Which HDMI cable?

Mossy

I'm getting a 1080p LCD TV and I have a DVD recorded that upscales to 1080p.

Does the brand of the HDMI cable I use to connect these devices going to make a difference? I ask because Peats have a cable for €10, but Maplin has a similar cable for about four times as much.

The specs look similar, is there much difference, or is Maplin just ripping ppl off?

Would it make more of a difference if I had a Blu-ray player?

Slaphead07

HDMI cables are all broadly similar at 1 or 2 metres long... after that you'll need to spend a few bob.
I needed one to reach 15 metres and it was €250 or there abouts.. perfect signal though. The 25 metre one is over €1,000.

mathias

Not 1 or 2 meters , anything below 10 meters they are all the same , so get the cheapest one you can find.
There is no difference in picture quality or sound , they either work or the dont.
There are no grades of picture quality or sound quality when it comes to digital cables carrying data in binary form , you either get the code at the end or you dont , the worst that can happen is either no picture or sound at all , or broken up picture or sound. If you get a clean picture , it will be as good as it possibly can be.

Only from 15 meters and up is there a serious attenuation problem , and paying more for long cables does not guarantee quality.

If you need a long cable Blue jean cables do a nice range at very reasonable prices ,

http://www.bluejeanscable.co.uk/store/hdmi-cables/index.htm

The 25 metre one is over €1,000.

That is completely insane .... I hope there was an amp on the end of it for that price !!

Slaphead07

mathias wrote: »

There are no grades of picture quality or sound quality when it comes to digital cables carrying data in binary form , you either get the code at the end or you dont , the worst that can happen is either no picture or sound at all , or broken up picture or sound.

In therory that's true but in reality there are differences - more so with audio than AV. The notion that because because the signal is digital it will always be the same was proved wrong 20 years ago. If that were true then all CD or DVD players would be equal and they clearly aren't. Even the link you give has 3 different levels of prices/cable. Why?

I will not engage in a "debate" on cable quality on this forum.

ongarite

Slaphead07 wrote: »

In therory that's true but in reality there are differences - more so with audio than AV. The notion that because because the signal is digital it will always be the same was proved wrong 20 years ago. If that were true then all CD or DVD players would be equal and they clearly aren't. Even the link you give has 3 different levels of prices/cable. Why?

I will not engage in a "debate" on cable quality on this forum.

Are you for real. If signal is digital why aren't CD/DVD players the same?? What about the quality of the DAC or speakers??

Mathias is correct, a €5 cable will give you the exact same AV reproduction as €1000 cable.

mathias

The notion that because because the signal is digital it will always be the same was proved wrong 20 years ago.

Source for that please .... and dont point to a cable seller if you dont mind !

Slaphead07

ongarite wrote: »

Are you for real. If signal is digital why aren't CD/DVD players the same?? What about the quality of the DAC or speakers??

A DAC is a DAC (it also deals with a digital signal) and this is the first time I've heard of anyone believing speakers are part of a CD/DVD player.

ongarite wrote: »

Mathias is correct, a €5 cable will give you the exact same AV reproduction as €1000 cable.

That's not what he said.

Slaphead07

mathias wrote: »

Source for that please .... and dont point to a cable seller if you dont mind !

It being old news it's not something I have handy website links to.
As I said earlier, there's no point in havog a "debate" here... quantity of posts will win out over quality everytime. The OPs question has been answered.

mathias

That's not what he said.

That is exactly what Im saying by the way , and having tested plenty of them I dont think it I know it.

0% bit error rate or BER is as good as it gets for a HDMI cable , it is totally impossible for it to be any better , likewise its totally impossible for any cable to produce " lesser picture quality" with a non 0% bit error rate .... with a non 0% bit error rate you get drop outs as posted.

Of the 100 cables I tested below 15 meters only two produced such a result and they both were complete failures ( no output whatsoever ) and both had mechanical faults.

Regarding this

Even the link you give has 3 different levels of prices/cable. Why?

Thats just price gouging , pure and simple , the only valid reason for the price differences is maybe wall installations where mechanical strength might be required .

Even with long cables , where attenuation is a major issue , its better to invest in in line equalisers instead of so called premium cables as these correct the attenuation that is inevitable in long runs , regardless of who makes the cable or what they make it from.

Slaphead07

mathias wrote: »

Even with long cables , where attenuation is a major issue , its better to invest in in line equalisers instead of so called premium cables as these correct the attenuation that is inevitable in long runs , regardless of who makes the cable or what they make it from.

I don't disagree with any of the above post... the bit I quote is interesting but for me a bit late as I might have gone down that route rather than simply buy a 15mt cable.

Do you post on any other HiFi forums by the way? I've seen pretty much that exact post before (and was close to re-posting it here).

mathias

Do you post on any other HiFi forums by the way?

Yes I do but I wouldnt claim to be exclusive in the content Ive posted here , its very much a live issue over the last year or so and as test conditions for HDMI are standardised and well published there will be a lot of Electronics Eng like myself with testing experience on Hi fi forums who will post these results.

Mossy

Thanks for the money saving information guys (and the mini debate - interesting).

so can you tell me that this HDMI Cable is the same as any other expensive ones out there?
http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/5347964/Trail/searchtext>HDMI+CABLE.htm

mathias

Yes it is ... no doubt about it.

cool thanks..i'll get that later so

hey, i bought that HDMI Cable yesterday and when i got home to hook it up to my PS3 and my Tv i found there was nowhere to put the cable in my TV.. I only bought this TV the other day and Its a 22'' LCD LG Flatscreen Hd Ready..So shouldnt there be somewhere to put the HDMI Cable?

bauderline

Assumption is the mother of all ........ ?!!

RTFM for information about what connections the TV should have. If it does have HDMI it will let you know where to locate the socket. If it doesn't have HDMI put it back in its box and bring it back to the store and don't leave until they provide you with a unit with HDMI....

P.

i could do that.. but i heard you can get a HDMI Adapter that plugs in the back of the TV then i could use the cable