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UHD Blu-ray and Long HDMI cables - what works !

86K views 997 replies 122 participants last post by  Otto Pylot 
#1 · (Edited)
I think its worth posting a thread here to help those trying to work their way through the mine field of uhd blu-ray and the challenge that presents to most when comes to finding a hdmi cable over long lengths that does indeed work !

as a note we are talking cable lengths beyond about 7.5m(25ft) / 10m(32/35ft) that most people struggle to find solutions and the kind of cable length most need if running projectors and especially in dedicated rooms and the like where the source player/av processor is remotely situated

first up I want to acknowledge this article from David Vaughn of sound of vision with this article of his, something I found immensely in finding my way through the mine field !
http://www.soundandvision.com/content/uhd-blu-ray-vs-hdmi-let-battle-begin#MQ95b5Xt8yWtfr8p.97

I wanted to post this thread because I honestly dont believe it needs to be a lottery some feel it is.

there are tried and tested solutions that people have found to WORK. yes they actually work.

e.g. in the article above David found the audio quest carbon to work,
http://www.audioquest.com/usb-digital-audio/carbon
though I guess some will be thrown by the huge price of it...

and there are other solutions,

I similarly found my generic 10M hdmi simply no go for uhd blu-ray. this was with samsung uhd blu-ray player, marantz AV8802A processor and feeding a jvc x7000/RS500 projector.

myself living in the part of world I am, just got in touch with a local hdmi company thats been making cables for years at the quality end of the market. they straight off pointed me to their PRS range of hdmi cables which they guaranteed for UHD blu-ray.

http://www.kordz.com/prs-long-hdmi-cables.htm

this is specifically the one I got,


I wasn't fully convinced however picked up from local retailer, theres a few around me that sell the brand with the confidence that could bring back if didnt. well I tried it for a week to be sure, throwing all could at it... and it indeed worked. it was only after a week of testing I then ran it though walls up and down walls under the house.

and in the months that have followed I can absolutely confirm this works completely faultlessly for uhd blu-ray e.g. with the 13 or so uhd blu-rays I have now sent over the cable with no issue.

are there others ?

want to bring your attendion to this post of @swest ... with a couple of examples there, swest is running the same equipment combination as mine,
http://www.avsforum.com/forum/24-di...000-x7000-owners-thread-395.html#post44955082

so in essence a 22AWG mono price, swest kindly gave use description below,

3571
Standard Speed HDMI Silver-Plated Copper CL2 Rated
(For In-Wall Installation) Cable (22AWG) - 35ft
(Gold Plated Connectors)
$66.41

as a note he says though described as standard speed it infact is marked on the web site as high speed....

and a couple of pictures



and



swest also quotes the 35ft mono price cabernet,
https://www.monoprice.com/Category?c_id=102&cp_id=10255&cs_id=1025506

note as swest found the first one he had didnt work, similarly with dave vaughns report its believe there was a bad batch of these (or was it with an older chip ?) so make sure if you do get it buy from someone can return to if find it doesnt work.

infact I'd encourage if indeed buying a cable you do indeed buy from someone with a good return / exchange policy :)

I do hope others will post their successes with other cables, so wiht the take up of uhd blu-ray this becomes as painless as possible with people not struggling with even the first step of getting signal to their display/projector :)

perhaps if posting here people can list a few things if sharing their experience ,

brand and details of cable, cable length
equipment combination, player, avr/av processor, display/projector.

note this thread is really for uhd blu-ray and not htpcs or any other wierdo image formats and such.



latest testing ... round 2 from David Vaughn - Courtesy of Sound and Vision magazine,
http://www.soundandvision.com/conte...can-actually-pass-hdmi-20#goOHOeY1Pjeqy3KP.97

good to see some cheap options there ! that do indeed pass in the long cable category, and also the ones that dont !


its a new year and an update is required...

