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Question about HDMI cables.

post #1 of 16
7/15/12 at 9:40am
Thread Starter 
I wasn't sure where to put this. I looked in the drop down menu above but couldn't see a proper place.

I bought a Dynex HDMI cable and a Rocketfish HDMI cable (both 6ft) from Future Shop. I bought the Dynex a week or so prior to buying the other one. My HDTV is 120Hz and my receiver supports Dolby True-HD and DTS - HD Master Audio. Both boxes list "supporting features" on the back. The Rocketfish claims to support my specs but the Dynex says it only goes to 60hz frame rate and "7.1 Surround Sound". It does not say if it supports "HD Audio".

My first question is did I pay way too much?? The RF was $50 and the Dynex was $30. Also do the cables really have set specs or are the specs more defined by the components they connect to? The sales guy at FS claimed the RF cable is what I really needed. I'm looking online and seeing HDMI cables for far less. Even Dynex cables on the FS website for $4 (online only). Thanks for your time.
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post #2 of 16
7/15/12 at 10:05am
The big box electronics retailers make their money on the accesories such as cables snce there is really very little markup in the tv's themselves. I personally use cables on my HT that cost around $6 from monoprice. Typically you wont get into trouble until the cable is longer. Here is one of many articles to read to get up to speed.

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2385272,00.asp
Edited by Socketman - 7/15/12 at 10:11am
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post #3 of 16
7/15/12 at 10:10am
That's likely because the FS sales guy got a larger commission with you buying the RF cables. There's no reason to spend more than about $5/cable for a 6' cable. The best sources for cables/switches/wire are either of forum sponsors Monoprice or Blue Jeans Cable, both of which ship to Canada.
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post #4 of 16
7/15/12 at 10:18am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Socketman View Post

The big box electronics retailers make their money on the accesories such as cables snce there is really very little markup in the tv's themselves. I personally use cables on my HT that cost around $6 from monoprice. Typically you wont get into trouble until the cable is longer. Here is one of many articles to read to get up to speed.

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2385272,00.asp

Well I can't imagine I'm going to need anything longer then 6ft. I just don't want to pay a lot of money if I don't have to. I don't exactly have a lot of money to play with and I'm not really a "certified audiophile". I just want a great sounding system on a budget and I want to know that the cables I am using will pass along the signal I want them to. Places like Future Shop are going to try and "up sell" cause they are on commission. I've heard of monoprice.com and they have a lot of selection. It's hard to choose. Thanks for your reply.
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post #5 of 16
7/15/12 at 10:30am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by jdsmoothie View Post

That's likely because the FS sales guy got a larger commission with you buying the RF cables. There's no reason to spend more than about $5/cable for a 6' cable. The best sources for cables/switches/wire are either of forum sponsors Monoprice or Blue Jeans Cable, both of which ship to Canada.

Thanks for your reply. Both Monoprice and Blue Jeans Cable have lots of options for HDMI cables. How do you choose with one to go with? Each one has it's own "features".
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post #6 of 16
7/15/12 at 10:34am
Wow! Just checked with your buddies in Canada, Henry's and even they're overpriced for the HDMI cables they carry. These are the cables I recently purchased from Amazon.
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post #7 of 16
7/15/12 at 10:39am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Canuck31 View Post

Thanks for your reply. Both Monoprice and Blue Jeans Cable have lots of options for HDMI cables. How do you choose with one to go with? Each one has it's own "features".

If you are passing 1080p video, then choose "High Speed" cables at the length (and perhaps color) that you need. The cables from FS website would also work just fine as well.

http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10240&cs_id=1024008&p_id=3992&seq=1&format=2


http://www.futureshop.ca/en-CA/product/dynex-direct-dynex-direct-1-8m-6-ft-hdmi-cable-vb-hd06-vb-hd06/10160158.aspx?path=1b5158069ef3b47c3bf39ce986572047en02
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post #8 of 16
7/15/12 at 10:43am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by BeeMan458 View Post

Wow! Just checked with your buddies in Canada, Henry's and even they're overpriced for the HDMI cables they carry. These are the cables I recently purchased from Amazon.

