8-Port Bi-Directional Cable TV Splitter Signal Booster/Amplifier with Active Return Zero Signal Loss and VoIP Telephone Bypass Feature

by PCT

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• ASIN: B003UH9R2C
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (35 customer reviews)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: July 1, 2010

Product Description

The PCT-VC series provides full compatibility with all cable TV services. The VC-9U provides an alternative to the higher priced Electroline FT08300, while providing some additional capabilites that other products cannot provide. The VC-9U provides a full set of 8 amplified output ports. Each port carries the exact same signal level as the input port carries - in both the forward and reverse directions. This unique design makes the VC-9U a true lossless splitter in both directions, allowing you to connect virtually any cable TV device and enjoy worry-free operation. All 8 ports can be used for any type of device including a cable modem. The VC-9U also provides a Modem Bypass port. The bypass port allows you to connect any device to the amplifier (usually a cable modem or VoIP phone device) and insure operation of that device in the event of a power failure.The amplifier is surge protected (when properly grounded) and waterproof. It also has a unique mounting design that allows the amplifier to be mounted either horizontally or vertically with two separate sets of mounting brackets. This provides you with the best options for mounting the amplifier anywhere inside or outside your home. Supports operation from -40 degress to +140 degrees Fahrenheit. The amplifier can be powered from any location using an optional (not included) PCT power inserter. Power supply is included.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

38 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Slam dunk over more expensive Electroline FT08300, July 28, 2010

By 

Video Guy 40333 - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: 8-Port Bi-Directional Cable TV Splitter Signal Booster/Amplifier with Active Return Zero Signal Loss and VoIP Telephone Bypass Feature (Electronics)

For quite a while I had been contemplating getting an active return amplifier. I have cable modem issues from time to time, but a very good TV picture due to a previous amp I purchased. I read that the Electroline is the best out there, but after taking a look at the $120 price tag I had to think twice. There are a number of other products with an Active Return label on them, but I wanted to be sure I got a good one, and that it worked as expected. Taking full advantage of Amazon's return policy, I decided to buy both and compare them.

Both amplifiers are solidly built. The Electroline is quite large compared to the other amp I have 4 PORT CABLE TV / HDTV / DIGITAL AMPLIFIER INTERNET MODEM SIGNAL BOOSTER INTERNET AMP, but it looked very solid with a nice grey matte finish. The PCT VC-9U is slightly smaller with a glossy white finish. It has 9 output ports, and I will get into those in a minute. For mounting, The PCT does have a neat advantage that the Electroline does not, which is the ability to mount it vertically or horizontally. The PCT has 2 sets of mounting brackets (I will try to post a photo later), and this made it easier for me to mount the amp on the cieling of my garage, with 2 screws into the bottom of the joist.

I hooked up the Electroline first and connected it up to my cable plant. Everything worked just fine. My picture was just as good as before, but now my cable modem synced up faster and seemed to be quicker, or maybe I was just expecting it to be faster :). When I pulled the power to see what would happen, I lost everything - cable modem and my TV picture. I left it installed for a couple of days, and during that time I had a problem where the picture got some white bars in it. After contacting the seller, I was told that I probably had a bad power supply and that it was a common problem. I would have to return the amp for replacement. How convenient.

When the electroline broke I put the PCT in place. The difference here was that I had a choice of where to connect my cable modem. The PCT comes with 9 ports, not 8. The 9th port is a non-amplified port labeled MODEM. First I tried the MODEM port. The cable modem actually worked a bit better than with my old amp, and I think this had something to do with the return path. My old amp had a 7dB return path loss, while the modem port on the PCT has a 5dB loss. The modem did seem to connect without a problem. Since they advertise that everything will still work if the power fails, I pulled the plug on the amp - and my modem did not miss a beat. It stayed connected. Of course if the power is out, who is going to be surfing the internet? It was a nice test though, and if I had a VOIP phone I guess it would have kept working. With the amp unplugged, the TV got very fuzzy and the digital cable went out altogether.

I did not see any performance difference between the electroline and PCT. My only measure was simply looking at the picture and judging how it looked, and seeing how the cable modem reacted. No real difference between the amps that I could tell. Because the Electroline was broken I had to return it. The PCT at half the price was working great, so I just decided to keep it. I ultimately decided to connect the cable modem to one of the other ports that were amplified. A power failure will knock out the cable modem. No big deal. I don't have a VOIP phone, so I am not worried about the power thing. The TV picture was great, and the cable modem worked fine either way. I still have a couple of ports available for expansion.

SO my take on this - if you can spare the money, the reviews say the electroline is the way to go. Since the PCT is a new product no one else has commented on it yet. But at half the price and the same performance (along with the 9th port) the PCT VC-9U seems to be a slam dunk on the bang-for-the-buck side.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amp works like a champ, August 23, 2010

By 

Paul K. - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: 8-Port Bi-Directional Cable TV Splitter Signal Booster/Amplifier with Active Return Zero Signal Loss and VoIP Telephone Bypass Feature (Electronics)

When I built my home in 1991 I had cable run to all rooms and used Radio Shack Cable amplifiers to get a clean signal. That works fine for signals being distributed in one direction but modern digital devices like DVRs and the digital transport adapters that Comcast now requires for all TV's in our area (because they are phasing out the analog signal on the cable in favor of an all digital signal) require bi-directional communication. So it was time to upgrade my old cable amplifiers to something that could handle bi-directional digital traffic. I ordered this 8-port active return amp and received it the next day. Installation in place of my old amplifiers was straight-forward. The instructions were very clear. They note that this device is NOT for satellite signals, so that's something to be aware of before ordering. I first checked that I hadn't messed up any cables by checking that transmission of the old analog signals worked correctly and then added the new Comcast digital transport adapters into the mix and activated them via the Comcast website. They came right up and are working as expected with none of the video cutout that can occur with poor digital signal quality.

In the interest of full disclosure, even before I received this product I got an email offering a minor rebate to write a positive review for it. I decided right then that I would write the review whether it was positive or negative and am happy to say that my experience has been positive.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 8-Port Bi-Directional Cable TV Splitter Signal Booster/Amplifier with Active Return Zero Signal Loss and VoIP Telephone, August 24, 2010

By 

esanderic - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: 8-Port Bi-Directional Cable TV Splitter Signal Booster/Amplifier with Active Return Zero Signal Loss and VoIP Telephone Bypass Feature (Electronics)

this product delivers what it suppose to do. I bought it in hoping to split and boost more cable signal to my other two rooms. I used to have lagging and staggering signal on my third room and barely on the fourth/fifth. After installing the 8-Port Bi-Directional Cable TV Splitter Signal Booster/Amplifier with Active Return Zero Signal Loss and VoIP Telephone, now I have good signal in all 5 rooms plus my garage. the lagging and staggering problems are gone. The installation was supper easy and a no brainner. I love this product and highly recommend to anyone who is looking for a cable splitter. This is it.