HDMI Cables - worth the extra $$?

whoaru99 said:
HDMI 1.3 standard added support for Deep Color. But again, as far as I know, it hasn't been actually implemented in the Blu Ray standard.

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So what happens is Blu Ray content has 8 bit per channel (R-G-B) color depth (24 bit total) and Deep Color essentially opens up as much as 16 bit per channel (but more typically 10-12 (30-36 bit total) pipeline.
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This is still more or less correct today - but DVD and Blu-Rays use YCbCr color space (4:2:0)

Turning on Deep Color needlessly increases the amount of bandwidth being used to send the signal - increasing the chance of drop outs or exposing a sub-par cable. Just leave it off - the only stuff anticipated to use it are HDR UHD discs, as I recall.
 
N8Nagel said:
Thanks for letting us know. I was wondering about ARC on Redmere if that would work or not, I guess it does. Are you using 1080p, 4k, deep color? Just wondering how demanding your application is. I tend to overbuy on stuff like this (spec wise) because I tend to buy a LOT (I literally have six systems right now, it's kind of a thing, all the guest bedrooms have a good receiver, BDP, and monitor in them - why? I like audio <G>) so I'd like it to be somewhat future proof...
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Follow up: I bought a 40' Redmere cable and it worked great for a few weeks. Then all of a sudden after a few weeks the monitor stopped turning on when I turned on the Oppo. Whoops. A little troubleshooting revealed that the issue was actually in the HDMI to DVI adapter that was plugged into the monitor (also Monoprice.) A little Deoxit Gold on the connections and it's still working today.
 
i've had hit-and-miss results with HDMI cables of varying types - i use them for work, so i've seen quite a number of them in action in multi-monitor computer setups. I'd have to say that it's unusual to get one with a problem, but when i do, it's always something totally fatal - like a black screen. I've not yet had one that works, but had degraded image quality. i would say there's certainly no reason to drop a load of cash on a premium cable, but i definitely wouldn't buy the cheapest one you can find. there's a couple different HDMI specs, i'd make sure you're getting a cable that matches the specification of the gear you're hooking up.
 
Oxygen free copper shielded cables...

Purchasing a brand name only makes us feel better and more receptive to stimulation.
 
I bought one of those 25 foot purty cloth insulated Aurum branded ones off the bay for like 14 bucks a few years ago. It runs across the floor in a traffic area inside one of those rubber conduit like covers and I do step on it sometimes. Hasn't failed me yet.
 
FWIW I've had no failures or issues so far with any of the HDMI cables I've purchased.This includes 6' AR and Monoprice cheapies as well as Monoprice Select Metallics in various lengths. None ultra long - 15' is the longest I use.
 
The $3.99 select series from Monoprice look and sound the same as the insanely overpriced Audioquest Cinnamon, Forest and there other higher end one. Forgot it's name. My friend works for a high end hoe theater store and he brought over his Audioquest stuff to test against my Monoprice stuff on my Samsung JU7500 4KTV. Guess what. No difference at all between any of the cables. He told me he feels bad that he has to sell cable. It's so over priced that it makes me sick. Also did some comparison on other audioquest cables and again. Not worth the money. DON'T pay extra for HDMI cables.
 
Can't say for sure but I've been running $5.00 6' cables from "Five Below" for years now and never had a problem. I'm sure I could get them cheaper on Amazon but the convenience of walking into a store and out of it with my cable in hand and money in pocket is priceless.

Speaking of Amazon, I've got a $12.00 25' (Metabridge?) cable running from my laptop to my Vizio and the picture is great. Oddly enough, the Vizios status bar shows it's coming at 2160,. Go figure.
 
If you're running an ~12 feet or longer cable with deep color, HDR, 4K, etc, then you should pay attention to cable quality. Getting a "premium certified" cable will help here, from a vendor such as Blue Jeans Cable. With shorter cables or when not using any of those features, then basic cables are fine.
 
skriefal said:
If you're running an ~12 feet or longer cable with deep color, HDR, 4K, etc, then you should pay attention to cable quality. Getting a "premium certified" cable will help here, from a vendor such as Blue Jeans Cable. With shorter cables or when not using any of those features, then basic cables are fine.
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Yeah, with "normal" cables that's true. Saw it firsthand myself.

However, the Redmere cables seem to have really leveled the field in price vs. performance. What took a $120 cable fom BJC and some adapters to keep the weight of that "monster cable" off the HDMI connections, was done with a Redmere cable from Monoprice for a fraction of the cost. And, because the Monoprice Redmere cable was meaningfully smaller/lighter/more flexible, I didn't need any special measures to protect the HDMI jacks.

That's not a knock on BJC, it's a fine hunk of cable (Series 1 Bonded Pair) but Redmere really seems to be a game changer for those longer runs.
 
The Redmere cables have been reported as having problems with some of the advanced features such as HDR and WCG (often rolled under the "4K" umbrella). They may need to tweak the active chips that are used at each end of the cable to better support those features. Haven't tested it myself (yet!).
 
So where I am gett I ng a little confused is the entire 2.2 2.1 59.0 and so on the is it called hcdp rating or something like that? I have a 4k TV and the monoprice hdmi cables I have seem to be fine. If they werent I wouldn't be able to view 4k content right? Or should I be getting an hdmi cable that is up to date with the latest rating? Now not to say more expensive just a more compatible cable?
 
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