I'm looking for advice on how to set up my PC, which is located in a different area of my house from where I usually use it. I had been using remote access, but it's becoming a hassle. Since I already have a 35-foot Ethernet cable connected, I wonder if I can extend my monitor, keyboard, mouse, gamepad, and speakers using similar cabling. I know standard USB cables have a limitation for distance unless using active ones, and I found a couple of options online. I'm not connecting any high-throughput equipment, just basic peripherals. Would a USB 3.0 port help with a keyboard that seems to lose power? Also, for HDMI, I found some cables that are inexpensive, but I'm not sure about their quality or if they'll support 144Hz over the distance. For audio, I'm assuming a standard 3.5mm AUX cable should work fine. Any thoughts on this setup? Are there things I should consider or watch out for?
1 Answer
For your keyboard, mouse, gamepad, and speakers, you should be fine using a single unpowered USB hub with one long USB cable going to your PC. I have a similar setup with multiple peripherals connected to an unpowered hub, and it works great. As for the HDMI, a 20-foot cable has worked well for my monitor without any issues, but make sure it's from a reputable brand.
Just remember your speakers use an AUX jack, so you'll want to ensure you're not mixing that up with USB.