What is an PAL Connector?

This connector is rare, but you may still see it. Its proper name is "Belling-Lee connector", but of course, no one calls it that. In countries where it is commonly used, it is called a PAL connector, an IEC connector, or simply an antenna connector. Let's dig a little deeper.

The IEC connector is usually connected to the antenna cable. In most cases, it has a male connector on one side and a female connector on the other, so it's easy to extend the cable without using a barrel connector like the one we used. This means you can more easily extend the antenna signal and reduce losses.

IEC connectors are suitable for wireless antenna frequencies, but not satellite frequencies. F-type connectors have a thicker outer connection, threads, and a direct connection between the center conductor and the opposing connector, and are a better choice for the higher frequencies required by satellite TV cables.

Sources say the connector was originally designed by a company called "Belling and Lee, LTD" in or around 1922, when radio broadcasting first started in the UK. It features a solid center plug and push-in connector that fully shields the inner plug from external radiation, making it ideal for a variety of wireless applications.

Connectors were later standardized by the International Electrotechnical Commission, a Swiss consortium that is standardizing pretty much everything in Europe, as America's own IEEE is doing here. They gave it the clumsy name, "IEC 61169-2 Type 9.52 RF Coaxial Connector". This was the only IEC standard connector used by many, and the term "IEC connector" became common usage.

For most of the 20th century, the television broadcasting world was divided into three camps. Americans and most Western countries use a system called "NTSC". France and countries allied with it use a completely different system called "SECAM". Almost everyone else uses a system called "PAL". PAL is technically the better of the three, with about 16% higher quality than NTSC. Of course, when digital broadcasting took off in the 21st century, all three standards disappeared, but the long time people all over Europe had connected their TVs to the Belling-Lee connector led to it being called a "PAL connector".

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