Component Video Question

I recently purchased a Pioneer PDP-4271HD 42" plasma display.
First of all, out of the box the picture is awesome. It's only a 720p
picture, but at our viewing distance of 10+ feet, the image is sharp,
vibrant and beautiful. I'm getting my HD feed via satellite.

I've chosen to go with component video because I'm getting the audio
portion through my 5.1 surround system and HDMI cables are ridiculously
overpriced.

For my component connection, I'm using the 6ft. RCA cables that came
with my satellite box i.e. one video and L & R audio. These seem to be
good quality heavy-duty cables

I'm using the more robust yellow video cable for the green channel, the
white audio cable for blue and the red audio for red.

I'm not having any apparent problems with this setup. The impedance
seems to be in the proper range because I'm not getting any ghosting or
rings on my display. Are there any other considerations that I'm
overlooking or would I be safe to operate under the assumption that "if
it ain't broke don't fix it"?

I'm wondering if I need to go to the additional expense of buying
matched component video cables. Any advantage to this?

Thanks in Advance,

Randy

"Randell Tarin" wrote in message
ink.net...
I recently purchased a Pioneer PDP-4271HD 42" plasma display.
First of all, out of the box the picture is awesome. It's only a 720p
picture, but at our viewing distance of 10+ feet, the image is sharp,
vibrant and beautiful. I'm getting my HD feed via satellite.

I've chosen to go with component video because I'm getting the audio
portion through my 5.1 surround system and HDMI cables are ridiculously
overpriced.

For my component connection, I'm using the 6ft. RCA cables that came with
my satellite box i.e. one video and L & R audio. These seem to be good
quality heavy-duty cables

I'm using the more robust yellow video cable for the green channel, the
white audio cable for blue and the red audio for red.

I'm not having any apparent problems with this setup. The impedance
seems to be in the proper range because I'm not getting any ghosting or
rings on my display. Are there any other considerations that I'm
overlooking or would I be safe to operate under the assumption that "if it
ain't broke don't fix it"?

I'm wondering if I need to go to the additional expense of buying matched
component video cables. Any advantage to this?

Thanks in Advance,

Randy

Decent quality cables HDMI, Component etc. need not cost an arm and a leg.
Check out: http://www.monoprice.com I and a whole lot of other people
have
found that the cheap cables they sell are just as good as those"
ridiculously
overpriced" cables like Monster cables that places like Best Buy try to
push off
on people. I got a 15' DVI to HDMI cable for less than $10.00 (to hook up
to my PC)
that has worked without any problems. That price by the way,included
shipping!!
It was on sale. But, even the regular price was 1/3 of a 6' to 9' Monster
cable.
Use HDMI and get the full benifit of your new TV. You can always route the
audio
to your audio system thru an optical cable (if your sat receiver has the
correct output
and your audio system has the correct input).
Lots of choices and they need not break the bank in order to take advantage
of them.
james

james wrote:

"Randell Tarin" wrote in message
ink.net...

I recently purchased a Pioneer PDP-4271HD 42" plasma display.
First of all, out of the box the picture is awesome. It's only a 720p
picture, but at our viewing distance of 10+ feet, the image is sharp,
vibrant and beautiful. I'm getting my HD feed via satellite.

I've chosen to go with component video because I'm getting the audio
portion through my 5.1 surround system and HDMI cables are ridiculously
overpriced.

For my component connection, I'm using the 6ft. RCA cables that came with
my satellite box i.e. one video and L & R audio. These seem to be good
quality heavy-duty cables

I'm using the more robust yellow video cable for the green channel, the
white audio cable for blue and the red audio for red.

I'm not having any apparent problems with this setup. The impedance
seems to be in the proper range because I'm not getting any ghosting or
rings on my display. Are there any other considerations that I'm
overlooking or would I be safe to operate under the assumption that "if it
ain't broke don't fix it"?

I'm wondering if I need to go to the additional expense of buying matched
component video cables. Any advantage to this?

