Audio Systems: RE: Audio out from my Direct TV Satellite receiver to my Stereo receiver!, direct tv satellite, rca cables

Question
Hi Kevin:

Here is my problem...I have a Direct TV satellite receiver that now gets XM satellite radio stations on it.  This sits in the middle of the room on one wall of my apartment with the TV, my stereo receiver sits in the middle of the other wall with my sound system, and there is absolutely no way to move them closer together and hook them up, believe me I have thought about that and it won't work!

I went out and bought a set of standard twenty-five foot long RCA plugged audio cables, it takes that much cable to make it around and against the walls from the Sat. receiver to my Stereo receiver/amp.  Now here is the rub…I am on very short money since my wife died of cancer, in fact I am still out of work, so fool that I am, and trying to save what few precious bucks I still have to try and live on, I bought the regular Radio Shack RCA cables instead of shelling out an extra ten or fifteen dollars for the “Gold Cables” that it would appear have more shielding?  I ask because the regular cables I hooked up, from the “audio out” of the Sat. box to the Phono “audio in” on my Kenwood receiver, buzz and hum on every XM satellite channel, and every other channel from the Direct TV sat. box for that matter, when I turn my receiver on!

So the question, of should I say questions, are can I eliminate the buzz and hum without going out and buying a new set of the “Gold Cables”, and not really knowing if in fact these cables will even eliminate the buzz hum problem if I get them?  Or is there some other way that I can rectify this problem with what I already have on hand, or that I can get readily get or make to fix this irritating and frustrating “HUMMING” problem?

If it helps you at all, I am very mechanically and electronically inclined and am not afraid to tackle anything…especially something as easy to fix, as this should be, that is if I had your knowledge of what it takes to fix it!

I will be eagerly awaiting your reply, and even more eagerly awaiting having these XM channels available to play through my sound systems speakers!

Sincerely Yours

Michael


Answer
Dear Michael,

The cables are fine, both the quality and length.

The problem is that you connected them to the PHONO input on your receiver. PHONO inputs are very different from every other audio input on any receiver, called "line level" inputs. All line level inputs are electronically equivalent no matter how they're labeled. You can just as easily connect a CD player to the TUNER input as connect a DVD player to the AUX input. However, PHONO inputs compensate for the relatively weak--and electronically different--signal put out by a turntable and cartridge. They are not compatible with line level devices like those on your satellite receiver. The only thing you can use a PHONO input for is turntables.

Connect the cables to another input, and everything should work just fine.

Good luck. And thanks for choosing allexperts.com!

Kindest regards,

Kevin