RG6 as Component Video

[DarrinH]

Ok guys, I know RG6 has a resistance of 75 ohms and is 18 gauge. Is this stuff alright to use as component video cables? I have a friend who needs to make his own cables because its cheaper than buying name brand ones. He was wondering if the resistance of this cable is the same as the name brand ones. Is it any worse or better to make your own? His length of run is only 8 feet and I told him if there was any loss it would be negligible.

I currently have 15 foot runs of RG6 for my component cables to my XBR400 and it looks great. Just wondering if I did the right thing and wanted to make sure I told my friend the correct thing to do.

 

[Kevin Coleman]

Yes Darrin,
RG6 will work great. Just make sure the connectors are 75 OHM compatible.
Kevin C.

 

[Bob McElfresh]

Uhhhhhh...
Let's be a little clear here.
Your friend wants to use outdoor RG6 CATV/DSS coax for inside video cables.
And you are doing this to save money.
While this will "work", I'm not sure its what you really want to do. You can buy the "Good Stuff" for not much money.
Go to Chris White's web site to learn about how to wire your own cables.
Now you can go to Pacific Radio Electronics to buy the coax ($1.60 /ft) and connectors.
Hope this helps.

 

[James_Lyles]

Will Radio Shack RG-6 coax work well? RS has some quad-shield rg-6 coax for $0.32 /ft.(part# 278-1317)

 

[Neil_S]

Ok, now you got me thinking (ouch). How does that Canare compare to Belden (primarily 1694a)? I see that the Canare is bundled and would make a nice package but how does cable quality compare?
Oh, I'm so confused now

I'm not too overly concerned with price because most of this comes out to under $0.60/foot (but the Canare consists of multiple cables so I can forgive the $1.60/foot)
If I want to make interconnects, subwoofer cable and component cable, what would be my best route? What about S-video?
Thanks..
Neil

 

[Bob McElfresh]

The Canare and Belden cables are both considerd "high end" coax. My guess is you could not see/measure the difference between the two unless you are running 1080i HD video signals a long, long distance.

If I want to make interconnects, subwoofer cable and component cable, what would be my best route?

Follow the link above to Chris White's web site. Everything is explained there.
Svideo - Short answer: Dont build your own. Buy it.
Long Answer: It takes a lot of skill to properly connect the SVideo connector onto those thin (30 ga) wires. Most people cannot do this, and many techs cannot either. You are better off buying a pre-made cable from a custom site or the store.
Good Luck.

 

[Craig Robertson]

I know RG6 has a resistance of 75 ohms

just to clarify, the impedence is 75 ohms. resistance is a measurement of the opposition of current flow in a DC circuit. with the short length involved in your application it will be near zero.
impedence is a similar but is a measurement of opposition to current flow in an AC circuit and varies with freq. a cable with a characteristic impedence of 75 ohms will be 75 ohms no matter what the length.

 

[John Coleman]

I have a couple of things to add here...

First off, make certain that the center conductor in your RG-6 is solid copper, NOT copper-plated steel. Since a fair amount of the signal will travel-along the "inside" of the conductor, steel would be a very bad thing.

Secondly, try to find a cable with the highest quality (lowest loss) dielectric as possible. Going with a solid-copper cable will probably take care of this, but if you can get into a low-loss dielectric on the cable, this will really help you out on longer runs.

Anyway, as long as the cable and connectors are impedance matched at 75 Ohm (and the cable has a solid copper conductor), your solution should work fine. It will not blow your socks off, but for the $$$ invested, it will probably be tough to beat from a bang/buck perspective. I hope this helped.

Best Regards,

John Coleman

 

[Marvin]

Is it OK to use RG6 as AUDIO cable or does that require some other type (stranded, twisted, whatever)?

 

[John Coleman]

Again, as long as it is solid copper, any 75 Ohm coax with a decent shield and dielectric will work for almost any audio or video application. Audio will be a lot more forgiving of impedance mismatch, but it is a good rule of thumb to live by.

However, let me say again that even though this will work, it will definitely not amaze you. The performance will be mediocre, and probably just a VERY marginal improvement (if any) over the thin, generic cables that come with most electronics. I hope this helps.

Regards,

John Coleman

 

[Marvin]

However, let me say again that even though this will work, it will definitely not amaze you. The performance will be mediocre, and probably just a VERY marginal improvement (if any) over the thin, generic cables that come with most electronics.

Are you saying that ANY attempt to upgrade audio cables - even those that are advertised as "audio cables" - will result in only a marginal improvement, or are you just referring to RG6?

 

[John Coleman]

I apologize that I was not clear.

I was referring to using standard CATV/DBS RG6 for audio cables. RG6 is a pretty generic cable term, and there can of course be RG6 cable which will give you outstanding performance, and RG6 cable that will give you very poor performance.

I hope that clears things up.

 

[Marvin]

John,

OK, I see what you mean. Let me re-phrase my question: is it a good idea to use "high end" RG-6 type cable (e.g. Belden 1694/5A, Canare 5CFB, etc.) as audio cable rather than some name brand cable sold as "audio cable."

 

[John Coleman]

As with a lot of things, the DIY factor can definitely save you $$$ over things purchased at retail.

For DIY audio cables, a lot of people will look for high quality RG-6 cables (i.e. Belden, Canare, etc.) with a substantial shield to block out as much interference and noise as possible (sound shielding and design of connectors is also vital). Since audio connections are pretty low-volt signals, it really does not take a lot of physical wire to give you great performance. Lots of people choose to use cables with a stranded center conductor because it is more flexible than a solid wire, however, this is typically just a preference.

So, if you choose the right cable and connectors, you should definitely be able to build an audio cable that has absolutely outstanding performance when compared to many "name brand" audio cables. Plus, by building a cable yourself, you can build it to your exact specifications, and have total control over how the cable will perform. I hope this helps!

 

[Mark Rich]

For analog audio RG6 cable is not the best choice. It will work but its not the best choice. When it comes to coax cable a thinner AWG cable with Teflon insulation will provide a superior sound. The insulation used together with the thicker core provides an empahsis in the bass area. Sorry, not very good with audio-phile lingo but the fifference is definatly noticeable.

 

[Eujin]

Mark is correct as far as analog audio goes. I believe the that Teflon has a better dielectric constant than regular PVC and this affects the signal. On the other hand, a lot depends on what components you're using. I've made many interconnects from the RadioShack RG6 and they are perfectly listenable up to a point. Obviously, if you're going to be using highly revealing audiophile equipment, you're going to hit the audible limits of the Rshack stuff pretty quickly. Audio Asylum has more DIY cable recipes than you can shake a stick at. I'd start there before spending any major bucks--on either bulk cable or the necessary tools.