cable tranny's have the shift fork operated by cables. hydro tranny's use a hydrualic system to do the same.

one isnt necessarily better than the other. it's dependant on what chassis you'll be swapping into. pre 91 civics use cable tranny's and pre 94 integra's also use cable. a cable tranny is a much easier swap into these cars than a hydro because it's basically a drop in procedure.