Whats the difference between a 6ft $20 HDMI cable and a 6ft $90 HDMI cable ?

Question

I just bought a sony LCD tv and might be buying a playstation 3 maybe next month and a lot a people say to use HDMI cable to get better sound and picture. upon searching the web I've found $20 cable and $90 cable price range. so i'm wondering if I'm gonna get the same picture/sound quality if I get the $20 cable compare to a $90 one.

Answer 1

There are physical and performance differences between inexpensive and expensive HDMI cables, but basically HDMI either works perfectly or it doesn't work at all (particularly at short distances like 6 ft).

As length increases they all go from working essentially perfectly --> a short transition zone where they sort of work (e.g. sparkling, dropouts) --> not working at all. The big difference is that better cables work at longer distances than cheaper ones.

See the report at the link (scroll down) that compared budget and Monster HDMI cables ... and concluded that for normal connections (up to 10-15 feet) budget cables were essentially identical to expensive cables. The CBC program Marketplace reached the same conclusion (see 2nd link).

For basic connection use monoprice.com Category 2, HDMI 1.3 cables are a good choice. For in-wall or longer connections Blue Jeans Cables BJC-Series 1 are the right choice ... and they are still a fraction of the price of Monster cables (that are not as good).

Answer 2

$70

You need to provide more information than just the price.  That $20 cable may outperform the $90 cable... it isn't likely, but it's possible.

I had a couple of cheap Chinese HDMI cables in my home theater that couldn't carry a 1080p signal.  I replaced them with inexpensive cables from http://www.bluejeanscables.com and now I've got no problems.  I'd put the bluejeans cables up against any high priced alternatives.  There were a couple of independent reviewers on the internet that actually test them side-by-side.  I'll see if I can find the link later.

Answer 3

Yup. Its all about the band-with

However in your case... Save the money

Unless your a videophlie (and your equipment was more advanced) you don't need an advanced and more expensive HDMI cable.

You wouldn't be able to tell the difference anyway.

Good luck

More questions? Just e-mail me. I have owned a home theater business.

Answer 4

I am going to have to agree with the first person.  The only difference is 70 dollars.  You do not need to buy a 90 dollars HDMI cable.  I tell you what you do, go online and buy a $7 HDMI cable and if it works, you saved yourself $83. In fact the link below has it for that price, not that i advertise for the link, its just one in 100s that offer inexpensive HDMI cables.  But the second link (newegg.com) I use all the time is extremely trustworthy and have the cable for $9.00 (plus shipping but it gets there in about 2-3 days tops).  And on newegg.com you can read the customers reviews for yourself.