Thanks in Advance,

Randy


Decent quality cables HDMI, Component etc. need not cost an arm and a leg.
Check out: http://www.monoprice.com I and a whole lot of other people
have
found that the cheap cables they sell are just as good as those"
ridiculously
overpriced" cables like Monster cables that places like Best Buy try to
push off
on people. I got a 15' DVI to HDMI cable for less than $10.00 (to hook up
to my PC)
that has worked without any problems. That price by the way,included
shipping!!
It was on sale. But, even the regular price was 1/3 of a 6' to 9' Monster
cable.
Use HDMI and get the full benifit of your new TV. You can always route the
audio
to your audio system thru an optical cable (if your sat receiver has the
correct output
and your audio system has the correct input).
Lots of choices and they need not break the bank in order to take advantage
of them.
james



Thanks James, but that didn't answer my question. What I have seems
to be working fine. I wanted to know if I'm creating any problems by
using the video/audio cables? Would there be any improvement by going
to actual component video? If so, I would rather just use RG 6 cable
with RC adapters from radio shack.

Randell Tarin wrote:
james wrote:

"Randell Tarin" wrote in message
ink.net...

I recently purchased a Pioneer PDP-4271HD 42" plasma display.
First of all, out of the box the picture is awesome. It's only a 720p
picture, but at our viewing distance of 10+ feet, the image is sharp,
vibrant and beautiful. I'm getting my HD feed via satellite.

I've chosen to go with component video because I'm getting the audio
portion through my 5.1 surround system and HDMI cables are
ridiculously overpriced.

For my component connection, I'm using the 6ft. RCA cables that came
with my satellite box i.e. one video and L & R audio. These seem to
be good quality heavy-duty cables

I'm using the more robust yellow video cable for the green channel,
the white audio cable for blue and the red audio for red.

I'm not having any apparent problems with this setup. The impedance
seems to be in the proper range because I'm not getting any ghosting
or rings on my display. Are there any other considerations that I'm
overlooking or would I be safe to operate under the assumption that
"if it ain't broke don't fix it"?

I'm wondering if I need to go to the additional expense of buying
matched component video cables. Any advantage to this?

Thanks in Advance,

Randy


Decent quality cables HDMI, Component etc. need not cost an arm and a
leg.
Check out: http://www.monoprice.com I and a whole lot of other
people have
found that the cheap cables they sell are just as good as those"
ridiculously
overpriced" cables like Monster cables that places like Best Buy try
to push off
on people. I got a 15' DVI to HDMI cable for less than $10.00 (to
hook up to my PC)
that has worked without any problems. That price by the way,included
shipping!!
It was on sale. But, even the regular price was 1/3 of a 6' to 9'
Monster cable.
Use HDMI and get the full benifit of your new TV. You can always route
the audio
to your audio system thru an optical cable (if your sat receiver has
the correct output
and your audio system has the correct input).
Lots of choices and they need not break the bank in order to take
advantage of them.
james



Thanks James, but that didn't answer my question. What I have seems
to be working fine. I wanted to know if I'm creating any problems by
using the video/audio cables? Would there be any improvement by going
to actual component video? If so, I would rather just use RG 6 cable
with RC adapters from radio shack.

Given the amount of money you spent on the TV and satellite, I would
use real component video cables built for that purpose. The RCA cables
may be limit the picture quality. Component cables are not that
expensive if you avoid the hideously overpriced Monster cables at Best
Buy and elsewhere. I have multiple sets of component cables sitting
around (some of them came with equipment or were thrown in by the cable
company) and I doubt I spent more on them total than what Monster Cable
asks for one 12' component cable.

As for HDMI versus component, whether there is any apparent benefit
depends on the TV, the STB, and the video material. Some people get
slightly better picture quality with HDMI, some get better quality with
component, and for most people it is a wash. I use component hookup for
my Verizon Fios DVR, HDMI for the upconverting DVD player, and am
currently using a DVI cable for my external ATSC receiver. It works.

Alan F

Randell,
begin opinion:
for only 6 feet ordinary coax cables like you are using should be just fine.
Really really cheap audio (red white) cables that are 'flat' rather than
round should not be used. If you went for long cables then it would be good
to make sure that all three cables are the same.

An aside, due to legal reasons copy protected sources are not supposed to
decoded to any higher than 480p when using the component method. Mostly that
will show on your DVD player. Cable - Satellite - OTA digital signals have a
place for copy protect bit that should trigger such restriction but I don't
know if it is much used. Using HDMI cable to a TV that has the copy protect
software in it will allow you box to use higher resolutions.
If you get 480p when you think you should be getting 720p that may be what
is happening.

Also HDMI cables can be got for a lot less than the 'ridiculous' prices in
the stores. Check Amazon.com. I just ordered a 6' for $2.77+$5.98 shipping,
haven't got it yet (due in a couple of days) so cannot say if I got ripped
off or a good buy.

end opinion
Michael


"Randell Tarin" wrote in message
ink.net...
I recently purchased a Pioneer PDP-4271HD 42" plasma display.
First of all, out of the box the picture is awesome. It's only a 720p
picture, but at our viewing distance of 10+ feet, the image is sharp,
vibrant and beautiful. I'm getting my HD feed via satellite.

