Do expensive HDMI cables make a difference? - article discussion

I am moving house and will need a 15m HDMI cable to run from the Media Room back to the comms room where the rack containing the kit is placed.

What I am thinking of using is this - Monoprice SlimRun AV Dynamic HDR Ultra High Speed HDMI Cable - 8K@120Hz, Dynamic HDR, 48Gbps, Fiber Optic, eARC, AOC, YCbCr 4:4:4, 50ft, Black - Monoprice.com

Will be interesting to see if this cable at 15m will give me 4K HDR/Dolby Vision
Lay it out on the floor and test it thoroughly to make sure it meets your needs and expectations before installation, and make sure you use a conduit, which is almost a requirement now for long cable runs if you don't have easy access to the cabling. Chances are you will be swapping out cables until you find one that is reliable (longevity).
 
I am moving house and will need a 15m HDMI cable to run from the Media Room back to the comms room where the rack containing the kit is placed.

What I am thinking of using is this - Monoprice SlimRun AV Dynamic HDR Ultra High Speed HDMI Cable - 8K@120Hz, Dynamic HDR, 48Gbps, Fiber Optic, eARC, AOC, YCbCr 4:4:4, 50ft, Black - Monoprice.com

Will be interesting to see if this cable at 15m will give me 4K HDR/Dolby Vision

as said in a few posts up

"The only certified UHS cables you will eventually be able to find will be passive and up to a maximum length of 15' (3m) "

however, you don't need a 48Gbps cable for 4k HDR/DV, 18Gbps is more than sufficient for that.
if you're wanting 4k @ 120Hz though then that's a different matter.
 
Lay it out on the floor and test it thoroughly to make sure it meets your needs and expectations before installation, and make sure you use a conduit, which is almost a requirement now for long cable runs if you don't have easy access to the cabling. Chances are you will be swapping out cables until you find one that is reliable (longevity).

That's a great point but can I ask a really stupid question if I had the HDMI cable in a conduit and needed to change it because the cable became faulty I could take the cable out easily enough but how would I get the cable back through the conduit if that makes sense?
 
pull strings
 
That's a great point but can I ask a really stupid question if I had the HDMI cable in a conduit and needed to change it because the cable became faulty I could take the cable out easily enough but how would I get the cable back through the conduit if that makes sense?
What @chenks said. Just tie off both ends of the pull string inside the j-box so it's always there if, and when you need it. It's a lot easier to install a pull string if you add it while laying in the conduit. Then use it to pull your cable. You will need to tie some string to the pull string to pull it back thru and have it in place for your next pull but you're just tying string together. It's a little bit of a hassle but nothing like trying to fish a cable thru a wall thru studs, around corners,etc. And a lot safer as well.
 
I have just bought a Xbox Series S / will be looking to get a PS5 sometime next year. Also hopefully getting a LG 55CX in the black Friday sales or in the New Year. My TV is on the wall currently and I need just under 5m HDMI cables. Have had a look on the Monoprice website and they don't seem to do upto 48gbps at the length I need.

Not sure if I would even need Ultra High Speed HDMI cable currently but that is all that supports VRR isn't it?
 
Is your in-wall cabling installed in a conduit?

Does your existing cable connect to the tv via a passthrough wall plate or do you use an HDMI wall plate?

VRR is possible with the current 18Gbps HDMI 2.0 chipsets but if your devices are able to push more than that (40Gbps - 48Gbps) then you'd be better off with either a passive, certified, Ultra High Speed HDMI cable (5m is the maximum certifiable length) or an active hybrid fiber cable (Ruipro 8k Gen-3). Active cables of any kind can not be certified by HDMI.org so you'll have to depend on the mfrs build quality and reputation.

The most reliable cable connection, especially for 4k HDR is a single cable, source to sink, with no wall plates, adapters, extenders, etc in-between.
 
Thanks for the reply. They are in a conduit, hopefully they will pull through ok. There are no wall connector plates, they go through brush plates.

Trying to find a Ultra High Speed HDMI that was certified at 5m is what I am struggling with. Amazon seems to be a minefield.

Are there any other websites that are reputable and sell certified cables?
 
I've only seen certified cables so far at 3m, nothing longer. Plenty of cables using "word-salad" confusion and called HDMI 2.1 but nothing certified.

I'd just use the cables you have just now and wait until they become more readily available. How many games do you have that are going to do 4K 120fps just now?
 
Thanks for the reply. They are in a conduit, hopefully they will pull through ok. There are no wall connector plates, they go through brush plates.

Trying to find a Ultra High Speed HDMI that was certified at 5m is what I am struggling with. Amazon seems to be a minefield.

Are there any other websites that are reputable and sell certified cables?
As I mentioned, there will be no certified UHS HMDI cables longer than 15' (maybe 16' in Zeskit's case). And, there will no certified active cables, period.

It really isn't that difficult to determine if an HDMI cable is a legtimate UHS HDMI cable. Just keep three things in mind. One, they have to be described as "Ultra High Speed HDMI cable", exact wording. Two, they must list all of the HDMI 2.1 option sets that they have been tested for. UHS HDMI implies that but the marketeers are very devious in how they describe their products. And three, the cable packaging must come with the QR label of authenticity, just like the PHS HDMI cables do.

