This article originally ran several years ago. I thought it was time to bring it up again. It’s not that the answer has changed, but surprisingly these cables are still in use. Information about them gets harder to find, because they are essentially obsolete in most cases.
Not for the color blind of heart
Sometimes they don’t make it easy. The photo you see above is a component video cable. It’s got three RCA connectors and one of them is red. Seems simple enough, assuming you are able to tell the difference between red, green, blue, and yellow.
This photo is a composite video cable. It’s got three RCA connectors and one of them is red. (You’re seeing both sides of the cable, that’s why you see each cable color repeated twice. All things considered it looks pretty much like the other cable, other than the colors.
- Who came up with all this nonsense?
Right now you’re thinking, who the <honk> made two different kinds of cables that look practically identical? Relax, it’s not as bad as you think.
Component cables
Component cables are designed for HDTV. Even though they don’t actually carry the red, green, and blue signals separately, the RGB cable designation shows you that these cable are intended for HD video only. HD video uses quite a bit more “bandwidth” (we’ll explain that in a minute) so if you’re going to use an analog video cable like this one, you need three connections to carry the information. This connection is video-only… you would need more cables to carry the audio.
Composite cables
Composite cables are designed for older, standard definition systems. The yellow plug carries the video, while the red and white cables carry the audio. This was sufficient for home video systems until about 1987, when it became obvious that new, higher-quality systems would need better connections.
When installing these cables, connect the plugs to the correctly colored jacks on the back of your system. You will notice that your system has two red jacks, which isn’t confusing at all, right? Generally the cables are in a row across. If connecting component, plug the green and blue cables in, then plug in the red cable next to it.
Really, component cables should be very thick and well-shielded. This is because the HD video signal needs more bandwidth. Bandwidth is something like the thickness of a pipe. A larger pipe means more water can flow through it, it doesn’t guarantee that more water does actually flow through it.
However, if all you have is two sets of red/white/yellow cables, and you need to hook up via component, it will probably work. The picture won’t be as clear as it could be but in a pinch it will be fine. And component video cables make good composite cables in a pinch too.
Using these cables in the ’20s
These cables, whether component or composite, are only used for very old equipment. In truth, the use of component cables has almost completely stopped. That’s on purpose, but not for the reason you think. Using component cables, you can do a pretty good job of copying HD content. Obviously the folks who create HD content aren’t so happy about that. So, about 15 years ago, they started hatching a plan. They worked with manufacturers to limit the use of component cables and only include content-protected HDMI connectors instead. As a result, component connections have largely disappeared from the earth.
There really isn’t anything new that uses composite cables either, but it seems like those old DVD and VHS players never quite give up the ghost. This is especially true in places like RVs where they could be built into cabinets.
The problem is that more and more TVs are made without these connections at all. If your TV does have them, that’s great. Otherwise, you’ll want one of these little adapters, which will convert those old composite outputs to HDMI.
If you have any questions about how something like this would work, talk to the folks at Solid Signal! We’re here to help during East Coast business hours at 888-233-7563.
