"S-Video" connection method between computer & cable box

Currently, I use the "Composite" connection method to capture live images/audio from cable box to my computer. I'm thinking about using the "S-Video" connection method to increase the video sharpness. How do I setup the connection?

My cable box has a "S-Video Out" socket. But my capture card does not have a "S-Video In". All it has is the following:

(Remote) (S-VHS) (AV-In) (Audio Out) (TV) (FM)

I assume I first need to have a S-Video cable with 2 male RCA at both end, like this one:



According to the vendor, it is a high quality S-Video + RCA Stereo Audio Cable which allows you to connect your VCR, DVD to TV. This high quality cable will let you connect VCR/DVD for better quality of sound and video. Does this mean I can use it to connect my capture card to the cable box?

 

Yup. S-video male to composite male.
I would bother, unless your current composite setup is giving you troubles/poor quality.

 

(As always, please refer to the diagram below)


Assume that I'll get that "S-video/audio(white & red)" all-in-one cable as displayed on very beginning this thread. How is it possible to connect a S-video male to Composite male, as you mention above?

I have no problem with the audio connection. As for the S-video socket, from the above diagram, one end of the cable is connected to the cable box's "S-video out". What about the other end of the S-video connector? There's no S-video socket found on my capture card. And I can't plug it into the "AV In" socket on my capture card, because the S-video connector won't fit. I'd had no problem if I was doing a Composite connection.

 

That's a very strange capture card. No S-video in port?
I suppose you would connect it to the AV in socket, but I have no idea what sort of plug it is.
The cable box must have a TV out, that is a regular cablevision cable, right?
Get a splitter, and two patch cords, one from the cable box to the TV, the other from the cable box to the PC, using the TV in port.
You will only be able to capture whatever you're watching on TV this way, but it should work.
If you want to watch a different channel than you're recording, you'll need another cable box.

 

Rebootjim,

I guess this is a 2-part question:

(1) I posted the same diagram in another forum. One of the folks there said all I need to do is to connect the other end of the S-video cable into my capture card's S-VHS port. In your opinion, do you think it will work? I thought the S-VHS port on the capture card was for connecting to a VCR.

(2) I found an interesting looking cable on the internet. One end of the cable has the S-video connector; the other end of the cable has the RCA connector (yellow). The photo below is what it look like:



Will this strange looking cable be the solution? Will it work, if I plug the S-video connector into my cable box's S-video Out, and then plug the RCA connector (yellow) into my capture card's AV-In port? Basically this is a S-video male to RCA male connection, am i correct?

How will such connection affect the video quality? We're coverting the S-video signal to Composite. Would it be as good as if I were to use the S-video male to S-video male connection?

 

S-VHS ports are optimized for VHS, but should capture, no matter what the source is.

The cable will work, S-video from cable box, to composite on capture card.
Quality is subjective.
S-Video to S-video would be the better quality (theoretically), however, the S-video to composite may even be better, depending on distance (length of cable), source, speed of computer, hard drive speed, aspect ratio, bitrate used, capture software, phase of the moon, how you hold your tongue, the colour of your cat, etc...