HDMI cable or component?

kimonas1000 · 25-02-2008

Hi everyone.

I've got a brand new Samsung dvd player 1080p7 model (which upscales/upconverts up to 1080p) connected to a Samsung 32 inch LCD which features 720p res.

I wonder, what is it the best way to connect, HDMI cable, a component one or these will not actually offer too much in a better picture?

*bigmike7* · 25-02-2008

Yo-

Welcome to the forums-

Without any question - HDMI is your very best connection-eh!!

kimonas1000 · 25-02-2008

Hi Mike,
thanks for replying, should I go for an expensive one or does a simple one do the job?

**imkidd57** · 25-02-2008

Moved to the CD Freaks' High Def section

*crossg* · 25-02-2008

Like Mike said above HDMI is the best just like is says in the player manual. If the player and TV are CEC capable u can use the TV remote to operate the player, not so with component. The player you bought is 1080P capable but you TV is not so you are best to set the player's output to the TV's native resolution 720P. Your TV probably won't accept 1080P anyway. Monoprice.com is a good place to look for good prices on HDMI cables. Depending on where you live.

kimonas1000 · 25-02-2008

Yeah right,
thanks a lot for the advice

*DiiZzY* · 25-02-2008

Unless you need HDMI for something else use it, I do doubt you'll notice a difference between HDMI and component given that it upscales using component.
//Danne

**platinumsword** · 26-02-2008

There are only two companies that have upconvert via component that I am aware of, Oppo and LG. I believe that your Samsung only upconverts via HDMI so this would be the logical choice.

*TCAS* · 26-02-2008

Plus by using HDMI you are dealing with one single cable integrated (3 color wires for video + 2 wires for audio) versus using 5 wires (one cable with 3wires for video + another cable with 2 wires for audio). Less space les noise interference.

theginkamos · 26-02-2008

Call my crazy but I cant even tell the difference between svideo quality and component.

**platinumsword** · 26-02-2008

Okay, your crazy

S-Video is capable of displaying only 480i or 576i

Component is capable of displaying upto 1080p.

So there is a big difference.

Options are.

HDMI - One cable carries both audio and video - The best

DVI + Optical or Coaxial - One cable for audio and one for video - Second best

Component + Optical or Coaxial - One cable for audio and one cable with three heads at each end for video. - Third best

ETC

Component + RCA
S-Video + RCA

No need to go on.

@kimonas1000 - Just keep in mind that you can never exceed the maximum display resolution of your T.V. , anything that exceeds it will be down converted to meet the max resolution of your T.V.

BuddTX · 28-02-2008

Quote:

Originally Posted by kimonas1000

Hi Mike,
thanks for replying, should I go for an expensive one or does a simple one do the job?

HDMI is a DIGITAL signal, not analog, so as long as the cable is physically working, there is no difference in the signal.

monoprice.com usually has some very good prices on cables.

HaQue · 14-06-2008

I did a little research about cables when I bought some new large screen LCD's. I didn't even think about the cables until I found out how damm expensive some are. I wanted to know if it was worth spending the money for the Monster type ones or not.

As for the argument that "if the signal is digital all cables would work the same..." I found this is not true... check these links out:

http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2007/06/th...r_cable_1.html

http://www.dtvforum.info/index.php?showtopic=33273

Seems that the better cables do work better and some cheap ones are not worth buying at all.

I bought some Crest brand "platinum" cables for about $39 at Big W here in Adelaide, after trying Truscotts and getting told they were $80 but the kind salesman would let me have them for $60(yes, exact same cables). Lucky I had seen them at Big W first!

I have not noticed any picture problems at all.

BTW, the cables were only 1.2m a little limiting when hooking the laptop up to play blu-ray movies.

**platinumsword** · 14-06-2008

Hey Haque I post some information about this earlier before , if you check out this thread there will be some other links for you to check out if your interested.

