rca Y-splitter work for component switching? (1 Viewer)

[Brice]

I don't have the money to buy a good component switcher for my tv (only a 20" samsung with component video) but I was wondering if I could get three sets of cables to split the component input into two (like the one male end goes into the tv, while it y-splits to two females for the component cables to connect to)... would this work? I only want to be able to connect my GameCube and my DVD player up through that and run the sound through a receiver for each of them... Any help would be fantastic. Thanks,

-Brice

 

[Patrick Sun]

If you don't care about bandwidth issues (for component video), then you can get a $20 4-to-1 switcher from Wal-Mart, Radio Shack, Target, etc that's designed for left/right audio and composite video (3 RCA jacks per input). But it can be used to do the component switching of the 3 video cables (red, green, blue). But the performance may suffer if you go this route. These switchers allow for 4 devices to be hooked up (right/left audio and composite video) and fed into one input on a TV. You will have to push the corresponding button to select the input connected to the box.

If you get the switch box:

Right (Red) => Red video cable
Left (White) => Blue video cable
Video (Yellow => Green video cable

(Just be consistent in the cabling/colors)

It might be a better solution than using Y-connectors.

 

[Mika-H]

The Y-adapter thing won't work. It has been tried numerous times. Just get any old audio/video switchbox (the one with 1 red, 1 white and 1 yellow RCA/phono plugs per input). Just use the white jack for the blue plug and the yellow jack for the green plug. It will work and I doubt you'll see any degradation in the picture.

 

[Mark Hedges]

I used a cheap $20 switchbox before I got a new reciever. It worked fine. I am confident you will see no degradation, expecially on a 20" set.