More information for you (from 2007):
Last Monday, Brian and I had a chance to run down to Monster HQ in Brisbane, CA to run some tests for the HDMI Cable Battlemodo.
This time, we brought along a bag full of awesomely priced cables, mostly from Monoprice, that we were ready to run bandwidth tests on, side-by-side with Monster’s finest (and most damned expensive) cables.
What were our findings?
1) At short distances up to 6ft (2 meters), you can pretty much get away with any cable. Monoprice cables kicked ass at the 6 foot length that mostly everyone uses.
Not all cables are the same, however, and in truth, it’s the medium-priced cables that may be the real rip-off.
2) At longer distances, cheaper cable tends to choke up. A 720p signal will make it, but even today’s standard 1080p signal can fry out inside of a long cable that isn’t built as well. If you are trying to hook up a 1080p projector on your ceiling to a Blu-ray or HD DVD player, this is a concern.
The tests, which fired digital signal through the cable to synthesize high-definition video, can be divided into REAL-WORLD requirements (720p and 8-bit 60Hz 1080p) and FUTURE-WORLD requirements (12-bit 60Hz 1080p and even 12-bit 120Hz 1080p). Mind you, the future formats don’t exist now, so they should only be a concern when you are buying cables you intend to keep for five years, such as those you want to build into a wall.
OK, you got the results, now, don’t you want to see how the test was done, and see what we saw?
Look at the pic above. The box on the left is an Anritsu Pulse Pattern Generator. To simulate high-def video, it sends signal down one of three paths within an HDMI cable, so its signal at any given time is ONE-THIRD the bandwidth of that video format. The list of bandwidth tests we ran is as follows:
REAL WORLD
• 720p 8-bit 60Hz = 742 Mbps (x3)
• 1080p 8-bit 60Hz = 1.65 Gbps (x3)
FUTURE WORLD
• 1080p 12-bit 120Hz = 4.455 Gbps (x3)
• 1440p 12-bit 120Hz = 8.24 Gbps (x3)
When the signal was sent out over the cable, its performance was measured on a Tektronix DSA8200 Digital Serial Analyzer. The argument goes like this: it may all be 1’s and 0’s, but what is being sent over that cable is electric current. When too much data is sent over a shabby cable, the device on the other end can’t tell what is a 1 and what is a 0. The end result is video that is either jittery, full of digital snow, or flat-out not there.
The Tektronix display shows two arcs, a high ridge that stands for the 1’s and a low ridge that stands for the 0’s. As bandwidth increases, you will see that the arcs get fuzzier, and at the failure point, there are too many 1’s that look like 0’s, and vice versa.
Bear in mind, in some cases, if the cable failed at one level, we didn’t go on to the next. Likewise, if we knew it passed the higher test, we might not go on to a lower test.
Monster Cable 2-meter ($120)
http://gizmodo.com/gadgets/hdmi-cable-battlemodo/the-truth-about-monster-cable-part-2-268788.php
I was in the market about a month ago for a larger HDTV. Sears had the Samsung 46" for about $1,300. Well after a day or so of kicking it around I went back to by it and while talking to the sales guy I happen to see the Sony Bravia 46" except it was 120 HZ and about the same price as the Samsung, 60 Hz
The picture on the Samsung is just a little bit better when compared side by side but I figured I wouldn't be able to tell after I got it home and nothing to compare to.
I was wondering about the cable though because the Blue Ray movies I've rented and played just don't seem seem to be as good as they should be, at least not compared to what I saw demonstrated at the store.
Anyway I bought the MONSTER 1000HD HDMI (Model No: MC 1000HD-2M) on eBay for $35.00, I'll hope that it makes a difference.
Thanks again Dave....Ron
OK, nice info and makes sense. I’m thinking 6 ft is sufficient for most people, but if it’s not for you, maybe you need to invest in the cable.