Link: http://club.cdfreaks.com/f149/expens...ap-one-239888/

*debro* · 15-06-2008

Quote:

Originally Posted by HaQue

I did a little research about cables when I bought some new large screen LCD's. I didn't even think about the cables until I found out how damm expensive some are. I wanted to know if it was worth spending the money for the Monster type ones or not.

As for the argument that "if the signal is digital all cables would work the same..." I found this is not true... check these links out:

http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2007/06/th...r_cable_1.html

http://www.dtvforum.info/index.php?showtopic=33273

Seems that the better cables do work better and some cheap ones are not worth buying at all.

I bought some Crest brand "platinum" cables for about $39 at Big W here in Adelaide, after trying Truscotts and getting told they were $80 but the kind salesman would let me have them for $60(yes, exact same cables). Lucky I had seen them at Big W first!

I have not noticed any picture problems at all.

BTW, the cables were only 1.2m a little limiting when hooking the laptop up to play blu-ray movies.

Expensice HDMI Cables are a rip.
HDMI specifies a minimum performance requirement, excluding length (as it's irrelevant on the proviso it satsifies the performance requirements).
A cable either complies, or doesn't.

I paid $15au on ebay for a 1.8m HDMI v1.3 compliant cable, including P&H.
BigW, like kmart, target & all the other B&M stores are like a vacuum cleaner in your pocket. They don't charge a price that's suggested by the cost of the product, but a price that the market will bear.

You will be hard pressed to find a short HDMI cable that doesn't satisfy the requirements. Congratulations if you have, you should be presented with an award shortly.
At any rate, if it doesn't comply, you can take it back for a refund, preferably strangling the salesman for selling shoddy non-compliant products.

Over large lengths 10m-15m, higher quality cables become important. $300 for a 2m cable is nothing short of snake oil & support of an oversized, overly creative marketting department.

HaQue · 16-06-2008

Thanks platinumsword for the link, very interesting to watch

I am not going to debate this too much, as I do agree that for the average person, the Crest type from BigW or the ebay ones will probably do just fine.

I will say that where the issues with substandard cables would be in poor soldering/cable to connector fixing, bad shielding, substandard materials used for insulation(even poor copper choice) and general manufacturing issues that every product with expensive and cheap options would face. But hey, we aren't swinging around by them, for the most part they would be hooked up once and forgotten.

And if you are going to wire up your house, it might pay to get something "good"... just good luck finding out for sure what that is!

remember that something that is compliant to a certain spec in no way implies the quality of the job it is gonna do. And just going by the price isn't always the best way either.

I believe a healthy debate on a forum is a great step to getting real answers so thanks to all that have voiced!

BTW, my crest cable seems to be doing the job just great! Bioshock in HD is awesome!

*debro* · 16-06-2008

Wiring up a house with HDMI cables wouldn't be recommended - the maximum length available commercially is about 15m (50ft?) regardless, and they only come pre-made.
You'd be better off with a HDCP compliant, HDMI v1.3 compliant HDMI over (dual) Cat5e cables, which extends the maximum length upto 60m (30m for slightly cheaper versions).
You still need short HDMI cables at each end (of course).

zevia · 16-06-2008

Quote:

Originally Posted by debro

Wiring up a house with HDMI cables wouldn't be recommended - the maximum length available commercially is about 15m (50ft?) regardless, and they only come pre-made.

monoprice.com offers up to 131 ft (40m) of HDMI cable: http://www.monoprice.com/products/pr...seq=1&format=2

From http://www.hdmi.org/learningcenter/faq.aspx#44

Quote:

Q. Does HDMI accommodate long cable lengths?
Yes. HDMI technology has been designed to use standard copper cable construction at long lengths. In order to allow cable manufacturers to improve their products through the use of new technologies, HDMI specifies the required performance of a cable but does not specify a maximum cable length. We have seen cables pass "Standard Cable" HDMI compliance testing at lengths of up to a maximum of 10 meters without the use of a repeater. It is not only the cable that factors into how long a cable can successfully carry an HDMI signal, the receiver chip inside the TV or projector also plays a major factor. Receiver chips that include a feature called "cable equalization" are able to compensate for weaker signals thereby extending the potential length of any cable that is used with that device.

