Cable - Does video matter more than audio?

[Mark Holtz]

I have somewhat of a stupid question, so pardon my ignorance....

Would the quality of the cable matter more for video signals than for audio?

If I understand correctly, for audio cables (such as speaker cables), the more important part is the gauge of the wire. If I understand things correctly, the bigger the wire, the more power and/or the farther you can go.

But, what about video cables? They consist of a signal wire (or, in the case of S-Video cables, 4 signal wires), with shielding to prevent interference. Is that correct?

Or, does it really matter?

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Be kind: Rewind your DVD discs.

Mark Holtz http://www.deepspacefranchise.net/

[Lush]

Gauge is important if you are buying Home Depot stuff that comes off a huge reel. Basic electrical wire gives you the choice from 18 to 12G.
When it comes to specialty cables ($8/ft and up), gauge is not a real buying factor because they are always 12G or more. In this league, materials and construction becomes more important.

For me, it is usually easier to discern differences in audio cables than video cables. But to be fair, I haven't tested too many video cables.

[dfcc]

As long the audio cable is 16gauge or larger, its fine. Even 16 gauge plain jane electrical wire available at Home Depot works almost identical to the more expensive stuff. Where you want to spend you extra money is on the interconnects and video cables because you will notice these much more than your speaker cable.