Affordable RCA connector cable brand and source?

[Sensel]

I am looking for an affordable but good RCA connector cable brand and source.
Not high end audiophile. More like, for a garage or college student's room or office. Under $10.
Something a bit longer then the "default" type that might come with a consumer product (if at all).
I like them when the part you push and pull with finders is longer and more substantial. More to hold onto.
A nice soft cord too so, as it ages, it does not become a stiff cable.
Thanks!

 

[N8Nagel]

Not under $10, but I like the Mogami WR-xx series, the xx being the length in feet. Not much over $10.

Most "gimme" cables seem to be 6', are you looking for cables longer than that?

The cheaper Mogami may be OK as well, they look like "gimme" cables but I wouldn't think they'd put their name on crap.

Last cable I made was for a sub, I used Mogami W2964 (single version of the cable used in the WR-xx line, which is W2965) because I couldn't get an affordably priced quality cable long enough for the run I needed. I think I'm going to start using W2965 with Switchcraft connectors as I seem to be diving down a vintage tube rabbit hole, and a lot of that stuff has really closely spaced RCAs where not much will work.

 

[Sensel]

Just to clarify: I do not want to make one. Just buy, take out, and plug.
Also, under $10 is a cut off.
Thanks

 

[N8Nagel]

for that price I'd try the cheaper Mogami "35 series" although you're still pretty close to your price limit.

I would have suggested without hesitation the AR component video cables that Parts Express was blowing out a while back as while they're fairly bulky they checked well for capacitance and I've had no problems with them (I have used a LOT of them.) Unfortunately they seem to have sold out not long after I placed an order for them. If you can find any decent looking/quality brand component video cables for cheap that is usually an excellent option as demands on them are higher than for analog audio.

They still have 12 foot lengths if you need them that long...

http://www.parts-express.com/ar-ap0...source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=pla

if you have some 3/4" heat shrink you can pair up the conductors you zipped off to turn them into stereo pairs, so you get 3 pairs of stereo cables from 2 sets of video. Only downside, you do have to re-mark the ends.

Someone will undoubtedly suggest the Monoprice Premium RCAs, but honestly I find them kind of a PITA. They appear to be made of a decent enough RG6 cable (think CATV cable) but that means that they're not very flexible and very large in diameter, and the connectors on them are not so good.

 

[N8Nagel]

Actually I'm curious if anyone has ever measured the capacitance of the cheap (non-Premium) Monoprice RCAs.

When I first found Monoprice I bought "premium" everything for my AV setup. Everything was heavy and bulky, the HDMIs kept falling out of the cable box, and the S/PDIF actually broke off in the back of my TV when I attempted to unplug it for rearranging. I've had excellent luck with their "metallic series" (cheapest available at the time I bought them with Ethernet) HDMIs and garden variety S/PDIF however. Also have one of their Redmere cables in the bedroom due to not being able to have the receiver by the TV. Have never tried their cheap RCAs however.

 

[Sensel]

This is TOTALLY out of my price range.

for that price I'd try the cheaper Mogami "35 series"

 

[N8Nagel]

??? they're $7.something for a 3' pair at Redco, is why I suggested them.

 

[reydelaplaya]

I have in use 2 sets of these. I highly recommend them as they proved to be a noticable step up from standard RCA cables. They come in a variety of lengths, and for their quality of construction are very affordable.

FosPower (6 Feet) 2 RCA M/M Stereo Audio Cable [24K Gold Plated | Copper Core] 2RCA Male to 2RCA Male [Left / Right] Premium Sound Quality Plug https://www.amazon.com/dp/B016QVZEZM/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_5d.zybESX47ZW

 

[MCM_Fan]

Just to clarify: I do not want to make one. Just buy, take out, and plug.
Also, under $10 is a cut off.
Thanks

For cheap RCA interconnects, Monoprice is your friend. Their "Premium Analog RCA Cables" come in lengths from 1.5 to 100 feet. In the 10' length, they are less than half your allocated budget.

