Is there a difference in cables?

[soloXgt 10+ year member]

Looking to get a couple fiber optic cables for the home setup. Question is, is there really a difference between a $7 cable on ebay and a $70 monster cable? From what I know about HDMI cables, there isn't much difference except in shielding and Cu content. Does this also apply to FO cables? Do different cales have that much more glass/plastic in them? I mean this isn't going in a $8,000+ audiophile system, but still a nice HT setup. should I spend $20 a cable or just get the cheap $10 ones?

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[soloXgt 10+ year member]

Lookin to do this soon. Anyone?

 

[SicAudio 5,000+ posts]

no there is no appreciable dif other than shielding just like hdmi check http://www.parts-express.com vs ebay. cablestogo as well.

i have used and tested resisitance and signal strength/interference on the best and worst with less than 5-10% difference. they are all made to a minimum federal spec.

 

[soloXgt 10+ year member]

thanks

 

[PV Audio 5,000+ posts]

Yes there is, but it's not the differences companies state. The difference is in build quality only. For HDMI, your signal is 1s and 0s. That's it. That cable is either getting those ones and zeros there or it isn't and the quality of 1s and 0s cannot degrade. Therefore, all HDMI cables are suitable considering they are of the newest format (newer players and HDMI formats offer higher bandwidth i.e. hdmi 1.3a 1.3b etc.) Get a good 1.3 level cable and you're fine.

Fiber optics are much the same. That signal is going to either get there or not and it's not going to degrade. If it's degraded, it's a source issue. You cannot see a difference. Go for something with good build quality in the range of 10 bucks or so and you'll be fine. I'm running all PE and firefold HDMI cables and they look as good as anything Monster puts out.

 

[TMali 10+ year member]

you get what you pay for

 

[PV Audio 5,000+ posts]

you get what you pay for With analog cables to an extent. With digital cables, no.

 

[JimJ 5,000+ posts]

For HDMI, your signal is 1s and 0s. That's it. That cable is either getting those ones and zeros there or it isn't and the quality of 1s and 0s cannot degrade.

Well, jitter in DACs notwithstanding //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif