Im the type of person who tries to keep it simple, and your observation about 15 to 5pin is a rather far fetched and im pretty sure there will be a line forming behind me laughing at you right now. As for your budget solution, it addresses the problem but clearly the post is looking at a high end solution and not a system that will require constant work and head aches.VGA is 15 pin (if memory serves correct) and Cat5 is 5 pin. Have you considers streaming the video over a network. You could use VNC to do this. You need use Cat6 or Fiber to get optimal speed if you are doing video. Alternately you could consider scan converting it to RCA/composite then you can run it through Cat5.
Nick
So did everyone miss the fact that FMEng is looking for a VGA EXTENDER. This is not the same as just sending video over Cat5/6 as was being discussed in this thread. I have worked with the Geffen gear, it works very well. We never used it for any show critical applications, but we never had issues with it.
I think you'll get the best quality for the price using an AVerKey scan converter, (they make a no frills for under $100.00, their quality is excellent) and run the video over standard coax (use belden 1694a) cable.
A work-around such as using cat5/6 may work, but there is something to be said for tried and true methods that will remain reliable over long periods of time.
Good luck!
An old thread popped up again in the last couple of days that touched on using CAT cable for video transmission. See http://www.controlbooth.com/forums/multimedia-projection-show-control/7955-video-via-mic-cable.html#post93382. Skip over all the mic cable stuff and go directly to the posts beginning on April 6.
I would agree with riunexpolorer that Magenta Research transmitters/receivers will produce high quality video at much longer distance than you are running. I use Magenta gear for several video transport purposes, including your stated need from computer to projector. I also run live HD video to lobby and backstage displays. As mentioned, there are other companies who produce similar gear. For Magenta, you're probably looking at something over $500 for a transmitter and just over $300 per receiver. The receivers have a loop-through, so one transmitter can feed multiple receivers.
There are baluns that convert video to feed over CAT cable. A client brought in some that cost about $70 each for a show. The run was about 70-100 feet. Standard definition video (fed by cameras to a small switcher) was watchable but not what I would term as high quality.
Most companies advise against CAT6 for video because the twist in pairs results in some pairs being longer than others; see the excellent explanation by museav in the thread referenced above. You may already have CAT6 cable on hand, but CAT 5/5e is better because the twist results in more uniform lengths between pairs.
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