HDMI cable differences...

[RockChalk]

Is there a difference in silver vs gold plated hdmi cables? Just curious as a friend was telling me they are essentially just an on-off switch which makes them all the same.

[Kryptonic]

From what I understand, gold plated cables are better and since most HDMI cables have gold plated connectors, you might as well buy one. But for the most part, all HDMI cables are the same. Like optical/toslink, it either works or it doesn't.

[RWebb74]

Well, as a long time monoprice supporter and I still am, I was disappointed to discover that two different monoprice HDMI cables I used on my 80gb PS3 will not work on my new PS3 slim. At least not in 1080p. The video and audio would constantly click and pop and when I played a blu-ray, there were artifacts and highly degraded picture. When I switch the settings to 1080i, it worked fine, just not 1080p. So I switched to a more expensive and shorter cable and now everything is back to normal. Not sure what is different in the Slim than the old 80gb, but i had to use a shorter cable for the slim.
Any thoughts on this one?

[BIslander]

The HDMI spec has two types of cables - Category 1 (standard) and Category 2 (high speed). Category 2 supports 1080p along with some other advanced features. From the FAQs at hdmi.org:

Recently, HDMI Licensing, LLC announced that cables would be tested as Standard or High-Speed cables.

Standard (or “category 1”) HDMI cables have been tested to perform at speeds of 75Mhz or up to 2.25Gbps, which is the equivalent of a 720p/1080i signal.
High Speed (or “category 2”) HDMI cables have been tested to perform at speeds of 340Mhz or up to 10.2Gbps, which is the highest bandwidth currently available over an HDMI cable and can successfully handle 1080p signals including those at increased color depths and/or increased refresh rates from the Source. High-Speed cables are also able to accommodate higher resolution displays, such as WQXGA cinema monitors (resolution of 2560 x 1600).

[Kryptonic]

I've been using Cables to Go HDMI cables from Amazon for a year and they've worked like a charm. Durable, reliable, and excellent quality.

[Hammie]

Originally Posted by RWebb74

Well, as a long time monoprice supporter and I still am, I was disappointed to discover that two different monoprice HDMI cables I used on my 80gb PS3 will not work on my new PS3 slim. At least not in 1080p. The video and audio would constantly click and pop and when I played a blu-ray, there were artifacts and highly degraded picture. When I switch the settings to 1080i, it worked fine, just not 1080p. So I switched to a more expensive and shorter cable and now everything is back to normal. Not sure what is different in the Slim than the old 80gb, but i had to use a shorter cable for the slim.
Any thoughts on this one?

Are you bitstreaming your audio? the added bandwidth may be causing the issues, especially if the cables were Category 1 (720p/1080i) and not Category 2 (1080p).

[icyteddy]

Originally Posted by louhamilton

Are you bitstreaming your audio? the added bandwidth may be causing the issues, especially if the cables were Category 1 (720p/1080i) and not Category 2 (1080p).

When you say Category 1 or 2, do you mean the version of the HDMI cable like 1.3 or 1.3A. I hear that 1.3A is more compatible with the newer hardware BD player.

[Hammie]

Originally Posted by icyteddy

When you say Category 1 or 2, do you mean the version of the HDMI cable like 1.3 or 1.3A. I hear that 1.3A is more compatible with the newer hardware BD player.

No, the 1.3 is the version. This is more applicable to the port and not the cable.

The category is applicable to the cable. A Category 1 cable will support a lesser bandwidth than the Category 2 (75MHz versus 340MHz). However, in short runs, a Category 1 cable may be able to support all the specifications under the 1.3 version, including bandwidth.

From a marketing perspective, most companies brand Category 1 cables as "Standard" and Category 2 cables as "High-Speed." I think most cables are now Category 2, but if you have any from two (2) years or older, they may be Category 1. Wire gauge can also play into which is which. usually anything smaller than 24AWG is Category 1 and anything 24AWG or larger is Category 2.

[McBain]

http://www.hdmi.org/learningcenter/kb.aspx?c=7#49

Q. Will my Standard cable work in High Speed applications?

Although a Standard HDMI cable may not have been tested to support the higher bandwidth requirements of cables rated to support high speeds, existing cables, especially ones of shorter lengths (i.e., less than 2 meters), will generally perform adequately in higher speed situations. The quality of the HDMI receiver chip (in the TV, for example) has a large effect on the ability to cleanly recover and display the HDMI signal. A significant majority, perhaps all, of the HDMI TVs and projectors that support 1080p on the HDMI inputs are designed with quality receiver chips that may cleanly recover the 1080p HDMI signal using a Standard-rated HDMI cable. These receiver chips use technology called “cable equalization” in order to counter the signal reduction (attenuation) caused by a cable. We have seen successful demonstrations of 1080p signal runs on a >50 ft. cable, and a 720p signal run on a >75 ft. cable. However, the only way to guarantee that your cable will perform at higher speeds is to purchase a cable that has been tested at the higher speeds and labeled as “High-Speed.”

