Home > Consumer Reviews > 40324 - 3-Play Component Video Digital Audio Selector

I bought a passive component switch (no power supply) and returned it because I was losing HD signals when viewing HD channels. I then got this unit and it works as advertised. No HD signal lost at all, excellent build (does not weight or look cheap), easy switching between devices with the remote.

I have a SONY BRAVIA LCD HDTV and only have one component input so I needed this unit to switch between my HD Cable box and a progressive scan DVD. When watching HD cable channels, my Bravia tells me the signal input is 1080i. When watching a DVD progressive scan, it tells me I'm getting a 480P signal. So the unit works perfectly!!! Great buy!

This is the most reasonably priced unit compared to other "powered" component switches I have looked at. You can't go wrong with this one.

Having an older Harmon-Kardon AVR with only 2 component inputs I needed a way to expand the inputs to allow component input from the Xbox and PS2. I was using a manual A/v selector but the lack of digital audio in/out was annoying. Replacing the manual box with the Impact Acoustics 3-Play was a great solution. Using affordable TOSALINK digital audio cables allowed me to spend more on quality component cables. The Impact Acoustics A/v selector itself was less of an expense than a premium set of component cables.

I am impressed with the ease of setup and use. I do not have the equipment to test the functioning of the unit but regarding visual and audio capability I find no discernable difference from a direct hook up to the AVR. Obviously any interconnect will have some effect, but I can't tell the difference. It leaves me wondering how they did it, with comparable units costing twice or even four times as much.

The caveats are the lack of coaxial digital audio in/out, and the tiny credit card sized remote. I have no issue with the function of the remote; it works well from across the room. I'm just afraid of losing the darn thing!

I bought this switcher because of the high review scores but I've had two of them not work for me and ultimately had to send them both back and get a refund. When running the Nintendo Wii through it I would often get sync loss and flickering anytime a bright white screen came on (which happened a lot in Super Mario Galaxy).

Additionally, while running my XBOX 360 though it, the screen would often scramble and freeze up (confirmed this was not the 360 itself). FYI, my Wii is set to 480p and the 360 at 720p which this switcher could supposedly handle. Unfortunately that was not the case for me. Was it just bad luck? Who knows, but I'll have to look for another brand now.

If you're adding high definition sources to your system and are running out of component video inputs, the Impact Acoustics (Cables To Go) Component Video Switcher may be just what the home theater doctor ordered. Its 50 MHz rated video bandwidth supports the full resolution of HD video sources as well as standard video devices such as game systems and DVD players.

Its credit card remote is perfectly functional and the fact that it offers direct input access via the remote for each of its three component video inputs means that it's easy to integrate with a universal remote control.

Don't let the low price fool you. This little switcher is a great way to add high definition and standard definition component video sources to your system without having to upgrade your TV or home theater receiver.

Check out the complete review on Big Picture Big Sound.

I've used this for switching between component cables running HDTV at 1080i and it's worked flawlessly with no visible degradation to the image. Recently I moved up to an LCD with a ton of inputs and am using HDMI so I'm no longer using it for video but am now using it to switch between two 5.1 Surround Sound sources (XBOX 360 and PS3) being my system only has one optical input. It's working flawlessly for this as well. Originally when looking for a switchbox with these capabilities most boxes were at least over $100 with some being closer to $300. I was a little sceptical but ordered on the many reviews here. So now it's my turn to attest how well this switchbox works.