Is there a difference in HDMI cables?

Question

Radio Shack said there is only a difference in component, speaker, and fiber optic cables. But that HDMI are all pretty much the same. I know the mark-up on all of this c**p is huge, but I want to know if this guy is full of BS. If he is (as I suspect), what types/brands would you recommend?

Answer 1

I loved the response from the Magnolia salesperson.  Man i havent laughed that hard in along time.

First off the signal is pure digital 1's and 0's I would love to hear how a cable (any cable) can change the digital signal in any way shape or form.

Second it's not the cable that is manipulating the new 120Hz signal on some newer TV's but the TV itself (it is still getting the core signal that the Bluray player is sending it and no amount of "Monster" mumbo Jumbo will ever change that.

In fact there has been a "million dollar" challange by a well known audioologist who is willing to give 1,000,000 to anybody who can tell the difference between high end uber cables like Monster brand with typical 12 gauge Home Depot speaker wire.  Guess what in the 10 years this on going debate has been going on, nobody and I mean nobody has ever collected the million bucks.

Also buy your HDMI cables on the net with places like Monoprice.com, Partsexpress.com or BlueJeancables.com where a six foot HDMI cable will cost 4.00 and yes that cable will match everything that the 150.00 monster cable can do.

BTW with analog cables long lengths and RF interferance can affect some poorly insulated cables, but bought at places mentioned above they are all well insulated and will work just as good as those bought in stores that are only lining the Salesman and Noel Lee (Monster founder) pocket.

Trust me the guy at Magnolia would also kindly sell you Bose cube speakers, telling you they are high end, when they are some of the poorest frequency response speakers ever sold to the gerenal public.  I think a speaker bought in the back of a white van would be a close second.

To the guy who works at Magnolia, how do you sleep at night, lying to your customer base and cheating people out of their hard earned money.

Do a search on any Audio video forum (AVSForum.com) and place Monster cable or Bose speaker in it's search engine and read all the expert testimonial from people who will tell you the truth in these snake oil products.

Answer 2

LOL at the Best Buy salesman.

If he ever saw a difference between HDMI cables, it was probably a comparison done by Monster with the cheaper cable being faulty.

Like Monster's speaker cable demo, where they used one Monster cable, and one cable that was way too small for the speaker, so there'd be a difference.

Bottom line:   It's digital.   If they signal gets through, the picture is perfect.   If not, then it's unwatchable.   There is no in-between.  

You might want a little nicer cable for a longer run, but who needs that, unless you have a projector?  

Go to monoprice.com and get some quality, inexpensive cables.

Answer 3

There are differences, but for:

- Short runs (under 15 ft)

- Surface mount (not in-wall)

The generic cables work nearly as well as the name brand cables.

"..Monster's 1000 series and above are the only HDMI cables are rated for 120hz "

(Thank you for this...)

You have obviously been through a Monster training session.

Well -- LCD televisions that re-display the image twice as often (120 hz)  to reduce motion blur DO NOT pull the video image through the cable twice.  The image is simply drawn twice as often by the TV.

And 120 hz is SUBWOOFFER frequencies, not video so being rated for 120 hz means it can carry low-speed analog subwoofer sounds.

But I'm sure it sounds impressive and 'scares' people into buying Monster after you tell them this. It's part of the marketing scheme to use BS technical jargon to impress people.

Answer 4

In my home, I have three LCD tvs that I have mounted on the wall and ran the cables through the drywall down to my equipment. I have purchased expensive Monster cables from Best Buy for over $100 for only a 6 foot. Thankfully I did that only once, and from there on I went to newegg.com and purchased their Link Depot 6ft OEM cables. They purchase a huge amount of cables and package them in plain plastic to avoid retail packaging costs.....and it passes on the savings! Even with the shipping costs, you WILL save money....buy from newegg, they're great!

Link Depot cable was plain and black, but very sturdy. Sure, the Monster was nicely colored and also sturdy, but thankfully all my wires are hidden :) 2 of my LCDs are the exact same and with them side by side, one with the monster and one with the link depot on mine and a buddies' ps3s, there was no noticable difference. Save your money!!

Answer 5

HDMI is a digital cable, so it transmits 0's and 1's through the pins, so yes it is pretty much standard. Component cables and speaker wire transmit analog signals, so they have complex waveforms being sent through them, and you want good cables/wire so that it's not being distorted/losing signal. Digital transmission over HDMI cable probably has error checking built into the digital signal, just like most other digital signals, which would allow for a cheaper cable without losing data. The 0's and 1's code for the exact data (audio and video), so your picture won't be distorted and your audio will be really clear, even with cheap cables. As long as the HDMI cable doesn't break, a cheap cable should perform just as well. You probably fell for marketing hype for the shiny expensive cables, don't worry, you wouldn't be alone in this, a lot of people do. There's definitely something to it for analog cables, but not for digital ones like HDMI.

Fiber optic cables are probably not important to get really good ones for the same reason, a digital signal is sent over a laser through a clear cable, for that it would only matter if you had an expensive one if it was a long cable, the expensive ones would block less light, but for short distances it doesn't even really matter how cheap the fiber optic cable is, because the laser is so bright anyway. I'm using the word "cheap" here as a relative term, no fiber optic cables are usually cheap.

Answer 6

i work in a magnolia home theater in best buy and let me give you MY honest opinion. Between a $2 Ojiwa HDMI cable and a Monster M series cable there is a night and day difference. And for people who tell you there is not a difference they do not either have enough experience or are completely blind. Monster's 1000 series and above are the only HDMI cables are rated for 120hz and anything below will not run 120hz. Also thickness and protection of the cable has alot more to do with it than people think. It provide much better quality with a much lower chance for breakup. Honestly you do pay for what you get no matter how high the markup and how high cost. As i tell my customers; I am not on commission so why would i try to sell you what you dont need.

if you dont believe me hook two completely different ones up and then tell me there is not... that usuallllly shuts the customers up if they dont believe me...

Answer 7

The difference between a $10 HDMI cable and a $150 HDMI cable is this:

The $10 HDMI cable will deliver HD video up to 1080p along with a digital surround sound signal.

The $150 HDMI cable does all that and....costs $140 extra.

The same goes for optical audio cables.  These carry digital signals, meaning either the cable will work just fine, or it won't work at all.

Even for component video cables or other types of video and speaker cables,  there really isn't that much of a difference between the cables you find at most retail stores other than the price.  

For speaker cable, so long as you get something that's 16 or 17 gauge, you'll be fine.  If you plan on running cable in your walls, make sure it's  certified for that (this is for fire safety.  Otherwise, just buy the cheapest stuff you can find.  I found this brand of speaker cable at Frys for $20 for a 50 foot roll.  Works fine for me.

For video cables, I go with the cheapest stuff I can find.  I've even "misused" a composite cable set for component video cables, and I'm currently using a composite video cable as a subwoofer cable.  Hey, it was $10 for that cable compared to the $35 Best Buy wanted for the same exact cable.  I figure as long as it works, that's fine.

If you can't find cheap HDMI cables at the stores near you, try online.  I've bought some stuff from MonoPrice (http://www.monoprice.com) before.

Answer 8

Haha, I actually use to work at Best Buy in the Home Theater section.  If you do an employee price check on a $150 HDMI cable, you will see that the mark up is HUGE.  All of that markup is the Monster name, nothing else.