Does the price of the HDMI cable matter for quality?

Question

I have looked at tons of cables from Best Buy and Wal-Mart. The ones from Wal-Mart are obviously cheaper, but will I sacrifice quality? I am going to be using an XBOX 360.

Answer 1

No, the price DOES NOT matter! All HDMI cables have the same HDMI manufaturing standards, plus lets face it.....digital is digital. Some companies just have a lot more overhead built in.

All HDMI cables, certified that is, will basically provide the same level of digital video and digital audio.

Answer 2

Hi.There is no way of knowing in advance if price affects a particular cable.Some people say that because digital transfer of information is error free the cheaper cable does the job just as good as the expensive one.Because the information is represented by ones and zeros it is easier to ensure that the information received at the display is an exact replica of the information originating at the source.HDMI cables are subject to a maximum of 15 meters.Also HDMI cables do not use error correction therefore once information is lost ,it's lost for good. while this is not a problem over short distances with well-made cables extra long cables will cause signal loss.

Answer 3

Yes, quality can be very different in HDMI cables, and it may matter very much depending on your application. As a professional low voltage integrator & contractor I have run into many cables that fail to work.

For instance, any cable, including the cheapest of the cheap, won't have a problem transmitting 480p from a dvd player to a display, over a short cable, say 2M or less. However, this same cable may fail to transmit a 1080p signal over the same distance. Or, sometimes the cheap long cables don't work at all. Also some HDMI versions seem to be a little pickier than others, especially the newer versions that offer extended color pallete.

I now almost exclusively use HDMI cables from www.dvigear.com . Their red 'high resolution HDMI copper cables' are sufficient for almost every application up to 7.5M and are inexpensive. For longer runs (10M+) I use their blue 'super high resolution' cables. I have yet to have one be bad out of the box, not work with my equipment, or fail over time.

Answer 4

IT DEPENDS ...on the CABLE , "ITSELF" NOTHING MORE!!!

When , I got my HD Dvd Player, I brought 3 HD Cables from Amazon! One Monster Cable "RETAILED" for $150.00 & they SOLD for $85.00 & had a "Rating " of 3 STARS!!!
The other 2 WERE ...ONLY $5.oo each & looked just the "MONSTER" but , outer casting of the cable was NOT as,
PRETTY( & I had to pd. S&H on the 5.oo cables)!!!

WHEN they ARRIVED , I put them SIDE by SIDE (under a "Magified Glass LIGHT " & THEY looked "EXACTLY"
the SAME around the HEAD (End/Tip) Cable!!! THE $5.oo cable even, had BETTER ......CASTING around the the Head then, the MONSTER Cable!!!

To TEST it .....I had some Friends over & WE watch 2 HD Movies on the Cables ( 1st. the $ 5.00 then, the Monster) & I DIDN"T tell ...THEM WHATZ -UP??? NO ONE could tell the Different between the Cables!!!

IT's YOUR MONEY but, NOT low coast Cables ARE the SAME!!! MINE was RATED..... 5 STARS !!!!!

Answer 5

Nope, it's all marketing hype. Try this site. It has quality cables at really cheap prices. Most A/V enthusiast who know buy here because they know Monster and it's equivalent is all marketing.

Answer 6

Not really. Because they are digital, signals are transfered by "block" of informations like files in computers; either it in or not in, no in between. If in doubt, try RadioShack, cheaper and better quality.

Answer 7

Yes, cheaper in electronics always means lower quality. As with most technology, you get what you pay for. I paid about $125 for my 3 foot Monster HDMI cable a few months ago, but it's worth it. My friend with the same TV and DVR box but a different HDMI cable has noticeably lower quality video and sound than mine.

Answer 8

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