Our highly trained Amplex technicians always take the time to explain how the service works when it is installed, but we know many of our customers are so excited to get online that they may not remember every detail of what the various cables and connections are for. This article will help you identify the cables and connections in and on your home, and assist you in reconnecting them if you ever need to.
— Outside Of Your Home —
1) The Antenna
The antenna sends and receives the internet signal from your home to the Amplex tower. The antenna usually looks like a DirectTV or Dish antenna but may also look like a gray or white round plate or colored bar. Since the antenna is pointed at a nearby tower it’s important that physical obstructions like tree branches are trimmed if they begin to grow in the direction the antenna is pointed.
2) The Ground Block
In the extremely rare case where a lightning surge or other static discharge hits the antenna, this small white or gray box is designed to channel the energy into the ground. There is a wire which runs from the antenna into this box and then into your home. A separate wire is connected to the ground block runs into a grounding rod or grounding cable.
— Inside Of Your Home —
1) The Service Line
From the ground block on the outside of the home, a white or red cable is run inside of your home to where your router is placed. This line goes through the wall or floor into a a wall plate, a surface mount box or sometimes directly out of the wall or floor and is connected into the antenna power adapter (POE).
2) The Power Adapter (POE) & Router Power Adapter
There are two power adapters that are connected in your home. The first is a router power adapter that provides power to your wireless router. The second power adapter is for the antenna, also know as a POE, and powers antenna on the outside of your home. The service line is connected in to one side of the power adapter and the other side is connected to your wireless router. If the antenna power adapter is unplugged or not connected properly the antenna will now be powered on and your internet will not work. There are three types of power adapters Amplex has used. The first was in wide spread use up until September 2015 (it was discontinued by manufacturer) the second was used from October 2015 till Early Decmber 2015. The third, the latest and current model, has been in use since Mid December 2015.
Power Supply Installed September 2015 or Earlier:
Power Supply Installed October 2015 to Early December 2015:
Power Supply Installed Mid December 2015 – Current
3) The Router
A router is a small box, usually 4-8 inches in size which converts the signal on the POE adapter in to a form your computer can understand to connect to the internet. Most routers have a built in wireless antennas, Wi-Fi, which allows computers and devices to connect wirelessly to the router. The router’s internet port (usually a different color port on the back of the router) is connected to the POE.