Rogues Gallery

This is the contents of a wall box I found on an upstairs landing in a block of flats. This is the 'head end' of a system serving two blocks. The two large units at the top are the original amplifiers, one for each block. These would have been capable of quite respectable output levels, but it seems that one or both of them became faulty. In stepped the local cowboy. He installed the two white plastic units - although the word 'installed' is perhaps generous when both items were simply left hanging on their cables. The left hand white box is the power supply for the masthead amplifier. The right hand one (in front of an original splitter) is a two-output domestic 'set back' amplifier. This item is designed to supply enough signal for two TV sets, so it is a bit optimistic to suppose that it will provide good reception at two blocks of twelve flats. The signal loss from the amplifier to the farthest outlet was about 50dB, since strings of 1970s style padded outlets were in use and the link between the two blocks was ordinary downlead cable running under the flowerbeds. The signal levels produced by the little cheapo amplifier were about 30dB too low. The installation had no earth connection

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