HDMI Cables

[drmwevr08]

22 told me I can get lots of great info from the good folks of CF


The only reason I mentioned that the TV isnt 1080p is that many of the cables I see are supposed to be better because the carry the better HD signals, which my TV cant get anyway!

BTW, Megan, 42" Hitachi Plasma

I will definitely check the websites offered here. Hate to wait but its better than paying the 35-85 bucks I have seen around here.

[jumbopackage]

Find the shortest HDMI cable you can get that will work for you, and then get the cheapest one of those you can get.

Under about 10 feet, all the cables will perform just as well up to 1080p. If you need more than 10 feet or so, you'll probably be fine running at 720p with monoprice cables. If you HAVE to have 1080p with longass cables, you're going to have to pop for something a little more spendy.

Remember, the signal is digital. You will get NO better picture with an expensive cable than you will with a cheap cable, so long as the cable is able to deliver the bits "cleanly" between devices. Under 10 feet at 1080p, this is not a problem for even the cheapest cables.
The Truth About Monster Cable, Part 2 (Verdict: Cheap Cables Keep Up...Usually)

[mustangcy]

So are you guys saying that if you have Digital cable but are not using HDMI cables you are NOT getting the best picture you can? So if I have mediacom digital cable and a plasma but am only using the old rca cables (or whatever you call them) I'm losing picture quality and should get a HDMI cable?

Sorry for sounding so stupid if this has been discussed already...

[thunderdave]

So are you guys saying that if you have Digital cable but are not using HDMI cables you are NOT getting the best picture you can? So if I have mediacom digital cable and a plasma but am only using the old rca cables (or whatever you call them) I'm losing picture quality and should get a HDMI cable?

Sorry for sounding so stupid if this has been discussed already...

Yes, that is correct.
The cables connecting your reciver to your TV can make a huge difference.

[mustangcy]

son of a bee's nest...Cyclone talk and improving my tv picture...you guys are great!

[scottie33]

I had used component video cables for hooking everything up, but I have so much stuff to hook up that the cables are all over the place. So, now I have all HDMI cables which all run to my receiver and from there I have just 1 HDMI run to the tv which does your input and output of picture and sound. I control everything I own through my receiver and never touch the tv.

[jumbopackage]

So are you guys saying that if you have Digital cable but are not using HDMI cables you are NOT getting the best picture you can? So if I have mediacom digital cable and a plasma but am only using the old rca cables (or whatever you call them) I'm losing picture quality and should get a HDMI cable?

Sorry for sounding so stupid if this has been discussed already...

I'm assuming you're using Y,Pb,Pr and not just the composite output (3 cables for video and 2 for audio instead of just one for video and 2 for audio).

You will honestly not notice the difference, unless you're using really low quality component cables. Especially if you're using digital cable as your output source.

HDMI is, in theory, superior. In practice, most people can't tell the difference. I wouldn't go spend a ton of money on HDMI cables if you're happy with what you have, unless you've got money to spend and nothing better to spend it on.

On standard-def, digital cable, you will notice 0 difference.

[guitarchitect7]

So are you guys saying that if you have Digital cable but are not using HDMI cables you are NOT getting the best picture you can? So if I have mediacom digital cable and a plasma but am only using the old rca cables (or whatever you call them) I'm losing picture quality and should get a HDMI cable?

Sorry for sounding so stupid if this has been discussed already...

RCA's (red, white, and yellow) cables are for old anolog television. Even an S-Video cable is far above that for video quality.

The best solution is to try and stay digital no matter what. Your signal is digital, and your T.V. supports digital. So why convert down to anolog and then back to digital. Even the component cables do that. HDMI, DVI, Digital Coax or optical are all the better ways to go depending on what you can use. The nice thing also is that HDMI and DVI carry the audio signals for you. ONE cable to do both audio and video; its about time.

As far as the quality of the cable really only matters once reaching long distances as I said before. The signal weakens as the distance becomes longer. The thicker and more shielded cable you get the better off the singal will be by the time it reaches the source.

If you all really want some help, look into Clean Power by Monster Cable. It is suppose to help take out the "noise" in any type of signal, thus trying to give you the cleanest picture possible.

[DevilDog]

Merry Christmas to all the Cyclones out there.

[DevilDog]

I cant figure out the quoting thing but its no big deal.

[DevilDog]

guitarchitect7Re: HDMI Cables
Quote:
Originally Posted by mustangcy
So are you guys saying that if you have Digital cable but are not using HDMI cables you are NOT getting the best picture you can? So if I have mediacom digital cable and a plasma but am only using the old rca cables (or whatever you call them) I'm losing picture quality and should get a HDMI cable?

Sorry for sounding so stupid if this has been discussed already...

RCA's (red, white, and yellow) cables are for old anolog television. Even an S-Video cable is far above that for video quality.

The best solution is to try and stay digital no matter what. Your signal is digital, and your T.V. supports digital. So why convert down to anolog and then back to digital. Even the component cables do that. HDMI, DVI, Digital Coax or optical are all the better ways to go depending on what you can use. The nice thing also is that HDMI and DVI carry the audio signals for you. ONE cable to do both audio and video; its about time.

As far as the quality of the cable really only matters once reaching long distances as I said before. The signal weakens as the distance becomes longer. The thicker and more shielded cable you get the better off the singal will be by the time it reaches the source.

If you all really want some help, look into Clean Power by Monster Cable. It is suppose to help take out the "noise" in any type of signal, thus trying to give you the cleanest picture possible.

HDMI does carry both audio and video. DVI only carries video though.[/quote]

[dbronco7sc]

If you don't have HD content going to your TV... you don't need an HDMI cable. If you only have a DVD player... you won't be getting a "better" picture with an HDMI cable. If you have an HDDVD Player or BlueRay player (Xbox360 or PS3) then an HDMI cable will make a difference. As far as getting a Monster cable... you're paying for the name and the service... you'll get the "Cable for Life" warrenty and if more advanced technology comes around that your HDMI cable can't handle, then you can get a free cable upgrade assuming you remember you have this Cable for Life policy)

I have an xbox360 and the difference between a component HD cable and an HDMI cable is pretty obvious if you switch between the two.

[dmclone]

I have both component HD directv and HDMI directv going to my projector onto a 100" screen and I can't tell the difference. I use HDMI but I wired just in case.

[drmwevr08]

I will reccomend the clean power power strips. I had a ton of problems with a PC in an old apt and they replaced almost everything under the warranty but nothing helped until I bought one of these clean power strips. Once I got that everything worked fine. I still have that one for my pc and have one for my tv, reciever et al as well.

BTW, on much of the advice here I ended up ordering an HDMI on monoprice and will probably grab another couple of upgraded cables there soon.