Your Guide to Standard AV Colour Coding
AV cable colour codes are the industry shorthand that tells you what signal each cable carries. While there's no single official standard, the colour conventions below are widely adopted across consumer and professional audio-visual gear. Following them makes installations faster and troubleshooting easier.
This guide covers the colour codes for composite video, component video, stereo audio, mono audio, and digital connections. Pair it with our guide to AV connector types to identify the physical plug, and our guide to AV signal protocols to understand the signal each cable carries.
Mono Audio
| Signal Designation | Identifying Colour Band |
|---|---|
| Audio Channel | Black or White |
Stereo Audio
| Signal Designation | Identifying Colour Band |
|---|---|
| Left Channel | White |
| Right Channel | Red |
Component Video (Y/Pb/Pr)
| Signal Designation | Identifying Colour Band |
|---|---|
| Y (Luminance) | Green |
| Pb/Cb (Blue chrominance) | Blue |
| Pr/Cr (Red chrominance) | Red |
Composite Video
| Signal Designation | Identifying Colour Band |
|---|---|
| Composite Video (CVBS) | Yellow |
Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
| Signal Designation | Identifying Colour Band |
|---|---|
| Digital Coaxial Audio | Orange |
| Digital Optical (TOSLINK) | Black housing with red LED |
Surround Sound (5.1, 7.1)
| Signal Designation | Identifying Colour Band |
|---|---|
| Front Left | White |
| Front Right | Red |
| Centre | Green |
| Subwoofer | Purple |
| Rear Left (Surround) | Blue |
| Rear Right (Surround) | Grey |
Common Colour Code Issues
Yellow plug not working for video? Make sure you're using a true 75 Ohm coaxial RCA cable, not a generic audio cable. Composite video needs proper impedance matching, and an audio-grade cable will degrade the signal.
Component video showing wrong colours? The green, blue, and red plugs must go into matching green, blue, and red sockets. Mixing up Pb (blue) and Pr (red) is the most common mistake and causes incorrect colour reproduction.
White vs black for left audio? Both are valid. Older equipment often uses black, newer equipment uses white. Function is identical.
Connector colours don't match the standard? Some cheaper consumer cables don't follow the convention. Always go by the labels printed on your equipment, not the cable colour, if there's a conflict.
Need colour-coded cables and connectors? Browse our range of coaxial connectors and AV cables, or talk to our team about custom assemblies.
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