Audio Cables and Connections
Testing 1, 2, 3: Connect it right and get it clear.
Last month we began a two-part series on connectivity with a look at video cables. This month, we'll look at audio cables and connectors, since choosing the right audio connection can be just as important as your video signal path. The discussion below puts the choices in order from best to only so-so.
FireWire
As we discovered last month, FireWire is the gold standard for high-quality desktop video connectivity. Not surprisingly, it's also ideal for moving digital audio from tape to your editing system and then back again. Formally (and formerly) known as the IEEE-1394 protocol and marketed by Sony and other electronics companies as i.LINK, FireWire was invented in the mid-1990s by Apple Computer.
How It Works
- Carries a bi-directional audio/video data stream with time code and machine control between devices that understand the IEEE-1394 protocol.
- Provides a fully digital pathway; signal degradation and other problems common to analog connections aren't an issue.
- Better-than-CD quality 16-bit, 48kHz stereo audio playback from the camcorder. <…
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