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Is it worth buying an expensive HDMI?


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Old 08-07-2011, 18:44
kyliem
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Hi,
I have just got a new Samsung TV set up with Sky. I did a home set up and used the HDMI lead that Sky provided. A friend of mine said that a more expensive lead will give a better picture. Is there any truth to this? I do have a good picture but if I can get it even a little sharper I will change my lead as I am a bit fussy when it comes to perfection.
Thanks
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Old 08-07-2011, 19:01
chrisjr
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There is no truth whatsoever in 99.99999999999% of the claims made about HDMI leads. No bit of wire can make the blacks more black or the colour more lifelike and vibrant. What a poor cable can do though is mangle the digital data so the TV can't tell if it is getting a 1 or a 0 which is usually not subtle.

The only requirement for a cable is that the digital data that goes in one end comes out the other in exactly the same order. As long as the cable does that the resulting picture will be identical whether you payed 10p for the cable or 10 trillion quid.
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Old 08-07-2011, 19:15
grahamlthompson
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Go round to your friends taking your HDMI lead with you. Send him/her out of the room and swap the cables on a random basis

Get him/her back and ask which one is in use. Record the results. He/Her has been conned big time. If your local Poundshop has hdmi leads in stock add one of these to the mix. You may well find the £1.00 special gets the thumbs up.

It's amazing how gullible people are imagining spending £60.00 on a digital lead is going to make the picture better than a £1.00 one. It will either work 100% or the picture will be horrendous or non existent.. There's no halfway point with digital.
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Old 08-07-2011, 19:26
kyliem
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OK Guys, thanks for the info
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Old 08-07-2011, 19:34
Gormond
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The only time you need a high quality HDMI cable is when you need it to be very long, at 1 or 2 metres it makes no difference at all.
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Old 08-07-2011, 19:39
chrisjr
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It's amazing how gullible people are imagining spending £60.00 on a digital lead is going to make the picture better than a £1.00 one. It will either work 100% or the picture will be horrendous or non existent.. There's no halfway point with digital.
If 60 quid is gullible then what the hell is someone who spends nearly one and a half grand on a bit of wire!

http://www.futureshop.co.uk/wireworl...3m-p-3473.html

And that's not the most expensive cable they do. The 20 metre version is an eye watering £7200.

What is that old saying about more money than brain cells?
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Old 08-07-2011, 19:42
grahamlthompson
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If 60 quid is gullible then what the hell is someone who spends nearly one and a half grand on a bit of wire!

http://www.futureshop.co.uk/wireworl...3m-p-3473.html

And that's not the most expensive cable they do. The 20 metre version is an eye watering £7200.

What is that old saying about more money than brain cells?
As formerly bought by MPs on expenses .
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Old 08-07-2011, 23:19
call100
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Go round to your friends taking your HDMI lead with you. Send him/her out of the room and swap the cables on a random basis

Get him/her back and ask which one is in use. Record the results. He/Her has been conned big time. If your local Poundshop has hdmi leads in stock add one of these to the mix. You may well find the £1.00 special gets the thumbs up.

It's amazing how gullible people are imagining spending £60.00 on a digital lead is going to make the picture better than a £1.00 one. It will either work 100% or the picture will be horrendous or non existent.. There's no halfway point with digital.
Ha! Ha! I did this to my Brother-in-law a couple of years ago.
I didn't tell him I was doing it, waited for the right moment to strike up a conversation based on how good his picture was etc. He took the bait, hook, line and sinker.....When I told him what I had done he became very sheepish. My Sister thought it was hilarious....He's not bragged about his expensive gear since....
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Old 08-07-2011, 23:54
sdvsr1982
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Ha! Ha! I did this to my Brother-in-law a couple of years ago.
I didn't tell him I was doing it, waited for the right moment to strike up a conversation based on how good his picture was etc. He took the bait, hook, line and sinker.....When I told him what I had done he became very sheepish. My Sister thought it was hilarious....He's not bragged about his expensive gear since....


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Old 09-07-2011, 00:22
spiney2
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No.

Better quality ones will work over a slightly longer distance, because the cable construction means dispersion isnt as bad, but it's marginal. Ones from pound shops are fine.
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Old 09-07-2011, 03:18
Matt D
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Why people think expensive cables are better: The cashebo effect.

Why certain shops always try so hard to sell them to you: They have a much higher mark-up on them than the TVs and other devices they sell.



-------------------------------------------------------------------

This is very interesting:

Digital Foundry versus HDMI
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Old 09-07-2011, 03:27
pocatello
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Only if you need to route a wire across the house...
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Old 09-07-2011, 09:22
JulesandSand
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PcPro carries a story about this issue this month.

I was a victim of this rip-off before I learned the truth. I am the not-so-proud owner of an £80 HDMI 1.4 cable.

It does look very nice and is very well made though.

