Cable Components
Five basic components comprise a cable TV/data system:
�¡ Antenna site.Receives TV signals from antennas or satellite dishes.
�¡ Headend site.Converts TV signals for distribution to end users and
converts data for transport to and from end users. Similar to a telephone
central office.
�¡ Transportation network.Links the antenna site to the headend or
the headend to the distribution network. Can use microwave, coaxial
cable, or fiber cable.
�¡ Distribution network.Carries signals between the end user and the
transportation network. Consists of trunks and feeder cables. Backbone
trunks are either fiber or coaxial cable. Feeder cables are usually
coaxial and connect the distribution network to the subscriber drops.
�¡ Subscriber drops.Connects the customer premises equipment (CPE)
such as TV, set-top box, or cable modem to the distribution network.
Uses coaxial cable.
Figure 2-1 shows more detail about how these components work together to
deliver combined cable TV and data to an end user. Each acronym and
component is further explained following the figure.