Recommendations for a cheap HDMI cable?

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3NF

Golden Member
Feb 5, 2005
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I've come across some places online where I can get an HDMI cable for a cheap price, say under $10 (eHDMI, monoprice, etc.), but places like Best Buy sells them for an astronomical price.

Has anyone purchased a cheap HDMI cable online and is satisfied with the quality? I'm looking to buy one to connect a D-Link DSM-520 Media Player to an HDTV.

TIA

PS - A 3 foot run is probably all I need.
 
bruceb

bruceb

Diamond Member
Aug 20, 2004
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Cr0nJ0b

Cr0nJ0b

Golden Member
Apr 13, 2004
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meettomy.site
I'm interested in the main question here...that is...are the cheap HDMI cables comparable to the more expensive ones? I've heard people talk about "noticable" differences, but I'm sceptical, since I've never done an A,B test with good and bad cables.

I saw one listed in the Hot Deals forum for $7, but I wasn't sure about quality. Any actual, real life, not second hard hearsay type data would be great.

here is the cheap cable. linky
 
S

SirFelixCat

Senior member
Nov 24, 2005
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Stick with monoprice.com


Simply the best cables at the best prices. Can not be beaten. All the guys at avsforum RAVE about them. I'd highly recommend them as well.

eta: I have not done an A/B comparison either, but I've been very happy with the ones I've gotten from them.
 
S

Snooper

Senior member
Oct 10, 1999
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Two things to keep in mind:

1) Analog cables have been over hyped for YEARS. There were people that actually thought microfarads of capacitance in the cable actually made a difference when they were sending that same signal into a giant inductor the size of there fist (speaker). That would sort of be in the "did the rain drop make a noticeable difference in the surface condition of the ocean during a hurricane???" . No... People tend to spend WAY more money on cabling that is necessary and all the bling in the world will not make any difference at all.

2) HDMI is all digital. Do you need a good cable to get the signal from point a to point b? Yes. Does all the heavy gauge / oxygen free / low capacitance / over priced / gold plated cable actually buy you a measurable better signal? Not one bit.

The longer the cable, the more critical it's construction becomes. You need thicker wires to keep the impedance the same the longer the cable is. Gold is good for the connections simply because they resist corrosion much better than other metals. But it is still not a requirement. All the rest is hype who's sole job in life is to separate you from your money.

I saw a Toslink cable (plastic fiber optic cable) the other day that had a gold plated shield around the end of the fiber. Why gold? Because people see gold and they assume it is well made. What does the gold shield do for a fiber optic cable? Nothing. Nada. Scratch. Zippo. But it makes people think the cable is higher quality, so they are willing to spend much more on the cable than it is really worth.
 
M

mshan

Diamond Member
Nov 16, 2004
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"All the guys at avsforum RAVE about them."

Are they referring to Monoprice in general or these HDMI cables in particular?
 
3

3NF

Golden Member
Feb 5, 2005
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Thanks, everyone. What about gauge? Any real difference between 24, 26, & 28AWG?
 
YOyoYOhowsDAjello

YOyoYOhowsDAjello

Moderator<br>A/V & Home Theater<br>Elite member
Aug 6, 2001
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Originally posted by: mshan
"All the guys at avsforum RAVE about them."

Are they referring to Monoprice in general or these HDMI cables in particular?
Click to expand...

Monoprice in general from what I've seen.
 
YOyoYOhowsDAjello

YOyoYOhowsDAjello

Moderator<br>A/V & Home Theater<br>Elite member
Aug 6, 2001
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Originally posted by: 3NF
Thanks, everyone. What about gauge? Any real difference between 24, 26, & 28AWG?
Click to expand...

For a 3 foot run I wouldn't worry about that at all. 28 should be fine for that.
 
D

d3n

Golden Member
Mar 13, 2004
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I can echo that monoprice is top notch, even for cables torwards the longer end of the spec.
 
E

err

Platinum Member
Oct 11, 1999
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I bought 2 6ft HDMI cables from Monoprice.com and they both worked just fine on my plasma. It did increase the quality considerably compared to composite cables.

Never paid for $100+ cables, so have no way of comparing it :)
 
J

John

Moderator Emeritus<br>Elite Member
Oct 9, 1999
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Originally posted by: ShellGuy
You get what you pay 4......



Will g.
Click to expand...

Could you elaborate a bit? Are you saying that Monoprice.com HDMI cables are junk? Inquiring minds would like to know. :)
 
3

3NF

Golden Member
Feb 5, 2005
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I went ahead and ordered a 6' cable from monoprice. For 9 bucks (including shipping), what do I have to lose? If I really don't like it, I could probably then sell it at work for more than what I paid for it :)
 
YOyoYOhowsDAjello

YOyoYOhowsDAjello

Moderator<br>A/V & Home Theater<br>Elite member
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bob4432

bob4432

Lifer
Sep 6, 2003
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Originally posted by: John
Originally posted by: ShellGuy
You get what you pay 4......



Will g.
Click to expand...

Could you elaborate a bit? Are you saying that Monoprice.com HDMI cables are junk? Inquiring minds would like to know. :)
Click to expand...

yes, please elaborate....
 
3

3NF

Golden Member
Feb 5, 2005
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YOyoYOhowsDAjello

YOyoYOhowsDAjello

Moderator<br>A/V & Home Theater<br>Elite member
Aug 6, 2001
31,205
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Originally posted by: 3NF
Originally posted by: YOyoYOhowsDAjello
Originally posted by: 3NF
I went ahead and ordered a 6' cable from monoprice. For 9 bucks (including shipping), what do I have to lose? If I really don't like it, I could probably then sell it at work for more than what I paid for it :)
Click to expand...

:thumbsup:

By the way, your rig link doesn't work. See here
http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview...atid=42&threadid=1715668&enterthread=y
Click to expand...

Thanks for me letting me know - Fixed :)
Click to expand...

Nice :D
 
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