One was getting the antenna placement and type sorted out and the other is with occasional audio sync issues on the Roku devices which Roku OS 9.1 is supposed to fix… if I ever get it (c’mon Roku… you released this a month ago… roll it out faster!)

So that’s where I am. Lots of components go into making this work I think. Is probability of success related to the successful implementation of each part? I would think so. But what I have seems to work and I’d be curious to know what other setups “just work”

1 Like
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I see a lot of those post with replies refering to readily available information, either in the box, marketed via their web site or a few searches with results from tablo’s blogs or support’s KB.

To which the person with the issue, answers something like - oh, I didn’t see that.
WHY they have issues, Read The Friendly Manual is my guess for some.

Not, there are those with deeper technical issues.

You clearly don’t represent a typical user, as do many ‘regular’ user here. Technical thing which seem rudimentary to you is way beyond the comprehension of others. I read your setup and understood everything (spectacular investment). Someone will wonder why would all the cat5 connect go to a 24 port patch panel, what about the other 19 ports.

It’s been pointed out to me, not everyone thinks the same, common sense isn’t so common to everyone.

well, those are some of my thoughts - you asked

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Mine is pretty simple.

The Antop AT400BV is mounted on a ten foot mast attached the rear of my house. A 15 ft run of RG6 Quad is run to the grounding block inside a cable style demarcation box. A five foot run of quad shield is run though the wall to a standard coax outlet.

Another 5 foot run of quad shield to the power inserter and to the Tablo. My Tablo is connected to my network via Ethernet. All my tv’s are connected to Apple TVs or Roku Ultra boxes via Ethernet.

So this is pretty simple and “just works.” I am only 22 miles LOS from the tower farm so reception is solid. With the Antop I also receive some low power broadcasts including NewsNet which I could not get on my old antenna.

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You might want to fix this. I know it’s just a typo but we don’t want to confuse others.

Your going to regret that when you get a smart toilet.

1 Like
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John the Smart Toilet says, “I sense you had too many bean burritos!! Must…” flush
:rofl:

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I should say though in response to the original question. I believe a wired internet connection, a harddrive with sufficient power, and a good antenna are needed for a good experience. I recently limited the Tablos upload speed since I’m in a rural area with limited upload bandwidth. It’s currently at 0.6Mb/s which I think might have caused some failed commercial skip uploads but it’s better then hearing people complain that they can’t use the internet.

I prefer to set up a wired internet connection to any device I can. That leaves more resources for the devices that can not be wired. I only have 15 available ports with my current setup.

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Oops… fixed. Thanks

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