I've chosen to go with component video because I'm getting the audio
portion through my 5.1 surround system and HDMI cables are ridiculously
overpriced.

For my component connection, I'm using the 6ft. RCA cables that came with
my satellite box i.e. one video and L & R audio. These seem to be good
quality heavy-duty cables

I'm using the more robust yellow video cable for the green channel, the
white audio cable for blue and the red audio for red.

I'm not having any apparent problems with this setup. The impedance
seems to be in the proper range because I'm not getting any ghosting or
rings on my display. Are there any other considerations that I'm
overlooking or would I be safe to operate under the assumption that "if it
ain't broke don't fix it"?

I'm wondering if I need to go to the additional expense of buying matched
component video cables. Any advantage to this?

Thanks in Advance,

Randy

"james" wrote in message news:0l_2i.10738

Decent quality cables HDMI, Component etc. need not cost an arm and a
leg.
Check out: http://www.monoprice.com I and a whole lot of other people
have found that the cheap cables they sell are just as good as those"
ridiculously overpriced" cables like Monster cables that places like Best
Buy try to push off on people.

I was going to post the same exact reply, a second recommendation for
monoprice.com

"Randell Tarin" wrote in message news:wt_2i.10744
Thanks James, but that didn't answer my question. What I have seems
to be working fine. I wanted to know if I'm creating any problems by using
the video/audio cables? Would there be any improvement by going to actual
component video? If so, I would rather just use RG 6 cable with RC
adapters from radio shack.

Sorry Randell, I overlooked your question. When you get my age you'll
understand how
that can happen! :-)

I don't see any problems using what you are using, other than making it hard
to trace cables
if you are using similar A/V cables with a composite video & audio
connection(s) in the same
area. Component cables have different color coding which makes it easier to
trace them and
avoid wrong connections. If you label them on both ends, that would work,
but, looks messy. (or
can look messy) I would stay away from using RG-6 and an RCA Adaptors. The
more breaks
you put in any circut adds to the number of places where things can go
wrong. Using a single
cable with the right connector on each end with a solid connection is much
better than using
an adaptor between two different types of cables. And another "possible"
problem is impedance
mismatch between the RG-6 and what the inputs & outputs of the devices
between them expect.
Save yourself some headaches and use the right stuff the first time. Your
trouble shooting skills
will thank you!!
james

On May 17, 7:27 am, Randell Tarin wrote:
I recently purchased a Pioneer PDP-4271HD 42" plasma display.
First of all, out of the box the picture is awesome. It's only a
720p
picture, but at our viewing distance of 10+ feet, the image is
sharp,
vibrant and beautiful. I'm getting my HD feed via satellite.

I've chosen to go with component video because I'm getting the
audio
portion through my 5.1 surround system and HDMI cables are
ridiculously
overpriced.

For my component connection, I'm using the 6ft. RCA cables that
came
with my satellite box i.e. one video and L & R audio. These seem
to be
good quality heavy-duty cables

I'm using the more robust yellow video cable for the green channel,
the
white audio cable for blue and the red audio for red.

I'm not having any apparent problems with this setup. The
impedance
seems to be in the proper range because I'm not getting any
ghosting or
rings on my display. Are there any other considerations that I'm
overlooking or would I be safe to operate under the assumption that
"if
it ain't broke don't fix it"?

I'm wondering if I need to go to the additional expense of buying
matched component video cables. Any advantage to this?

Thanks in Advance,

Randy

I would change them out because the audio cables you're using for R-Y
an B-Y are not 75 ohm cables. They're shielded but not 75 ohm
transmission lines. Even on short hops it's measurable and might even
show up as soft vertical edges going into high saturation sections.
They prove the point that component is good. You might even notice the
difference on the screen with good (not necessarily expensive) cables.
3 of the yellow ones - all the same length! - you're using would be
fine. In HD I've measured difference in cable length and found as
little as 6 inches causes noticeable degradation - at least when in
RGB.

GG

james wrote:
"Randell Tarin" wrote in message news:wt_2i.10744
Thanks James, but that didn't answer my question. What I have seems

to be working fine. I wanted to know if I'm creating any problems by using
the video/audio cables? Would there be any improvement by going to actual
component video? If so, I would rather just use RG 6 cable with RC
adapters from radio shack.


