Question about SVideo and Degradation over distance (1 Viewer)

[BradyB]

I was wondering if anyone knew if there is much degradation over say 20 to 30 feet of S-Video cable. My main fear would be signal loss or interference.

 

[shane_watson]

i have had s video runs at 25 feet with no degradation in quality at all,so i think 30 would not differ at all.in long runs just be sure to invest in a little better cable.not the most expensive ,just something that looks like a good quality cable.

 

[Robert Ma]

I use the Acoustic Research 25' from http://www.ac4l.com . It was cheap and works great. The have some other options that aren't too pricey.

 

[HankB]

I had degradation running a el-cheapo S-video cable over 25 ft, but I have had no problems running component over 3 cheap rca 25' cables (don't know if this is an option for you). shane_watson is right, try a more expensive cable. Just make sure you can return it, if it doesn't work out for you.

 

[Chu Gai]

which cable did you find issues with Hank?

 

[Bob McElfresh]

There is also a guy on eBay that makes a SVideo breakout cable. It's a SVideo connector that splits into a "Y" with BNC connectors. You get 2 of these and a dual-run of RG6 coax to whatever length you want. Look for "Breakout" on ebay.

 

[Chuck Kent]

I've read that you can have "S" runs of up to 200' and not experience serious degradation. Personally, I struggle with that idea but I do have a couple of 25' runs and have no troubles at all. I ordered my cables from Martertek.com

 

[Phil A]

http://www.milestek.com/ sells break-out adapters and in-line S video amplifiers, With a quality cable you should not get any degradation likely up to 10 meters or so. If you buy the extremely cheap stuff you likely get crappy connectors which can be more critical for S video than composite since the RCA connector is generally in many cases a better connector as far as making an electrical connection. The reason people use break-out adapters is that the gauge of wire used in S video is thin (to get 4 wires to fit into that connector) and the break-out adapter allows the use of something that RG-6 that won't exhibit loss characterics the distances typically used in a home environment. Milestek can make a cable of a custom lenght as can other places. Parts Express sell a premium (part no. 180-263) 25 ft. S cable for $12.25. You can spend more on audiophile brands too.

 

[Mark Rich]

I've had good luck with well made S-video cables up to 50 feet without noticeable image degradation. To be safe the best option may be the S-video break-out system. The quality RG6 cable used should provide better shielding than the typical S-video cable.
Besides the E-bay sellers you could also try Avcable.com they offer both quality s-video cables and S-video break-outs.

 

[Bruce Chang]

Parts express is a rip off if you ever want to return something

I bought alot of stuff from partsexpress in the past month. The products were fine but if you ever want to return anything, they'll screw you over. I did not see any 25% restocking fee on they're website, but it was written on the back of my reciept when I got the package. They over charge on shipping products, I bought a IEC plug for $17 and the shipping was $10!!! You have to pay for shipping both ways and take the 25% restocking fee. What a freaking scam.

 

[Steve Berger]

There are some matching devices that use cat5 for s-video that claim claim up to 600 feet unpowered and 2000 with power (and amps). I've run over 200 feet with connectors added to cat5 cable (through our network wiring) with excellent results.

 

[BradyB]

Thanks everyone, looks like I'll be good if I get a decent S-Video cable.

Steve you have peeked my interest, what type of connector do you use to adapt the Cat5 to an S-Vido connector, is it the same breakout connector or something else? Cause I have a ton of Cat5 layin around.

Again thanks everyone!

 

[Mark_Wilson]

I'm running S-Video from my ReplayTV over CAT5 for about 20 feet with no image degradation that I can see. Its being viewed on a Mits 55" HDTV.