Customer Reviews

Audio/Video Cable Installer's Pocket Guide (Pocket Reference)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

It is easy to see why Steve Lampen is such an esteemed author and lecturer and one of the most respected cable engineers in the industry. Steve Lampen does an excellent job of describing cables and their applications. Starting with the basics of the construction of the wire, Steve describes everything from the conductor's base metal to the insulation and shielding to the applications most appropriate for each cable. He defines all of the important wire specifications and gives you a much better sense of which type of cables are most appropriate for you application. While the book is very technical in scope, Steve makes the complex topics interesting and readable. It is filled with helpful charts, graphs and tables - color codes, NEC fire codes, resistance tables, dielectric constants and more.

So much information is packed into this book that I consider it the best 400 pages of knowledge you can carry in your pocket! This is a must-have book for anyone interested in ANY aspect of cable installation or home-theater hookup.

Within its sphere of discussion, this is the best reference manual of its type. There is a lot not here concerning RF and power, but it's not an RF or power book. Steve Lampen is about the most knowledgeable 'wire man' around and this book should go with you each time you visit your local High End audio saloon or any other vendor of these products.

As an proffesional I apreciate this book, it gives precise information. It is well written and on plain english as it's posiblle.

I recomending this book!

Belden is the king of cables and Stephen Lampen is a Belden Kingpin. This book is one-of-a-kind and is a must for anyone working with, or even remotely interested in audio, video, data and/or CATV cabling. It is essential, fundamental knowledge about using cables.

Nope, it's not for the "novis" but I believe a novice will find it interesting if you understand the concept that 2 wires make a circuit. Take your time with it and Google anything you don't understand. There are some complex topics in here but nothing you won't get your head around if you read it and think about it. It is presented in a good, logical progressive order.

Stephen makes it all readable with many interesting and amusing anecdotes and tidbits. The "Grounded Dog" story (p 363) is worth the price of the book alone.

I've been in broadcast Engineering for years and this book solved a few mysteries for me.

Check out the contents list to see if it's for you.

I loved this book. It is perhaps more of a technical guide than a field reference but it is still is filled with lots of useful stuff and manages to be entertaining at the same time.

However, if you want to know have to attach terminals and do some of the real hand on stuff this isn't the book you want (try the Newnes Electronics Assembly Pocket Book or something similar instead).

I bought this book as a quick reference for a Technical Support group I manage. We have a few dozen products that require an installer to run wires throughout a house. Unfortunately, a large majority of the calls I get are wiring related and this book provides tremendous insight into the problems created by improper wiring.

If you want to learn about wiring, this is the book to buy. I also bought the full book that goes with it. It must be good because I got the only paperback, and all the used hardback books are almost double the retail price.

From this guide you'll learn everything relating to wiring. You'll learn balanced vs unbalanced, ground loop isolation vs cross talk, and the list would almost be half as long as the pocket guide. Simply put, if your livlihood depends upon wiring, this book will help you a great deal.

For the home A/V novice, this is a great book, if you're interested in eventually becoming an expert.

I'm on my third read of this book in a month - pretty dense.

I think I'll eventually need dozens of similar books to get a good grip on the field of home A/V, but this is an awesome intro to cabling.

Lampen has been around for decades, and injects some useful historical info. Although this book was published several years ago, it's not at all dated. Cat6 is covered well.

This book won't really tell you what cables you need to install in your new home - search the internet for that. It gives you info on which types of cables would be useful for new home construction, and the reasoning, but it's not spelled out all to clearly.

I'd say this is an ideal introductory textbook covering the field of A/V cabling, written by a reknowned expert.

Excellent content. Very well written. If you want to know about cables and wiring, this is the book.

Being a novice I found this book informative with lots of general information and references that will be useful.

Audio/Video Cable Installer's Pocket Guide (McGraw-Hill Pocket Reference)I THINK THAT IF YOU ARE GOING TO BUY ANYTHING ELECTRICAL ON THIS PLANET YOU SHOULD READ THIS BOOK FIRST.
SO WHEN THE SALESMAN SAYS THAT HE KNOWS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN 1080P/1080I YOU CAN TELL HIM TO READ THIS BOOK BEFORE HIS NEXT CUSTOMER.
IN FACT I WAS SO IMPRESSED WITH THIS BOOK I HOPE TO CREATE A DVD BASIC HOME THEATER INSTALL TIPS USING THIS POCKET GUIDE AS A REFERENCE POINT
THANKS;
HUCKS GEM,