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Old 23-04-2009, 12:21   #1
loki
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Default HDMI Cable question

So I got my brand spanking new Samsung 5 series on Monday night and have been happy as a pig in the brown stuff. At the moment I am just using some cheap HDMI cables that must have cost about a fiver each. Will there be any mega benefits in using a more expensive cable. I am loathe to spend quite a bit of money on 5 new cables if the difference is going to be negligble.

Also is there a lot of difference between 1080i and 1080p ?
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Old 23-04-2009, 12:24   #2
leowyatt
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I'm using cheapo cables and have no complains
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Old 23-04-2009, 12:29   #3
Matblack
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Quote:
Originally Posted by loki View Post
So I got my brand spanking new Samsung 5 series on Monday night and have been happy as a pig in the brown stuff. At the moment I am just using some cheap HDMI cables that must have cost about a fiver each. Will there be any mega benefits in using a more expensive cable. I am loathe to spend quite a bit of money on 5 new cables if the difference is going to be negligble.
The difference will be negligable, HDMI is digital, if it works it works, bit of a sweepiing statement that because there are such things as bit loss and error correction but it holds true in the real world.


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Also is there a lot of difference between 1080i and 1080p?
Well yes but then it will depend on a lot of variables as to whether you will notice a big difference, p is better than i image wise if you have the choice use p, I could explain the ins and outs but its not really worth it

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Old 23-04-2009, 12:31   #4
Justsomebloke
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Yes, Yes & Yes.
I've got a few different cables & the difference between them is Very noticeable, Funnily enough after all the chat on forums I got an official 360 one for my box even though I had 2 other HDMI leads 1 good 1 crap & the 360 one came 2nd. The one I got from my mates shop is the best & the picture is Loads better than the other two.
The cheap one was like Analogue compared to the one I use.
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Old 23-04-2009, 12:36   #5
Streeteh
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While trying my best to not step on JSBs toes i have to say it's becomming more and more widely believed that an expensive HDMI cable is not worth the effort UNLESS you plan on it being a very long cable (10m+).

Reason being is that due to the digital nature and fancy things such as error correction as matblack has said they either work or they don't. It's obviously not as simple as 'it's digital so it works!' but that's the easiest way to explain it. If a HDMI cable is not good enough for the task very obvious display issues such as missing segments and 'snow' will appear. Things such as colour warmth and sharpness will not be modified according to the quality of the cable as was the case back in the analogue days.

When it comes to 720p, 1080i and 1080p i just disable 1080i and let the device decide between 720p and 1080p. Due to being progressive scan i prefer 720p over 1080i despite its lower resolution, it's a subjective matter between those two but 1080p is by far the best setting to use when you can.

[EDIT] I'd also like to add that the above i have said about HDMI cables is still disputed. If you really NEED to see for yourself buy 1 expensive HDMI cable, open the packaging carefully and test it with your 'best' media player (bluray would be ideal), plug it directly into your TV and see if you can notice a difference. If you can't, take it back and get a refund, jobs a goodun'.
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Old 23-04-2009, 12:57   #6
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I don't think expensive leads make a difference, the signal ether gets there in one piece or it doesn't. In my experience, if the lead is no good the picture gets majorly mucked up.

1080p (progressive) is better than 1080 (interlaced) but its hard to see the difference.
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Old 23-04-2009, 13:02   #7
divine
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If they are HDMI 1.3c Cat 2 then yes, they are fine. Cat 1 in theory is only guaranteed to work with 720p/1080i, so you might have issues with 1080p.

1.3c just ensures it is capable of all the various latest features of HDMI.

Other than that, it won't make a difference. There are no benefits to be had with regards to sharpness/colour and such things when comparing equal spec level cables of different prices.

I could write several pages about how HDMI works and exactly why it won't make a difference but it isn't necessary. I'd personally spend about £20 on them, just to make sure the build quality is there, i'd not trust a £5 cable to physically last as long but that's all.

If we go back to analogue cables though, such as speaker wire, there are good gains to be made from better cables.
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Old 23-04-2009, 13:08   #8
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Is it possible for a cable to get damaged then as this Official one is a lot poorer than the one I use. The picture just looks rougher. (For want of a better word)
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Old 23-04-2009, 13:12   #9
divine
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It could be but i'd expect the issue to be more apparent in the style of corruption (similar to when freeview gets a poor signal, you get a good picture then a jumble of squares, then it flicks back to a good picture. Either way the full picture when there is always good quality)

I'd be surprised if the 360 cables wasn't a fully specced 1.3 cat2 cable but I suppose that's a possibility.
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