with the oppo 203 landing on us... I ofcourse like a blind fool decided to get one... ah to my suprise first thing I find is the oppo main menu their engineers in their infinite wisdom have decided to push through at a whisker under hdmi max bandwidth ....of gee you'd think this would have been something they learnt from samsungs debacle...

anyways so now I go from a samsung that works seamlessly to an oppo where I cant even get the menu up.

a week after ownership with some help from forum buddies find a solution i.e. everything on auto with oppo and only change is color space to 4:2:0 which is same format for disc and it works seamlessly across formats(dvd, blu-ray and UHD blu-ray) so all good with my current cable the kordz prs linked to earlier in this thread.

however,

I noted JAV was using a 10m hdmi cable and having luck across both the pana, sammy and pc for 4k so happened to ask what it was ?

turned out a cable from office works of all places ! 

http://www.officeworks.com.au/shop/...-speed-hdmi-cable-with-ethernet-10m-cohdmi100

 given their return policy I thought id give it a go. 

so came home temporarily ran the cable between the marantz and the jvc. did a full reset of the oppo back to factory settings and gave things a go. well i'll be damned we have an affordable cable that will pass the oppo main menu and with out of box settings. now while i have had the player working pretty seamlessly wiht everything in auto and color space at 4:2:0 with my current cable, with my dual screens the factory settings i.e. full auto on the oppo seem a bit more seamless... anyways something will monitor...

But I should report this comsol 10m cable, described as per below does indeed work for uhd blu-ray,

"This Comsol High Speed HDMI Cable is a great option for anyone who is setting up a Blu-ray, set top box, computer and more. The cable will support 4K Ultra HD with a resolution up to 3840 x 2160.
This cable has male HDMI plugs on both ends.
The cable is 10 m long which lets you set your devices far apart from each other.
The connectors are covered in 24k gold and resist corrosion.
It will support 4K Ultra HD televisions.
The cable has a bandwidth speed of up to 18Gbps.
It contains a high grade oxygen-free 24AWG copper wire.
The cable has 32 channel digital audio which is perfect for Dolby True HD and DTS-HD Master Audio."





down sides .. like many 24awg cables this comsol cable is thick and heavy and not so flexible as say the kordz prs linked in the opening post - which with being an active cable gets away with much more slender and flexible cable and dainty plugs :)

as a note oppo have thankfully in their latest beta firmware also provided a couple of other video output settings in "UHD24" that does indeed now make sure that the main menu doesnt come through in max hdmi bandwidth.

which will make things all the more easier for people trying to pass uhd blu-ray over long cables (i.e. over 7m where premium certified cables at this point do not exist)


Arrow AV has been very busy with some rigorous testing and below is Part 1 of the report outlining the results ....

TEST REPORTS | HDMI CABLES WHICH PROPERLY AND RELIABLY SUPPORT 18GBPS & HDMI 2.0b
http://www.avsforum.com/forum/168-h...operly-reliably-support-18gbps-hdmi-2-0b.html
 
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#2 ·
Thanks for your research and table reporting your findings.

Also, thanks for the Vaughn article which states: "My testing highlights the worst case/most-demanding scenario for HDMI bandwidth with signals of 3840/2160P YCrCb 4:4:4 60Hz—which we really won’t see in commercially produced material for years to come, so I wouldn’t panic just yet."

Many of us have been trying to guess the right point and time to upgrade our systems.

I have been thinking I should be considering an 18 gig capable whole house system when I should be trying to build a 10 gig system which may be the best possible HDMI solution for years. This is the first article I have read the clearly state UHD premium is long range goal, (unless a HDBaseT solution or something else becomes available and it is an issue of a more capable matrix switch).
 
#7 ·
he pmd, not sure id be wiring the whole house yet. and thats without going down other burrows. my old generic 10m hdmi cable I suppose did serve me well for all those years had it, probably likely my current hdmi for uhd blu-ray will serve well too for quite a while ... lets see :)

The original Monoprice cable I tested didn't work and I sent it back to Monoprice a few weeks ago. They sent me a new cable that supposedly has the new chip in it and guess what...it still doesn't work! I tested it yesterday and it would not pass a 4K signal...all I got was a blue screen on my JVC projector. Time to return it back to Monoprice.

