About a decade and a half ago, I was in the market for a computer. This was a time when I didn’t really understand computer specifications, but a number of people I talked to and the internet told me it should have S Video cable output, so I went for it.

In reality, I never used it. Then again, that is not the port’s fault. Merely my lack of ever wanting to or needing to stream video out of my computer. The S video cable is also used for security cameras, something that I didn’t know back then.

Audio Video Cables Come In A Number Of Different Types, For A Variety Of Purposes:

Each of them has its unique characteristics that determine the speed with which they transfer data, whether the audio is balanced or unbalanced, what equipment they can connect to directly, etc.

Another gadget that I bought once was a pair of headphones. With it, they gave me a 3.5mm plug, in case I ever wanted to convert the 2.5mm connector to a 3.5mm one. That one did come into use, I daresay. 2017 became the year that the 3.5mm jack began its slow, painful death. The convenience of plugging in a pair of headphones, into ANY device and getting personal audio is unparalleled by the bluetooth headphones. They are also convenient, but the 3.5mm audio jack doesn’t ask you to charge them, work with all devices, don’t cost a fortune compared to their value, and you probably have a few lying around.

XLR to RCA cable has a more special, more niche requirement. While XLR is mainly used for professional equipment and RCA for home entertainment, XLR is used for microphones, so both of them come together in the XLR to RCA cable for a karaoke machine.

So how would you use these cables right now, as our lives have moved inside our houses for the most part?

Let’s Go Through A Typical Weekend Usage Of Audio Video Cables:

• Since you are home, you are less likely to need to monitor your house via security cameras. But if you have offices that you are not going to anymore, you should definitely keep a check on those, with a decent security camera, motion sensors, etc. The S video cable can help you out there, as well as a number of security equipment that can directly feed the video to your phone.
• The need for entertainment on a tv screen has never been higher. There is no more going out and every time we are not working, sleeping or reading, we want to consume content on the tv. So you can connect an HDMI cable to your computer and tv and stream content from it, or plug in a casting device to do the same thing wirelessly.
• However, this might get old. So one weekend, you can set up a karaoke machine, complete with microphone and amplifiers, with a bunch of cables like the previously mentioned XLR to RCA. Start a video call with your friends and family and have a good old karaoke night!
• A quiet Saturday afternoon with the headphones plugged in your laptop and a good movie is like nothing else. Of course, you can use the TV but you might have other people using it. If your city allows you to go on runs, you can also go for a quick jog around the neighborhood with a good workout playlist. Of course, this can come in handy even with home workouts.

Apart from a fun weekend, if you are looking to learn something new while being home, like audio video editing, you can make use of all these cables. Best to use cables instead of going with a wireless version for this because sometimes the signal can lag and thus give an unintended result.

If you are looking for cables for any of these purposes, SF Cables stocks them all. We can even consult you about which one works best with the equipment you currently have.

Along with cables, we also have bluetooth speakers, HDMI cords, adapters for audio video equipment like DVI to HDMI, VGA to HDMI, etc., in case you have older gadgets that you want to work with.

Source: https://www.sfcable.com/blog/audio-video-cable-stay-at-home-edition

Most of us like sharing our things. It is our way of showing love and care. The same goes for music. People desire to share music with their loved ones and family friends, and sometimes, they want to share it from the same mobile phone and headphones.

This desire and demand from customers led to the birth of audio splitters.

The advancements in technology gave birth to audio cable splitters, and so, today we can share our favorite movies, music and lot of things with our friends and loved ones from the same mobile, tablets, etc.

Let's get into the basics of Audio splitter:

It is a small device that outputs the music into different headphones or earphones simultaneously. It aims to direct the music in two different headphones without affecting the sound quality.

They are also known as dual headphone adapters, they make it easy to connect two or more headphones, speakers, earphones, etc. into a single audio jack.

Are you wondering how can you connect more than one headphone with 3.5mm cable?

It's the audio cable!

