SCART, also known as Peritel or Euroconnector, is a standard 21-pin connector for linking audio video equipment to TV displays. For the last few decades, it has been the most common connection between VHS VCR, DVD and the TV. SCART makes the connection between video devices easy by providing one cable that carries all the necessary audio and video signals and also the SCART connector cannot be inserted incorrectly. The SCART standard is adapted by all the major manufacturers of audio video equipment making it easy to mix and match and connect devices from different manufacturers.
Standard Audio Visual SCART Connections
SCART supports RGB, S-Video and Composite video signals, although it cannot carry both RGB and S-Video signals at the same time. SCART also cannot carry Component video signals or 5.1 channel surround sound or high definition digital picture. The maximum cable length is estimated to be 15m before requiring repeaters or amplifiers.
There are different quality SCART cables on the market. A good SCART cable would use coaxial cable to carry the video signal whereas a poor quality or ‘cheap’ SCART cable would use plain wire to carry the video signal resulting in poor image quality. Gold plated SCART connectors do tend to deliver a purer signal thus giving you better performance.