Help - Problems with light switches causing noise on my TV....

[triadiemus@yahoo.com]

Everytime anyone in my house turns anything on, I get a static line
through the bottom half of the video on my TV. I've put up with it and
I've almost gotten used to it but I've recently purchased a video input
device for my computer. The problem is that instead of a horizontal
line of noise, now I get an audible pop and the audio goes mute. The
only way to get it back is to completely unplug the device and power it
back up. I live in a house that's been split into 3 spereate
apartments, so I can't ask every one to not turn anything on or off
while I'm recording my favorite sitcom.

I think it has something to do with sloppy coax wiring (the guy I rent
from is a kind of do-it-yourself guy). Is there some sort of
cable-line conditioner I can put between the cable line and my
tv/computer input to absorb the spike?

[Ethan Winer]

> Is there some sort of cable-line conditioner I can put between the cable
line and my tv/computer input to absorb the spike? <

Yes, it's called an RFI Filter (RFI = Radio Frequency Interference). See
this article I wrote for Recording magazine a while back:

www.ethanwiner.com/dimmers.html

If you're not willing to wire up your own filter you can buy one. But watch
out for inexpensive "power conditioners" and surge suppressors that don't do
anything useful, and don't pay $600 or more either. The raw filter shown in
my article costs about $30, so I'd expect a proper manufactured filter to
cost about $100 or so.

--Ethan

[triadiemus@yahoo.com]

Thank you. So this is a filter for an electrical outlet? Do I put it
before my surge protector on my home entertainment center? or does it
go somewhere else?

[Ethan Winer]

> So this is a filter for an electrical outlet? <

Yes. The first time I made one of these was for a water cooler that made a
click sound in the audio gear when it switched on and off, and I put it
inline with the water cooler's power cable. But it will work inline with an
audio device's power too.

> Do I put it before my surge protector <

If you already have a surge suppressor, you should complain to that device's
manufacturer. Unless it cost only $12 in which case you can't expect it to
do anything useful.

--Ethan