With any long run of an HDMI cable, quality manufactured cables can play a significant role in successfully running HDMI over such longer distances.

Quote:

Q. How do I run HDMI cables longer than 10 meters?
There are many HDMI Adopters working on HDMI solutions that extend a cable’s effective distance from the typical 10 meter range to much longer lengths. These companies manufacture a variety of solutions that include active cables (active electronics built into cables that boost and extend the cable’s signal), repeaters, amplifiers as well as CAT5/6 and fiber solutions.

*Bob* · 16-06-2008

My lord that is a long cable........

zevia · 16-06-2008

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bob

My lord that is a long cable........

Yeah... I tried the 35' from monoprice and it's doing great. Some of the customer comments say they see white sparkles on their HDTV after installing >50' cable and some don't but they suggest to add a repeater if you plan to run greater than 35' (also in the FAQ posted above).

**platinumsword** · 17-06-2008

Optical HDMI cables would be used in the case of long runs. There would be no signal degradation up to 100m or 328ft, but be prepare to fork out some serious dough.

25-02-2008	#1
kimonas1000 New on Forum Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 5	HDMI cable or component? Hi everyone. I've got a brand new Samsung dvd player 1080p7 model (which upscales/upconverts up to 1080p) connected to a Samsung 32 inch LCD which features 720p res. I wonder, what is it the best way to connect, HDMI cable, a component one or these will not actually offer too much in a better picture?

25-02-2008	#2
bigmike7 MyCE Resident Old Fart Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Diehard Old CDFreak Lurking In The Back Of Your Mind Posts: 10,080	Re: HDMI cable or component? Yo- Welcome to the forums- Without any question - HDMI is your very best connection-eh!! __________________ Mike (Y) <- - - (a tribute to someone) Brayden & Lil Burnits Proud Cyber Grampie - 'CERCA, TROVA' - 'NOVUS ORDO SECLORUM' Work Computer = ZT Systems i7-2600 CPU w/16GB DDR3-1333 RAM/ Win7 Pro-sp1 /Intel 510 120GB SSD @ SATA3 /Western Digital VelociRaptor 500GB Workstation HDD @ SATA3 /Corsair 650 watt PSU /Pioneer BDR-2207 as BD burner /Lite-On iHBS-112-04 as Reader/Ripper and BD Disc Quality Tester /AOC i2757fh 27 inch S-IPS monitor w/LED backlight /XFX Radeon HD6870 w/2GB GDDR5RAM /Ashampoo Burning Studio 2012 /DVDFab 9 Burning Computer = HP xw8400 workstation w/ Two Xeon 5160, dual core, 3.0 mhz CPU's w/ 16gb PC2-5300 DDR2 SDRAM /Win7 Pro-sp1 /Intel X25-M G2 160GB SSD /Western Digital Caviar Black 640gb w/64mb cache HDD /Corsair 850 watt psu / Optiarc AD-5280S-CB-PLUS w/v1.Z7 fw as Disc Burner and Disc Quality Tester /Optiarc AD-5280S-CB-PLUS w/v1.Z7 fw as Disc Reader/Ripper /ATi Radeon HD 5770 w/1gb GDDR5 Ram Videocard /HP 24" LCD /Ashampoo Burning Studio 6 /DVDFab 9 On The Shelf: (1) Benq 1640, (1)BenQ 1640 @EW168, Pioneer (2) 115D, (3) Optiarc 7200A, Optiarc 7260A, Asus DRW-24b1ST

25-02-2008	#3
kimonas1000 New on Forum Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 5	Re: HDMI cable or component? Hi Mike, thanks for replying, should I go for an expensive one or does a simple one do the job?

