Canare L-5CFB Digital Audio Cable

Pro-Series Interconnect with Canare's Remarkable "True 75-Ohm" Connectors

This assembly is made with Canare's amazing L-5CFB serial-digital cable.  The cable assembly is fitted with matching flexible silicone boots, which enhance the appearance of the cable, while avoiding sharp bends at the connectors.

Extreme Overkill to the Next Power

Take a look at this cable and try to take in the scale of it...it's big cable...nearly as big as the body of Canare's RCA connector, and Canare's RCA connectors are not insignificant in size!  This is serious cable, and it can deliver serious performance.

Canare designed this cable to meet the needs of the emerging serial-digital standard, associated with the HDTV rollout in the United States.  It was designed primarily to solve facility wiring issues, where existing cable designs were proving to be inadequate.  If you are looking for the ultimate level of performance, please read on.

Why would anyone want this much performance?

It's a fair question.  This L-5CFB cable has enough bandwidth to handle even the 360 Mb/s data rate included in  the SMPTE 305M Serial Digital Transport Interface (SDTI) standard.  That data rate can be loosely compared to analog bandwidth, although the digital signal looks like a square wave, which is somewhat more demanding in some respects.

So what is the best use of this cable in a home theater, or other non-commercial application?  Needless to say, the bandwidth requirements of digital audio formats such as the 448kb/s required for Dolby Digital or even the 1,536kb/s (that's only 1.5 Mb/s) requirement of DTS does not even begin to tax this cable.  These are largely the only digital signals in a home A/V system so how can this cable be taxed?  Analog composite video bandwidth, from a source like a laserdisc player, tops out at around 5.3 MHz.  Component video output from a DVD player is an analog signal with a characteristic bandwidth of about 12.6 MHz.  Progressive DVD outputs need about 25.2 MHz -- more demanding  than audio, but still...  HDTV Y/Pr/Pb or R/G/B/H/V video is also an analog signal, with the highest ASTC resolutions of 720p and 1080i using about 33 MHz of bandwidth.  Even if  you go as high as 1080p, which is not currently broadcast, the bandwidth still only tops out at around 66MHz.  That's the most demanding signal in a home theater system.  Media rooms might need a little more for high resolution computer video displays, but the exact requirement would vary with the video mode.

To tell you the truth, there is no signal in a home theater system that needs this much bandwidth.   Having said that, we learned a long time ago that many audiophiles enjoy enjoy owning equipment that goes far beyond what is "needed".  That is why we offer this cable for digital audio applications, where the ultra-fast response, incredible bandwidth, and low loss of the cable ensures error-free data transmission.  The result is the purest, cleanest, clearest, most neutral sound that the format can deliver.  If you use this cable, any remaining imperfections in your output will be due to limitations in your equipment, or in the format itself.

What Makes Canare So Great?

Canare is the choice of professionals and discriminating enthusiasts, alike. You can tell, just by looking, that Canare cables and connectors are well made, and you can tell by reading the rave reviews that Canare cables are great performers!  The almost infamous Canare DigiFlex Gold cable uses LV-61S cable.  If it can get such glowing reviews, imagine what they'd say if they reviewed this one!

We have found that the key to great cables is in the connectors (more info below).  Exotic conductors and shielding are fine, but it's the connectors that really make the difference.  If you want uncompromising performance, you need cables that  are capable of maintaining a constant impedance.  You don't want any bumps at the connectors, and you don't want the cable itself to change impedance when it bends.  Even the finest cable changes impedance a little bit when it is bent sharply, so avoid doing so.  Nice, smooth, consistent 75 ohm impedance.  That's what your equipment wants, and that's what will deliver the best performance.

You also want superior mechanical integrity. Nice, tight connections that will not degrade over time. You want to avoid dissimilar metals, which can lead to corrosion and degrade connections. To avoid dissimilar metals, try to stay away from soldered connections wherever you can, because solder almost guarantees that dissimilar metals will be in contact.  Good solder work minimizes the problem, but there is also the challenge of making a solder connection without heat deforming the dielectric material of the cable.  Any dimensional change in the dielectric will affect the impedance of the cable at that point.

Of course you also want the cable itself to be of high quality.  Canare L-5CFB certainly delivers performance.  It has a solid copper center conductor,  a foamed dielectric, a 100 percent coverage aluminum foil shield, combined with a tinned and braided copper shield.  It has a PVC jacket with a smooth, non-glare finish.  This is a professional, ultra-high performance, double-shielded, low loss precision coaxial cable.  Here are some specs:

Considering the size and construction of this cable, it is amazingly flexible...especially when compared to multiple shield cables from other manufacturers.  Flexibility is important because it reduces stress on your equipment.  Multiple shielding and foamed dielectric materials present some unique challenges in making consistently excellent  terminations, but Canare's unique system and special tools make it possible.

