How to Fix a VCR Cable Connection

VCRs are famous for the blinking digital clocks that no one ever gets around to setting. An even more basic function that stymies otherwise well-educated people is how to connect the recorder and the TV to a cable hookup so that it works the way it should.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

1. If you haven't hooked up the cable to the TV before, try that out now. Today most TVs are cable ready--meaning you can connect the coaxial cable to an input on the back of the TV. Once you know how to hook up the cable to the TV, you know how to hook up the cable to the VCR.
2. If your TV isn't cable ready, you'll need an RF adapter, which you'll connect to the TV's antenna terminals.
3. Disconnect the coaxial cable from the TV coaxial input and connect it to the VCR coaxial input.
4. Connect the VCR to the TV. The simplest way to do this is to connect a coaxial cable between the VCR coaxial output and the TV's coaxial input (or RF adapter in step 2, above).
5. If your TV has separate audio and video input jacks, you can connect those to audio and video output jacks on the VCR. If you do this, you have the option of not connecting a coaxial cable between the VCR and the TV, but your TV will then work only in video or monitor mode, meaning you'll have to change channels by using the VCR channel selector.

Tips & Warnings

• If you don't have a stereo TV but do have a stereo VCR, you can let the VCR function as the tuner and connect its stereo-sound output to any stereo-system input except the one for a phone. That way, you can listen to programs in stereo while watching them on your monaural TV.

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