25-02-2008	#5
crossg Retired Moderator & Reviewer Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Calgary, Alberta. Canada Posts: 4,799	Re: HDMI cable or component? Like Mike said above HDMI is the best just like is says in the player manual. If the player and TV are CEC capable u can use the TV remote to operate the player, not so with component. The player you bought is 1080P capable but you TV is not so you are best to set the player's output to the TV's native resolution 720P. Your TV probably won't accept 1080P anyway. Monoprice.com is a good place to look for good prices on HDMI cables. Depending on where you live. __________________ My PC Specs. Samsung LN55A950 LED TV, BD-D5700, PS3, Toshiba HD-35, Onkyo TX-NR3009, Emotiva XPA-5, Polk Audio RTi A9s, A5's, A3's, FXi A4's, CSi A6. (9.2). Velodyne 12" Subs x2. The Forum Rules Click here to join Myce.com

25-02-2008	#6
kimonas1000 New on Forum Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 5	Re: HDMI cable or component? Yeah right, thanks a lot for the advice

Today
Adbot Always the best offers Join Date: Today Location: Myce HQ Posts: Zillions

25-02-2008	#4
imkidd57 Senior Moderator & Editor Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: New Fajara Posts: 8,792	Re: HDMI cable or component? Moved to the CD Freaks' High Def section

25-02-2008	#7
DiiZzY MyCE Resident Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Nordic Region, Sweden Posts: 3,676	Re: HDMI cable or component? Unless you need HDMI for something else use it, I do doubt you'll notice a difference between HDMI and component given that it upscales using component. //Danne

26-02-2008	#8
platinumsword Senior Moderator Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 5,384	Re: HDMI cable or component? There are only two companies that have upconvert via component that I am aware of, Oppo and LG. I believe that your Samsung only upconverts via HDMI so this would be the logical choice. __________________ Monster HDP 2500 / Toshiba 55UL610U / Onkyo TX-NR818 / Energy RC-70,RC-LCR,CF-70 / Velodyne EQ-Max 12 / Oppo BDP-83 / LG LDA-831 Three simple rules: 1. Never Change the Deal 2. No Names. 3. Never Open the Package.

26-02-2008	#9
TCAS MyCE Resident Join Date: May 2004 Posts: 7,877	Re: HDMI cable or component? Plus by using HDMI you are dealing with one single cable integrated (3 color wires for video + 2 wires for audio) versus using 5 wires (one cable with 3wires for video + another cable with 2 wires for audio). Less space les noise interference.

26-02-2008	#10
theginkamos New on Forum Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 2	Re: HDMI cable or component? Call my crazy but I cant even tell the difference between svideo quality and component. __________________ TheGinkamos

26-02-2008	#11
platinumsword Senior Moderator Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 5,384	Re: HDMI cable or component? Okay, your crazy S-Video is capable of displaying only 480i or 576i Component is capable of displaying upto 1080p. So there is a big difference. Options are. HDMI - One cable carries both audio and video - The best DVI + Optical or Coaxial - One cable for audio and one for video - Second best Component + Optical or Coaxial - One cable for audio and one cable with three heads at each end for video. - Third best ETC Component + RCA S-Video + RCA No need to go on. @kimonas1000 - Just keep in mind that you can never exceed the maximum display resolution of your T.V. , anything that exceeds it will be down converted to meet the max resolution of your T.V. __________________ Monster HDP 2500 / Toshiba 55UL610U / Onkyo TX-NR818 / Energy RC-70,RC-LCR,CF-70 / Velodyne EQ-Max 12 / Oppo BDP-83 / LG LDA-831 Three simple rules: 1. Never Change the Deal 2. No Names. 3. Never Open the Package.

