HDMI Cables for 3D viewing

[Jonnyhifi]

Can anyone recommend a suitable (and half decent £50-£60) HDMI cable for hooking up a Panasonic DMP-DBT 300EG Bluray player to a 50VT20 TV. The majority of internet and in-store retailers seem as confused as I now am about appropriate cables (I used to have a handle on this until the spec. versions were outlawed). Some outlets still have cables packaged as 1.3, 1.3a etc, and none I have spoken to had heard of the new official terms of 'standard speed' and 'high speed'/ 'high speed with ethernet'.

I'm not sure whether a formerly termed 1.3b cable will do - is it just he audio return that would be lacking?

Picking up the BDP and TV up tomorrow (I'm in the 'Let's wait for the 2nd or 3rd generation 3DTVs' camp, but family is 3D obsessed) so early enlightenment would be welcome.

Thanks

 

[Anonymous]

any high street hdmi cables will do , you need two ...

 

[professorhat]

If the cable is certified to give you 1080p then it's a High Speed certified cable and will be able to pass 3D and the Audio Return Channel.

 

[cstanwhf]

professorhat:

If the cable is certified to give you 1080p then it's a High Speed certified cable and will be able to pass 3D and the Audio Return Channel.

Think 1080p certified does not necessary mean it is High Speed certified though.

Taken from QED's website http://www.qed.co.uk/1/news/hdmi_explained.htm

HDMI Cable Spec
High Street Term
Picture Size
Pictures per second
Bits per colour channel

Standard Speed
HD Ready
1080i/720p
30/60
8

-
Full HD
1080p
60
8

-
Deep Colour
1080p
60
12

High Speed
Full Deep Colour
1080p
60
16

Just look for High Speed Certified cable with Ethernet (if needed and for future proofing). High Speed certified cable will support 3D and 4K. And of course 1080p.

Edit...sorry...not sure where all the spacing came from.

 

[professorhat]

Fair enough, but I trust the HDMI organisations specifications more

Standard Speed = guaranteed 720p / 1080i

High Speed = guaranteed 1080p

Note the word "guaranteed" - QED and other HDMI cable manufacturers over-engineer their cables so that their Standard Speed cables will in the main easily transport 1080p over reasonable distances. However, for it to be guaranteed, you need a High Speed cable.

 

[Anonymous]

in the op,s case , two tesco hdmi cables for £4 each will suffice , although of course should he wish to spend more ...

 

[Anonymous]

Something like a QED Classic HDMI-P which u can get for £20 (1m) - £27 (3m) would suit.

I'm using a 2m one to connect my PS3 to my TV and the 3d works fine.

In theory any 1.3a or later cable should work, especially if u use a length of 3m or less.

(The £4 Tesco ones advertise a bandwidth of only 5Gb/s and will not work for 3d - you'd have to get the 2m 10.2Gb/s one at a whopping £7.97 ! )

 

[Anonymous]

ive got one of those £4 tesco cables and it works fine from my blu-ray player to tv , carrying 1080p data..

 

[professorhat]

I think edsib1 is saying your cable is fine for standard 1080p, but does not have enough bandwidth available to transmit 3D 1080p (which is effectively double the amount of information as there is a separate 1080p feed for each eye).

 

[Anonymous]

afaik its the combination of twin 1080p data and audio data thats too much for a 1.3 spec cable , but the op will , im assuming , want to connect to his denon 2310 , so a pair of cheapies , both coming from the twin hdmi equipped pana 3d bdp will suffice , i think

 

[cstanwhf]

professorhat:
Fair enough, but I trust the HDMI organisations specifications more

Standard Speed = guaranteed 720p / 1080i

High Speed = guaranteed 1080p

Note the word "guaranteed" - QED and other HDMI cable manufacturers over-engineer their cables so that their Standard Speed cables will in the main easily transport 1080p over reasonable distances. However, for it to be guaranteed, you need a High Speed cable.

OK, I forgot that QED over-engineer their cables. Hehe...

I would say, if you are going to buy a new cable, get one that is 3D ready, rather than buying again when all your equipment are 3D ready.

Anyway, OP did said that he needs a "HDMI cable for hooking up a Panasonic DMP-DBT 300EG Bluray player to a 50VT20 TV".

 

[Anonymous]

Try this link out: http://www.divineaudio.co.uk/video-cables/hdmi-cables/audioquest-forest-hdmi-cable-1m/prod_1809.html

Very cheap and AudioQuest have won a 5 star award for this cable in a 5m version.

 

[tvspecv]

better than qed?

 

[Anonymous]

5 stars says it all, it's just as good i would say but cheaper!

 

[Anonymous]

Just got a hdmi 1.4 ethernet cable from keene electronics in Derby also on line comes in 1/1.8/3/5m lengths £15 up to £24.99 for my samsung 3dtv

 

[cstanwhf]

The Audioquest is almost on par with the Chord Supershield (losing a little on sound) according to the review.

But if you do not need the ethernet option, I would suggest going for the QED Reference.

Seem like it is better than the Supershield (according to the reviews).

And the recent price drop for the QED range brings it to the same price as the Supershield (£50 for 1 meter).

So for 1 meter of HDMI cable, the QED Reference will be the best performer of the 3 options.

But if you need something flexible, definitly go for the Audioquest.

It is much thinner and flexible than the other two.

 

[tvspecv]

QED Performance HDMI is this any good for 3d?

its a 1.3 spec

on cheap at audiovisual 2 for £54

 

[Anonymous]

2 for £54 is a good offer and this seems to be running on other web sites too but remember, the QED are not capable of ARC (audio return) and Ethernet (if you require this).

The AudioQuest HDMI cable is version 1.4 3D, ARC audio return and Ethernet capable, hence i think its good value for money even if you do not use the other features yet but you might in the future and saves you buying another cable later.

 

[Anonymous]

I have a Chord Supershield (1.3b) currently runs the Sky 3D channel to my Sony KDL-L903 excellently well. Recent acquisition-a Peerless DE-HD02 High Speed HDMI© Cable with Ethernet (3DTV), 2 metre cable (WHEW!) is available from John Lewis for £49.95, instore or online and is even better.

You can literally see the improvement in picture clarity & richer colour balance. Bought the cable in readiness for the Sony BDP-S770 Blu-Ray player that's tentatively due in September. Ad blurb reads-"3D TV compatible at Full HD 1080p image resolution. It also features an 100Mbps Ethernet channel for connecting Internet-enabled AV devices."

Based on what my eyes have seen I'd give it the thumbs up.

 

[Jonnyhifi]

Thanks for all the replies; seems there is a fair degree of opnion on the topic . For the moment I have plumped for the QED Reference (got a decent 'price match' from Richer Sounds) to connect to the Panny BDP.

To clarify for some above re using the 2nd HDMI ouput on the Panny BDP, my P50VT20 is currently not in the main 'home cinema' room so not part of the Denon 2310/MA Radius HD system - and I have no AV amp and speakers yet in this 2nd room. It was bought to replace an older TV in there and, whilst at it, satisfy the 3D cravings of others . Despite the TV's cracking PQ and stunning 3D from our solitary 3D BD (Cloudy) and Sky's 3D preview channel, I still think the projector/big screen is the 'proper' home cinema experience for now. But once Sky 3D launches in October and more 3D BD titles are released, some rearrangement to shoehorn the telly into the main room may be required.