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- AUDIO & VIDEO
- HDMI
- COMPONENT
- COMPOSITE
- VGA & RGB
- DVI
- S-VIDEO
- XLR
- 3.5mm
- RCA AUDIO
- 1/4" PLUGS
- 2.5mm
- RF COAX
- IPOD ACCESSORIES
- COMPUTER SUPPLIES
- POWER SUPPLIES & CORDS
- WIRE MANAGEMENT
- CELL PHONE ADAPTERS
- PHONE SUPPLIES
- SERIAL & PARALLEL
- SCSI CABLES
- WALL PLATES
- CABLE TOOLS
- FIBER OPTIC
- CAT5 & 6
- FUSES
- BATTERIES
- SPEAKER ACCESSORIES
- SECURITY
- TV ACCESSORIES
FAQs - What Video cables should I be buying?
frequently asked questions
DVI CABLES (DIGITAL VIDEO IMAGING)
The DVI 1.0 specification was introduced in April 1999 by the Digital Display Working Group integrated by Silicon Image, Intel, Compaq, Fujitsu, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, and NEC to create a digital connection interface between a PC and a display device. It is a connection with enough bandwidth for uncompressed HD signals.
The 1.0 DVI specification is a point-to-point solution that supports video content but not audio. DVI standard cables have typically a five-meter distance limitation, although with better quality wiring, such as fiber-optic, higher distances are possible.
There are three types of DVI connectors
DVI-I (integrated), carries a single or dual-link digital signal, with an additional analog signal for legacy devices.
DVI-D (digital) carries digital-only video data to a display.
DVI-A (analog) is available for legacy analog applications to carry analog signals to a CRT monitor or an analog HDTV (claims to be better than VGA).
DVI is being used as a secure connector for the passage of uncompressed digital video signals from HDTV receivers and other digital source devices such as DVD players, keeping all signals in the digital domain.
DVI is now found on most 2004 HD equipment and HDTV's. To protect content transmitted over DVI, the High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection (HDCP) scheme was created that provides a secure digital link between source and display, and does not allow for any recording of the digital signal. See HDCP. Additionally, HDMI has been aligned as the successor of DVI (see more below).
HDMI CABLES (HIGH DEFINITION MULTI-MEDIA INTERFACE)
HDMI is short for High-Definition Multimedia Interface. It is an interfacing standard for transferring digital video and audio between electronic devices. The standard includes a physical connector, cabling as well as specifications on how the data is transferred between the devices. An ideal choice for high performance audio/video installations. Pure digital video, digital audio and inter-component control signals all in one compact
VGA (RBG) CABLES (VIDEO GRAPHICS ARRAY CABLES)
Video Graphics Array (VGA) is an analog video display standard, requiring no specific drivers to operate.
The term VGA is also commonly used to describe a video resolution of 640 x 480, but does not necessarily indicate the type of hardware being used. (i.e. 'I am running the application in VGA resolution' is not an indication that a VGA monitor is being used as a display, rather that the resolution is set to display 640 x 480 pixels.
S-VIDEO CABLES (SUPER - VIDEO)
S-Video separates the luminance (Y) and chrominance (C) signals offering better picture quality and resolution than using standard composite/RF video connections. Use with S-VHS VCRs, and with other equipment as a second alternative to component video, if not present. The physical connector is referred to as a 4 pin Mini Din type connector, however Dell has recently opted to put a non-standard 7 pin Mini din type connector and call is S-Video. (Not to be confused with the original 4 pin Mini din interface).
COMPONENT VIDEO
Analog component video connections used typically for DVD players/recorders, HD-STB/PVRs, audio/video receivers, video switchers, D-VHS VCRs, and HDTV's are:
a) 3-wire 75 ohm coax analog YPbPr (YCbCr is actually 'digital' component video, and the nomenclature has been incorrectly used abroad for analog connections in consumer equipment), and
b) 5-wire RGB BNC or VGA 15 pin D-sub, with the horizontal and vertical sync signals separated from the other 3 signals. Component video connections do not carry audio, for which separate audio connectors are required, such as digital coaxial and optical (Toslink). Component video offers higher quality performance than composite and even S-video, it bypasses the composite en/decoding process, and color carrier frequency
DFP (DIGITAL FLAT PANEL)
The Digital Flat Panel standard defines an interface between a computer and a digital, flat-panel monitor. LCD monitors rely on digital signal. CRT monitors, however, require analog signals, which is why most video cards translate digital information from your computer into analog format. The DFP standard, adopted by VESA in February 1999, enables a computer to transfer information digitally to an LCD monitor over several meters of cable, without any analog conversion. The connector is often called "mdr" or "dfp" it looks like a miniature centronics type connector but half its size and is small and compact.
COMPOSITE CABLES
NTSC standard video connection (typically a yellowed jack/plug) for the passage of an interlaced video signal that has luminance (black and white information), chrominance (color), sync (horizontal and vertical), blanking, and color burst signals, all in one wire. The standard has been used also in VHS and laserdisc equipment. Regardless of the type of connection (component, composite, S-video) the use of gold plated jacks/plugs is known to offer better connectivity between them.