HDMI .. $300 cable vs $16 cable
- Thread starter Acura NsX Pilot
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+1 on Monoprice.
amazon.com is a great place to buy cables. Especially HDMI cables, i just bought a 6ft HDMI cable with gold plated connectors for $2.35 shipped. Works perfectly
Exactly. With analog cables, I kind of "get" the audiophile aspect of them. I believe that one could hook up the cables to an oscilloscope and demonstrate a measurable difference between different qualities of cable. Whether or not this difference is perceptible to human senses is a different argument, of course, but at least the difference is demonstrable.
With a digital cable like HDMI or Denon's infamous Ethernet cable it shouldn't matter a whit how much you pay. If you put 10010110 in one side and get 10010110 out the other, whether the cable costs $2 or $2000 is absolutely irrelevant.
I don't know if ALL cheap HDMI cables are good, but Monoprice.com is the only place I'll even consider getting HDMI cables.
It sucks that Monoprice no longer sells iPod accessories.
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+2 on monoprice.
+3 on Monoprice. All my cables are from them.
+4. I bought a few 15ft HDMI cables from them. Now Comcast cable even gives you HDMI cables for free if you ask. Why would anyone pay more than $5.00 for one of these. 
Highly recommended:
http://www.pacificcable.com/
Been using them for years (I design home theaters).
http://www.pacificcable.com/
Been using them for years (I design home theaters).
BTW, I have some spare HDMI cables from monoprice (two 9' and one 15') that I have sitting around that I'm willing to let go really cheap. If you need one (or more), go ahead and name your price and chances you'll get them.
I have been very pleased with cablewholsale.com for about 8 years now. Good products and prices
I've had Blue Jeans Cable build me a few custom cables over the years, including HDMI:
http://www.bluejeanscable.com/store/hdmi-cables/hdmi-cable.htm
Brian
http://www.bluejeanscable.com/store/hdmi-cables/hdmi-cable.htm
Brian
- Joined
- 18 July 2005
- Messages
- 2,636
I can agree with that.
Especially on longer runs, maybe?
I've got a 30 ft HDMI run going from my media cabinet to my TV. Satellite is no problem, but during some Bluray movies the screen will lose signal for a second. It's nothing really annoying, but its definitely a recurring theme.
Blue Jeans Cable made me a 36' HDMI for the run from the media center to the TV, and I've seen no ill effects even when playing full 1080P material.
Brian
I don't know who these other companies are being mentioned and recommended, but I have an extremely hard time imagining that they are competitive with monoprice. I have never seen anyone come remotely close to their pricing and quality. I remember buying a braided stainless steel toslink cable from them, it was absolutely gorgeous. Everyone else wanted $200, it was $8 from monoprice IIRC. I think I even posted pictures of it on here many years back.
+1 for monoprice, I buy all my audio, video and computer networking cables from them. If you ever buy ethernet cables, there is nobody that can touch this place.
+1 for monoprice, I buy all my audio, video and computer networking cables from them. If you ever buy ethernet cables, there is nobody that can touch this place.
Just goes to show what a bunch of crooks Best Buy and the other B&M retailers are. I was at a trade show a few weeks ago and noticed we didn't have a HDMI cable for our HDTV display in our booth. Best Buy was the closest store and I was pressed for time and the cheapest HDMI cable they had was $34
The other options were $60 and over $100. What do they have in them? Cocaine?
The other options were $60 and over $100. What do they have in them? Cocaine?
For short cables, under 10 feet, definitely under 6 feet, most cables do just fine. For long cables, quality is important and does matter. I've come across more cheap and not so cheap cables over the years that work terribly or not at all at long distances.
Monoprice is an example of a quality cable at a great price. Blue Jeans Cable you also won't go wrong with. They are both Belden last I checked which is why they are good and work. Neither are a Chinese cable. DVIGEAR cables (the blue ones) are also excellent. A very high-end 3D projection manufacturer uses them exclusively during all their demos and trade shows and they are running 40+ft dual HDMI for full 1080P 3D. They are priced about the same as Blue Jeans higher end cables.
With HDMI, quality does matter. Not because its analog or digital, but because HDMI spec was short sighted and never designed for that transmission distance. So manufacturers are forced to make ridiculously overbuilt cables to transmit at those distances and only the best work reliably. As far as Im concerned, HDMI needs to go. But since we have to have it, anything Belden will keep you safe (or as safe as you can be with HDMI). Monoprice buys in such massive bulk, they get insane deals. Belden is generally very expensive. When I start having to go past 40-50ft, even I move away from Monoprice and only use Blue Jeans or DVIGEAR top of the line. If you're pushing 1080P 3D at those distances you are right on the razors edge as it is, even with the best cable.
I'm all about the fiber transmission, flawless. Still too price prohibitive for most but it will get there.
