Home Theater Thread

[kimpOy]

question: are we talking about comparisons between same-format cables here? or the difference between composite --> s-video --> component --> hdmi?

sa pagkakaalam ko ay parehong format different brand like monster's component vs generic component

sa diff format eto alam ko ang good to best
composite (red/white/yellow)--> S-video (7pin)--> component (y/pr/br) --> HDMi

[froshie1]

ang sabi nung kaibigan (and the HT technicians) ko mas maganda pa rin daw video kung monster cable brand ang gamitin mo dito sa Y Pb Pr component video connection ang gagamitin instead of the generic ones.

any body can confirm this claim?

sa mata ko, parehas lang sila. I'm using the generic one and have seen a monster cable. Maganda lang ang monster cable when it comes to the length other than that wala na.

[wildthing]

^^that was what I figured too... thanks sa info.

[andre]

People buy HDTV TV and still uses SD sources resulting in VERY bad images. Dont waste your money on branded cables, buy generic.
Instead use your money to buy at least an Upscaler DVD player, or better yet get a Bluray or HD DVD player, or set up an HTPC.
And then you can really enjoy your HDTV.

[chua_riwap]

sa mata ko, parehas lang sila. I'm using the generic one and have seen a monster cable. Maganda lang ang monster cable when it comes to the length other than that wala na.

Monster Cable - parehas lang ang pic. quality compared sa iba, pero "monster" ang presyo.

[voltes_V]

question: are we talking about comparisons between same-format cables here? or the difference between composite --> s-video --> component --> hdmi?

Same cables ofcourse. But I was talking more in general terms.

because the crappy cables that come with your TV are most often composite, and of course they will look much worse than component or HDMI regardless of the manufacturer.

Actually maswerte ka na na kung composite cables ang kasama sa packaging. All I get are standard RCA's which definitely wont do the job. Anyways to simplify my point, think of cables as a garden hose. If you have full water pressure but a cheap hose that crimps, you dont get the full result at the end. Now a better hose that doesnt crimp will deliver the entire signal to the tv.

my point was more on the fact that component vs. component, you will be hard-pressed to see a difference between a $30 Acoustic Research and a $100 Monster Audio.

This is why I wanted to talk in general terms. Being specific like this will open a whole can of worms. Lets say we're talking about comparing component cables, you still have to consider some other factors when doing a comparison. Like for example, TV size. If your using a smaller tv, lets say 20 inches, heck lets make it 29 inches, I bet you wont see any difference at all using cheap components and the uber expensive ones. Now lets change the variables...hmmmm lets use a 60 inch tv no wait the 80 inch tv is on the market now. Lets test these cables now and see. The thing is like I said in my previous comments, cables are just part of the equation. And that some electronics and their accessories are really overrated.

I guess that would be a good topic for discussion as well. "What brands do you think are overrated"?

but i would definitely rock some "name brand" cables if they were given to me for free!! as Bob Barker would say, "The Price is Right!!"

[empy]

^so, i demoed monster cables vs. acoustic research on a 42" plasma hdtv in 1080i mode at the Sonystyle store (sorry, didn't get a chance to see it in 1080p). it was the exact same tv.

sabi sa akin ng salesman..."if you see a difference, go ahead and pay the extra money for the monsters....otherwise, let me wrap up these AR cables and you can pay at the front register "

i didn't see a difference, so now i am happily using acoustic research cabling for a 42" plasma hdtv with a 5.1 dolby setup, hdtv box, dvd and xbox 360 in one room, a 50" plasma hdtv with dvd and hdtv in the family room, and 32" lcd tv in another room. i saved at least $400 from not using monster cables, and i am still very happy with my setups. that $400 helped buy my xbox 360

[BlueBimmer]

hindi ba composite cables = RCA and Component cables are the HD versions

[voltes_V]

hindi ba composite cables = RCA and Component cables are the HD versions

Composite video carries both luminance (black and white tints) and chrominance (colour information) through the same cable as apposed to S-video. This means that the components connected by these cables have to separate the signal.

Composite video cablelooks just like audio cable. However, both the cable itself and the connector are optimized for video. In a 3 cable setup the yellow connector usually indicates the composite video cable. The other two cables are utilized in stereo sound. (one for left and one for right)

Yung standard RCA's are the ones na usually kasama sa packaging ng mga dvd players na may mas manipis na wiring (red white and yellow) which is definitely not intended for HD viewing.

S-Video separates the video signal (and only the video signal) into luminance and chrominance. Luminance is the amount of black and white portions the video signal carries and chrominance is the colour information.

If luminance and chrominance components are separated, components don't have to separate these elements again. This usually results in a visible improvement in picture quality.

Video is handled through these cables. Separate RCA cables are needed to handle sound throughput.

Component Video.Actually a "consumerized" version of professional video's RGB (Red, Green, Blue) standard, component video provides even better colour saturation. Component video adds a "film-like" quality to video playback that is quite impressive.

These component video cables look similar to standard RCA cables. However both the cables themselves and the connectors are optimized for video. You would also need 2 RCA cables to receive stereo sound.

