Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with RCA

Speaker Output of Amp A to RCA Input of Amp B

forallmankind — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 11:35:06 -0800

Is there any way I can take the speaker output from underpowered combo CD/ amp A and run it into the RCA input of power amp B? If not, what is the difference between what is running out of a speaker output vs what is running out of an RCA output?

Why does my plasma TV keep going black?

flowerofhighrank — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 22:03:35 -0800

Why does my RCA plasma TV keep going black for 5 seconds at a time, outta nowhere? It's about 3 years old and has no other problems...it just all of a sudden (of course at the peak of the action!) turns off and turns back on. No discernible pattern, hooked up to all the modern conveniences. Can anybody help?

Inexpensive RCA-in, RCA-out, In-line DVR with no subscriptions?

Quarter Pincher — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 14:55:28 -0800

Inexpensive standalone (non-computer) DVR solution for in-line video game recording? Preferably RCA in, RCA out, with 10+hours record time uncompressed/highest quality. I'm looking for something that'll essentially perform like a "press record now" device akin to a VCR, that will record anything coming in through the RCA input, but with relatively uncompressed quality. I make a lot of video game YouTube videos, and most games do not have their own go-back-and-watch features.

I tried this with a VCR to "technical" success (but with hideous recording quality) and am considering digital options now. My father suggested a hard-drive-based digital video camera that has RCA ins and outs, but I wouldn't know where to begin.

Any suggestions for brands and models to start looking, or have similar experience to share?

How do you use the front panel RCA ports on a Motorola DCT6400 DVR cable box?

whatisish — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 18:57:22 -0800

How do you use the front panel RCA ports on a Motorola DCT6400 DVR cable box? Due to the setup of a wall mounted flat panel tv, I can't readily access the RCA inputs. Therefore, I'm trying to connect a Nintendo Wii through the front panel RCA inputs on a Motorola DVR (model DCT6400). Intuitively, I think it must be possible, but I can't for the life of me figure out why it doesn't recognize the ports. Is another piece of hardware (RF converter box, or something similar) required in order to make it work, or is it perhaps buried somewhere in a menu setup I can't find?

Stereo Mini cord is toxic?

silsurf — Mon, 17 Nov 2008 09:22:27 -0800

Why does this stereo mini to RCA adapter have a obscure image icon that indicates hazardous waste? I have a stereo mini to RCA adapter cord that gave out and before tossing it in the trash I noticed this teeny-weeny sticker on one end. All that is on the sticker is an image of a trash receptacle with a circle and a line through it. Very small, very hard to see.

I scanned it and you can see the image here.

What is in this cord that I should be so worried about and how shall I dispose of it safely?

Henry

What do I need to buy to hook my new Macbook Pro up to my TV (using composite cables)?

kosmonaut — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 15:28:57 -0800

What do I need to buy to hook my new Macbook Pro up to my TV (using composite cables)? I bought the new Macbook Pro that has a mini-DisplayPort. Our TV takes composite (RCA) cables only.

On my old computer, I just used the included S-Video -> composite adapter in order to watch TV. The new Macbook Pro doesn't come with any adapter in the box at all. But the worst thing is that Apple does not even sell a mini-DisplayPort -> composite/S-video adapter.

Since I sometimes might want to hook my computer up to projectors, I'm probably going to buy the mini-DisplayPort -> VGA adapter anyway. I know there are VGA -> composite adapters out there (like this), but the reviews for them are really mixed. I hear things about the specific computer needing "TV-Out" support, which I don't know anything about.

Does anybody know what VGA -> composite adapter will work with my Macbook Pro setup? I would especially love to know if someone has successfully done the very same setup.

Is there a spin doctor in the house?

evil holiday magic — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 22:12:13 -0800

I need a turntable to spin. That's it. I bought the turntable part of an old record player on eBay. It needs a base, and it has some wires trailing from it. I don't need it to do anything except spin. Any ideas how I can get this puppy spinning from the mains power?

Photos.

help me play my xbox on my desktop monitor

gcat — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 11:22:04 -0800

i am trying to take the RCA output from my original xbox, plug it into the RCA input of my Vista HP 'media center' desktop, and play xbox, watching on my new desktop monitor and listening through the audio out of the computers sound card. ok, so i got this HP media center m7757c on craigslist. (windows vista - i know, i know)

on the front, it has a section with RCA and other inputs. the RCA has video, and audio (L/R) connections.

http://s261.photobucket.com/albums/ii80/gcatmefi/?action=view&current=IMG00017.jpg

i assumed that when i plugged in any RCA-type audio/video signal to this handy 'media center' feature, that i would be able to watch whatever that signal was on my destop monitor.

is this not the case?

anyway, im trying to play my xbox (not 360) on my desktop monitor, through the RCA inputs on the front. (what i am assuming is) the tv tuner card on the back of the tower does not have an RCA video input, though it does have audio (L/R).

my xbox has RCA out, i plug it into the RCA in on the front of the HP.

how do i watch/hear the signal that is going into the tower? i cant find anything in windows to click on that works.

it looks like the manufacturer of the tuner card is hauppauge, but i cant find any corresponding software on the computer, and ive looked in program files, in all the HP folders, and i cant find anything. device manager says its working fine and has the latest whatever.

i stumbled upon a chat-with-an-HP-techie service, and after a lof of intermittent waiting, she

1. gave me this link to an article:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/909536/

the article deals with the 360, and i dont have one. (didnt notice this until i got off the phone)

also, looks like a big headache, as when i started out, i just figured it would be simple to watch whatever the input was.

and

2. she told me i could go to Windows Media Center and 'search for channels,' and that whatever was plugged in would come up. but i have tried navigating that whole thing, to no avail.

can anyone help me, or maybe at least explain why this will not work fairly easily?

i assume there must be something i can do in windows that will let me watch and hear the audio/video being fed to it, right?

