WHICH IS BETTER FOR 75-OHM DIGITAL CABLES, RCA OR BNC CONNECTORS?
The use of RCA connectors for digital audio has developed a bit of a bad reputation. This is partly due to the fact that BNC type connectors have always been standard everywhere else in the industry for RF applications, and mostly due to the above misunderstanding about the impedance of the connector itself. Due to stricter manufacturing tolerances of the male and female terminals however, BNC connectors can make a more secure electrical connection than SOME RCA connections, and thus are preferable when there is a choice. Some attempt has been made to manufacture BNC connectors to a “ball park” impedance of 50 or 75 Ohms. However, the logic and feasibility of maintaining the same impedance of the cable AFTER it has been terminated and plugged in remains a moot point, while the effect on total impedance by a half-centimeter long signal path is virtually insignificant. (It could also be pointed out that both 50 and 75 Ohm BNC connectors will fit either 50 or 75 Ohm female terminals). The