*info courtesy of my electronics supplier

[voltes_V]

^so, i demoed monster cables vs. acoustic research on a 42" plasma hdtv in 1080i mode at the Sonystyle store (sorry, didn't get a chance to see it in 1080p). it was the exact same tv.

sabi sa akin ng salesman..."if you see a difference, go ahead and pay the extra money for the monsters....otherwise, let me wrap up these AR cables and you can pay at the front register "

i didn't see a difference, so now i am happily using acoustic research cabling for a 42" plasma hdtv with a 5.1 dolby setup, hdtv box, dvd and xbox 360 in one room, a 50" plasma hdtv with dvd and hdtv in the family room, and 32" lcd tv in another room. i saved at least $400 from not using monster cables, and i am still very happy with my setups. that $400 helped buy my xbox 360

Well good for you sir. Atleast its safe to say that we are both in agreement that monster cables dont live up to our standards.hehe.We can mark these cables as one of the overrated ones. What matters most is that we are happy with our systems and thats that.
So when are you going to invite me to watch a movie at your place hehe.
Oh if you want to see my HTS at pinoydvd, its the erwin's Def Tech set-up. Enjoy

[turbo]

Sorry for the bother but I am an old man and don't know how to post pics in this forum.

I will just give the address. I hope you can visit it.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/81856035*N00/1393019263/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/81856035*N00/1393016871/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/81856035*N00/1393909092/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/81856035*N00/1393907022/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/81856035*N00/1393009809/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/81856035*N00/1393007585/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/81856035*N00/1393899600/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/81856035*N00/1393897366/

[wildthing]

... Component Video....These component video cables look similar to standard RCA cables. However both the cables themselves and the connectors are optimized for video. You would also need 2 RCA cables to receive stereo sound.

*info courtesy of my electronics supplier

my concern is the terminology of "optimzed for video" - Did your electronic supplier explain what technique was applied in those cables to make it optimized for video?

Kasi afaik, the signal passing these cables are still analogue or electric pulse/wave. as such, the only thing the will "disrupt" that electrical signal is emf and/or resistance. long or wrong type of wire/cable will work like a resistor - thus the resistance.

electrical interference is also greatly reduced by using coaxial configuration - main line on the center and the ground line is "coating" it. this is why antenna wires and speaker cables uses coaxial type of cables.

bottomline, TECHNICALLY there is no difference between a regular RCA cable with those branded COMPONENT cables because both are coaxial-type of cables.

BUT those are just my technical self-learned deduction. I have YET to know the "truth" behind the word "optimized for video" ek-ek.

I am thinking that maybe they use "gold-coated" wires and connectors...kasi gold is noted to have better conductor capability than copper or steel. But then again, gold coated connectors and wires are really OVERKILL concept for me.

[Galactus]

Yup, AFAIK, there is no difference between 3-pronged regular RCA cables and component cables, except the color-coding (red white yellow vs. red green blue). The latter is not optimized for video.

I lurk around a lot over at pinoydvd.com (I've been a member since 2004, pero less than 50 posts pa lang ako hehehe), and I've never heard of any manufacturer claiming that component cables are optimized for video. There's basically nothing you can do for component cables that you cannot do for composite.

[kinyo]

i would interpret "optimized for video" as having sufficient bandwidth for video signal transmission ... the NTSC composite video signal is normally 6MHz wide and for most RCA cables, even the cheapest ones, can carry the video signal for short lengths

unfortunately, the cheaper RCA cables in the market are not really coaxial, instead the purported "shield" is actually a few strands of wire and helically wrapping the center conductor with lots of unshielded portions ... i believe this kind of cable will degrade the video signal over longer distance (>10 feet) and susceptible to emf interference, which could be the reason why you don't find them longer than a meter or two

however, the RCA cables supplied by manufacturers of known brands are usually true coaxial are can be trusted to provide sufficient bandwidth for video

expensive cables like monster are, imo, simply marketing hype and surely one could find lower cost true coxial cables that could perform just as well

gold connectors? tell that to the marines! they are useful only for semiconductor manufacturing

[Monseratto]

If anyone is interested in going Tru HD, then composite, s-video and component cables are considered obsolete. The standard connector for HD is HDMI. It's the complete audio-video cable that allows not only HD Video but also HD uncompressed audio.

[wildthing]

^^ HDMI - eto rin ba yung parang rectangular na plug ng DVI as seen in this picture -


o iba pa yun?

[Monseratto]

^^ HDMI - eto rin ba yung parang rectangular na plug ng DVI as seen in this picture -


o iba pa yun?

HD Video lang dumadaan sa DVI...Problema kung may ma-encounter na 5.1 HD uncompressed audio, di rin dadaan sa optical output.

[Galactus]

DVI is different from HDMI. The former has 24 pins, while the latter has 19. AFAIK, DVI is also becoming obsolete. Most new video cards in the market now have HDMI ports

[froshie1]

buy the monster kung si generic ay maiksi (maiksi = was talking about the length). other than that parehas lang yan.

[empy]

Well good for you sir. Atleast its safe to say that we are both in agreement that monster cables dont live up to our standards.hehe.We can mark these cables as one of the overrated ones. What matters most is that we are happy with our systems and thats that.
So when are you going to invite me to watch a movie at your place hehe.
Oh if you want to see my HTS at pinoydvd, its the erwin's Def Tech set-up. Enjoy

next time na madaan ka sa Florida, chief

although kung malapit ka sa Toronto...madadaan ako jan sa january