Well, that's not all. In fact, you can even connect the 2.5mm audio jack to 3.5mm audio jack with the help of 2.5mm to 3.5mm audio cable. This 2.5mm to 3.5mm audio cable can be a savior when you are facing a different port and cable situation

That's a lot of cables, especially when dealing with a cable with a confusing name of 2.5mm to 3.5mm audio cable. but the experience of sharing makes all of it worth it.

Anyhow, let's get back to audio cable splitters.

Audio cable splitter contains a singular plug with multiple audio jacks. Using it, you can connect multiple headphones or microphones. But, when it comes to choosing audio splitters you need to choose the right one so that you don't miss on the audio quality.

Going further, let's understand the difference between Microphone Splitter and Headphone Splitter:

Splitters are confusing for beginners. The basic function of these splitters is to split the sound.

But, when talking about input/output, the headphone splitter splits the output sound. It will help you direct the sound into phones, laptops, PCs, and iPods.

Whereas, microphone splitter has the feature of an amplifier. It splits the output as well as input sounds. There is a resistance, which affects the input and the output of the microphone.

The headphone splitter does not need an amplifier, but the microphone splitter needs the amplifier to work.

Headphone splitters are known as passive splitters because they do not need a power source. Whereas, microphone splitters are known as active splitters because they require a power source.

Let's look at some of the basic things you need to consider before purchasing:

Headphones are gaining popularity for a long time now. Even after the invention of wireless and Bluetooth headphones, headphones are the preferred choice for music fanatics because of the quality. This makes audio splitter a must-have item in your music arsenal. So, before purchasing splitters consider the following steps:

2. Decide type of splitter:

    

4. The first thing while purchasing a splitter is to consider which type of splitter you want. There are dual splitter as well as a multi splitter available in the market.

   But, the one you should purchase depends on the usage. You need to consider the number of people with whom you will be sharing the music and then finalize your choice.

6. Audio Mixing:

    

8. There are some audio splitters which provide the audio mixing options. So, while you consider the audio splitter with this feature, make sure that you are sharing your music with the correct person.

    

10. I would recommend you to consider the earphone splitters instead of headphones. Because they are a good option for everyday use providing good sound quality.

12. Headphones or Headsets: Which to Buy?

     

14. There is always a bit of confusion in choosing between headphones or headsets. It depends on you whether you want to purchase a splitter that supports only headphones or it supports microphones.

While on the other hand, there are no specifications on headset splitters. The requirement of an audio splitter is just that it requires the right plug size which is 3.5mm so that it can work effectively.

Let us show you the five types of splitters you can consider:

2. 6-Way Snowflake Shaped Headset Hub:

    

4. This splitter has six ports. One of them is for the audio source plug. While you can use other five ports with your friends and family.

6. Dual Headphone Jack:

    

8. It has a Y shape with a 3.55mm male jack. You can connect it with any port and use it.

10. 5 Jack Audio Splitter:

     

12. With the 5-jack audio, you can share with multiple people and don't have to worry about sound quality.

14. 3.5mm Stereo Audio Jack Adapter:

     

16. It has a male plug connected with a 7 inches long cable to a 3.55mm female port.

18. 3.5mm Y-Splitter Cable Adapter:

     

20. This Y splitter is perfect to share your headphones. It consists of a 3.5mm male plug that supports a smartphone or computer and its further splits in Y shape two female ports.

     

Conclusion:

I know working with cables especially with weird names like 2.5mm to 3.5mm audio cable and understanding them is difficult. But, nowadays it is important to have at least the basic understanding of them.

Hence, depending on your usage you can finalize the type of an audio splitter you want that can help you share your music with your friends and loved ones.

Source: https://www.sooperarticles.com/shopping-articles/electronics-articles/how-share-your-music-audio-splitter-1766326.html

What you must consider before buying an audio splitter for headphones:

• 6-Way Snowflake Shaped Headset Hub:

As the name suggests, it has six ports. One will connect to the source device and you can use the others to share music with your fellow listeners. It makes for a great audio sharing device.

• Dual Headphone Jack:

Dual headphone jacks are one of the most commonplace audio cable splitters available. When you have to connect just two headphones to a source audio device, this is the perfect one to choose from.

