RCA audio cables are quickly becoming the default cables that are used to connect different components of a home theater system. They are fairly cheap and consequently included with almost all components that you might purchase. You can use them to connect the sound output of your equipment directly to your television if your television includes multiple RCA connections.

Of course, if you have a home theater system already set up, then most likely you have speakers that are better than those built into your television. If you own a receiver, you can connect your DVD player, video game system, and perhaps CD changer using RCA audio cables rather than using the inferior speakers on your television for the audio that accompanies your visuals. A receiver will have a series of RCA audio inputs on the back to which you can connect the cables and then run a single video cable to your television. The sound is then delivered through speakers connected to your receiver.

Another common use of RCA audio cables is to connect a device with a headphone jack to your home theater system. If you have a portable MP3 player that you want to connect to your stereo while you are home, you can buy a cable that has a headphone plug on one end and two RCA cables on the other end. You could use the same cable to connect the audio output from a DVD player or VCR to your computer if you wanted to record an audio track from a movie.

The Legacy of RCA Audio Cables
While newer equipment may make use of digital audio cables, older equipment simply does not have these connections. If you have a large collection of vinyl records and an old turntable, you can still use it by connecting it to the phono jacks of your receiver via RCA audio cables. Similarly, a tape deck could be connected, which means old treasured mix tapes can stay with you even when you get a new stereo system.