HDMI or Composite Video?

Question

I have both HDMI and composite red, blue, green outputs on my cable box that I can hook up to my tv. Which one is better for the best video?

Answer 1

First, disregard what Kevin W said, he doesn't know what he is talking about

Here is a list of cables from best to worst

-HDMI (best choice, though some cable boxes, mostly Scientific Atlanta boxes flashed with the Mystro Firmware connected to Time Warner Cable are not compatible with HDMI despite the HDMI port on the back of the box, the audio and video with cut out occasionally, at least that is what happened to me)

-Component (Red, Green, Blue) (worst choice as it is analog, and you lose image quality in the conversion and reconversion, contrary to what Kevin W said, component is compatible with 1080p, but because of HDCP, copyrighted video can't be played in 1080p, this is because the HDCP data is unable to be transferred)

-S-Video (Not compatible with HD)

-Composite (Yellow) (Not compatible with HD)

-Coax (depends on the situation, but from the box to the TV, not compatible with HD, if your television has a ClearQAM tuner, you can receive some unblocked digital and HD cable channels)

Like previously mentioned, HDMI is the best cable to use, but some cable boxes, even though they have an HDMI port, the firmware installed on them may not be compatible, you can check with an HDMI cable first, then if you have any problems, try replacing it with the component cable

Now for what Kevin W got wrong

1. "Component is not compatible with 1080p": Component is compatible with 1080p, but only games and non-copyrighted videos, now the videos that are protected with HDCP and DRM, those videos will be displayed in 1080i (as far as I know)

2. "You should use an HDMI cable so when cable goes 1080p, you can get it": Not only is that proven false because component is compatible with 1080p, but due to the limits of cable, there will never be 1080p through cable, satellite is a different story

EDIT: @ Grumpy Mac-I am not going to disagree with the fact that HDMI is better, because it is better, but it is not compatible with all STBs, just because there is an HDMI port, dosen't mean it's going to work perfectly and give the best picture, I thought that very same thing when my stepfather got Time Warner Cable HD service, when we got the box, we went out to the store and bought an HDMI cable for the STB, we brought it home and connected it and got a wonderful HD picture and great sound, about an hour later (or less, I forgot), the sound started to drop out occasionally, so we didn't mind it and went back to watching television, then the video and audio started to drop out together, thinking it was just a faulty box, we called the cable company to see if we could get a replacement, they said that they would send somebody out to troubleshoot it, they came in, removed the HDMI cable, and connected the STB to the TV using component cables, as soon as we switched form HDMI to component, the problem stopped, the cable installer said that the STB's firmware was not programmed to use the HDMI port, causing the audio/video dropouts, this seems to be common everywhere, even on different cable companies, so just to reduce headaches, I say to try HDMI cables, butto always keep component cables nearby for if something happens

Answer 2

HDMI will invariably give you a better picture.  HDMI will give you the cleanest, most lossless signal.  Component cables(Red, blue, green) are analog cables.  HDMI is a digital interface.  When the signal leaves your box it is a digital signal, so if you have the analog cables it must be converted from digital to analog and then back into digital when it goes into your tv, which is also digital.  This means that the signal is converted 2 times before you see it on the screen.  This creates lossiness.

An HDMI cable doesn't convert the signal, because it already is digital. Also, component cables can't handle 1080p, so when cable starts broadcasting in 1080p, you will need to use HDMI anyway.

HDMI has the added benefit of carrying audio as well, so now you have one cable that takes the place of 5 cables.

Answer 3

The red, blue, and green cable is called a Component video cable. Using that cable will give you a good picture, but you will need a seperate audio cable going to your TV. Using an HDMI cable will give you the best picture possible. Since HDMI is both Audio and Video, you will have less cables to deal with.

Answer 4

I tend to like Kevin W's answer.  Yes - a few nits are wrong, but he gave good reasons why HDMI is the preferred connection type.

I suggest you feed HDMI straight from the cable box to the TV.  But also, try running an optical cable to your AV Receiver.

With this hookup - you use the TV speakers for casual TV watching. But for a 5.1 show or movie, you turn down the TV speakers and fire up the AV Receiver.

My favorite place for good, inexpensive cables is www.bluejeanscables.com.  They will also sell you some good HD rated component cables if you want. I have used both from them and lik the honest technical information on the site.  (We are talking $38 for a ten foot HDMI cable).

Budget cables can be purchased from www.monoprice.com I use several of these for short runs to feed a HDMI switch.