Quote Originally Posted by nusiclover
ok, heres my test:
i simply connected best buy(audio research) components from dvd to tv in video1.
i then connected a tara labs s-video from dvd to tv in video4.
this was all done to the same toshiba tv the exact same time.
now, if information serves correctly, most would agree component video cables will render higher resolution and better color saturation? right?
so, i played a dvd. and on colorful frames i paused. then proceeded to switch between video1 and video4. and guess what?
right there, before my own eyes i clearly saw a difference in the color and saturation. at first i was unsure which cables corresponded with wich source. better unbiased example i cannot think of. then when i peaked behind the tv and found that component corresponded wih video1 and s-video with video4 it actually didnt surprise me that video4 was indeed the feed with better color saturation and better color richness. i then proceeded to change tint, color, sharpness, and contrast .i continued to change all the levels back and forth whilst changing back and forth from v1 and v4. and you know what? every level i tried proved that v4 was the better of the two.
this brought me to conclude that a better s-video cable will provide better color and saturation then cheaper component cables.
if this is not a 99% conclusive test, then maybe my eyes are backwards.

I did a similar test, although not blind at all. [Please mtrycraft, no need to bang your head against the wall] I had gotten a new RCA DirectTv receiver that had a component out and I had been using an S-video connection previously. I plugged both cables into the new satellite receiver and went to work switching back and forth on the TV input buttons. Surprisingly it wasn't the color or the definition that stood out in the difference, but the brightness and contrast. The component video cable had a better handling on the lighting and contrast then did the S-video, although I had expected the component video to have the clear advantage over coloring.

I would also ask if your Toshiba is a pretty sophisticated tv. I've read that some tvs will offer a component video input but down convert the signal to S-video. Can't vouch for how true that is, but it wouldn't surprise me one bit.