Monster Cable (Audio/Video) : really make a difference or just rip-off ?

[sohcrates]

<< would a gold plated on PS2 improve it more or I'm just throwing away money ? >>



well, i guess gold plated doesn't corrode like other metals would...but i highly doubt it's a more effective "transfer"

 

[jlee75]

all i know is that when i bought my DVD player, the bundled s-video was crap. Had some weird banding effect, and ocassionally the picture would drop. Switched to monster cable s-video cable and have not had a problem since. So don't know what to say. Just taht bundled cables are crap.

 

[tm37]

I did extensive research at quite a few sites (about 6 months ago) and basically what I found is to get a GOOD cable for a resonable price. I ended up going with acoustic Reasearch I found a place that sells OEM I think by using MY SIMON. Prices were less than the expensive Shack Cables

 

[ingenue007]

I'm getting a new DVD player (prob toshiba 2700).

My TV has svideo and component. Much difference b/w the two? I prob will get component in any case, but will I tell the difference? TV is just toshiba 20'' flat.

 

[sohcrates]

man, if you've got component outs and component in's, it would be a shame not use them. and yes, there are subtle differences. not as big as the difference between regular input and s-video, but still differences.

 

[Viperoni]

I went from a generic 6foot svideo to a monster video 2 3foot svideo cable....the difference was small; the picture was a tad sharper, tad more darker, maybe a bit warmer, but otherwise they were equal.
I wouldn't say it was worth $50 CAD (bit of a ripoff), but I'm happy with it

Stuff like speaker cable only matters in the sheer guage of it; the thicker the less resistance in the cable......but that in and of itself is a TINY, 99% unnoticeable difference......unless your speakers have Scan Speak woofers, Vifa XT tweets and AudioCap Theta caps

 

[CocaCola5]

<< man, if you've got component outs and component in's, it would be a shame not use them. and yes, there are subtle differences. not as big as the difference between regular input and s-video, but still differences. >>




Actually each has their advantages, s-video has better white/black(contrast) reproduction but inferior/mediocre color., component on the other hand has superior color reproduction but inferior white/black seperation. S-video can actually look better in certain high contrast scenes with simple background(not color rich).

 

[Eug]

<< I'm getting a new DVD player (prob toshiba 2700).

My TV has svideo and component. Much difference b/w the two? I prob will get component in any case, but will I tell the difference? TV is just toshiba 20'' flat. >>


Try it and see. Component can be slightly better but on a 20" it will be hard to notice. What might be more important is colour balance. I find on some equipment it's different between the two inputs and thus one needs to recalibrate the setup to each input.

 

[ckkoba]

Yah, I've heard good things about Acoustic Research cables. Better quality than Monster yet still pretty cheap. There's two different types, the cheaper one and the more expensive Pro version. Would go with the Pro ones, and you should be able to tell the difference.

2 cents on the conversation about 1000 dollar speaker wire, for the average consumer, spending around 30 bucks for AcousticResearch speaker wire should suit us just fine... Heh, i sound like some PR person for AR.