HDMI speed? Monster vs. cheaper HDMI

[sonyfanboy]

Does HDMI speed really matter when it comes to Blu-ray and gaming? Is a 10 Gbps monster hdmi cable any different from their standard 2 Gbps HDMI? Does 10 Gbps help with 120hz refresh rate televisions? Will an $8 monoprice HDMI cable have the same quality as the 10 Gbps monster HDMI?

[Arkadin]

in general from everything I have read regarding this "speed" crap it is simply snakeoil bs.
the only time any of this stuff with hdmi seems to maybe matter is with ridiculous lengths from the stuff I have read in the past.
Although there may be some manufacturers not up to snuff, there should be 0 difference between Monster and say Monoprice.

[sonyfanboy]

Originally Posted by Arkadin

in general from everything I have read regarding this "speed" crap it is simply snakeoil bs.
the only time any of this stuff with hdmi seems to maybe matter is with ridiculous lengths from the stuff I have read in the past.
Although there may be some manufacturers not up to snuff, there should be 0 difference between Monster and say Monoprice.

Also what about the 8-12 bit color depth differences in HDMI cables? Will I notice the difference?

[Arkadin]

no idea on that.
sorry.
maybe someone else has more info.

[TheGreenDude]

Monster's "120 Hz" cables are a complete scam for several reasons:

1. No device outputs 1080p120
2. No device accepts 1080p120
3. There are zero 1080p120 sources

If the ultimate goal is to view Blu-ray disc film material in its most perfect form (1080p24 being shown at 24 FPS with no 2:3 pulldown, which is the real purpose of 120 Hz TV's), guess what? It actually takes LESS bandwidth than 1080i60 and 1080p60. So what's the point of this scam? To sell you a product you'll never need at a price you don't want to pay. Sure it might be better for future 1440p or higher resolutions, but by the time those come out there are no guarantees that you'll be upgrading your equipment or that HDMI will still be the standard.

[scooper750]

For 6 ft runs or less it doesn't matter what cable is used. I personally use Monoprice cables. As far as the 120hz sales gimmick on those cables, that is BS. The 120hz processing happens in the television set itself. Has nothing to do with the signal coming in see post above. There is no device that outputs 1080p120

[Josh Z]

Likewise, Blu-ray and game sources are all encoded with 8-bit color, not 12-bit. Despite numerous HDTVs and some Blu-ray players out there advertisting "DeepColor" or "xvYCC" compatibility, there are no content sources encoded with DeepColor or xvYCC.

[ack_bak]

Don't fall for Monster's sales gimmicks and the sales folks at places like Best Buy and Circuit City. Go with Monoprice or Blue Jeans HDMI cables. I have yet to have a single issue with a Monoprice HDMI cable. For longer runs (30'+) you may want to get a beefier cable but Monoprice and Blue Jeans sell those as well for much less than Monster.

Fun read:
http://gizmodo.com/363154/audiophile...-a-coat-hanger

[maley]

The only reason you should ever buy a premium HDMI cable is for lengths of 30 feet and over.

[Centauri]

Monster and Bose should merge.

[Maxx_75]

Originally Posted by Josh Z

Likewise, Blu-ray and game sources are all encoded with 8-bit color, not 12-bit. Despite numerous HDTVs and some Blu-ray players out there advertisting "DeepColor" or "xvYCC" compatibility, there are no content sources encoded with DeepColor or xvYCC.

There are camcorder sources for DeepColor/xvYCC me thinks.

http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/...52921665291496

However I do agree that Monster is a total ripoff. Their cables are quality its just that you can do just as well for much less.

[daybreaker]

The HDMI issue is a contentious one...I feel that there's no excuse for a modern digital connector protocol to not be chock full of error correction to the point where you should be able to use tin cans and string and still have a complete data stream. Wikipedia sez:

"Each Data Island Period is 32 pixels in size and contains a Packet Header which describes the contents of the packet and is 32-bits in size including 8-bits of BCH ECC parity data for error correction."

I have no idea what that means...but it at least shows that the protocol has a healthy amount of EC, how much is open to professional interpretation.

I was led to believe that expensive HDMI cables are appropriate for unusually long length installs and secondly for future formats like Cinema 4k that deliver bandwidth at such breakneck speeds that the protocol leaves no room for error correction. Take it all with a grain of salt.

[Tiguron]

For more info take a look at Audioholics -http://www.audioholics.com/education...le-bench-tests

They recently tested various brands and lengths of HDMI cables up to and beyond the current bandwidth requirements. It makes a good read.

[TheGreenDude]

Originally Posted by Tiguron

For more info take a look at Audioholics -http://www.audioholics.com/education...le-bench-tests

They recently tested various brands and lengths of HDMI cables up to and beyond the current bandwidth requirements. It makes a good read.

Just proves again what I've asserted ever since HDMI came out - for 15' and under, buy the cheapest cable you can find. For longer runs BJC is a good buy; don't get ripped paying extra for Monster.

[pat00139]

Blue Jeans Cable's Belden line is the best value for long lengths. They've tested their line at up to 125 feet with no problems whatsoever!! I'd love to see Monster say something like that. Even at over 30 feet, there's no reason to spend hundreds of dollars for HDMI...