HDMI 1.4 and data Speeds

[chuck10553]

Hi all
I was talking to my uncle recently about different hdmi connections that he is planning on using for his setup and i starting wondering myself if i have the correct cables for my setup. Briefly i have a Samsung LN46a750 with a yamaha rx-663 and a ps3 as my blu ray player. I am first of all unsure as to what i currently have for hdmi cables (1.3 or 1.4 or 1.3 high speed etc.) so i dont really want to be told what cables i should get but rather know the information about it and make my decision based on that.

Question time- how much of a difference does it make between 1.4, 1.4 high speed, and 1.3 and such? and ive been seeing data rates upwards of 15 gbps which seems faster than anything would need at this point but what exactly does that relate to? also i have been noticing that some cables are 28 AWG and others are 26 or 24 AWG, which i know is the gauge which helps determine the speed that the data can pass through (correct?) Finally, I get most of my cables through monoprice as they are inexpensive and they are still very good quality over the overpriced competitors *cough-monster-cough cough* So are the cables from monoprice going to give me the best picture possible still? they say they have 28 AWG high speed w/ ethernet certified cables but is this actually 1.4 or just a segment of it?

One last thing... if anyone knows of any sites with hdmi speed test and studies could you please send them my way! Thanks for any input!

 

[HexOmega]

Some light reading for you:

HDMI Cable Information Center -- Blue Jeans Cable

They also happen to sell a top notch HDMI cable.

 

[BMXTRIX]

Monoprice cables are HDMI certified.

Apparently there is no such thing as a HDMI 1.4 cable. Cables no longer carry a HDMI level specification, instead they are rated as high speed or standard speed.

You can certainly have issues with ANY HDMI cable, but a cable that is well made and certified for the speed it is rated at should deliver all the data to the screen.

Now, as for 'the best image you can get' - that's a completely different issue.

You are dealing with a digital image and the cable will have zero impact on the image quality as long as it delivers the data to the screen. You won't get poor colors, or pixelization, or poor shadow detail because of any digital cable. What you could have is pixel dropouts which can be noticed as 'sparklies' on screen... or no image at all.

I haven't heard of other issues associated with HDMI cables beyond those two things.

You've made a solid choice with Monoprice. I would generally get their 'premium' cables, but I've had good results with their cheapest cables as well.

 

[chuck10553]

So from everything that i have read there is a specific bitrate for 1080p to travel along the data channel. so do things like sending it through a receiver or other components slow down the travel of data hence the need for a higher bitrate cable? this is the part that is really confusing to me (the bitrate and data rate of the cables)

 

[BMXTRIX]

Bitrate is about how much information is necessary to send a certain signal down a cable.

It's like a garden hose carrying water, and after a certain point, you can't send more water down the hose.

So, 1080p video, with lossless audio and a 'high speed' rated cable, will have zero issues whatsoever.

Standard speed cables MAY have an issue with 1080p video and lossless audio.

That's all that matters right now.

In the future, we may see additional formats which need more bandwidth to carry an image or audio down the cable, but it hasn't presented itself as an issue yet.