Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with stereo and cable

ipod to stereo

cookie googleman — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 10:10:48 -0800

How does one achieve the best sound quality when connecting ipod/iphone directly to stereo? I recently purchased a Belkin Stereo Cable for iPhone to connect my ipod and iphone directly to my stereo. It works, but the sound quality is not very good. Is there a better way to do this without having to purchase a dock? Thanks in advance.

Temporarily connecting stereo speakers

ObscureReferenceMan — Sun, 22 Jul 2007 09:56:26 -0800

Stereo speaker cable length AND connection questions... I've got two sets of speakers hooked up to my Onkyo receiver. I want to (temporarily) put the downstairs speakers (Bose 161) in the window so people sitting outside can listen to music. However, the 161's are already on about 50 feet of cable (standard 16 gauge wire). The questions: 1) Can I add another 15-30 feet without effecting performance? 2) How to splice them together? Just twist and cap them off? (Putting them back is no problem - I'll just cut and reconnect.) Thanks!!

Help me wire this crazy-ass layout for surround sound...

twiggy — Mon, 26 Jun 2006 20:32:20 -0800

Help me inexpensively and at least somewhat discreetly wire my place for surround. The problem: Really challenging room layout and a tight budget. The short version of what I'm looking for is:
- Recommendations of quality but affordable speaker cable (please, no Monster)
- Ideas on how to find out if/how I can drill into the soffit safely (if you need pics, I can put some up)
- Ballpark figures on having a room wired for surround if you've had it done
- Creative ideas for semi-attractively achieving this wiring without going into the wall
- Or .. point me to a magical tool that will let me go through the wall with minimal damage and easy/inexpensive repairs?
- I already have the surround system, and I'm house-poor - please do not recommend I purchase wireless speakers

The more detailed notes with regard to this challenge:
- Floors are hardwood, I can't tuck wiring under baseboards or carpet, unfortunately
- It shouldn't make a huge difference, but the system I have is 6.1 surround (3 rears), not just 5.1
- Ceilings are somewhat high (9 feet). There is a soffit running around the perimeter (from the left of the entertainment center toward right, all the way around the wall with the balcony doors, and over to the kitchen), but it is unclear if I can drill into this soffit safely. Ductwork definitely runs through it, but it seems awfully big for all of that space to be air duct. Is there a safe way to find out if/how/where I can drill in and pull cables?
- Note all the doorways / hallways in the floorplan below. I was going to buy that white conduit-type tubing you can run along your trim, but it seems like it'd look awfully goofy going around so many doors or hallway openings. Please excuse my really crappy and not at all to scale MS Paint mockup of the room's floorplan:

- I'm very house-poor having just spent most of my savings on this condo, so I'm afraid spending several hundred dollars having an electrician pull cables is probably out of the question, though I don't know how much that costs.

I fully understand that waiting until I have the money to have a professional run cables is an option. However, I have 2 cats and leaving the wiring running all over the floor temporarily is not really an option as they like to muck with things once in a while, so right now I can't hook up the speakers at all. I'm really really missing the ability to listen to music and watch movies with decent sound.

RCA vs Coax Cable

robbie01 — Sat, 25 Dec 2004 16:06:01 -0800

Stereo/home theater cable question(s): Can you use a "regular" RCA cable as a "Coaxial digital" interconnect for digital audio from, say, a DVD player to a receiver? The plug seems the same size, but don't know if it carries the same signal. Similar question: can you use a standard AUDIO RCA cable (red or white) to carry a standard VIDEO RCA signal? Or does it have to be the yellow-labeled RCA?