Home Stereo: Basic Home Stereo Connections
What do I do with all these wires?..
Home Stereo connections can certainly be a challenge. Here's the scenario: you have a friend who's asked you to help move them into a new home. You've finally unpacked all their belongings into their new home. Next, they ask you to help reconnect their home stereo equipment. You look at this mass of wires lying in front of you, and you freeze. "What does all this stuff do," you ask. We're going to demystify cables and connections.
This topic can be fairly technical in nature, but to make home stereo connections easier we've divided this complex into several different pages. Each of the four main categories of cables has a page in this complex that describes them in some more detail. At the most basic level, this is what the wires in your system accomplish the movement of an electrical (or light) signal from place to place.
These are the types:
Different types of Home Stereo Connections
Stereo Interconnects: low voltage wires called "RCA", "interconnects", or "Phono" cables connect most of the pieces of your home stereo at what's called "line level."
Speaker Cables: high-voltage high-current speaker cables carry electrical signals from your amplifier or receiver to the loudspeakers which produce sound based on those signals.
Digital Connections: optical digital cables connect can connect your CD or SACD/DVD-A player to an outboard digital-to-analog converter or A/V receiver.
Electrical Cords: Lastly, and maybe the most crucial connection: your stereo equipment and the 115/120-volt electrical service of your home.
Most audio equipment sold to consumers nowadays comes with the required interconnects in the box.
Here is a lovely definition of what a home stereo interconnection should do courtesy of eCoustics, a really cool website devoted to the pursuit of wonderful sound:
"The basic purpose of a cable is to transfer the signal from point A to point B unadulterated. At audio frequencies the goal is to minimize losses by controlling the amount of Resistance, Inductance and Capacitance. For speaker cables, we have found the primary concerns for optimal signal transfer is to minimize resistance, followed by inductance, while also keeping capacitance in check to eliminate the possibilities of amplifier oscillation or frequency peaking. For line level analog interconnects it good idea to use cables that are low in capacitance and are well shielded to eliminate interference and external noise sources from mitigating into the signal. For video, good shielding and maintaining the proper characteristic impedance is vital." eCoustics.com.
Additionally, one of the best discussions on this topic can be found in Chapter 11 of The Complete Guide to High-End Audio by Robert Harley. I strongly recommend you run out and purchase this book as it presents some of the more esoteric aspects of home audio in a fun and easily understood fashion.
As with everything dealing with home stereo, there are design differences between various products used in home stereo connections. What will lead to better performance in one product versus another is a matter of dispute. To be sure, cables and wiring do have an effect, even on the entry-level piece, as well as at the farthest margins of product spectrum.
Home Stereo connections can certainly be a challenge. Here's the scenario: you have a friend who's asked you to help move them into a new home. You've finally unpacked all their belongings into their new home. Next, they ask you to help reconnect their home stereo equipment. You look at this mass of wires lying in front of you, and you freeze. "What does all this stuff do," you ask. We're going to demystify cables and connections.
This topic can be fairly technical in nature, but to make home stereo connections easier we've divided this complex into several different pages. Each of the four main categories of cables has a page in this complex that describes them in some more detail. At the most basic level, this is what the wires in your system accomplish the movement of an electrical (or light) signal from place to place.
These are the types:
Different types of Home Stereo Connections
Stereo Interconnects: low voltage wires called "RCA", "interconnects", or "Phono" cables connect most of the pieces of your home stereo at what's called "line level."
Speaker Cables: high-voltage high-current speaker cables carry electrical signals from your amplifier or receiver to the loudspeakers which produce sound based on those signals.
Digital Connections: optical digital cables connect can connect your CD or SACD/DVD-A player to an outboard digital-to-analog converter or A/V receiver.
Electrical Cords: Lastly, and maybe the most crucial connection: your stereo equipment and the 115/120-volt electrical service of your home.
Most audio equipment sold to consumers nowadays comes with the required interconnects in the box.
Here is a lovely definition of what a home stereo interconnection should do courtesy of eCoustics, a really cool website devoted to the pursuit of wonderful sound:
"The basic purpose of a cable is to transfer the signal from point A to point B unadulterated. At audio frequencies the goal is to minimize losses by controlling the amount of Resistance, Inductance and Capacitance. For speaker cables, we have found the primary concerns for optimal signal transfer is to minimize resistance, followed by inductance, while also keeping capacitance in check to eliminate the possibilities of amplifier oscillation or frequency peaking. For line level analog interconnects it good idea to use cables that are low in capacitance and are well shielded to eliminate interference and external noise sources from mitigating into the signal. For video, good shielding and maintaining the proper characteristic impedance is vital." eCoustics.com.
Additionally, one of the best discussions on this topic can be found in Chapter 11 of The Complete Guide to High-End Audio by Robert Harley. I strongly recommend you run out and purchase this book as it presents some of the more esoteric aspects of home audio in a fun and easily understood fashion.
As with everything dealing with home stereo, there are design differences between various products used in home stereo connections. What will lead to better performance in one product versus another is a matter of dispute. To be sure, cables and wiring do have an effect, even on the entry-level piece, as well as at the farthest margins of product spectrum.
