[quote name='Richard Longfellow']...buy a dedicated (Xbox only) component cable, by Microsoft, Monster, Psyclone, not one of the universal cables.[/quote]
I think the Official MS Component cable is the best. I have had the official, and the monster version.
From what I remember, the individual cables are thicker, though I could be wrong. I like the metal barrels on the MS ones. Don't know if monster has that too.
You have to buy Monster's optical cable with the optical out dongle if you go that route. Not as big of a deal anymore, I'm sure they can be had cheap. It was highway robbery in the day. $60 for their cable, then another $30 or $40 to get optical? Bull-jeim!
it may be easier to connect the optical on the monster though, as it has a small wire/lead so it is flexible.
I have/had a psyclone comp cable for ps2, and I was happy with the quality. I think they are 12 footers though, which is good if you want your system far from the tv.