Edit: While a good article to point out price does not equal quality, their conclusion is dangerous and misleading. They tested cables at short lengths. Yes, if it works, the results are identical. Expensive is a waste. Quality HDMI cables are not for improved image, it is for reliability. If it works perfectly at 10ft or 40ft, your results will be the same. The problem is many cables dont work well at 30ft+ distance, or work sporadically depending on source and resolution. That's where quality does matter. Its not about getting a better image with a better cable. Its about getting one at all over long distance that stays synced. That's when you need top quality. I've tested Monoprice up to 40ft without issues and DVIGEAR over 50ft with 1080P 3D. You can tell it's solid. That thing is FAT.
Monoprice is an example of a quality cable at a great price. Blue Jeans Cable you also won't go wrong with. They are both Belden last I checked which is why they are good and work. Neither are a Chinese cable. DVIGEAR cables (the blue ones) are also excellent. A very high-end 3D projection manufacturer uses them exclusively during all their demos and trade shows and they are running 40+ft dual HDMI for full 1080P 3D. They are priced about the same as Blue Jeans higher end cables.
With HDMI, quality does matter. Not because its analog or digital, but because HDMI spec was short sighted and never designed for that transmission distance. So manufacturers are forced to make ridiculously overbuilt cables to transmit at those distances and only the best work reliably. As far as Im concerned, HDMI needs to go. But since we have to have it, anything Belden will keep you safe (or as safe as you can be with HDMI). Monoprice buys in such massive bulk, they get insane deals. Belden is generally very expensive. When I start having to go past 40-50ft, even I move away from Monoprice and only use Blue Jeans or DVIGEAR top of the line. If you're pushing 1080P 3D at those distances you are right on the razors edge as it is, even with the best cable.
I'm all about the fiber transmission, flawless. Still too price prohibitive for most but it will get there.
Edit: While a good article to point out price does not equal quality, their conclusion is dangerous and misleading. They tested cables at short lengths. Yes, if it works, the results are identical. Expensive is a waste. Quality HDMI cables are not for improved image, it is for reliability. If it works perfectly at 10ft or 40ft, your results will be the same. The problem is many cables dont work well at 30ft+ distance, or work sporadically depending on source and resolution. That's where quality does matter. Its not about getting a better image with a better cable. Its about getting one at all over long distance that stays synced. That's when you need top quality. I've tested Monoprice up to 40ft without issues and DVIGEAR over 50ft with 1080P 3D. You can tell it's solid. That thing is FAT.
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Just goes to show what a bunch of crooks Best Buy and the other B&M retailers are. I was at a trade show a few weeks ago and noticed we didn't have a HDMI cable for our HDTV display in our booth. Best Buy was the closest store and I was pressed for time and the cheapest HDMI cable they had was $34
The other options were $60 and over $100. What do they have in them? Cocaine?
It's not Best Buy and other retailers. They have a pretty standard markup. Blame the manufacturer like Monster Cable. They are the ones charging the ridiculous prices with gimmicky and misleading marketing.
Although ultimately shame on the ignorant and uneducated consumer; if they didn't patronize these products they would never stay in business. If I sold lemonade by the road and people were willing to buy them for $150 per glass, I would be stupid not to charge that much. However, if they realized it was just lemons, water and sugar that they could make for 5 cents, they shouldn’t buy my lemonade and I should go out of business.
They do it to supplement their margins. There is virtually no profit in selling TVs anymore. If that is all they had they would go out of business. So they mark up the accessories by 200-300% that people buy along with the TVs. I'm not saying it's right or wrong, its just their business model. I don't mark up my cables much, but I don't really sell TVs and don't have giant stores to support either. Specialty AV is a different business model.
When I worked for a specialty AV retailer long ago in a galaxy far away, they were doing the same thing. As soon as profits on TVs fell, they were forced to push the hell out of accessories to pay the bills. Unfortunately that business model is a dinosaur now which is why so many of those companies went out business, including the one I used to work for just a year after I left. And not much later Ken Cranes goes down.
Best Buy, Frys and Costco killed the margins of those stores and put them out of business. That's free market and the big boys squashing the little guys. Well now online accessories and media sales is going to kill the margins of Best Buy and put them out of business one day unless they change. Tis the circle of life. Wondering if, much like Blockbuster and others, big box stores will be online only companies ten years from now.
When I worked for a specialty AV retailer long ago in a galaxy far away, they were doing the same thing. As soon as profits on TVs fell, they were forced to push the hell out of accessories to pay the bills. Unfortunately that business model is a dinosaur now which is why so many of those companies went out business, including the one I used to work for just a year after I left. And not much later Ken Cranes goes down.
Best Buy, Frys and Costco killed the margins of those stores and put them out of business. That's free market and the big boys squashing the little guys. Well now online accessories and media sales is going to kill the margins of Best Buy and put them out of business one day unless they change. Tis the circle of life. Wondering if, much like Blockbuster and others, big box stores will be online only companies ten years from now.
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Here's a deal on HDMI cables but you'd better act fast. 3-pack for 0.99!! FWIW....
http://bensoutlet.com/products/hdmi-3pack
http://bensoutlet.com/products/hdmi-3pack
Exactly. It's about transmission errors. Sure, it's all digital so the image won't directly degrade, but if you get sufficient errors, you'll either see MB artifacts or no signal at all.
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