Sorry Randell, I overlooked your question. When you get my age you'll
understand how
that can happen! :-)

I don't see any problems using what you are using, other than making it hard
to trace cables
if you are using similar A/V cables with a composite video & audio
connection(s) in the same
area. Component cables have different color coding which makes it easier to
trace them and
avoid wrong connections. If you label them on both ends, that would work,
but, looks messy. (or
can look messy) I would stay away from using RG-6 and an RCA Adaptors. The
more breaks
you put in any circut adds to the number of places where things can go
wrong. Using a single
cable with the right connector on each end with a solid connection is much
better than using
an adaptor between two different types of cables. And another "possible"
problem is impedance
mismatch between the RG-6 and what the inputs & outputs of the devices
between them expect.
Save yourself some headaches and use the right stuff the first time. Your
trouble shooting skills
will thank you!!
james


Thanks for the input everyone. I'll probably go with the better quality
component cables for now. Whenever the Blu-Ray/HD DVD battle is over,
I'll probably upgrade to HDMI when I buy a new DVD player.

The salesman at BestBuy was really pushing to sell me a new DVD
player that would up-rez my DVD collection. I couldn't see the sensse
in buying that when I knew I would eventually be buyiing for High
Definition. I'm sure whatever is around after the dust settles will be
able to up-rez my 480i DVDs.

Alan F wrote in news:RJ_2i.32916$cu1.14885
@trnddc01:

Randell Tarin wrote:
james wrote:

"Randell Tarin" wrote in message
ink.net...

I recently purchased a Pioneer PDP-4271HD 42" plasma display.
First of all, out of the box the picture is awesome. It's only a
720p
picture, but at our viewing distance of 10+ feet, the image is
sharp,
vibrant and beautiful. I'm getting my HD feed via satellite.

I've chosen to go with component video because I'm getting the audio
portion through my 5.1 surround system and HDMI cables are
ridiculously overpriced.

For my component connection, I'm using the 6ft. RCA cables that came
with my satellite box i.e. one video and L & R audio. These seem to
be good quality heavy-duty cables

I'm using the more robust yellow video cable for the green channel,
the white audio cable for blue and the red audio for red.

I'm not having any apparent problems with this setup. The
impedance
seems to be in the proper range because I'm not getting any ghosting
or rings on my display. Are there any other considerations that I'm
overlooking or would I be safe to operate under the assumption that
"if it ain't broke don't fix it"?

I'm wondering if I need to go to the additional expense of buying
matched component video cables. Any advantage to this?

Thanks in Advance,

Randy


Decent quality cables HDMI, Component etc. need not cost an arm and a
leg.
Check out: http://www.monoprice.com I and a whole lot of other
people have
found that the cheap cables they sell are just as good as those"
ridiculously
overpriced" cables like Monster cables that places like Best Buy try
to push off
on people. I got a 15' DVI to HDMI cable for less than $10.00 (to
hook up to my PC)
that has worked without any problems. That price by the way,included
shipping!!
It was on sale. But, even the regular price was 1/3 of a 6' to 9'
Monster cable.
Use HDMI and get the full benifit of your new TV. You can always
route
the audio
to your audio system thru an optical cable (if your sat receiver has
the correct output
and your audio system has the correct input).
Lots of choices and they need not break the bank in order to take
advantage of them.
james



Thanks James, but that didn't answer my question. What I have seems
to be working fine. I wanted to know if I'm creating any problems by
using the video/audio cables? Would there be any improvement by going
to actual component video? If so, I would rather just use RG 6 cable
with RC adapters from radio shack.

Given the amount of money you spent on the TV and satellite, I would
use real component video cables built for that purpose. The RCA cables
may be limit the picture quality. Component cables are not that
expensive if you avoid the hideously overpriced Monster cables at Best
Buy and elsewhere. I have multiple sets of component cables sitting
around (some of them came with equipment or were thrown in by the cable
company) and I doubt I spent more on them total than what Monster Cable
asks for one 12' component cable.

I did notice a modest improvement when I switched out the audio cables
that I used when I first got the TV for a set of component cables made
for GE that I bought off eBay for less than 10 dollars.

The only reason I would by Monster cables would be to get them wholesale
for someone who insisted on them despite my recommendations. The markup
on them is quite good, actually!



--
Dave Oldridge+
ICQ 1800667