 

[Hugo9000]

You might check out MediaBridge and Amazon Basics cables on amazon.com, cheap but with sturdy connectors. MediaBridge was one of the first to have affordable hdmi cables, I've never had an issue with anything from them.

 

[Sensel]

Here we go: https://smile.amazon.com/AmazonBasi...ncoding=UTF8&refRID=7SV98ME7SK6GWG6PM97S&th=1

 

[N8Nagel]

another option for you if 6' will work

http://www.accessories4less.com/mak...l-em-series-stereo-audio-rca-cable-6ft/1.html

no experience, and I don't know that I would have paid $70 for them, but they're blowing them out, and if they truly sucked we'd have heard about it I'm sure. At that price point they better not have any notable deficiencies, too loose/too tight connectors etc.

 

[Condorsat]

Walmarts use to sell entry level Monster RCA cables for under $10 ... maybe worth it to check it out. Quality varies between good & crap (quality control?) ... based on my experience with them some years ago.

Note: I've used Amazon basics optical cable ... it's worked out good for me. Have not tried their RCA's.

 

[Sensel]

Mediabridge, FosPower, Amazon Basic seem to be the options and are all about the same price range.
Monsters are nice but, they tack on a few dollars more because, they do that sort of thing…

 

[N8Nagel]

Honestly, if you have red heat shrink laying around what I would do is go to my local thrift store, find a component video cable in the length you want, zip one cable off and remark one end red. Done.

 

[darkblue94]

If you really want to exercise the that

Honestly, if you have red heat shrink laying around what I would do is go to my local thrift store, find a component video cable in the length you want, zip one cable off and remark one end red. Done.

Thanks N8Nagel, I was going to suggest the same exact thing. In fact the OP could even be a bigger cheapskate by just coloring the ends with a sharpie or something out of the crayon box. By the way I once scored a one meter pair of MIT IC's at a thrift for $1.99, making me one of those 'cheapskates'. I have done the AR component cable thing as well using both red and white heatshrink for that extra touch of class.

 

[Sensel]

I have a Mediabridge on my sub and it is well made. I'm just going with that brand. It has a few negatives though. It is hard to push and pull off. But this could also be a positive…
The price is a buck more.
The AmazonBasics gives you one more foot (not needed by me) and has half a more star (meh).
Looking at the Media bridge, it looks like a better ergonomic grip on it.

 

[Sensel]

Honestly, if you have red heat shrink laying around what I would do is go to my local thrift store, find a component video cable in the length you want, zip one cable off and remark one end red. Done.

I like this idea too and have done it before. Have a bunch of composite already left over from cameras and stuff I no longer have. Already white and red. I just leave the yellow hanging. That is cheap.

 

[darkblue94]

I like this idea too and have done it before. Have a bunch already left over from cameras and stuff I no longer have. Already white and red. I just leave the yellow hanging. That is cheap.

Component video cables consists of three colors, RED, BLUE and GREEN. Composite video cable is a single YELLOW connector.

 

[N8Nagel]

I like this idea too and have done it before. Have a bunch already left over from cameras and stuff I no longer have. Already white and red. I just leave the yellow hanging. That is cheap.

Ah... similar but different. You've got a composite video + audio cable. Component video would be R/G/B labeled, not R/W/Y. The component cables tend to be higher quality than the composite ones because at one point in time those were expected to carry 1080p video signals. (composite is 480i/576i)

What's her face had a bunch of 5 cable bundles from the pre-HDMI era (no longer used) I was thinking of repurposing them for tape deck cables by zipping off one cable and relabeling them, I found that when screwing around with my capacitance meter that the three video-labeled cable were lower capacitance than the audio-labeled ones - *even the ones where they appeared to be all the same size.* Sneaky illegitimate children!

Probably not a HUGE deal for line level audio, but if you're ever going to use it on a turntable, capacitance matters, more so if you are using a longer than normal cable.