Recently I've been experiencing various interval dropouts in my newly installed system. Actually, the system was moved but an HDMI cable and receiver have changed.

The setup is PS3,HDA1, & Motorolla 8300 --->HDMI--->Onkyo 805--->50' HDMI Monoprice 22 AWG--->Pearl. The PS3 has no problem. The Pearl constantly drops signal from the 8300 and the HDA1 whether fed direct from device or using the 805 to switch. There are more frequent dropouts when the Onkyo 805 is thrown in to the mix. The 805 keeps the signal and audio, but the Pearl flashes black or blank and often will have odd colored screens.

My thought is that the signal from the HDA1 and 8300 box are too weak for a 50' cable and thus the projector is losing sync. The units all worked fine previously.

Any thoughts or similar occurences? My next step is to try and add a Gefen Super Booster to the end of the line.

Hi Rob,

I use a Pearl myself and they are a great projector, but I have had some cabling and sync problems myself.

My Pearl is fed with a HTPC at 1920 X 1080 as my only source. I originally had some problems with my installation with the Pearl not locking onto the HTPC's signal. I tested the cable in my second system which uses a Sony 50" rear projection set with a 1280 X 720 resolution, and it seemed to work fine.

I decided to upgrade the cable to a better cable which was a direct DVI - HDMI, instead of the HDMI - HDMI cable I previously used with a DVI-HDMI adaptor on the PC. This resolved the problem immediately and I've never seen another issue. Speaking to other VW50 owners here in the UK they have also commented on the sensitivity to cable quality at 1080P, so your idea that the signal strength may be a problem is probably not far off. That 50' run sounds very long. My home theater uses a 15' run, is there any way to shorten the run? Failing that a HDMI repeater may well help resolve the issue.

I hope this helps or at least gives you a glimmer of hope.

Thanks and best wishes,

Dave

The cable run is an unchangeable problem. I have 10'+ ceilings and the projector mounted at 15'. If the super booster doesn't work, should I try a 35' and 15' cable w/ a repeater in the middle? Anyone know of an HDMI amplifier that can be used at the beginning of a long HDMI run?

I have an onkyo 805 too with different pj and equipment, and notice the image will cut out, could be a problem with the onkyo 805 im thinking

I have an onkyo 805 too with different pj and equipment, and notice the image will cut out, could be a problem with the onkyo 805 im thinking


I think there may be a problem with the signal strength of the HDMI output. I do notice more frequent drops with it. Unfortunately I am out of the 30 day period so if it is, I may have to ebay it. It works fine with short runs but my 50' cable is pushing it as it is.

I have the Onkyo 805 as well and have experienced no problems with HDMI using the Pearl. I did have a few HDMI dropouts with my PS3 when watching Blu Ray movies, but I changed the cable and it was fine. Sounds like the cable length to me.

Good luck!

i haved used 2 cables, one from monoprice, thick monster style hdmi and the other was a newer 1.3 , nothing over 6 ft, usually it only happened when watching cable, and seemed to happen repeatedly on a cetain channel at a give time, so im thinking it could be my cable box, however when i switched to 1.3 it did happen once on blu ray, but i think it happened when i moved and shook the system, so im hoping its just comcast, cause everything else the control is terrible so i wouldnt be suprised if they are causing this issue.

I added a Gefen HDMI Extender (powered) at the projector today and so far all dropouts have stopped (cable & HD-A1). One thing I noticed is that the Monoprice 22AWG cable is so heavy that it loosens at the connection and becomes very quircky (drops out). I'm going to buy some Monoprice HDMI extensions to solve the problem of the heavy cable.

My money would be on the 50ft cable being to long. I also had the same problem about a year ago with a 50ft cable "except DVI" then I cut the run in half also from monoprice and have not had a problem since. All with Video switching through my Marantz 8500.

I have posted a similar question. I have a Sony Pearl and I am feeding it with a 25' HDMI cable from my Motorola cable box. SOMETIMES, I get dropped frames - it can be groups of frames or occasional single frames. If it is doing it on boot up it stays that way. If it boots up and is not dropping frames when it starts, it will not drop any. It seems to be some part of the boot up sequence where it goes awry.

I suggest that all the problems are cable related. Very few HDMI cables are rated for 1080P at 50 feet. The HDMI connection is also very loose. With my 50 foot run carrying 1080/24P and 1080/60P, no drops occur unless I move equipment and loosen a connection inadvertently. Remember that the HDCP handshake must occur first and that you may need to restart something after tightening the connection. There are beginning to be some improved connectors available but I can't remember the names.
Good luck.

You should talk to Monoprice tech support. They sell certain cables as equalized and non-equalized for extended lengths. You should have a 50' equalized cable. They can help you figure this out.

Thanks for the info Kipp. Today, I ran my spare 24Awg Monoprice HDMI to my Gefen Extender. I'm awaiting a 15' HDMI from Monoprice but ran into a cheap 15' GE HDMI at Target today. Couldn't resist. Anyway, it works without glitches now (from what I've tested). I'm likely going to return it when the Monoprice comes in.