changing out shifter cables

I was driving home the other day and all of a sudden i lost 1st 3rd and 5th gears... i moved the gearshift through the gears hoping to get something and it stuck in the 1st and 2nd pattern (thats the only 2 gears i could go into), after that it was stuck in the first position but the tran. was in 2nd. i got down to it and disconnected the cables from the arms on the transmission and could move the arms freely, the gearshift still being stuck so im assuming i need to change out the shift cables, can anyone help me???

Was it grinding when you tried to put it in gear? Hook your cables back up, and get a helper to work the gears while you look to see if the cables are moving like they should. Maybe one came loose at the shifter.

From the above description, I would defintely take a look at the shifter end of the calbes. If they look fine, and the shifter moves freely without the cables attached, then your original diagnosis of bad calbes must be right.