Yeah it's pretty expensive. Those cables from Amazon won't ship here though. Unless I can get them on the ".ca" site. I'll try either Monoprice or Blue Jeans. I just have to return the Rocketfish cable and get my money back. I don't think I can return the Dynex cause I can't find my receipt for that one. Oh well. the Dynex claims to only support 60Hz frame rate. Is that just a false claim put there to have you "upgrade" to something better? It also doesn't say if it supports Dolby and DTS HD audio formats but it says "7.1 surround sound" so I don't know if it does or not support HD audio. Thanks for your reply.
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post #9 of 16
7/15/12 at 10:46am
Any HDMI cable supports all audio modes, HD or otherwise. It's the device itself that determines what can be received and what cannot be received.
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post #10 of 16
7/15/12 at 10:47am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by jdsmoothie View Post

If you are passing 1080p video, then choose "High Speed" cables at the length (and perhaps color) that you need. The cables from FS website would also work just fine as well.
http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10240&cs_id=1024008&p_id=3992&seq=1&format=2
http://www.futureshop.ca/en-CA/product/dynex-direct-dynex-direct-1-8m-6-ft-hdmi-cable-vb-hd06-vb-hd06/10160158.aspx?path=1b5158069ef3b47c3bf39ce986572047en02

Yes I'm passing 1080p video and preferably HD audio as well. I have a Dynex cable but it says it only supports 60Hz frame rate. My HDTV is 120Hz. Should I change my cable then? Also some of these cables have a "Ferrite Core". What is that? And what does it do?

What about these? http://www.thesource.ca/estore/Product.aspx?language=en-CA&catalog=Online&category=Cables-HDMI_DVI&product=1511558
Edited by Canuck31 - 7/15/12 at 10:53am
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post #11 of 16
7/15/12 at 10:53am
that cable will work fine. you tv does the 120hz processing after the signal is recieved. the cable is designed to pass 1080p/60hz standard
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post #12 of 16
7/15/12 at 10:58am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Socketman View Post

that cable will work fine. you tv does the 120hz processing after the signal is recieved. the cable is designed to pass 1080p/60hz standard

So if the TV is 120Hz it "upscales" from 60Hz to 120Hz for a "smoother picture". Okay. ... Sorry for all the stupid questions. It's all a bit new to me in some ways.
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post #13 of 16
7/15/12 at 6:16pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Canuck31 View Post

Quote:
Originally Posted by BeeMan458 View Post

Wow! Just checked with your buddies in Canada, Henry's and even they're overpriced for the HDMI cables they carry. These are the cables I recently purchased from Amazon.

Yeah it's pretty expensive. Those cables from Amazon won't ship here though. Unless I can get them on the ".ca" site. I'll try either Monoprice or Blue Jeans. I just have to return the Rocketfish cable and get my money back. I don't think I can return the Dynex cause I can't find my receipt for that one. Oh well. the Dynex claims to only support 60Hz frame rate. Is that just a false claim put there to have you "upgrade" to something better? It also doesn't say if it supports Dolby and DTS HD audio formats but it says "7.1 surround sound" so I don't know if it does or not support HD audio. Thanks for your reply.

- don't confuse "frame rate" (what the source is sending) with "refresh rate" (how your display displays it)...

- with hdmi (technically, tmds), the audio is embedded in the video stream... the cable would not know (nor care) how the audio is encoded... only the source and sink care about that... as long as the cable can handle the bandwidth of the video aignal, it's good (even audio sources that aren't video related work this way, the audio is simply embedded in a blank video stream)...
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post #14 of 16
7/15/12 at 6:57pm
I buy all my cables from www.monoprice.com. They've got the best price, and I am lucky that they are located in CA since I pay 2nd day shipping, and I usually get it the next day. Awesome customer server online and on the phone.
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post #15 of 16
7/15/12 at 7:05pm
There are differences with cables but most problems usually happen with longer lengths than what you are using. With HDMI you are either going to get something that works or it will have problems. If it works there will be NO difference in audio or video quality. Get the less expensive cables and try them and If they work you are all set.
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post #16 of 16
7/15/12 at 7:34pm
One other thing to consider is how compliant the outer casing of the cable is.I havehad some cables that were quite stiff and would easily come out of the back of my receiver.Not all cables fit tightly into the reciever either. This is really a shortcoming of the design when hdmi specs were made. There are some manufacturers that have added locking devices to the cables but again the cable are quite expensive.
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AVS › AVS Forum › Audio › Receivers, Amps, and Processors › Question about HDMI cables.