criptik28

Hi all,

I'm confused about how to connect my TV, VCR and DVD player. My DVD player came with stereo audio (red and white) and composite video (yellow). My VCR only came with RF. Right now I have the DVD player connected to the TV via its yellow, white and red cables, and the VCR is also directly connected to the TV via its RF cable. Is this the correct way to do it? If I were to add a cable box, where would this go? Would I be better off replacing the VCR's RF cable with a red/white/yellow combination?

Thanks in advance!

Brian Shannon

I take it you do not have a receiver and everything is going into the TV?

How many inputs does the TV have?

A cable box would go through the VCR so you could record shows.

Yes the composite (r/w/y) connection would be better than RF but only if your TV has multiple inputs.

criptik28

Yes, I don't have a receiver, so everything would be going into the TV. The TV has two separate sets of inputs, for two different composite connections (so a total of two yellow, two white, and two red sockets). Would the cable (from the wall) be plugged into the cable box, which in turn is plugged into the VCR, or would the cable be plugged into the VCR, which in turn is plugged into the cable box?

Thanks again!

nekobus

Does your VCR have composite outputs or is it an older model with only a RF output?

Brian Shannon

If you have a cable box, the cable goes into the cable box and then you connect the cable box to the VCR and the VCR to the TV.

If you hve two sets of inputs, the DVD would be on one and the VCR is on the other.

Mr. Salty

One other thing, if your TV has an s-video input, connect your DVD player using an s-video cable. There is a big improvement in picture quality over the yellow composite connection.

Your DVD player surely has an s-video output, but you'll probably have to buy the cable.

criptik28

My VCR does have composite outputs. And my TV does support an S-cable input. Just buying a new S-cable (instead of using the yellow composite cable) will improve the DVD's picture quality? How much do these cables cost? Where's a good place to buy them? Radio Shack?

nekobus

Then connect the composite from the VCR to your TV. You will get a better picture than with the RF.

You will also have a much better picture if you use your S-video from the DVD player to the TV. It's well worth the price of the cable.

You can find them at Radio Shack, Best Buy, Good Guys, Target or pretty much any place which sells electronics. Try not to buy the absolute cheapest one there is, but one with better construction, which is at least a step up from the bottom.

Mr. Salty

This depends on the TV. My TV, a Sony, disables the composite input if something is connected to the s-video input.

S-video stand for "separated video." It splits the video signal into its color (chromanance) and detail (luminance) signals. The advantage is that the picture will have a lot fewer artifacts like dot crawl that you get with composite. The picture will be much smoother looking.

Like nekobus said, you can find these cables just about anywhere. I paid about $30 for a Monster Cable version at Best Buy, but you can find cheaper versions at Radio Shack, Wal-Mart and just about anywhere else.

The connector is a metal collar, and there are four small pins inside. The plug will go on only one way, so be careful. The metal pins are kind of fragile.