I currently have a PCI TV Tuner card I installed myself in my PC ! Its an ATI TV Wonder Elite ,I have it configured thru the Media Center Edition 2005 in WindowsXP, since the cable running to my PC (coaxial cabeling) and its connected via 20 ft cable on a two way splitter,ten to a surge protector another high quality cable connecting from surge protector to rear of tower ! Almost all the channels come in very good however some are grainy and a couple have alot of interferance ? I was wondering if a Amplifier designed to boost the signial would eliminate this problem ,and can someone point me to a affordable amp under $75 that will do the trick ? Thanks to all that reply !
Thank you Nick

It is better to get an Aerial with a Mains Powered Booster built in...

All splitters are not created equal. The splitter you are using may not be rated for all the frequencies used. Coaxial connectors must be made up correctly. Even an eighth of an inch extra core wire can cause problems. Also, use quad shielded coaxial cable. I wouldn't think the distances you are running would be the issue. Maybe the surge protector. Also, how many OTHER splits are being made in the coax elsewhere.

A friend of mine had a similar problem with an ATI brand AIW 9800 card. She's in an extended care center that has old TV cabling in the walls, and she and some others were having problems with some channels on their computer TV cards and TVs.
Get yourself a simple signal amplifier box meant to boost weak cable TV signals - e.g. I got her a Philips one at Walmart for under $25, and all available channels come in fine.
Connect the box to something that protects it's AC from power surges and spikes if you can.

Thanks Tubesandwires ,
Your answer was exactly what I was loking for a inexpensive amp box that would give my cable a boost ! I will check out the local walmart etc. All the amps I was finding via internet where in the $99 range and up ? I may check out Radio Shack also? I may need to call my local cale service also ,I live in a condo complex with eight units per building ,my neighbor who lives where the main cable box is right outside her bedroom Window said the other night someone was in the box messing with it ,pronbably trying to tap into someone elses service to avoid paying for basic cable service ,which in my area I pay $55 per month for two TV setup Ouch ! I remember when basic cable was $10 ,of course that was twenty five years ago and a five bedroom house in this area was about 50K ,now selling for a million plus !
Take Care Nick

Prices are probably much cheaper at Walmart. Radio Shack's prices are not as reasonable as they used to be, except for stuff that is on sale.

As OtheHill says, it is important to make sure your connections are good, but you may have no control over what is in your walls and between your place and the source.

If I had known this was a multifamily building I wouldn't have stressed the cabling as much. As tubes has pointed out you don't have control over all the cabling. I suggest you contact the cable provider and have them check the signal strengths at the entrance and at the TVs. An amp isn't necessarily the best option. The issue I mentioned about splitters was brought to my attention be a tech from a cable company. I had problems with certain channels and he changed the splitter and solved the problem. Older splitters weren't designed to work with the higher number channels.

I have one splitter at the enterance of the connection ,then the line 25ft.line that runs to to a surge protector then I have a high quality 3ft cable (gold connectors RG6 cable )running to TV card input at rear of my tower, its oddd becasue some of he local stations like channel 2 are the ones that are grainy and do not come in well ,opposed to the cable only sytations ,is it possible that Iam getting some reception from the airways in combination with the cable reception causing the grainy low quality look ? The stations that come in good are really good ,on this ATI TV Wonder Elite w/550 theather processor PCI interface !
Thanks Nick

You might be surprised about the quality of some "high quality cabling". I am a builder that educated myself about this issue after having 3 different cable companies inform me the cabling I was installing in the walls was substandard. There is alot to it. For instance, kinking the cable comprimises the shielding. Good quad shielded cable is bigger in diameter. That is one way to tell. I called a cable company and asked what cable to use and was given a brand and number. Turns out I paid the same for that as what I was paying for lower quality cable. Gold ends are a gimmick, IMHO. Someone else could maybe get more technical about channel 2, but I do know that it is the lowest frequency channel. Lower frequencies can traavel further than high at the same power output. That is why they originally setup the airwaves at 2 - 13. So you might be right about airwave interference.

Thank You to everyone that replied ,I found your answers informative and interesting ! Thanks again ,you are a great bunch ,I wish I had neighbors like all of you !
Take Care Nick

Long time no hear from you!
You're welcome.