Do I Need Luxury Cables?

[thebigman65]

So it did post? Was that under this section? Was it the one that was removed cause I posted a retail link?

I was have problems posting in the section after that. I was worried it would post like 5 times!...lol

[cdpage]

While i don't ever plan on buying HDMI cables for more than $20

are there any cables that you would not buy?

Brand or specific model?

[nickleinonen]

are there any cables that you would not buy?

if it looks like it is poorly made, i'd steer clear.

i got 4 4ft belkins at factory direct at $8.xx each and a hdmi>dvi adapter for about the same. they are well made it looks like. they have a nice techflex jacket and ferrite cores 3" from the ends. don't know if that does anything but it sure looks fancy

[Erikmj]

I never look behind my TV!!!! I will stick to the inexpensive Cables!

[Steve604]

When I purchaced my TV, I needed 3 4m HDMI cables,

the only thing they in that length was monster, at nearly $300 a peice,
salesman grabbed them and started billing them,
told him no, he gave me the speech about how I needed them nothing else will work, thats why they don't carry anything else blah blah blah,

went to a local computer shop, picked up 3 quality cables for less than $70(still a bit steep but reasonable), they had 1's even cheaper than that on the rack,

but it was weird how they worked just fine and the saleman swore up and down that 4m is too big of a distance for a cheaper cable, I don't even want to think about the mark up on those monster cables,

[Flagrum_3]

^ I can tell you straight, being an X-FS employee, that the mark up is huge on accessories such as cables, powerbars etc; that's where the sales representative makes his real money!! As an example; I just picked up a Rocketfish 6' hdmi cable free, had it thrown in with my purchase of a 52" Regza LCD, which I also got a massive discount on but cannot post it....Anyways the 'sale' price for the cable was $69.98, employee cost was $18!!, which is still 10% above store cost LOL.


_3

[holeysox]

If you do your research, you'll find that most branded cables are complete "snake oil". For most common home theater applications in short runs (ie under 10'), almost any cable will suffice. 10' of any cable (HDMI, Component, composite, speaker .... etc.) should never cost you more than $100--the most expensive being component cables. HDMI cables should not cost you more than $50. I just laugh when I see 6' component cables sell for $750.

[EDIT] Just to add one more thing: The only reason to buy a $50 HDMI cable over a $10 one is build quality. The video performance will be the same but the higher quality cable will survive more abuse such as bending, flexing or weight on the cable. Higher quality cables will also be more reliable at long runs like 50'.

Once again, if you do your research, you will find broadcast industry grade cables of any type, custom-cut to your desired length for a fraction of what you'd pay for MONSTER cables.

In most cases MONSTER isn't junk, but they're just way overpriced. You pay for the marketing and other types of incentives they pay their retailers. In some cases, Monster can be junk as I have a friend who has a 3' MONSTER Optical cable that was faulty and did not transmit the signal properly. Although he was able to return the cable and get a new one, it really shows what type of Quality Control you get for paying such high premiums .

[EdT]

I am a cable guy, meaning I design and build cables for mission critical applications for DoD and NASA.

The build quality on some of the Monster stuff is good, but way "overpriced" for what is and plays with the visual aesthetics to get the consumer to think it is of a higher quality. I do not recommend any particular brand, but what is most important is the gauge the larger the better, shielding and the workmanship of the termination of the connectors which you cannot see on most molded cables. You can have a $20 RCA connector on the end of a cable, but if it is not properly soldered on then that $20 connector is as good or worse as the $.50 connector and judging from the A/V industry their quality standards is totally crap, 99.9% don't even practice IPC standards and the workmanship is usually the lowest being Class 1 which is virtually garbage.

I bought several component and DVI Monster cables at surplus stores which originally cost over $120 at BB to the now lowered $3.60-$7.95 at discount stores, then this makes them a good buy when the Monster stuff cost less than the cheap stuff !, look at the way the connectors is constructed, the gauge written on the cable etc... and you will know it is a good cable.

[David Susilo]

Originally Posted by cdpage

are there any cables that you would not buy?

any HDMI cables that are 28AWG or thinner are a no-no for me. I stick with 22/24/26AWG with CL2 or CL3 jacket. For very long length, I stick with 22AWG only.

[recon]

David the problem with 22-24-26 AWG is that they are so heavy and they have been known to cause problems at the ends due to weight on the HDMI inputs. I have had great luck and longevity with 28 AWG from that compamny that is not to be mentioned here. So I disagree with you I have had cables fail and inputs damaged due to the weight issue.

[David Susilo]

If you give enough space behind the receiver/projector then 22 and 24 AWG will not be a problem. I've tried too many 28 AWG at 40ft+ runs and they just can't pass through enough bandwidth for 4:4:4 high speed transmission. I wasted so much money buying cheaper 28 AWG cables at that length and they all failed me.

[57]

28 ga is not recommended for any runs longer than about 15', as mentioned in post 1 of this thread and the links there. It is, usually, perfectly adequate for runs up to 15' though.

The point of this thread is not really about gauge, which should be appropriately chosen for the distance/application, but rather that it's not necessary to pay premium dollars charged by certain marketers of cables (like Mon$ter).

Anecdotal evidence is simply not reliable and the marketing by Charlatans like Mon$ter certainly is not.

[actng]

i used to be deadset on AGAINST brand name cable but after two incidents I may be willing to reconsider.

while it's true the cables themselves provide the same performance regardless of brand name/price, the CONNECTORs i find on the rocketfish cables extremely susceptible to heat damage.

i've had two rocketfish cables "fail" on me now. they still work it's just when you go to uplug them they're a little... melty.

[David Susilo]

put it this way... up to a certain point, you get what you paid for.

For very long length and buried in the wall/ceiling, you REALLY get what you paid for.

[ishoong]

I have ordered a few ethernet cable & hdmi cable from monoprice. They are easy to break & 1 of the 50ft ethernet cable was totally not working at all even I replace the "plug" on both end. Glad I always put a pair of cable if they are behind the wall, so if 1 is not working, I still bet on my luck that the other 1 will work.

Will I waste the money on Monster cable? no way! but I have no problem to pay more on some reputable cable brand such as bluejeans cable & bettercable.