Basic Guide to Video Cables

When it comes to the home theater experience, one of the primary causes of confusion comes from the types of audio visual cables needed to complete the experience. Cables come in all ranges, sizes and styles. While most home theater experts can easily identify what they need to get the best sound and video quality from their systems, what happens to the rest of us who do not have a clue what to use?

Video connections come in five different categories. You have HDMI, DVI, component, composite, RGB and s-video. Component and composite cables are the types most people are familiar with when dealing with televisions and home theater systems. HDMI and DVI are more modern types of video connections whereas RGB and s-video are slowly being phased out as new technology develops.

HDMI allows for high-definition audio and visual outputs. It has become the standard for digital television and HD signal. It allows for one cable to be used for both video and audio which allows for fewer cables to be used overall when setting up a system. DVI is generally a digital-only connection, but it can also be combined at a lower quality to use with analog inputs and outputs. A DVI cable allows for higher resolutions and is commonly used with computer monitors for superior signal quality.

Component video connections come with most HD televisions nowadays. These cables are able to produce HD signals and resolutions depending on the cable box, signal strength and TV set-up. However, you do need separate audio connections as component cables are not able to carry both audio and visual input and output. Composite video is an outdated form of similar nature to component video cables and is slowly being phased out for its counterpart.

RGB cables are a type of VGA-variant connection. You generally find this type of connection in use with computer monitors, projectors and first generation high-definition television sets. This type of cable is not in wide use anymore. S-video cables use two types of threads to separate the luminance and chrominance for better quality. It cannot input or output HD signals and does not support audio, so it not as widely used as it used to be.

This is just a basic guide to video cables, and it gives a little insight into what types of cables are out there. Finding the right fit for your television and system is key to getting the best quality out of what you purchased. Spend the time, and the money, to find what is right, and you will have the best home theater experience for your home.