Which is better, a HDMI cable or Monster cables for connecting DVR to HD TV and Why?

Question

Which is better, a HDMI cable or Monster cables for connecting DVR to HD TV and Why?

Answer 1

HDMI has issues, but it is cool to use 1 cable to send both audio and video to your TV.

A good HD rated component cable is about $55 from BlueJeans, but the same length cable is about $38.

The Monster brand will triple the above prices, but I suspect using HDMI is cheaper even with Monster. (Except that Monster has 4 different 'speeds' of cables to get more money from you by scaring you about the future.)

Answer 2

As someone else pointed out, HDMI is a special form of wired electronic (not optical) cable for connecting digital audio and video signals from a device like a DVD player, Blu-ray Disc Player, Set-top box, TiVo, DVR, or Video Game player to an HD TV.

As part of the HDMI standards, there is HDCP hi-def copy protection.  The film studios want the right to transmit HD signals to your TV only over HDCP connections to prevent theft.  As such, there may come a time when you cannot send an HD signal over component video cables from your player to your HD TV.  The signal may only be non-HD 480p rather than being 720p, 1080i, or 1080p.

Monster is "high end" cable manufacturer that sells expensive cables with the claim that they will do a better job than "cheaper" cables.

For short runs of HDMI cables, there is nothing a cable an do to "enhance" the quality of a digital signal.  I went with inexpensive HDMI cables from Optimized Cable Company to hook up my HD TiVo's to my Panasonic 42" plasma TV and my Sharp 32" LCD TV and I have seen no quality issues (pixelation, blogging, tearing of blogs or audio problems).  I think I paid either $15 or $19 a cable.

Save your money and don't buy expensive HDMI cables.

Answer 3

All HDMI cables are fiber optic in nature.  That is, the insides of these type of cables carry a true signal with no distortion.  If you use an HDMI cable, the cable will carry whatever technology comes out in the next 10 years.  When you use HDMI, whatever signal strength/quality is coming from the source you are using (cable, directTV,dishnetwork, etc) that same signal is uploaded from the cable/satellite directly thru HDMI input/output to TV.  You do not lose one bit of clarity.  How good your TV looks all depends on the strength of the signal from your source.  

DVIGear makes the best HDMI cables.  Monster also makes cables, but focuses on home theatre (speakers, audio), not video.

Answer 4

broken question.

HDMI is a type of cable.   Monster is a brand of cable.  Monster makes HDMI cables and non-HDMI cables.

HDMI is currently the best.