[icyteddy]

Originally Posted by louhamilton

No, the 1.3 is the version. This is more applicable to the port and not the cable.

The category is applicable to the cable. A Category 1 cable will support a lesser bandwidth than the Category 2 (75MHz versus 340MHz). However, in short runs, a Category 1 cable may be able to support all the specifications under the 1.3 version, including bandwidth.

From a marketing perspective, most companies brand Category 1 cables as "Standard" and Category 2 cables as "High-Speed." I think most cables are now Category 2, but if you have any from two (2) years or older, they may be Category 1. Wire gauge can also play into which is which. usually anything smaller than 24AWG is Category 1 and anything 24AWG or larger is Category 2.

I understand now..Thank you. I just checked my HDMI cable and it is rated at 28AWG, so therefore it is Catagory 2 the high speed one.

Originally Posted by RWebb74

Well, as a long time monoprice supporter and I still am, I was disappointed to discover that two different monoprice HDMI cables I used on my 80gb PS3 will not work on my new PS3 slim. At least not in 1080p. The video and audio would constantly click and pop and when I played a blu-ray, there were artifacts and highly degraded picture. When I switch the settings to 1080i, it worked fine, just not 1080p. So I switched to a more expensive and shorter cable and now everything is back to normal. Not sure what is different in the Slim than the old 80gb, but i had to use a shorter cable for the slim.
Any thoughts on this one?

I just checked with Monoprice and it looks like ALL of their HDMI cable is rated 28AWG catagory 2. You may have been using the older catagory 1 cable thus incompatibility issues with the SLIM PS3.

[phlydude]

you could always shoot an email to their customer support folks and see what they say - monoprice has been good with accomodating issues with their cables and all their cables carry a warranty

[Hammie]

What does the writing say on the cable? It may denote what category it is.

[crackinhedz]

I just checked my HDMI cable and it is rated at 28AWG, so therefore it is Catagory 2 the high speed one.

28 awg has nothing to do with cable rating. Its just the size (thickness) of the cable.

[syncguy]

Originally Posted by icyteddy

I understand now..Thank you. I just checked my HDMI cable and it is rated at 28AWG, so therefore it is Catagory 2 the high speed one.



I just checked with Monoprice and it looks like ALL of their HDMI cable is rated 28AWG catagory 2. You may have been using the older catagory 1 cable thus incompatibility issues with the SLIM PS3.

28AWG is smaller than 24AWG. When AWG is lower, cable is thicker. So your 28AWG cable may or may not support 1080p depending on the length. If it is short, probably okay.

[weiland555]

What about Audio Quest HDMI cables? Are they all high-speed category 2? I'm using their basic cable ("A") to send Blu-Ray video from my PS3 to my 120hz LCD (see below). Do I have "enough" cable for that? What would I notice in my picture if the cable wasn't up to par?

[Hammie]

Originally Posted by weiland555

What about Audio Quest HDMI cables? Are they all high-speed category 2? I'm using their basic cable ("A") to send Blu-Ray video from my PS3 to my 120hz LCD (see below). Do I have "enough" cable for that? What would I notice in my picture if the cable wasn't up to par?

The two major things you would see are no signal (handshake issue) or pixelation (jitter, bandwidth). these can be resolved by a shorter length cable, or a cable with larger internal wiring (22AWG or 24AWG versus 28AWG). As sync said, the larger the number, the smaller the copper wire diameter.

[My_Two_Cents]

Originally Posted by Kryptonic

From what I understand, gold plated cables are better and since most HDMI cables have gold plated connectors, you might as well buy one. But for the most part, all HDMI cables are the same. Like optical/toslink, it either works or it doesn't.

Gold/silver plating refers to the connectors, not the cable itself. It's simply a medium used to provide better conductivity and less atmospheric reactivity in your connection between the cable and the device. Gold plating is better than silver, but for all practical applications they are the same (performance-wise).

[Septimus Prime]

Originally Posted by Ricshoe

Gold/silver plating refers to the connectors, not the cable itself. It's simply a medium used to provide better conductivity and less atmospheric reactivity in your connection between the cable and the device. Gold plating is better than silver, but for all practical applications they are the same (performance-wise).

Gold plating also protects your cable better from oxidation/corrosion. If you don't have gold plating, all you have to do is unplug your cable and plug it back in every once in a while. You should still do that with gold-plated connectors, but you won't need to as often.

[Blu-rob77]

With a older ps3 and a newer 120hz tv. Which hdmi cable should one use? Cat. 1 2 1.3 a b ???? some one help!

[Hammie]

Originally Posted by Blu-rob77

With a older ps3 and a newer 120hz tv. Which hdmi cable should one use? Cat. 1 2 1.3 a b ???? some one help!

Any Category 2 or "High-speed" HDMI cable should do. If you are going longer lengths (over 6-10 feet), then you will also need to worry about a heavy gauge cable, i.e., 22AWG.

I'm a believer that bigger is better. I have all 24AWG and my longest run is 10 feet (to the TV). All other cables are 4 feet.