• Five Jack Audio Splitter:

Even though you have up to five jacks here, you can be sure that it does not compromise on audio quality. It functions similar to the 6-way splitter.

• 3.5mm Stereo Audio Jack Adapter:

This one has TRRS female and ports for headphones and TRRS male jack in the 3.5mm variant for stereo sound.

The simplest and most common way to share audio is with an audio cable splitter. This article takes you into some detail about how to choose one that is right for you.

There are many of us out here who only trust cables for connectivity. People can go around with their wireless devices all they like, but we don’t want to have to make sure to charge everything before using it. We just want to start using the device!

Fortunately, cables are not going anywhere. They are mostly required for audio video purposes which is something we need for both entertainment and work.

Primarily, there are two types of these connectors, one type passes a digital signal and the other type passes analog signal. The most popular analog audio connectors are the 2.5mm and 3.5mm connectors.

If we take a trip down memory lane, Sony’s iconic Walkman chose the 3.5mm port back in 1979. This made it famous. And when the technology industry evolved and/or copied the Walkman, everyone put this port on their devices. 20 years after the Walkman, the audio cable and the portable audio industry had become so iconic that Apple used its silhouette for their famous iPod ads.

With this cable, you never have to worry about running out of battery or its large size. All you have to take care of is that they don’t tangle.

The Uses of 2.5mm & 3.5mm Cables for Entertainment:

To carry a stereo signal you need two audio channels. The tip carries the left channel, the ring carries the right channel, and the sleeve is the ground channel. This is specific to the 3.5mm cable. And the 2.5mm cable can be used in phones that need to use headsets, or in smaller phone instruments that were cordless but needed a headset.

The most common use of a 2.5mm connector is for connecting a microphone to devices. When you need to have a separate microphone input and audio output an audio splitter is useful. This splitter is a 2.5mm to 3.5mm cable where the connector is 3.5mm and the other side has two 2.5mm female ports. These can connect a microphone and headphones, or two headphones. This cable comes in handy in case you want an external microphone input on your phone, and/or when you want to use headphones for the audio experience.

While buying audio video cables, you can check for whether it is mono sound or stereo sound, and if it has a microphone built-in. The mono channel connector will only have one ring, a sleeve, and the tip. If you are looking for a stereo sound experience, then the connector should have two rings. The tip carries the left signal, the first ring carries the right stereo channel, the sleeve is ground and the second ring is the microphone. It is in the TRS or TRRS connector format.

The 3.5mm connector can route analog dual channel audio for a device that uses the RCA audio video cable for video input and audio output. While this cable is old, it is most often used in gaming setups, that have a console hooked up to a TV, and more than one controllers attached to the console itself, along with headsets or stereo speakers.

Another use case is when you want to use an aux cable but your car’s music system is older. This requires you to use a 2.5mm to 3.5mm cable to connect your phone or mp3 player to it. An older system will also not have Bluetooth, so this cable is your best option for car entertainment.

That was entertainment; now let’s move on to work requirements.

The Uses of 2.5mm & 3.5mm Cables for Office Work:

If your line of work requires you to be talking on the phone for the better part of your day, you wouldn’t want to be constantly holding a phone. Generally, you are required to use a work phone, which is a corded landline phone. In this case, there are headsets that plug into the 2.5mm female port on the phone itself. You may not have a headset that has a 2.5mm connectors but have the more popular and reliable 3.5mm connector. In this case, you can simply use a male to female 2.5mm to 3.5mm cable. This way you can plug in your existing headset to your landline phone.

Concluding Note:

The audio video cables are in huge demand in the accessory market. There are plenty of accessory makers who make sure to put in ports that they think can provide with faster and smoother experience than Bluetooth or Wireless technologies.

This article is originally posted here; The Reason We Are Still Talking About Audio Video Cables in 2019

If you found this article useful, here are some other articles that may be of interest.

How to Choose the Correct Audio Cable Splitter for Headphones?

Choose the Best Video Extension Cables for Your Home Theater