subject: Monitor Cable - What Is A Monitor Cable? [print this page] A monitor cable is any type of cable purpose built for carrying video signal from a personal computer to the monitor. The most common types of cable for monitors are the 15 pin VGA (Video Graphics Array) cable, or the DVI (Digital Visual Interface) cable. Some professional level monitors use 5 BNC (Bayonet Neill-Concelman) connectors for the red, green, and blue colors, along with the horizontal and vertical synchronization signals. HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface) is beginning to replace VGA and DVI for monitors as it is capable of carrying uncompressed video and audio signals, and is a smaller cable than VGA or DVI.
There are several different monitor cable options available, allowing computers and their displays to interact with one another. Although there are a number of proposed cable types, there are only a few that are actually readily available on the market, and these include USB cables, VGA cables, HDMI cables and DVI cables. Each of these cable types varies greatly depending on the intended use, size, appearance, connector type and capabilities. One of the biggest differences between each cable is the number of pins that it has and the function of each of those pins.
Older monitors may use a USB cable or a VGA cable, while on the other hand newer models are much more likely to use DVI cables or the newest standard which is HDMI cables. CRT monitors work best with USB cables and VGA cables. You can also use analog VGA cables with some older LCD monitors; however some may experience artifacts and noise. For this reason, using a digital monitor cable is typically ideal. Most LCD monitors work best with DVI cables or HDMI cables. Here, DVI stands for Digital Visual Interface and HDMI stands for High Definition Multimedia Interface.
If you are unsure of what type of monitor cable is going to work best for your computer setup, the best thing that you can do is consult a specialist in an electronic store. They will be able to use your system specifications to determine which cable is going to give you the best picture and sound. HDMI cables are currently the standard for monitor cabling, and they are capable of transferring not only digital video but digital audio as well. DVI cables are also a solid choice in most situations involving an LCD screen monitor, though the choice is ultimately up to you based on your current technology.