14-06-2008	#13
HaQue New on Forum Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 2	Re: HDMI cable or component? I did a little research about cables when I bought some new large screen LCD's. I didn't even think about the cables until I found out how damm expensive some are. I wanted to know if it was worth spending the money for the Monster type ones or not. As for the argument that "if the signal is digital all cables would work the same..." I found this is not true... check these links out: http://www.gizmodo.com.au/2007/06/th...r_cable_1.html http://www.dtvforum.info/index.php?showtopic=33273 Seems that the better cables do work better and some cheap ones are not worth buying at all. I bought some Crest brand "platinum" cables for about $39 at Big W here in Adelaide, after trying Truscotts and getting told they were $80 but the kind salesman would let me have them for $60(yes, exact same cables). Lucky I had seen them at Big W first! I have not noticed any picture problems at all. BTW, the cables were only 1.2m a little limiting when hooking the laptop up to play blu-ray movies.

14-06-2008	#14
platinumsword Senior Moderator Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 5,384	Re: HDMI cable or component? Hey Haque I post some information about this earlier before , if you check out this thread there will be some other links for you to check out if your interested. Link: http://club.cdfreaks.com/f149/expens...ap-one-239888/

16-06-2008	#16
HaQue New on Forum Join Date: Jun 2008 Posts: 2	Re: HDMI cable or component? Thanks platinumsword for the link, very interesting to watch I am not going to debate this too much, as I do agree that for the average person, the Crest type from BigW or the ebay ones will probably do just fine. I will say that where the issues with substandard cables would be in poor soldering/cable to connector fixing, bad shielding, substandard materials used for insulation(even poor copper choice) and general manufacturing issues that every product with expensive and cheap options would face. But hey, we aren't swinging around by them, for the most part they would be hooked up once and forgotten. And if you are going to wire up your house, it might pay to get something "good"... just good luck finding out for sure what that is! remember that something that is compliant to a certain spec in no way implies the quality of the job it is gonna do. And just going by the price isn't always the best way either. I believe a healthy debate on a forum is a great step to getting real answers so thanks to all that have voiced! BTW, my crest cable seems to be doing the job just great! Bioshock in HD is awesome! Last edited by HaQue; 16-06-2008 at 14:13. Reason: bloody typos

16-06-2008	#17
debro Blown to smitherines Join Date: Jul 1999 Location: Between the CDFreaks Orange and Blue Portals Posts: 13,375	Re: HDMI cable or component? Wiring up a house with HDMI cables wouldn't be recommended - the maximum length available commercially is about 15m (50ft?) regardless, and they only come pre-made. You'd be better off with a HDCP compliant, HDMI v1.3 compliant HDMI over (dual) Cat5e cables, which extends the maximum length upto 60m (30m for slightly cheaper versions). You still need short HDMI cables at each end (of course). __________________ / ----- I remember when all this will happen again -----/ You will be baked ... and there will be cake ... you monster. Click here to still be alive! Build a man a fire, and he'll be warm for a day. Set a man on fire, and he'll be warm for the rest of his life. --Terry Pratchett Primary PC: 1.4Ghz Quad Core Cortex A9, 2048MB Ram, Mali 400 video, 32GB Primary, 64Gb Secondary, 802.11N 2.4/5Ghz, 1280x800@10.1" with one years supply of Jelly Beans Secondary PC: i7-Q720@1.6Ghz, 4GB, 500GB Hybrid HDD, Win7 x64 BusPre, Ati HD5470M-1GB, backlit keyboard. Tertiary PC: Amd Phenom II 945, 4GB DDR2, 120GB Plextor M5S, AMD HD7850(OC) 2GB , Win8 Pro, 24" 1920x1200, cordless keyboard + mouse + gaming mouse.

16-06-2008	#19
Bob Resident lunatic Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Looking for my zigzags ~ I come from the no place and i go to the no where Posts: 17,882	Re: HDMI cable or component? My lord that is a long cable........ __________________ "You've got a hole in your soul if you don't dig the Blues" .....My Not So New Anymore Build is Finished. Click HERE to join CDFreaks.com Keith Richards ~ "If You Want The Last Laugh........Join The Rolling Stones"

17-06-2008	#21
platinumsword Senior Moderator Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 5,384	Re: HDMI cable or component? Optical HDMI cables would be used in the case of long runs. There would be no signal degradation up to 100m or 328ft, but be prepare to fork out some serious dough.

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