Gimme back my Rodriquez CD!

Scram — Tue, 30 Oct 2007 14:28:18 -0800

5-disk console CD player has eaten my disks and won't spit 'em out. How can I retrieve them, and can the machine be made to work as a manually opened/closed unit? I have a lightly used, several-years-old, 5-disk-changer RCA RP8070 CD player which suddenly let out a pained grinding sound and refused to open, no matter what buttons I push. I've got several CDs inside that I'd like to retrieve, so the sledgehammer option, while emotionally satisfying, seems unwise. Prying at the door with a letter opener results in no movement. The unit has tiny screws at each of the four bottom corners (in the center of the disk feet), and a smattering of screws on the back panel.

My questions for the hive mind:
1) how can I get the CDs out of the machine without electrocuting myself or damaging them?
2) is there some simple way to release/disconnect the sliding tray from what I assume is a broken motor, so I can just pry it open and slide it back in, and continue using the player rather than buy a new one that will probably break with light use, too? I'm willing to anchor the disk trays in place so it's not a 5-disk changer anymore, if necessary.

Are RCA cables and Component cables the same?

tpl1212 — Thu, 14 Sep 2006 05:34:54 -0800

Can one use RCA cables (red/white/yellow) in component jacks (red/blue/green)? I understand that the jacks carry much different data/signal/whatever, but I was told that there is no need to buy (very) pricey component cables...you can actually just hook up good quality red/white/yellow RCA cables to the component jacks for the same purpose. My backstory: for some reason, I am a complete AV dolt. I don't get it and can't wrap my head around wiring and hooking up my new digital video box, home entertainment receiver, and new LCD tv with all sorts of in/outputs.

So, I went to radioshack (ugh...hate that place, but I was in need of a quick fix to get this all hooked up) and the guy asked if I had component outputs, and that hooking these up with component wires (the three red/blue/green wires) would give me the best possible picture. So I bought some $45 package of Monster component cables (knowing full well that this guy was probably upselling me and raking me over the coals...but not understanding enough to be able to know for sure...hate that feeling).

I got home and my friend who was helping me set everything up mentioned to me that it was merely the inputs that were different; the component jacks were what carried "better" picture data...the cables (within reason) were more or less irrellevant. The cables just carry that signal.

I tested it out...and over the short distance hooked up (about 2'), I noticed no change in picture quality whether the component jacks were connected by dedicated (expensive) component cables or by good quality (but 1/2 or more as pricey) RCA cables.

I found this discussion on Yahoo Answers...but it seems like there if just a lot of back and forth ("yes, they are the same" and "no, they are totally different.").

Should I return these expensive cables and just go with some high quality RCAs in the component jacks? Are dedicated component cables really only marketed for suckers like me?

Thanks!

How would I mix two sources of audio so that I can listen to them through my headphones at the same time?

cbushko — Tue, 11 Apr 2006 13:53:02 -0800

I have audio coming from two sources; a Bell satelite receiver (RCA outputs) and my computer (phono?). I would like to listen to both audio sources so that I can watch TV and play games at the same time while not disturbing my family.

Cabling: how do I run stereo audio from my mixer to my breakout box?

cortex — Tue, 20 Dec 2005 12:27:11 -0800

Audio Cables 101: tell me exactly how to feed a stereo mix from my mixer to my breakout box. This cannot be hard. I have got to just be stupid. Please take pity on me. Here's what I've got:

Mixer: a Yamaha MG10/2.
Breakout box: an M-Audio Fast Track USB

Simple task: take a stereo mix from the mixer and feed it into the breakout box. The mixer has a variety of output options -- stereo RCA, stereo 1/4" headphone jack, etc. The breakout box has two inputs -- a stereo** 1/8" minijack, and an XLR female jack.

(**Is it possible? fathomable? reasonable? that M-Audio would have a mono input jack here?)

I ought to be able to do something simple like run an RCA-pair-to-stereo-1/8" cable from the mixer to the jack on the breakout box and just call it a day. And I tried that, and it didn't effin' work. Buh?

I've been getting by on a frankensteinian kluge, handling each half of the stereo singal with a seperate solution:
- single-RCA-to-1/8" running from one channel of the mixer's stereo RCA out into the minijack on the box
- 1/4"-phone-jack-to-XLR-male cable running from an unrelated output channel on the mixer into the XLR-in on the box.

And doing some crazy panning and leveling control on the mixer to get these signals isolated to left-and-right respectively and approximately equalized in volume.

And that's been working, but it's a pain in the ass and just seems wrong besides. And all I can figure is that I am just plain missing something, something obvious/essential/basic. Help! Reveal my fundamental ignorance!

connecting VCR to LCD monitor

flyby22 — Sat, 17 Sep 2005 09:16:12 -0800

Trying to use a 17 LCD monitor as TV with my VCR. Where can I get something, hopefully not too expensive, to connect the RCA composite output to the VGA input of the monitor. Not sure if i need to find a converter box or some adapter cables exist to do the job. Did not find much useful info by googling.

Making a gameplay video

crunchland — Mon, 26 Apr 2004 19:39:03 -0800

I've got to take some short sequences of gameplay off of the outputs of a gamecube, an old nintendo, and a SuperNES, and produce a CD with the video on it. Since all of the machines have RCA out, it seems pretty straight forward, right? What equipment will I need, and are there any pitfalls I should be aware of?