Sockmonkey
New member
I'm getting a refurbished HDMI cable for my xbox 360. Is this a smart move or should I go out and get the real deal instead?
Refurbished HDMI Xbox 360
- Thread starter Sockmonkey
- Start date
OmegaFenix
The Legendary Troll Hunter
Why not use ur component cable, picture quality is about the same.
Strifehart
New member
Why don't you just use a normal R80 HDMI cable? Unless of course you need the optical output.
OmegaFenix
The Legendary Troll Hunter
But the xbox doesn't have a plain HDMI port like the PS3. U need that special Xbox plug. I think the elites have the HDMI port.
Sockmonkey
New member
Because I work in the video industry I notice the difference, what makes it worse is that I often go straight from my pc to console and that's when the difference is most notable. I'm very picky about display quality its both a gift and a curse
tehNihilist
New member
Just go buy a new one. Even the more expensive ones are not that expensive. And even the cheaper ones do their job more than well enough.
OmegaFenix
The Legendary Troll Hunter
What there is a difference in quality.
Sockmonkey
New member
The more expensive ones are R450, for a damn cable.
I don't know what you are saying omega?
Voicy
Resident Panty Kicker
I've noticed little to no difference in HDMI vs Component on my 32" 720p screen. My Xbox Pro has an HDMI port, btw.
Now, my HDMI settings on my PS3 don't work at all (yes I've set it up via VGA) and I've even tried a different cable, so I'm suspecting my tv to be at fault.
Now my question is: What is the quality difference between HDMI and component on PS3? The (PAL) VGA resolution is poor at best and looks like PS1 graphics :|
Now, my HDMI settings on my PS3 don't work at all (yes I've set it up via VGA) and I've even tried a different cable, so I'm suspecting my tv to be at fault.
Now my question is: What is the quality difference between HDMI and component on PS3? The (PAL) VGA resolution is poor at best and looks like PS1 graphics :|
OmegaFenix
The Legendary Troll Hunter
Im asking what the diff between Xbox on Component and Xbox on HDMI is.
tehNihilist
New member
Meh, if you are so concerned about quality then you should have little worries about going the whole way. Sure, R450, while somewhat expensive, is pretty cheap considering the hobby we are in. Personally I am always wary of refurbished products. Often if it just best to bite the bullet and get a brand new product.
It seems the better HDMI products have a larger impact on sound quality and very little difference in image quality, (at least that is what I have heard).
It seems the better HDMI products have a larger impact on sound quality and very little difference in image quality, (at least that is what I have heard).
Sockmonkey
New member
As far as I am aware : component = SD and HDMI = HD picture quality. I double checked today and with the component plugged in the output was SD PAL and the HDMI function was grayed out.
I know but everytime I go into a store to buy a HDMI cable I walk out with a brand new game
its always a case of new cable or new game and the latter wins every timeUnless Microsoft managed to produce a component cable able to transmit HD content, the difference should be similar to watching a DVD vs BluRay. I am aware that the interwebz show videos of component vs HDMI showing very little difference between the two, I cant see how this is possible.
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Just to give you guys an idea of what "entry level" HDMI cables cost apparently. I just paid R700 for an HDMI cable. It's a WireWorld Island 6 HDMI v1.4 cable. I bought two of them, 1 to go between my PS3 and Amplifier, and the other to go from the Amplifier to the TV. This hobby kills a wallet rather easily.
tehNihilist
New member
I know but everytime I go into a store to buy a HDMI cable I walk out with a brand new game
Hahah I know the feeling. I need to upgrade things like my mouse but I would always rather buy a game. I need a lull in good games being released so I can do this. At the moment my budget is stretched with all these games on all these platforms.
Bite the bullet, just get a new cable. Refurb can cost you more in the long run.
Well, The cable does make a difference! The most common mistake is choosing the wrong cable. Most people assume that if it fits in the port, it must be the right cable. This is not always true. A friend of mine couldn't get a monitor (32", 2560x1600) to run at its native res. Reinstalling and updating drivers, Downloading custom resolution tools, none helped. It turned out that the Cable he was using was a Single Link -DVI, not a DuaL-Link. Even though they look the same.
Now with HDMI, there are many versions, some incompatible with certain types of equipment.
From a technical perspective, regardless if its an analogue or digital signal (Digital obviously having advantages), poor quality cables CAN attenuate a signal and limit the bandwidth. For the latest HDMI versions, the bandwidth is increased, meaning you need a better Cable (ignoring the fact that they are slightly different but still electrically compatible) to support higher data transfer rates. (Just like ethernet, where CAT5, and CAT5-e, and CAT6, CAT7 are more advanced, each supporting a higher transfer rate with better signal transmission.)