Zeskit and Belkin are both advertising UHS HDMI cables, and the cable that they are currently offering hit two out of the three points. Apparently there has been a delay with HDMI LA in getting the QR labels to them but they went ahead and started selling their cables as UHS (market competition). AudioQuest apparently is doing the same thing but I wouldn't purchase anything from them (personal preference). The labels are coming soon so I would just wait until the QR labels are affixed to the packaging. That being said, the current Zeskit "UHS HDMI cables" seem to be working for those who have HDMI 2.1 devices. There may be other cable mfrs coming to market very soon so be patient, and just remember the three points.
 
interesting question, but i doubt it's hard for the chinese counterfeiters to produce a QR code that "works", how do you tell if it is genuine or not.
 
interesting question, but i doubt it's hard for the chinese counterfeiters to produce a QR code that "works", how do you tell if it is genuine or not.
The QR code was designed by HDMI.org for the very purpose of thwarting counterfeiting. It has worked remarkably well. Laser-created QR labels are difficult to counterfeit because it's just not the label but the website that scanning the label takes you to for specific information on the cable. The cost of creating a counterfeit QR label and maintaining the website that the scan takes one to is just not worth it for the "ROI". And, if you purchase from a well-known cable mfr or reseller, that's about the best the consumer can do. I haven't seen or read about any QR labels being bogus. There are no 100% guarantees in the HDMI cable world. The QR label is mostly for consumer confidence that the cable has been tested and certified by an ATC, and there are lots of them recognized by HDMI.org worldwide.
 
yeah but that's the point, unless you know what a genuine QR code looks like, then you might never know if one was genuine or not, and if the QR code took you to real website for a cable that is genuinely certified then you might be none the wiser.
 
yeah but that's the point, unless you know what a genuine QR code looks like, then you might never know if one was genuine or not, and if the QR code took you to real website for a cable that is genuinely certified then you might be none the wiser.
The HDMI.org website has an example of what the HDMI LA QR label looks like. If you don't want to look for and use the QR label to authenticate your cable purchase that's up to you. I've been dealing with HDMI for a long time and have confidence in their QR labeling system to legitimize my cable purchase. If you can post links to proven counterfeit QR labels please do so.
 
i never said i had come across any, i was simply commenting that the possibility is always there, as there is with any product.
 
Lots of things are possible. I trust the QR labeling system as I have not seen anything to counter that trust.
 
indeed, lots of things are possible, it's possible that point i was making went over your head :)
 
Nope, the point didn't go over my head, but it's a sensless discussion that has run its course so it's time to move on. I hope you find a cable that meets your needs and expectations.
 
Hey guys just bought the X950H, looking for a 1meter 1.5meter Cable.
Have no fancy soundbar to connect it yet, but planning too.

There are so many cables in amazon I got confused.

So far I think from my own research - Ibra 2.1, trueQ and Audioquest seems to be the best. Any additional input would be nice.
Thanks!!!
 
Additional input’ - do better research :)

No manufacturer has an ‘Ultra High Speed’ certified cable on the market as yet.

‘Premium High Speed’ certified is as good as it gets at present.

HDMI version numbers are not relevant to HDMI cables.

Joe

PS Nothing overly elaborate on the marketing side but they are Premium High Speed certified if you can’t find any elsewhere :)

 
There are no "HDMI 2.1 cables", or even "HDMI 2.0 cables" for that matter. They are either certified, Premium High Speed HDMI cables (HDMI 2.0, 18Gbps) or Ultra High Speed HDMI cables (HDMI 2.1, 48Gbps). Both cables are passive, will be labeled with the exact wording just given, and come with a QR label of authenticity. Premium cables are certifiable for up to 25' (8m) and Ultra cables are certifiable up to 15' (5m). Anything longer than that for either cable is not certifiable by HDMI.org but may still work. Active cables of any kind cannot be certified by an ATC (Authorized Testing Center, HDMI.org). A certification is not a 100% guarantee that the cable will work with any setup or installation. It's more for consumer confidence that the cable has been tested and certified via standardized testing protocols/instrumentation approved by HDMI.org for the HDMI option set version number (HDMI 1.4, 2.0, 2.1 etc). Be cautious of very carefully worded product descriptions and marketing. They can be and are deceiving.

If all your interested in is pushing HDMI 2.0 options (4k HDR) then a Premium High Speed HDMI cable will work. There are lots to choose from at competitive prices so just look for Premium High Speed HDMI and the QR label. If you're thinking on pushing HDMI 2.1 because you're a gamer (that's really the only folks will can benefit from HDMI 2.1 at present) just look for Ultra High Speed HDMI cables with the QR label. Those are just coming to market so it may be difficult at present to find one. Zeskit and Belkin is offering them in the U.S. but I don't know if they are available yet on the other side of the pond.

At 1m - 2m your chances of finding a cable that will work are pretty good because of your cable length. Just give yourself a little slack in your cable connection because you don't want any sharp bends (bend radius) or undue strain on the HDMI port.

The cable is just a data pipe. It can not alter or modify the signal it is carrying in any way, regardless of what the marketeers indicate in their product descriptions. If you don't get sparkles, drop outs, loss of signal, etc then you are getting the best possible signal. What ultimately determines what you can get is the HDMI chipsets in the source and sink end.

I'm not familiar with two of the cables you mentioned and AudioQuest is always overpriced and you can find cables that perform just as good for less money.
 
No manufacturer has an ‘Ultra High Speed’ certified cable on the market as yet.

Zeskit now do, as shown in Vincent teohs event video
 
Zeskit is in discussions with Amazon UK to distribute their UHS HDMI cables. They are in the account verification process so it may take another couple of weeks but they are coming to your side of the Amazon pond. Passive only and up to 5m (15') maximum lenght. They are a bit stiff due to the requirements and demands of HDMI 2.1 so give youself some extra slack so you can better control bend radius and you don't put any undue strain on the HDMI ports.
 
i see the cables are braided (or look to be anyway), so that may give it a bit more flexibilty.
 

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