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    Boring hifi question

    So I've now connected my TV to my amplifier and big speakers. Unfortunately I couldn't find any RCA cables in my cellar, but I did find a 3.5 mm to RCA adapter, which I plugged into the headphone socket on the back of the TV.

    Sounds fine to me, but is there any good reason—in terms of sound quality—to connect the TV and amplifier with RCA-RCA leads?


    #2
    Gold cables, kidda.

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      #3
      Beat me to it. Also make sure they're kept off the floor (or on the floor, I can't remember which.)

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        #4
        I know sod all about hi fi but nodding sagely and muttering something about not skimping on your cables has seen me through quite a few conversations on the subject.

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          #5
          Originally posted by Benjm View Post
          I know sod all about hi fi but nodding sagely and muttering something about not skimping on your cables has seen me through quite a few conversations on the subject.
          Actually you should skimp on your cables and spend that money on better kit. Oh, and music.

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            #6
            The thread title is a tautology

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              #7
              All that stuff about gold-plated connectors being the dog's bollocks is just bollocks, though. Most of what you hear is marketing guff, like they supposedly 'conduct the signal better', or something – if there's one metal known for not being a conductor, it's gold. The connector won't tarnish, no, but unless you're plugging it into a gold socket too then this is fairly irrelevant. Which leaves the question of what properties, exactly, is it meant to be bringing to the party – other than looking 'exclusive'?

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                #8
                Originally posted by Various Artist View Post
                … if there's one metal known for not being a conductor, it's gold.
                I think the chemists might take issue with that statement. But gold isn't a better conductor than copper.

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                  #9
                  Gold HDMI cables are the best / worst con, depending on your point of view. There are people who swear by them, because they're idiots who want something "better" than everyone else.

                  It's a digital signal, lads. It's either on or off.

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                    #10
                    If your interconnect is in a socket, how is it going to corrode?

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                      #11
                      Originally posted by Stumpy Pepys View Post
                      So I've now connected my TV to my amplifier and big speakers. Unfortunately I couldn't find any RCA cables in my cellar, but I did find a 3.5 mm to RCA adapter, which I plugged into the headphone socket on the back of the TV.

                      Sounds fine to me, but is there any good reason—in terms of sound quality—to connect the TV and amplifier with RCA-RCA leads?

                      Yeah, there is. The "headphone out" volume will go up and down when you adjust the TV volume.

                      The RCA (tulip) out on your TV is likely to be a "line out", which means it is specifically designed to feed into an amp at an ideal, fixed volume and won't react to you changing the volume on the TV. Since it is the correct, fixed volume, the sound will be less prone to distortion and the amp will be free to work its magic. And it might even be better for the health of the amp.

                      If your amp doesn't have a remote control (like mine, because it is from 1986), then using the line out means you're going to have get up to change the volume... which is a bit of a pain.

                      My telly doesn't have a line out port so I've had it hooked up to the stereo via the headphone jack using the cable you show above. It's been like that for a few years now and I've yet to have a problem. What I usually do is keep the telly at a medium-low volume and have the volume on the amp a bit higher if I want things loud. My reasoning is that I can play it safe that way and avoid the amp receiving stuff that is too loud.
                      Last edited by anton pulisov; 13-03-2018, 23:34.

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                        #12
                        Originally posted by Bruno
                        The price of entry is $30 for one foot, each additional foot costs ~$3. Which is top dollar in my book. For most home uses one would need a 1-2 foot cable. Of course, many interconnects cost hundreds and even thousands of dollars. I think I remember seeing a $10k pair once.
                        I would still consider that extortionate, as someone who paid, I think, €1/metre for speaker cable. This is copper wire with some plastic shielding, lest we forget.

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                          #13
                          Originally posted by Bruno
                          Getting the shielding right in an interconnect cable isn't a simple matter of putting any old plastic sleeve around it.
                          You'll have to enlighten me.

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