Now what about cheaper cables, supporting the same Specefication as more expensive ones? If it supports the Stated Specification, it WILL work(hopefully). The more expensive cables are only justified, lol, if they are longer.
Now with HDMI, there are many versions, some incompatible with certain types of equipment.
From a technical perspective, regardless if its an analogue or digital signal (Digital obviously having advantages), poor quality cables CAN attenuate a signal and limit the bandwidth. For the latest HDMI versions, the bandwidth is increased, meaning you need a better Cable (ignoring the fact that they are slightly different but still electrically compatible) to support higher data transfer rates. (Just like ethernet, where CAT5, and CAT5-e, and CAT6, CAT7 are more advanced, each supporting a higher transfer rate with better signal transmission.)
Now what about cheaper cables, supporting the same Specefication as more expensive ones? If it supports the Stated Specification, it WILL work(hopefully). The more expensive cables are only justified, lol, if they are longer.
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stroebs
New member
Well I am also going to have to look into getting an HDMi cable for my XBox as my TV's ports are all used up and I still need one more input for the DVD player which I use as the amp for the TV cos it has nice speakers connected to it. (Although just having purchased an XBox, isn't the DVD player nullified completely what with it's extensive ability to play media?)
Sock, sorry if I sound like an ass with this (actually, not really sorry, but anyway...) for someone claiming to 'work in the video industry, so I notice the difference', you seem pretty clueless about the various cable standards as well as the basics of using your console....
In order to use Component on the 'normal' 360 cable, you have to change the switch on the plug to 'HDTV', or away from the plug if you've removed the sticker and it's not embossed into the plastic. If you don't do this, then it'll output at SD, not HD resolutions. Most TVs support 720p just fine over component, and some will even run fine on 1080p using component.
What sets Component and HDMI apart is that component is still an analogue signal while HDMI is digital; to X-Gamer, this isn't a matter of 'the cable makes a difference', it's a matter of the pins and wiring within the actual cable with it comes to DVI-Dual Link. A simple check in the manual for the monitor would have explained exactly that to you, as well as knowing that the pins visible in the connectors would differ...
Neo, you made a very stupid move with your cable purchase unless you got the 5m cable and/or have practical use for the four advantages it has that any general consumer might ever make use of, namely 3D over HDMI at 1080p, ethernet, audio return or the 4k*2k resolution at 24bit+ (hint, chances are you don't as I get the feeling you don't have a monitor with these sorts of capabilities nor an output source of these capabilities if you say that R1.4k makes your wallet hurt), at which point the price is still disgustingly high... But then, your money, your own issue if you're ignorant regarding what you're paying for. :|
Nihilist, with regards to your earlier comment of having 'heard' that higher quality HDMI cables have better sound; this is only valid if you are using a REALLY poor quality cable in a high-electrical-radiation environment. Why? Because the signals being carried by the cable are digital. When you get normal stereo output after connecting it to an LCD monitor or TV, there's a DAC (digital-analogue-converter) within the monitor that's converting the signal to a standard stereo analogue output for you.
Simple wire management and isolation using common household items such as tin-foil can save you hundreds upon hundreds of rands, and needn't look ugly either if you're hiding the cables and/or make use of sleeves that bunch up and cover a few cables for you.
You guys may at this point think I'm being a real asshole with all this, but I generally just get annoyed when people that don't know what they're talking about spread misinformation, which then gets further spread, and then begin singing those things like some sort of gospel.
There is a notable difference in picture *stability* between component and HDMI at 1080p without 3D usage for something like a gaming console on a normal HDTV (read: not an ultra-expensive one) if there are high amounts of electrical radiation around your cables and output/input jacks. A lot of this will often be in the form of simple grounding issues on the various devices that may make up your home theater setup.
As far as colour reproduction are concerned, there's no difference unless your output is driving 30-bit colourspace output or higher (note: on computers, when you're running 32-bit, you're actually running 24-bit colour with an 8-bit stiple-alpha channel for transparency). Most older LCD TVs these days still have 8-bit panels, with some more recent ones employing 10-bit and 12-bit panels. They use dithering techniques in their picture engines to reproduce as wide a gamut of colours as possible, generally only getting as high as around 15-bit to 16-bit.
