Question HDMI extenders not giving output-what am I doing wrong?

cjd572

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  • I'm new to the forum and also to the world of AV and would appreciate some assistance to help me get my laptop to display its HDMI output into an NEC NP400 projector using an HDMI extender. I purchased the following extender HDMI Extender by Single Cat5e/6 cable PET50E as described ( is an HDMI Extender by CAT5e/6 uses one piece of CAT5e/6 cable to extend the HDTV display up to 50 meters for 1080p.) with 30mtrs of CAT cable. I've set everything up as detailed but I can't get any output onto the projector's digital computer input. All I get is the message 'out of range'. I've tried changing the display settings on the laptop but still no output. When I plug the extender into the HDMI output of the laptop it recognises the extender and if I go into the display settings it gives me the options to adjust both the laptop's display and the extender's. I've tried this and I stil can't get any display at the projector end. I'f I connect the laptop directly to the projector's digital input it works no problem. I've tried a shorter cable run and still nothing. I've even tried connecting a TV that has an HDMI input and still I can't get any output, unless, again I connect it directly to the laptop. I've even tried a different extender and I don't get any output. Am I doing something wrong or are the outputs that I want to use i.e. the TV/projector not compatable?? Any help would be appreciated as the whole point of the extender was to use it to display video on a projector as part of a show that a local musical theatre society is producing. The second extender I have is Ex-Pro® 120m AV-Pro Micro Extender HDbitT HDMI 1080p Over Single Cat5/Cat5e/Cat6 with IR Control -

    • Supports 1280x720 [720p], 1920x1080 [1080p]. Supports uncompressed HDMI, Audio (LPCM). Built-in IR Extender function. Supports HDCP, Supports HDbitT. Supports :- 480i@60Hz, 480p@60Hz, 576i@50Hz, 576p@50Hz, 720p@50/60Hz, 1080i@50/60Hz, 1080p@50/60Hz Resolution supported: 480i@60Hz, 480p@60Hz, 576i@50Hz, 576p@50Hz, 720p@50/60Hz, 1080i@50/60Hz,1080p@50/60Hz
 
HDMI Extenders come in pairs, a transmitter and a receiver!

The transmitter needs to be connected to the laptops HDMI output via HDMI cable, the category output of the transmitter should be connected to the category input of the receiver, and the HDMI output of the receiver should be connected to the projector input, more on that later!

So first things first and as a sanity check, this is what you have right?
And are you sure the transmitter and receiver are in the correct place?
They wont work in reverse, HDMI ports are either input or output, never both!

Also , transmitter receiver sets on HDMI extenders of this type are almost all proprietary and cannot be mixed between manufacturers, so are the transmitter and receiver from the same set?

The NEC NP400 does not have a HDMI input, only a DVI-I input, so a HDMI to DVI converter must be on the input of the projector, and the projector must be set to receive digital inputs, not analog, DVI-I can be used for both analog VGA and Digital.

Assuming the extenders are set up correctly, then the issue most likely lies with the projector and the DVI input setup.

Really, extenders work best when taking a signal from a HDMI output to a HDMI input.
 
Hi Andy, extenders aren't mixed and have been set up as you described. The projector has vga, computer input(analogue), computer input(digital) the latter is what's being selected. The projector come with a lead hdmi on the one end and(I assume what is called a DVI connector on the other end that goes to the projector. I've gone through the the menus on the projector and I can see any way of change any resolutions etc.
 
Hi Andy, extenders aren't mixed and have been set up as you described. The projector has vga, computer input(analogue), computer input(digital) the latter is what's being selected. The projector come with a lead hdmi on the one end and(I assume what is called a DVI connector on the other end that goes to the projector. I've gone through the the menus on the projector and I can see any way of change any resolutions etc.
DVI will not work with the extender. It does not have the sync capability.
 
Yes , the DVI-I input on the projector is the most likely reason the extenders wont work with it.

The receiver end will be expecting a handshake that shows DVD-D at a minimum, DVD-I support was dropped by most computer laptop manufacturers over HDMI back in 2010.

In addition, there is the question of how the extenders are powered?
Extenders without their own power supply rely on stealing power from another HDMI device.
This is bad practice and contrary to the HDMI specification.

A device would have to supply at least 100 % more power than the spec requires for such devices to work, and while some devices do supply enough power, most dont, and a DVI-I device certainly doesn't.

The amazon link for PET50E only mentions something about a battery!
Whatever that is.
 
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Lots of potential for problems with this one!

HDMI Extenders - both of the units you mention use proprietary schemes for converting an HDMI signal to work over a single CAT cable. The second unit you mention goes as far as 'pretending' to be using the HDBT standard (HDBitT is a nonsense designed to confuse buyers).

HDMI Extenders - if your budget allows there are decent quality, well supported products which will work for you, going with a unit which shows as many 'it doesn't work for me' as 'it does work for me' reviews is always going to be a lottery.

Projector - being an older device they can be more temperamental than a newer unit and note its native resolution is 1024x768 (which is likely not supported by your Extender).

Source - ensure it is outputting both a Resolution and Refresh rate the Extender supports.

EDID - with no constant EDID from your Display (the Extender will be stripping it) you may require an EDID Manager between the Source and the Extender. The EDID Manager 'pretends' it is a Display (at your preferred |Resolution/Refresh) and will then force the Source (your Laptop) to Output a signal. These can cost anything from £70 up to £150.

Test - can you try the Laptop + Extender with a different Display device?

Joe
 

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