Audio/Video Cables
Audio and Video Cables: Does Quality Matter?
Whether you're a hardcore gearhead or you just bought your first home theater system, you want to get the most out of your A/V equipment. Poorly made cables can allow noise and interference to compromise the signals coming from your source components, resulting in a subpar listening or viewing experience.
If you owned a high-performance sports car, you wouldn't outfit it with low-end tires — you'd get insufficient traction, poor handling, and increased road noise. You'd lose all the benefits of buying a high-performance car in the first place! In the same way, low-quality cables can rob you of the performance you paid for when you bought your system.
Many A/V components don't include all the cables you need; some may include a cable whose length isn't right for your setup. And, when cables are included, they're always low-quality. Replace those free "in-the-box" cables with higher-quality ones, and enjoy more realistic sound and a clearer picture.
Anatomy of a cable
There are three main parts of a cable which affect signal quality: the conductor, the shielding, and the connector. The conductor is the part of the cable through which the signal actually passes. Since the conductor is basically a wire which can act as an antenna to receive radio frequency interference (RFI) and electromagnetic interference (EMI), a good cable also includes some kind of shielding, to filter out these potential sources of noise. The connector is the part of the cable that actually comes into contact with your gear; types of connectors include RCA, S-video, and F-type.
Audio interconnects
Most good audio cables contain an oxygen-free copper (OFC) conductor, which passes signals accurately with minimal signal loss. Many cables also include two separate shields — one made of braided copper, to guard against RFI, and one made of foil, to guard against EMI — so that no annoying buzzes or "pops" are introduced into the signal.
In many cables, the shield is grounded only on the end that connects to the audio or video source, so that interference will drain away from the destination end of the cable. Cables of this type often have directional arrows printed on their jackets, and should be hooked up with the arrow pointing away from the source.
Connectors are extremely important to cable quality. Good RCA connectors provide constant, high-pressure contact with your components' jacks, and are usually gold-plated to prevent corrosion. This results in high-quality signal transfer that won't cut out intermittently or degrade over time.
Some manufacturers such as Monster Cable offer several different levels of cable quality; how do you pick the level that's right for your system? If you've noticed lots of interference in your picture or sound, or if you're running cable over a relatively long distance, look for the best shielding you can afford. (However, if you find you need an audio interconnect longer than 30 feet, you'll get better results by running longer speaker cable instead, and moving your components closer to one another.)
Digital audio interconnects
A special subset of audio interconnects is digital audio cables. There are two types: optical and coaxial.
Optical cables transmit digital audio signals as pulses of light. Toslink connectors — the connector type found on most optical cables — are often found on CD and DVD players, as well as home theater receivers. Some portable players (such as most MiniDisc and some CD portables) are equipped with mini-optical jacks. To connect a standard-sized component to a portable's mini-optical input (for recording to MiniDisc, for example), you'll need a special Toslink-to-mini-optical cable. To connect a CD portable's mini-optical output to an MD portable's mini-optical input, you'll need an optical cable with mini connectors on both ends.
Because they use pulses of light rather than electrical impulses to transmit audio signals, optical cables are virtually impervious to interference. It's still important to look for a well-made cable, however: a quality fiber-optic element can prevent jitter, while solidly built connectors add durability.
Coaxial digital cables look on the surface like standard analog RCA cables; however, you should avoid using a standard audio interconnect to transfer a coaxial digital signal. Cables engineered specifically to pass a digital signal provide 75-ohm impedance and wider frequency bandwidth, ensuring superior signal transfer.
Common video interconnects
Video signals can travel over many different types of cabling, but the majority of video components are equipped with at least one of the following four types of jacks (listed in order from lowest-quality signal transfer to highest):
Used for connecting antennas, cable boxes, VCRs, TVs and more, coaxial RF cable (not to be confused with coaxial digital audio cable, above) can carry video and stereo audio information simultaneously. Standard coaxial cable is stamped "RG-59"; higher-quality "RG-6" cable features lower signal loss and better shielding, both of which are essential for DBS satellite systems and longer cable runs.
Composite cables plug into the composite video jacks found on many kinds of A/V components, including DVD players, VCRs, receivers, and DBS satellite systems. These jacks are often marked in yellow, and grouped with corresponding red and white stereo audio jacks. Composite video cables use standard RCA-type connectors, and are designed for high-quality video signal transfer.
S-video cables feature round, 4-pin connectors, and transmit the chrominance (color) and luminance (brightness) portions of a video signal along different paths. As a result, they provide better color accuracy and detail than either RF or composite connections do.
Found on most DVD players and HDTV tuners, and on a growing number of TVs and A/V receivers, component video connections deliver better detail and color accuracy than you get with RF, composite, or S-video. They do this by splitting the video signal into three parts, with each part transmitted via its own cable. Unlike the other three types of connections, component video is capable of passing high-definition and progressive-scan video signals.
Because of their higher frequencies, video signals are more susceptible to degradation than audio signals are, particularly while traveling through a substandard conductor. And, as with audio, radio frequency and electromagnetic interference can taint the signal. This can cause lines, snow, and other artifacts to appear on your TV screen. A higher-quality cable with a copper conductor, 75-ohm impedance, and double shielding can effectively preserve the strength and accuracy of the original signal.
Kits and specialty cables
Want to upgrade your audio and video cables at the same time? We've got the perfect solution — convenient A/V cable kits. They include the audio and video cables you need, all in one package!
Game systems have come a long way in the last few years. Take advantage of the high-quality picture and sound produced by your PlayStation2 or XBOX™ console by using premium game cables to connect it to your home theater system. Your gaming experience will be much more intense, with clearer graphics and more realistic sound effects!
If you've already got a digital camcorder or you're thinking about buying one, you'll want to check out our selection of i.LINK™ cables. Since camcorders rarely include them, you'll need one if you want to hook your cam to your computer's i.LINK jack in order to perform desktop editing.
Because a high-definition video signal contains so much more information than a standard-def signal, only a few types of cables are capable of carrying HD. One such type is i.LINK. Another, DVI, was designed specifically for this purpose. Yet another type of cable, RGB, is often used to connect PCs to monitors. Any of these connections will give you superb image quality from your high-definition source if you use a high-quality interconnect (such as one made by Monster Cable).
Cable connection tips
Follow these general rules of thumb to get the best results from your cables:
- Avoid long cable runs if possible — the shorter the cable, the better.
- That said, make sure your cables are long enough, especially if your components are shelved in such a way that the rear panels are difficult to access. There should be enough slack to let you pull the component forward and reach the rear panel.
- Because they can introduce interference into the signal, try to keep power cords away from signal cords. If this isn't possible, at least try to minimize contact between the two.
- If an interconnect has arrows printed on its jacket, hook it up so that the arrow is pointing away from the signal source, and toward the destination.
- Avoid kinking or bending cable. Don't try to make a short cable reach — it can put stress on the connector and potentially cause damage. Buy a longer cable, if necessary. (This is especially important for optical interconnects.)
- Don't keep excess cable lying in loops. Arrange it in an "S" shape or a figure-eight instead; this can help minimize electromagnetic interference.
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The difference between typical "in-the-box" cables and high-quality cables is visible — note the beefier connectors and superior construction.
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