This cable is not for everyone.  The specifications and performance are extremely high, to be sure -- higher than you reasonably need for non-commercial applications, but you should be aware that since the CFB series cables were designed for facility wiring applications, they are not intended for applications where they will get a lot of bending and handling.  They are as good or better than any other cable with solid conductors, but you should know this before you buy.  If you want performance that goes well beyond reason, and you are able to install these cables where they will not get a lot of movement, you will be rewarded by the highest imaginable performance.  If you need better flexibility and flex life, please consider our LV-77S or Signature Series 77 cable assemblies.

The RCA Connectors

It is hard to imagine a finer RCA connector than Canare's. Generic RCA plugs and cables have been around for over 50 years, but the old solder-type plugs typically have an impedance of about 25 ohms. This is a problem because most modern A/V gear is designed for 75 ohms impedance. This impedance mismatch results in extremely poor return loss performance, even when the connectors are mated to high quality cable. Some of the so-called "high end" cables use exotic-sounding materials and make unsupportable claims, but still fail to solve this very real and important problem.

Canare's impedance-matched 75 ohm RCA crimp plugs solve these problems. As with the BNC connectors, they are precision machined to maintain a constant 75 ohm impedance. We install them using Canare tools that always prepare the cable ends, just right. The connectors are crimped in place, using heavy, precision-machined dies. The result is excellent digital and analog performance with a usable bandwidth to over 200 MHz! The connector design ensures consistent and extremely reliable terminations. VSWR is typically less than 1.1 from DC to 200 MHz. The crimp design excludes oxygen, preventing corrosion associated with dissimilar metals, which can degrade even the best soldered connections. It's an awesome system, and the resulting terminations are in a class of their own.

The center shaft is gold plated. If you look closely at the picture at the right, you can see the internal beryllium pressure fingers, which ensure good contact, while avoiding the "grip of death" that afflicts Monster and some of the other manufacturers' connectors. The "grip of death" connectors put unnecessary strain on your equipment. Canare connectors connect up smoothly, and maintain good contact, while protecting your equipment investment.

The BNC Connectors

In our experience, the key to great video cables is in the connectors. Exotic conductors and shielding are fine, but it's the connectors that really make the difference.

The BNC-type connector is the best connector that is commonly available for applications of this type. In general, it is both mechanically and electrically superior to an RCA connector. It has a twist-lock mechanism to ensure that the the connection is mechanically secure, and the electrical design of the connector does a good job of maintaining constant impedance at the connector.

Canare takes this inherent superiority to the next level. For example, many BNC connectors have a characteristic impedance of only 50 ohms, but Canare connectors are engineered to maintain a constant impedance of 75 ohms. This make a lot of sense because virtually all A/V equipment is designed to work best with 75 ohm cables. It follows that if you want the best performance your equipment can deliver, you will need cables and connectors that maintain this impedance.

This electrical superiority is the result of superior mechanical design, high quality materials and precision manufacturing. Canare's BNC connectors are almost artful in their design...and they work very well indeed.

Why Cable Solutions?

No one works harder than we do to get your order shipped out to you fast! 

Customer service is our first priority.  We do our best to help you find the best solutions for your particular application.  We're enthusiasts too, so we know what it's like to wait for cables to hook up new gear.  We stock all of the components needed to build all of the items listed on our website, so we are able to do something that most cable shops do not - we build and ship most orders within one business day.

We also know how important it is to be able to get a response when you need help, so you'll often find us working long hours in an effort to get you the answers that you need.  It takes good people to do outstanding work...the kind of workmanship you want for your custom cables.  It usually costs more to keep good people, but the importance of high-quality workmanship is second only to the importance of  superior service.  I'll let you figure out for yourself why paying too little for a cable can turn out to be just as bad as paying too much. Our pricing is based upon the actual cost of building the cables.

Canare cable, Canare connectors, and Canare tools - an all Canare system.  When you take a system this good and put it in the hands of technicians as good as ours, it becomes an awesome system!  Design excellence, high quality materials, meticulous workmanship, and superior service...put it all together and you get a superior product.  Don't get stuck with bad advice, poor service, slow shipment or an inferior product.  If you want the best, here it is.

Miscellaneous

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Click on any of the pictures below for a closer view!

This picture shows a 1 meter (3.3 foot) cable - please choose the length you prefer below.




This close-up will give you a better look at our RCA-type end preparation.




Here is a close-up view of Canare's remarkable "True 75 Ohm" RCA connector.  The gold-plated beryllium copper pressure fingers can be seen in this extreme close-up.




This is Canare's excellent 75-Ohm BNC connector.  The gold-plated canter pin can be seen in this picture.