Having said that, I did have a cheap HDMI cable that seemed to affect my wireless network.

Poor shielding maybe?
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Old 09-07-2011, 09:38
stud u like
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I got mine for a fiver in Argos. Poundland didn't have any.
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Old 09-07-2011, 10:28
Shot_gunN
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Only came unstuck once with HDMI cables
Bought a 20 meter for £17 and used to connect the PC to the TV.
Moved all the equipment into the living room less the PC and used that same cable to connect from the amp to the tv
Could not get 1080p or 3D to work properly, only 1080i.
So for distance, yeah a more expensive cable will help prevent signal degredation.
1m to 3m cables, dont get conned, less chance of signal issues and any cable will work.
Dont pay monster prices......
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Old 09-07-2011, 11:53
captainkremmen
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PcPro carries a story about this issue this month.

I was a victim of this rip-off before I learned the truth. I am the not-so-proud owner of an £80 HDMI 1.4 cable.

It does look very nice and is very well made though.

Having said that, I did have a cheap HDMI cable that seemed to affect my wireless network.

Poor shielding maybe?
Very possibly.
Some of the issues people get with their PVRs are down to HDMI cables not being properly shielded and causing interference to the RF aerial input.

However, the ones from Poundland are properly shielded and (the two I bought) don't cause any RF interference that the one supplied with my PVR did.

I also have a couple of 2m HDMI cables from Amazon, each cost a couple of quid, and they too are excellent.
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Old 09-07-2011, 15:16
David (2)
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I have seen picture interference between an aerial cable and HDMI. But the fault was not with the HDMI - it was the aerial cord that needed replacing. Once this was done, there was no interference, even when the cables were touching.
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Old 09-07-2011, 15:34
spiney2
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Yeah, well, HDMI uses current loop, like phone wires & USB. But coax is subject to shield induction, if used wrongly.
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Old 10-07-2011, 16:56
chrisbartley
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And don;t forget to make sure you get the HDMI lead the right way round !!!! - Its soooo important !

"IMPORTANT: Please observe the correct cable orientation during installation. The cable is marked with an arrow "→" which indicates signal direction. e.g. Bluray/DVD → AV Receiver→ TV/Projector "
LINK

Still if you've been able to convince them 1400 quid will provide a superior experience, adding a bit more BS should be no problem and can only help build the mystique
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Old 14-07-2011, 12:13
Glawster2002
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And don;t forget to make sure you get the HDMI lead the right way round !!!! - Its soooo important !

"IMPORTANT: Please observe the correct cable orientation during installation. The cable is marked with an arrow "→" which indicates signal direction. e.g. Bluray/DVD → AV Receiver→ TV/Projector "
LINK

Still if you've been able to convince them 1400 quid will provide a superior experience, adding a bit more BS should be no problem and can only help build the mystique
It is surprising how many HDMI cables have that written on, though.

When we had our Home Cinema system installed, they used Chord HDMI SuperShield cables, which also has the direction arrows!

Mind you, I got them "free" as part of the installation, so they were well worth the price I paid for them!
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Old 14-07-2011, 15:35
ironjade
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I got conned into a £45 one, knowing no better. The next one was £4.99 (also from Curry's).
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Old 17-07-2011, 10:43
sambfd
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And don;t forget to make sure you get the HDMI lead the right way round !!!! - Its soooo important !

"IMPORTANT: Please observe the correct cable orientation during installation. The cable is marked with an arrow "→" which indicates signal direction. e.g. Bluray/DVD → AV Receiver→ TV/Projector "
LINK

Still if you've been able to convince them 1400 quid will provide a superior experience, adding a bit more BS should be no problem and can only help build the mystique

But if you don't use the correct orientation the 1's and 0's might get confused and try to go the wrong way
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Old 17-07-2011, 16:50
studeruk
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But if you don't use the correct orientation the 1's and 0's might get confused and try to go the wrong way
That's why the really good cable has the arrows inside as well so that the electrons know which way to go! I can sell you some if you like? £1600 a metre.
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Old 17-07-2011, 17:12
gomezz
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Does that come with the fine grid to pre-sort the thin ones from the fat zeroes ready for correct processing? Of course there is still the problem of the odd one getting stuck between two zeroes but they are working on reducing this problem with an active trembler lead adapting the technology used in mobile phones. Early prototypes are still a bit bulky due to the water-jacket used to quieten the sound of the trembling.
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Old 17-07-2011, 17:33
grahamlthompson
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Does that come with the fine grid to pre-sort the thin ones from the fat zeroes ready for correct processing? Of course there is still the problem of the odd one getting stuck between two zeroes but they are working on reducing this problem with an active trembler lead adapting the technology used in mobile phones. Early prototypes are still a bit bulky due to the water-jacket used to quieten the sound of the trembling.
You forgot the quark outer deflection screen - tut tut
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