TV Aerial Cable Guide
An aerial lead connects the aerial socket on the wall to your TV, Freeview box or recorder. Most UK aerial equipment uses the same round coax plug, but each end can be a plug or a socket, and some TVs and boxes use a screw-on F type connector instead. This guide shows how to tell them apart, which lead or adapter you need, and how to split the signal or fit your own plugs.
TV aerial plugs and F type connectors
| Connector | What it looks like | Found on |
|---|---|---|
| TV aerial plug (male) | Round push-on plug with a centre pin | The end of most aerial leads |
| TV aerial socket (female) | Round push-on socket with a hole in the centre for the pin | The other end of an extension lead, and some wall plates, TVs and splitters |
| F type | Small screw-on connector with a threaded body; on a cable, the centre pin is the core of the cable itself | Satellite dishes and boxes, Sky, Virgin Media, and the aerial input of some TVs and set top boxes |
The TV aerial connector is also called a coax, Belling-Lee or IEC connector. TV aerial and F type connectors do not fit each other directly, but an adapter or a TV to F cable joins them.
Which aerial lead do I need?
| Job | What you need |
|---|---|
| Wall socket to a TV, Freeview box or recorder | An aerial lead long enough to reach without pulling, such as our plug to plug lead with adapter, 0.5m to 20m, or our gold plated aerial lead. Both come with a coupler, so they fit whichever ends you have; see below |
| Recorder or Freeview box to a TV | A short aerial lead, from the box's RF out socket to the TV's aerial input, if your box has one |
| Making an existing lead longer | An aerial extension cable, plug to socket, 1m to 10m in black or white, or join two leads with a female to female coupler |
| TV or box with a screw-on F type aerial input | A TV to F connector cable, or fit an F type to aerial socket adapter on the end of your aerial lead |
| Long runs, to another room | Leads up to 50m in white or 50m in black, or for a permanent run, coax cable and a wall plate; see fitting your own |
| Tight space behind a wall mounted TV | An angled aerial socket or plug keeps the cable close to the wall, or a right angled F adapter for F type inputs |
Choose a length that reaches comfortably. Extra length adds a little signal loss and leaves loops of cable behind the TV, so there is no benefit in going much longer than you need.
All TV aerial cablesAerial extension cablesTV to F type cables
Plug or socket: male and female ends
Look at the wall socket and the aerial input on the TV or box. If it has a pin in the middle, it is male and needs a socket (female) on the lead. If it has a hole, it is female and needs a plug (male).
- Plug to plug leads fit two female ends.
- Plug to socket leads, such as our 2m plug to socket lead, fit one of each, and also work as extensions.
- Not sure? Many of our leads come with a small coupler that changes one end from plug to socket, or the other way round, so one lead covers both cases. Loose black and white female to female couplers are also available.
Splitting the aerial signal
A splitter feeds two TVs, or a TV and a recorder, from one aerial socket. We have splitters with a socket input and two plug outputs, a plug input and two socket outputs, and a compact angled 2 port splitter with a plug input and two socket outputs.
- A passive splitter shares the signal, so each output gets a little under half. With a good signal this makes no difference; with a weak signal, the picture may break up or channels may go missing.
- If that happens, try a single lead with no splitter to check the signal first. A powered distribution amplifier, fitted near the aerial or socket, is the usual fix for feeding several TVs.
Fitting your own plugs and wall sockets
- Coax cable: for runs through walls or the loft, use satellite grade coax, which also suits TV aerials, such as our 100m black or 100m white RG6 drums, or dual RG6 for two cables in one run.
- Plugs and sockets to fit to the cable: aerial plugs, aerial sockets, packs of 10 plugs and 10 sockets, and screw-on F plugs for RG6.
- Wall plates: a TV aerial wall plate gives a neat aerial socket at the end of a cable run.
- Strip the cable carefully so no strands of the outer braid touch the centre core, which is a common cause of no signal.
Satellite, Sky and Virgin Media
- Satellite dishes, Sky, Freesat and Virgin Media boxes use F type connectors, so they need F type cables, sold as satellite cables, not TV aerial leads.
- A TV / satellite combiner sends the aerial and the satellite signal down one cable, with a second combiner at the other end to separate them again.
- To plug an F type cable into a TV aerial input, use an F socket to aerial plug adapter; to join an F type cable to an aerial lead, an F socket to aerial socket adapter.
Satellite cablesSatellite extension cablesTV and satellite combiners
Not sure which aerial cable you need? Call us on 0207 100 4874 or contact us and we will help.
For every socket on your TV, see our guide which cable for my TV?