I am not asking about stealing cable internet service. I already pay for cable internet service.
Would it be possible to plug in a second cable modem to a different jack in my house and hook up my Blu-Ray player or X-box from there?
No.
Each modem is registered independently.
However, you can easily add a router to the output of your current modem and hook as many devices to that as you want, but you will need to run cables (or do it wirelessly).
Nope, they dont just automatically get on the network and register themselves. There are a variety of solutions like a wireless access point in client mode or powerline networking that require no running of wires.
That’s what I figured. I was hoping it would be otherwise, since a new modem is much cheaper than a new router.
Thanks.
Really? Where are you looking at modems and routers? What kind of router are you looking at?
In my experience, routers are about $30-100 and modems start at $70 and go up.
Unless you need an AirPort Extreme, or a wireless router with special capabilities…?
If you dont have wireless currently you can just do powerline networking. Get two of these:
Plug one into your router and the other into your xbox.
50 clams.
If you want to do both xbox and blueray then buy yourself a little hub or switch.
That is exactly what I was looking for. I currently have a wireless G router in the upstairs office. If I want to get Netflix streaming on the Blu-Ray or X-box, I would need to upgrade to a N++ router, plus get an access point.
It looks like this little jobber would be exactly what I need with my old four port hub.
I’m not sure that you would need to upgrade to a fancy fast router; the one you have might be sufficient.
I just finished my new TV installation and I wanted to give Netflix a whirl, but my new Blueray player needed a wired ethernet connection. Then I remembered that my Netgear wireless print server, in the same cabinet, had some active ethernet jacks on it.
I plugged the Blueray player into the print server and had Netflix up and running in ten minutes. I have watched only one movie so far (Forrest Gump), but it came through crystal clear and without stutters.
The wireless router upstairs is the venerable Linksys WRT-54G, running DD-WRT. And I can’t imagine that the print server is getting copious throughput. Netflix is fine.
Okay, uncompressed HD has a very high bitrate, but when youre downloading from netflix, youre getting perhaps a 2-3mbps or so stream (MS VC-1, I think). Wireless-G can handle that just fine. I do it all the time.
As far as xbox, im not sure what it uses, but I cant imagine it saturating a wireless-g link, especially considering its only sold with wireless-g (or at least until recently).
If youre torrented some movies that have been encoded with divx/xvid or h.364 then the typical bitrate is still pretty low. With a solid Wireless-G connection, which gives you about 12-20mbps once you remove overhead, you should be fine. A low or maginal wireless-g connection is what you need to worry about. Wireless-g can fall to under 2 or 3 usable mbps if reception is low or if there is too much inteference on the channel is it using.
I am in the same situation I had to buy an AP and a switch and had it working for a while then it just quit working i have not been able to fix it yet. I think I bricked my AP with DD-WRT, but am working on it.
Seconded. Note that in the real world, there’s no way these things should work: they’re transmitting high-bandwidth, easily-corrupted data over a network far under the specs required that was never designed for carrying that information. In any rational world, these would be the technological equivalent of CD greening.
Apparently we don’t live in that world; I bought a pair of these on a lark (Fry’s was practically giving away an obsolete model), thinking maybe I could get enough of a signal to at least trickle in program-scheduling data to a Tivo that was out of range of my wireless router.
Not only is the signal good enough (in a thirty-year-old house) for the Tivo to get it’s programming, it’s good enough to stream high-def video to multiple devices simultaneously. I’ve since effectively replaced the wireless network with one of these plus a short Ethernet cable in every room – I only use wireless on the couch and for devices without Ethernet.
I don’t know that they’ll work as well everywhere, but I was frankly stunned at how well they worked for me. Setup is non-existent: plug into outlet, plug in ethernet cable. They even work over outlet splitters and extension cords (although they tell you not to use them). (Get some electrical tape when you buy them – the blue “activity light” will need to be covered if you ever expect to sleep again).
Oh - I’m sure something like this wouldn’t work over distances greater than 500 Ft.
It sounds like VDSL, which will transmit incredibly high speeds over very short distances on a single twisted pair.
This is what I thought too. However, Why then do they sell Cable Modems in Walmart and Best Buy? 
Because you might want to replace your existing one or buy one for a first time install without buying it (or leasing it) from the cable or phone company, who typically charge more than the big box stores.
That certainly makes sense RJKUgly, I guess I’ve never been charged for a Cable Modem.
checks my bill
Nope. No rental fee at least. And I don’t remember any installation charge either (I’m pretty sensitive to those types of charges).
I guess you’d have to buy one at Wallyworld, and then call the Cable company to give them the MAC address so that it would be recognized on the network then?
Anyone ever NOT used the Cable Company’s Modem equipment?
I don’t.
I bought my own Linksys WCG-200 and just told Cox that I was attaching it myself.
Around here a common inducement to signing up for a year or two is to waive the installation charge, which is often advertised as $150 or $200 and often includes the cost of the “modem”. But if the modem goes bad after a year, they will often charge you over $100 for a replacement.
Also around here, it’s fairly common to get the modem on lease for $2 or $3 per month. So if you figure a modem will usually last two or three years you may save a few bucks buying one for $50 up front.
And it’s been my experience that the modems they supplied you were pretty much the plain-jane cheepie model. If you wanted the modem function, plus a router with a few more features, wireless access, and four or five ports on the local side, it’s often easier to buy one on your own, toss the one from the cable company (or get some kind of discount for not getting it in the first place) and use a single appliance instead of two.
I’ve done it both ways. Most often, though, I’ve gotten a free installation and modem deal, then added a router/WAP on the local side myself.
Yeah, or if they give you the password to the modem, you can just log into the setup program and get the info yourself, then set up your new modem to match, including cloning the MAC address.
Or, like me, your modem might crash completely one day, and your ISP will only provide you a replacement within 10 working days. I’m using ADSL, but the principle is the same; I work from my home quite a lot of the time, and the 50 euros for a new modem from the shop next door (which included Wifi that my older one didn’t have) was well worth spending considering I charge more than that an hour.
My Linksys Powerline Ethernet adapter arrived yesterday. It took ten minutes to set up. It took that long, because I was juggling an eight month old with the other hand.
It works beautifully. Thanks for the suggestion.