Anyway, to the Op, a 1.3x cable will do everything you need it to unless you have a TV or LCD monitor able to run 1920x1080p 120hz or greater for 3D purposes and actually intend to make use of that. The 1.3x standard cables can still do that, but only at up to 1080i instead. As far as refurbished goes, refurb to me usually means that something may have gone wrong with the product that got fixed, tested, and the unit was being resold; unless there is a tangible benefit to buying it as opposed to say this one, then don't bother.
http://www.sybaritic.co.za/store/product_info.php?products_id=24338
For those of you thinking "then why do these people sell their ultra-special-shielded-insanely-expensive-HDMI-cables?"
Because there are stupid people in the world with too much money that spend before they do any research. Yes, that's those of you that would rather go out and blow R450 on a 2m HDMI cable as opposed to a R100> cable that does exactly the same thing with exactly the same results and often even has extra length on that other cable. If the cable doesn't do what it's supposed to out of the clamshell packaging, take it back to the store and get your money back, simple as that.
In order to use Component on the 'normal' 360 cable, you have to change the switch on the plug to 'HDTV', or away from the plug if you've removed the sticker and it's not embossed into the plastic. If you don't do this, then it'll output at SD, not HD resolutions. Most TVs support 720p just fine over component, and some will even run fine on 1080p using component.
What sets Component and HDMI apart is that component is still an analogue signal while HDMI is digital; to X-Gamer, this isn't a matter of 'the cable makes a difference', it's a matter of the pins and wiring within the actual cable with it comes to DVI-Dual Link. A simple check in the manual for the monitor would have explained exactly that to you, as well as knowing that the pins visible in the connectors would differ...
Neo, you made a very stupid move with your cable purchase unless you got the 5m cable and/or have practical use for the four advantages it has that any general consumer might ever make use of, namely 3D over HDMI at 1080p, ethernet, audio return or the 4k*2k resolution at 24bit+ (hint, chances are you don't as I get the feeling you don't have a monitor with these sorts of capabilities nor an output source of these capabilities if you say that R1.4k makes your wallet hurt), at which point the price is still disgustingly high... But then, your money, your own issue if you're ignorant regarding what you're paying for. :|
Nihilist, with regards to your earlier comment of having 'heard' that higher quality HDMI cables have better sound; this is only valid if you are using a REALLY poor quality cable in a high-electrical-radiation environment. Why? Because the signals being carried by the cable are digital. When you get normal stereo output after connecting it to an LCD monitor or TV, there's a DAC (digital-analogue-converter) within the monitor that's converting the signal to a standard stereo analogue output for you.
Simple wire management and isolation using common household items such as tin-foil can save you hundreds upon hundreds of rands, and needn't look ugly either if you're hiding the cables and/or make use of sleeves that bunch up and cover a few cables for you.
You guys may at this point think I'm being a real asshole with all this, but I generally just get annoyed when people that don't know what they're talking about spread misinformation, which then gets further spread, and then begin singing those things like some sort of gospel.
There is a notable difference in picture *stability* between component and HDMI at 1080p without 3D usage for something like a gaming console on a normal HDTV (read: not an ultra-expensive one) if there are high amounts of electrical radiation around your cables and output/input jacks. A lot of this will often be in the form of simple grounding issues on the various devices that may make up your home theater setup.
As far as colour reproduction are concerned, there's no difference unless your output is driving 30-bit colourspace output or higher (note: on computers, when you're running 32-bit, you're actually running 24-bit colour with an 8-bit stiple-alpha channel for transparency). Most older LCD TVs these days still have 8-bit panels, with some more recent ones employing 10-bit and 12-bit panels. They use dithering techniques in their picture engines to reproduce as wide a gamut of colours as possible, generally only getting as high as around 15-bit to 16-bit.
Anyway, to the Op, a 1.3x cable will do everything you need it to unless you have a TV or LCD monitor able to run 1920x1080p 120hz or greater for 3D purposes and actually intend to make use of that. The 1.3x standard cables can still do that, but only at up to 1080i instead. As far as refurbished goes, refurb to me usually means that something may have gone wrong with the product that got fixed, tested, and the unit was being resold; unless there is a tangible benefit to buying it as opposed to say this one, then don't bother.
http://www.sybaritic.co.za/store/product_info.php?products_id=24338
For those of you thinking "then why do these people sell their ultra-special-shielded-insanely-expensive-HDMI-cables?"
Because there are stupid people in the world with too much money that spend before they do any research. Yes, that's those of you that would rather go out and blow R450 on a 2m HDMI cable as opposed to a R100> cable that does exactly the same thing with exactly the same results and often even has extra length on that other cable. If the cable doesn't do what it's supposed to out of the clamshell packaging, take it back to the store and get your money back, simple as that.