hdmi cables

[admin_exported]

Hi

I'm thinking of upgrading my hdmi cables i've read a few reviews and come up with a short list

van den hul flat

wireworld 5 ultraviolet

chord 1.3 silver plus

so what i need to know is baised on picture & sound quality not price which is the better cable ,my equipment is as follows

panasonic th 50pz70 1080p plasma , sky hd , panasonic dmp bd35 , ps3 , onkyo tx sr606

 

[d4v3pum4]

Seriously mate, save your money. I'm sure your current cable is fine, after all if it's working, the 1's and 0's won't be improved using a new cable. If you do fancy new cables, stick to well made cables for a few £ e.g. ukhdmi.com or markgrant. 99.999% of hdmi cables are made in China in the same factories and re-badged. Okay some of the expensive ones are well made etc. but in the end, you look at the front of your rack, not the rear and unless you're playing tug of war with your cables, they don't need to be bullet proof. The ones I've mentioned are more than adequate.

 

[mattjax05]

For your equipment I would seriously consider this:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/QED-QUNEX-Performance-HDMI-Cable-1080P-v-1-3_W0QQitemZ270314733213QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_Computing_CablesConnectors_RL?hash=item270314733213&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1300%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318

Very much a bargin and a decent cable, this would save you some cash!

 

[Messiah]

Would agree with both answers really. Not worth buying expensive HDMI cables IMO but if you are gonna spend about £10-£15 on a decent standard one you may as well get the QED and have piece of mind that you have bought a well reviewed cable!

 

[Gerrardasnails]

d4v3pum4:
Seriously mate, save your money. I'm sure your current cable is fine, after all if it's working, the 1's and 0's won't be improved using a new cable. If you do fancy new cables, stick to well made cables for a few £ e.g. ukhdmi.com or markgrant. 99.999% of hdmi cables are made in China in the same factories and re-badged. Okay some of the expensive ones are well made etc. but in the end, you look at the front of your rack, not the rear and unless you're playing tug of war with your cables, they don't need to be bullet proof. The ones I've mentioned are more than adequate.

Have a read of this. Drummerman is a hifi enthusiast and I believe has recently set up a HT system. He will admit to being no expert and from his posts on the hifi forum, he calls it how it is.

http://whathifi.com/forums/1/164889/ShowThread.aspx

 

[margetti]

I'd be very interested in hearing more from both sides of this particular debate. Having just bought an Onkyo 875 today (sorry, third thread I've mentioned it in today - I'm just excited!) I have the prospect of having to upgrade FOUR hdmi cables.

From my own background in electrical engineering, the argument about 0's and 1's et al makes perfect sense - IN THEORY. But we all know that theory doesn't always cut it in the world of hi-fi/AV, yes?

ÿLet the debate ensue...

 

[daveh75]

you wont get a debate on this subject!

 

[margetti]

Do tell! The original OP and myself are contemplating a major investment in a piece of wire. I myself have happily invested heavily in analogue interconnects and speaker cable, but have, I admit, never done the same with hdmi on the basis of the 0's/1's argument. If you have a story to tell on hdmi upgrades, it would be extremely welcome.

ÿ

daveh75:you wont get a debate on this subject!

 

[professorhat]

margetti:Let the debate ensue...
There's been too many in the past for most of us to be bothered I'm afraid. Plenty of posts to read if you search though I'm sure!

 

[daveh75]

margetti:

Do tell! The original OP and myself are contemplating a major investment in a piece of wire. I myself have happily invested heavily in analogue interconnects and speaker cable, but have, I admit, never done the same with hdmi on the basis of the 0's/1's argument. If you have a story to tell on hdmi upgrades, it would be extremely welcome.

daveh75:you wont get a debate on this subject!
coz they usually descend into ww3 tbh

 

[margetti]

'Tis true. Sorry - did I break forum rules in attempting to induce a riot?

ÿ

daveh75:ÿcoz they usually descend into ww3 tbh

 

[daveh75]

no ya didn't break the rules, it's just cable thread's alway's seem to end up in an arguemet i'm affraid

 

[margetti]

Last comment was tongue in cheek - in case anyone is taking me the wrong way!