I plan on doing a round 2 of testing, but I need to just find the time to contact manufacturers for samples to try out. Many were reluctant the first time around because I think they suspected that their cables wouldn't pass the test.
thankyou Dave, i can tell you your original article sure brought to light the situation for many, atlas provided one solution that worked !

gee mono price ... you'd think they'd test before sending ... anyways they might have done to get your feedback too...hope they get there ! :)

I for one and am sure many will very much appreciate if you did do another run of this cable comparison for uhd blu-ray. its a whole new world and suspect many many probably just stuck on the starting blocks with this one....

looking forward to what all the makers have at cedia as well, perhaps more to the market at that point :)
 
#3 ·
Folks are starting to make some positive reports about Celerity Fiber cables and trying to push that magical 4k, 4:4:4 @60Hz over a distance. That may be another option is one is installing conduit for future cable runs/needs. A tad expensive but may be worth it in the long run.
 
#6 ·
The original Monoprice cable I tested didn't work and I sent it back to Monoprice a few weeks ago. They sent me a new cable that supposedly has the new chip in it and guess what...it still doesn't work! I tested it yesterday and it would not pass a 4K signal...all I got was a blue screen on my JVC projector. Time to return it back to Monoprice.

I plan on doing a round 2 of testing, but I need to just find the time to contact manufacturers for samples to try out. Many were reluctant the first time around because I think they suspected that their cables wouldn't pass the test.
 
#12 ·
How do you test a HDMI cable? Is it as simple as playing a UHD BD and see if display shows picture and audio works or is their some specific test that needs to be run. I have ordered a 35' Cabernet CL2 high speed HDMI cable from monoprice and I want to test it before running it through the wall. I have UBD-K8500 BD player and I am expecting my LG OLED to arrive by the endd of this week.
 
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#8 ·
Actually I just put in five two inch conduits and one 3/4 inch conduit for coax from the antenna. I am planning on running 3 shielded BlacK Box Cat6a cables and two quad shielded RG6 and speaker wire from the utility room network cabinet to the bedrooms and great room. My house was wired with POTS, telephone service in 1981. Google fiber will be available soon and I decided to go with gigabit internet. I needed to update. As long as I was rewiring for gigabit for a couple hundred more I could prepare for 10 gigabit plus continue OTA with coax throughout the house. If HDMI turns out to be a good solution I can pull HDMI cable later. If HDBaseT works I can go that way. However, I needed to remodel, the walls were open and wiring the house is a couple percent of the total cost of the job. I made my best guess and now I am impatient for UHD premium to develop.
 
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#13 ·
Test the menu of the Samsung, play some YouTube videos that the player outputs at 60Hz (The Costa Rica 4K video is a good one to use), and then put a movie in. Some will play the movie, but fail on the menus and YouTube. You really want it to work on all three to be of use.
 
#15 ·
I can confirm that 35' Cabernet CL2 high speed HDMI cable from monoprice works perfectly and supports ARC, 4K60P and HDR. I have 3 of them in my setup (AVR, Nvidia Shield and Samsung UHD BD Player)
 
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#22 ·
hi @G-Rex am not in the US sorry, in australia :D where kordz originates...infact their head office is just down the road and have about half a dozen retailers in shopping centres around me. they are a long established brand name with old product here so can understand me turning to them as first port of call when found my 10m / 35ft generic cable was absolutely no go. I just rang their phone number and spoke to their technical guy who pointed me straight to the kordz PRS and guaranteed it for uhd-blu-ray.

