Recent Home Theater Cable Articles

This is an editorialized experience of when I visited a hifi shop over the holiday break and got sold a story on what makes exotic cables better. Slick marketing or snake oil?

Digital is everywhere in today's home theater environment. But, despite this proliferation of digital technologies and content, most digital devices still rely on analogue interfaces. The use of …

This article explores the claim by some cable vendors that cables exhibit dielectric absorption like a capacitor. We discuss the purpose of a cable dielecric and whether it can affect sound.

Every house I've ever purchased, built and lived in all had one thing in common. A room built for Home Theater. Regretfully I had to sacrifice that in this house and after a long debate with my …

When it comes to HDMI / DVI connectivity, you have two choices: Copper or Fiber Optics. Which is right for you? As digital displays become more popular, and more people understand that a DVI or HDMI …

We were absolutely stunned by the very innovative and practical new cable product Impact Acoustics announced at CEDIA this year - the RapidRun. So much so in fact that they recently received our …

Over the past few years we have put forth our best effort to demystify the industry on cable snake oils and ficticious claims. While this battle isn't quite yet over, we are happy with the progress …

Balanced vs Unbalanced interconnects and cables, what is the difference? This article discusses both cable types and gives you the pros and cons of each. Use balanced cables whenever you can.

When reading descriptions of home theater cable products off of packages in a big-box store, or off of websites online, it's sometimes hard to get a clear understanding of just what, exactly, is …

We're often asked questions about the suitability of particular cables or speaker wires for in-wall installation, and it's not surprising; with surround speakers being wired all around home theater …

Keeping a signal in the digital domain until the very last instant before it is converted into the compressions and rarefactions that are sound - or the illumination of pixels or scanning lines that …

All common video signal types--composite, RF, s-video, component, SDI, and the various flavors of RGB--are ordinarily run in coaxial cables, or, as the shorthand term goes, "coax." The features of …

This editorial gives you the truth about audio interconnect and speaker cables and wires and debunks the myths that often surround them.

For both the newcomer and the old hand alike, connecting equipment in the most efficient and effective manner can be a painful chore. It is hoped this article will improve your background knowledge …

The article discusses the various signal and connection types for television and HDTV from composite cable to HDMI and more.

Exotic audio cables often use fancy materials such as silver wire or teflon dielectrics. But do these materials really translate to a performance difference? Read the article and watch our Youtube.

Certainly silver has always had a place in the wire and cable industry. It's long been a fixture in military and high temperature applications. In the case of Teflon wire, you have always seen silver …

During the next few months, many manufactures will release new consumer electronic products with DVI (Digital Visual Interface) and HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface) connectors. DVD …

The transmission of signals using a beam of light was a topic for science fiction writers just a few short decades ago. The ability to harness the incredible speeds and data density capabilities of …

During our review of the THIEL Audio SCS3 system, we pinged designer Jim Thiel on some technical questions regarding the loudspeaker designs and the choice of internal wiring and crossover …

I am often called on to provide calibration services for the budding audiophile and even the professional installer to try to maximize the performance of their systems. I am always shocked to see the …

Eliminate RFI/EMI noise ingress into your hifi audio system by using proper cabling, shielding, and grounding techniques.

'Breaking in' a cable has everything to do with the insulation - not the wire itself. The insulation (or dielectric) will absorb energy from the conductor when a current is flowing (i.e. when music …

How to calculate Inductance of Zip Cord Speaker Cable and how skin effect changes internal inducatance at various frequencies.

Audio or high fidelity has been a miraculous invention. If you need to understand why, read Steppenwolf. We audiophiles are at the forefront of a revolution written about by Larry Klein, in Stereo …

Atoms are composed of three particles with an electric charge: electrons, protons and uncharged neutrons. Electrons have a negative charge, and protons have a positive charge. The negative charge of …

If we purchase expensive and more sophisticated speaker cables, we should expect improve audio reproduction, right? Digital audio, amplifier and speaker technology is now very sophisticated, and just …

Skin Effect is a real problem in high frequency E&M; transmission but does it matter in speaker cables at audio frequencies? This article explores that very topic.