That said, I will look thru previous posts, as in all seriousness I do need to work out whether to replace 4 budget hdmi cables or not.

And profuse aplogies to the OP - all further posts on this thread to be in direct response to the OP's original question please.ÿ

 

[laserman16]

Dont think you broke any rules, but as the Prof said this subject has been covered so many times now it gets a bit boring. Always ends up getting a bit nasty as well.

 

[daveh75]

margetti:

Last comment was tongue in cheek - in case anyone is taking me the wrong way!

That said, I will look thru previous posts, as in all seriousness I do need to work out whether to replace 4 budget hdmi cables or not.

And profuse aplogies to the OP - all further posts on this thread to be in direct response to the OP's original question please.
the only thing i'd suggest is try and borrow an expensive cable and do a comparison with your budget cable's and see if you can notice any difference

 

[margetti]

I'm feeling really guilty now.

Yes, direct comparison is the (in hindsight) obvious way to go. But with so many deals on the internet these days, that's easier said than done (I'm not in to testing something from the local dealer,returning it, then buying online). But you're right - nothing, absolutely nothing, compares to testing at home.

 

[Anonymous]

I definetly noticed the difference in quality stepping up from a budget freebie to a qed performance hdmi. But as for the difference in that to a van den hul hdmi, I am a bit sceptical.

 

[professorhat]

To minimise margetti's guilt, I'll take a stab at answering the OP!
I honestly don't think you're going to see / hear much difference between those cables with your setup - they are all rated very highly. I have the Chord 1.3 Silver Plus and I know it was a good improvement over my freebie cable but I didn't compare it with any others. I'm pretty sure I've heard a couple of the WHF team state that the van den Hul and the Chord are very, very close in performance terms, with the van den Hul being slightly more flexible and thus easier to deal with - hence it won the Award over the Chord this year.
So just go for whichever you like the look of most / can get the best price for and be happy you have a cable which is not limiting your system.

 

[d4v3pum4]

I still say save your £££ but if you want, buy another cable and then report back.

 

[Anonymous]

A few weeks ago I was watching the gadget show and they had 2 TVs (both the same) setup with 2 blu-ray players also the same, With 1 TV with high price HDMI cable and one standard... They couldn't tell the difference... Nor could I

There job is to review these find of things so id been inclined to believe them

I guess it comes down to build quality so I guess budget ones wont be as well built as the high price ones but personally I don't think id spend more then £20 on a new cable

 

[professorhat]

Nikon82:There job is to review these find of things so id been inclined to believe them
Hmm, and WHF's job is? If you look at their reviews page, you'll see a number of reviews of HDMI cables stating the differences they can make. The Gadget Show's job is to entertain people watching TV, I wouldn't trust them for any purchase I make.

 

[Anonymous]

This seems like a good deal to me if your looking to change your cable

http://www.play.com/Electronics/Electronics/4-/610861/QED-Qunex-HDMI-to-HDMI-Cable/Product.html

 

[d4v3pum4]

Check out this video:

http://www.cbc.ca/marketplace/packing_the_deal/

I have also compared several in my own system and can't tell any difference, okay I didn't have two displays side by side but nothing jumped out at me and my eyesight is pretty good!

 

[Clare Newsome]

It makes me so angry when people always have to pit ultra-cheap cables against stupidly expensive ones, as if they are your only two options as a consumer. IMO, the real test is between freebie/really cheap cables and the ones you can get for just a little extra.

In our tests - where we do run displays side by side, and blind test - we can see the difference between cables (for good and bad), at all sorts of prices.

Are there expensive cables that aren't worth the money? Certainly so - we've given plenty of poor star ratings to them.

Are there affordable cables that could improve your home entertainment experience for as little as £20? Yes.

And don't forget the sonic differences, too - all-too-often overlooked when considering everything you're expecting an HDMI cable to achieve.

Oh, and most importantly, try before you buy - everyone's eyes, ears and systems are different!

 

[d4v3pum4]

What testing methods are employed, can't you post technical results and visual proof then?