Have no idea what their representation is in the us,

a quick google finds this crowd, no idea about them to be honest...

https://futurereadysolutions.com/pr...-active-fixed-installation-hdmi-cable-series/

if wanting to get in touch with them or kordz themselves probably best to just as i did and give them a call :)

otherwise there are likely other local options for you and why created this thread,
 
#24 ·
hi G-Rex they do make a well built cable. for instance you will see in one of the specs
Retention Force (nominal) 29.7N (3kg / 6.6lbs) +10/-5%

this is intentional and if get these you will see they are a good interference fit into HDMI sockets and do indeed need a bit of force to pull out... as opposed to the cheapy cost saving hdmi cables where the seven make the plugs undersize and scamp on the pennies to the point people find their cables falling out :eek: and there is then talk of retaining clips and what not other solution....wont need all that with the kordz !

ps have no idea about the Lux you mention, its not a cable they highlighted to me when talking to hitter technical guy, just directly pointed to the PRS when asked them for something suitable for uhd blu-ray but something you can talk over with them when get in touch :)
 
#28 ·
the wireless they offered for 3D when i owned an epson, was very good. a tad slow and could hick up get caught out. but served while i waited for my av processor to get its 3D update... once that was done couldnt wait to get back to using my cable.

definitely will be seen as a handy option for many i suspect, though time will tell how good how effective :) personally id rather hard wired cable and pleased found something that works in my setup :)
 
#31 ·
I'm running 35ft 10m ... thru the "wall" :D

its 7m or 20ft i believe past which cable choice becomes critical... that said i really only believe its in very short lengths 1-2m or less that any ole sh!te appears to work. its not just a cable but equipment combination thing which makes hard and fast statements difficult :confused:
 
#54 ·
The high costs of cables has to do with their build quality and the ability to work from cable to cable. I'm a big fan of Monoprice, but I know of 4 30 and 35 ft Cabernet and Luxe cables that have all failed to work. Some may work for others, but it's the luck of the draw.
 
#57 ·
mono price sure seems to have some QC issues, I myself out the way here would be pretty reluctant buying as he shipping cost back to them all the way back would be a killer. I wonder why they keep telling you they work when they dont ? must be embarrassing for them surely ? are they doing anything to rectify the issue ? as would sure be a good option for people if did indeed work as they say it should :)

I have heard from others that its the Sammy player that is causing the issue rather than the cable. Perhaps someone has panny 900 to use as player to test with monoprice and others to be 100% sure. So what cable works so far? Blue Jeans? Audio Quest? Even monster advertises it will pass 8K.....look at their advertisement at best buy. LOL (but I seriously doubt it)
my kordz PRS does work as well at my length(35ft 10m) for uhd blu-ray. there is pricey to affordable with some feedback in the opening post :)

my best suggestion is buy from retailer with a good return policy if unsure. no need for you to pay the price for something of theirs not working as claimed !
 
#55 ·
I have heard from others that its the Sammy player that is causing the issue rather than the cable. Perhaps someone has panny 900 to use as player to test with monoprice and others to be 100% sure. So what cable works so far? Blue Jeans? Audio Quest? Even monster advertises it will pass 8K.....look at their advertisement at best buy. LOL (but I seriously doubt it)
 
#58 ·
Until someone can verify the voltage output from the Samsung HDMI port, we may not know if it is the player or the cable. The better cables that work may simply drop less voltage over the long runs, but that doesn't mean the Monoprice cables don't meet spec.

Can the Amazon Fire 2 box pass UHD 4K 10 bit? I have one, just got my Yamaha 3060 and got Monoprice Cabernet 45' cables yesterday, so I could try it out today.
 
#61 ·
Can you at least disclose the price or thickness/flexibility of the cable?
 
#69 ·
24AWG makes sense. DPL is one of the two cable mfrs that have a rather vigorous testing/certification program, much like BJC, even tho I believe BJC uses an ATC for certification which is fine (they follow HDMI Licensing specifications for certification). Things are looking up, finally. AudioQuest is like Monster in that they are way overpriced for what you get, regardless of what their slick marketing/packaging says.
 
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