Standard Video and Audio Connectors

Audio Connectors:
RCA type cables are the standard audio cables (Red & White) for consumer equipment.
XLR Connectors: All 3-pin type connectors are normally used for professional audio
equipment such a; microphones, mixers, amplifiers, and loudspeakers.
The 5-pin type connector is for professional lighting and is the standard for DMX digital
lighting control.
Fiber optic cables in an audio system are immune to electromagnetic interference. Metal
wires carrying electric signals are subject to distortion from other wires, power supplies and
magnetic interference. Fiber optic cable uses light beams to transmit information rather than
electrical signals traveling over metal wires. An excellent way to achieve quality sound.

Video Connectors:
Depends on the connection capabilities of your components. Its how they translate the
chrominance and luminance portions of the signal. The chrominance portion of a video signal
carries the colour information and the luminance is the brightness of a colour video signal.
Composite Video - Good
Composite video quality translates both chrominance and luminance information in one cable.
Capture this quality with a single RCA-type cable (Yellow).
S-Video - Better
This cable uses a 4-pin connector that transmits chrominance and luminance portions
separately, reducing interference and producing a sharper image. Considered high
performance quality.
Component Video - Best
Three Component-type cables (Blue, Red, and Green) carry a single brightness portion of the
signal, then splits the chrominance into 2 parts for greater accuracy and less colour bleeding.

Composite Cable
Good

S-Video Cable
Better

Component Cable
Best

HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface) is the first industry-supported,

uncompressed, all-digital audio/video interface. It provides an interface between any
audio/video source, DVD player, and A/V receiver and an audio and/or video monitor, such as
a digital television (DTV).
What are the advantages of HDMI over existing analog interfaces such as composite, SVideo, and Component video?
Quality HDMI transfers uncompressed digital audio and video for the highest, crispest
image quality.
All digital HDMI ensures an all-digital rendering of video without the losses
associated with analog interfaces and their unnecessary digital-to-analog conversions.
Audio HDMI supports multiple audio formats, from standard stereo to multi-channel
surround sound.
Ease-of-use HDMI combines video and multi-channel audio into a single cable,
eliminating the cost, complexity, and confusion of multiple cables currently used in
A/V systems.

Standard Interface Connectors

Universal Serial Bus (USB)

FireWire (Apples name)

iLink (Sonys name)

(USB) is an industry standard developed

in the mid-1990s that defines the cables,
connectors and communications
protocols used for connection,
communication, and power supply
between computers and electronic
devices.

FireWire is a serial bus interface for high speed

communications and data transfer. Apple has
included in most apple computers since 2000 and
still uses it today. Also called IEEE 1394
interface.