# A second 'level' of HDMI cable?



## hoophead (Feb 10, 2008)

I was told by a Dish repairman recently that there is a 'hdmi-2' cable which produces somewhat better picture than my '#1'

True or False?


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## P Smith (Jul 25, 2002)

False.

If there are no excessive number of error during transmission of digital info between source and sink, then no needs for 'monster'-like HDMI cable.


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## harsh (Jun 15, 2003)

There exists a part of the HDMI specification for special "Category 2" high speed cabling. Cabling that meets this specification is not necessary for the current crop of DISH Network receivers that support HDMI. It is likely that Category 2 cables exist to support expanded audio capability (7 or more channels) as opposed to improved video.


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## BattleZone (Nov 13, 2007)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-Definition_Multimedia_Interface


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## loki993 (Apr 2, 2009)

category 2 is for inwall installation, it has nothing to do with speed. I think the jacket may be thicker for fire safety or something like that. there is HDMI 1.3 which does support enhanced audio and deep color, but if your receiver AND TV aren't HDMI 1.3 it doesnt matter.


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## harsh (Jun 15, 2003)

loki993 said:


> category 2 is for inwall installation, it has nothing to do with speed.


In the context of HDMI (or twisted pair for that matter), Category 2 means something entirely different.


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## tnsprin (Mar 16, 2003)

As said category 2 is not really needed for the current Dish receivers. It might help with 1080p programs. Note that category 2 is available at a very reasonable price if you ignore companies like Monster. 

From the HDMI org FAQ 
Recently, HDMI Licensing, LLC announced that cables would be tested as Standard or High-Speed cables. 

•Standard (or “category 1”) cables have been tested to perform at speeds of 75Mhz, which is the equivalent of a 1080i signal. 
•High Speed (or “category 2”) cables have been tested to perform at speeds of 340Mhz, which is the highest bandwidth currently available over an HDMI cable and can successfully handle 1080p signals including those at increased color depths and/or increased refresh rates. High-Speed cables are also able to accommodate higher resolution displays, such as WQXGA cinema monitors (resolution of 2560 x 1600).


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## mraub (Mar 5, 2004)

One of the best sources for HDMI cables:

http://www.monoprice.com/products/subdepartment.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10240

MUCH cheaper than Monster etc. and work great. The cheaper smaller gauge (higher gauge number) is fine for short connections; over 15 feet or so justifies a thicker cable (lower gauge number)


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## hoophead (Feb 10, 2008)

mraub said:


> One of the best sources for HDMI cables:
> 
> http://www.monoprice.com/products/subdepartment.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10240
> 
> MUCH cheaper than Monster etc. and work great. The cheaper smaller gauge (higher gauge number) is fine for short connections; over 15 feet or so justifies a thicker cable (lower gauge number)


Yep, I have them bookmarked as it is where I bought my cables when I purchassed my HDTV in December 2007


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## havana (Dec 19, 2005)

mraub said:


> One of the best sources for HDMI cables:
> 
> http://www.monoprice.com/products/subdepartment.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10240
> 
> MUCH cheaper than Monster etc. and work great. The cheaper smaller gauge (higher gauge number) is fine for short connections; over 15 feet or so justifies a thicker cable (lower gauge number)


They also sell high quality inexpensive wall mounts.


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## JBT (Jul 8, 2008)

Monoprice is where I buy any and all cables.


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## FarmerBob (Nov 28, 2002)

I have never heard of HDMI cables rated as Category, but:
1.3
1.3a
1.3b
1.3b1
1.3c
and the newest version 1.4 ratified on May 28, 2009.​I have just upgraded to 1.3b cabling now widely available, from eForcity.com (way better than Monoprice) and it did make a bit of a difference. I have only ever heard of Category 2 in building code for In-Wall or Plenum runs, i.e., _HDMI 1.3b Category 2 Rated (In-Wall Installation)_.

The Wiki link is the best place for HDMI info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HDMI


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## harsh (Jun 15, 2003)

FarmerBob said:


> I have never heard of HDMI cables rated as Category, but:


Category 2 is mentioned in the Wikipedia article. In this instance it is not a reference to a twisted pair cable rating.


> The Wiki link is the best place for HDMI info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HDMI


One could argue that the http://www.hdmi.org website is the definitive resource on HDMI. The Wikipedia article has around three dozen links to it.


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## DustoMan (Jul 16, 2005)

1.4 sounds pretty sweet. Too bad I would have to buy all new hardware in order to use it.


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## RollTide1017 (Oct 12, 2008)

hoophead said:


> I was told by a Dish repairman recently that there is a 'hdmi-2' cable which produces somewhat better picture than my '#1'
> 
> True or False?


False, an HDMI cable cannot improve the picture quality unless the cable you are using now is defective in some way. The signal running down the HDMI cable is digital, basiclly just a bunch of 1's & 0's. As long as all of those 1 & 0 get from the source to the TV the you will get the best possible picture for your setup. There is nothing magical that an HDMI cable can add to the signal to enhance those 1 & 0 so that they look even better then when they left the source. This is not analogue, you don't have to worry about cable noise or interference from other devices. As long as all those digital 1 & 0 survive the trip to the TV, you'll get the best picture you can. HDMI-2 will not change this, it just adds additional features and more bandwidth (which will help longer runs). 1080p works just fine on the current HDMI-1 standard, plenty of bandwidth for it as well. This is why I beg people to not buy into the monster cable hype and waste $50 or more on an HDMI cable when $6 ones from monoprice will look exactly the same.


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## hsweiss (Jul 29, 2009)

RollTide1017 said:


> False, an HDMI cable cannot improve the picture quality unless the cable you are using now is defective in some way. The signal running down the HDMI cable is digital, basiclly just a bunch of 1's & 0's. As long as all of those 1 & 0 get from the source to the TV the you will get the best possible picture for your setup. There is nothing magical that an HDMI cable can add to the signal to enhance those 1 & 0 so that they look even better then when they left the source. This is not analogue, you don't have to worry about cable noise or interference from other devices. As long as all those digital 1 & 0 survive the trip to the TV, you'll get the best picture you can. HDMI-2 will not change this, it just adds additional features and more bandwidth (which will help longer runs). 1080p works just fine on the current HDMI-1 standard, plenty of bandwidth for it as well. This is why I beg people to not buy into the monster cable hype and waste $50 or more on an HDMI cable when $6 ones from monoprice will look exactly the same.


Amen - I just bought an HDMI cable from Amazon for 70 cents (ok, there was a $2.50 shipping charge). So I got an HDMI cable for the whopping total of $3.20 delivered to my door with no tax and it works great.


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## julesism (Feb 25, 2004)

RollTide1017 said:


> False, an HDMI cable cannot improve the picture quality unless the cable you are using now is defective in some way. The signal running down the HDMI cable is digital, basiclly just a bunch of 1's & 0's. As long as all of those 1 & 0 get from the source to the TV the you will get the best possible picture for your setup. There is nothing magical that an HDMI cable can add to the signal to enhance those 1 & 0 so that they look even better then when they left the source. This is not analogue, you don't have to worry about cable noise or interference from other devices. As long as all those digital 1 & 0 survive the trip to the TV, you'll get the best picture you can. HDMI-2 will not change this, it just adds additional features and more bandwidth (which will help longer runs). 1080p works just fine on the current HDMI-1 standard, plenty of bandwidth for it as well. This is why I beg people to not buy into the monster cable hype and waste $50 or more on an HDMI cable when $6 ones from monoprice will look exactly the same.


+1


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