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[Mr Ed]

Uh yeah.  When connecting A/V stuff your video (or sound) is only as good as you WORST connection.  If you go RCA->VCR->RF->TV then your signal is as bad as RF.  And unless it's a good VCR (like S-VHS) it's probably introducing some other noise and losses into the picture.  Try connecting it directly to the TV and see if you can see the difference.  Use a high contrast image like white stars on a black background or something.

[Heykrop]

Lets put it this way.  Video connections listed in order of quality.

Lowest>     RF/Coaxial Cable

                  RCA Composite ( The Standard Yellow plug video connector )

                  S - Video   ( Looks like a PS/2 Keyboard or Mouse connector from a PC)

                  Component Video ( Uses connectors that look like the RCA plugs but there are generally 4 of them to make the connection for just the video )

Highest>     HD Digital/DVI  


If you plug the output of a higher quality signal into another device and then use a lower quality output from that device to go into the TV then YES you are going to have lessened the immage quality.     And NO the inverse is not true. Pluging a lower quality signal into something and then using a higher quality output from that device to the TV will not increase the immage quality.

In general you want to stick with the same all the way through to the final destination and preferrably with as few interuptions as possible on the way.   If you are coming out of the XBOX with an S - Video cable then try to go directly to the TV and use the AV inputs on the TV. Every time you route the signal through another device, before it gets to the TV, it will degrade the immage as well.  

Picture it this way.  You have a glas of milk and decide to pour it into another glass. When you are done pouring it into the new glass most of it made it but a little is still coating the inside of the original glass.  There was a little loss but not so mutch as to be noticeable.  This is like going from the system directly to the TV. Due to line noise and other factors there will be a slight loss of immage quality from when it leaves the box to when it gets to the TV.  

Now imagine that you have the original glass of milk again.  This time you pour it into another glass, just as last time, but next you pour that glass into yet another and then another and so on and so on.  When you are finally done there is a noticeable difference in the ammount of milk because all those other glasses have some left behind. This is similar to routing the signal through multiple items before it gets to the TV with the difference being that it could take only 1 item that has a poor connection or output signal to make a good immage look like garbage.

[vegeotto]

would more av inputs available mean less quality (4 inputs vs 5), also does gold plated connectors make a difference?

[parkerbender]

in my personal experience you dont realllly y notice the difference between gold and not, but i dont think that it was that bad playing my xbox w/rf connection for a few months either, but the best bet is a box they got at walmart for 20$ in nebraska anyways that has 5 ins and 1 out for yellow red white and svideo (i know yrw is rca for any nitpickers just kinda srunk. .  but it did the trick and will even convert 5 rca inputs to rf oh, it has rf in and out and a p[assthrough switch to run off rf or a rca in, but i works great and adds lots of nerdly connections to my setup, but i dont think it modulates svideo to another format. anywayyyssssss. talk to ya later.

[Mr Ed]

It's my understanding the gold doesn't improve the signal per say, but does last longer.  So a non-gold connector after 10 years probably won't carry as good a signal as a gold connector that's 10 years old would.

[Heykrop]

QUOTE (Mr Ed @ Dec 31 2003, 05:22 AM)

It's my understanding the gold doesn't improve the signal per say, but does last longer.  So a non-gold connector after 10 years probably won't carry as good a signal as a gold connector that's 10 years old would.

That would be correct.  The gold plated connectors have a far better protection against oxidation and will help to keep the signal intact for longer.  The only drawback is that most television sets do not have gold plated connectors so they will eventually start to oxidize, but not as bas as they would if you had non gold connectors plugged in to them.