45 replies to this topic

[rxd]

Does HDMI make any real difference when playing 360 games?

[Starscream]

Yup. Much crisper. Well, if your TV is under 40", you probably won't notice too much, but over 40", you can tell.

[rxd]

Starscream, on Sun Nov 1, 2009 9:06 PM, said:

Yup. Much crisper. Well, if your TV is under 40", you probably won't notice too much, but over 40", you can tell.

Really? I have a 52" 1080p. So there is a difference?

[Starscream]

Yea, you can notice. Before the Elite came out, I was running mine 1080p through VGA ( My Samsung was one of the few models that could do 1080p VGA) and it was an improvement over component. Then with the Elite being able to use HDMI, I noticed an improvement over VGA.

I don't think you'll poo your pants, but everything is crisper and colors are more vibrant.

[NE146]

I don't dispute that there was a slight visible difference when I A/B'd two 360's simultaneously running the same game on my 52" Panasonic via the component & hdmi inputs so I could compare them instantly. However, which was "better" ended up debatable in my opinion. Personally I think they both looked great. I guess like everything it's subjective and different sets will have different results.. so your mileage may vary.

At the end of the day, it ended up being about convenience to me and an HDMI cable is just so much easier to pop in and out. And, it does look good, so that's my general choice

[potatohead]

If you've got a CRT, component rules.

If not, HDMI.

Most non CRT HD sets (which is most of them), won't do 1080p. That means an interlaced display with an analog signal. On the non-CRT sets, interlaced video kind of works, but not optimally.

[Atariboy]

Consensus that I've seen at videophile sites like AVS is they're pretty much equivalent and screen comparisons I've seen back that up with just slight differences and, as NE146 states, no clear winner.

Any small differences largely depend on your individual setup. Some televisions are better at handling component or HDMI, and it's going to take you doing some research on your set at a site like AVS or doing direct comparisons to come to a decision to reach an answer on which one provides a better image. Also depends on your television's calibration settings for each type of input.

If it were me making that decision, I'd examine which type of input I can more afford to use in my setup. Have a free component input that's going unused and would need to buy a HDMI selector box to switch HDMI signals if you went with HDMI? Go with component then and so on.

Worth mentioning that if you want to upscale DVD's on your 360, you'll have to go HDMI (Or VGA) due to DVD Forum rules. I suspect the HD-DVD add-on will be similar if you want to get one and output HD-DVD's in HD, despite component technology being fully capable of transmitting HD.

HDMI is largely a technology developed for increased security through increased control from manufacturers. While there's some advantages of the signal being digital rather than analog, they're very slight.

And, as I think Potatohead was stating, many HD sets don't support 1080p over component. A increasing amount of them do now though, with it being much more common, with at least 1 manufacturer now supporting it on all of their hd sets (Samsung I think?).

Edited by Atariboy, Sun Nov 1, 2009 11:17 PM.

[Shannon]

Component or composite?

The nice thing about HDMI is it carries the audio signal as well, so definitely less wires!

[RevEng]

HDMI is definitely more convenient. You'd probably notice a small difference between it and component if you did A-B tests, but its not a big enough difference to be noticable in practice. Bascially the edges of stuff look slightly crisper.

Be sure you get the most expensive Monster brand cable you can. The 1's and 0's enjoy their transport over an oxygen-free latinum-core cable better, and will provide happier entertainment on the other side of the TV.

Seriously though, feel free to cheap-out on the HDMI as much as you like, though some of the super-cheap ones are a bit flimsy, so watch for that.

And if you're thinking of upgrading your speaker wires, try coathangers.

[NE146]

RevEng, on Tue Nov 3, 2009 6:39 AM, said:

Be sure you get the most expensive Monster brand cable you can. The 1's and 0's enjoy their transport over an oxygen-free latinum-core cable better, and will provide happier entertainment on the other side of the TV.

Seriously though, feel free to cheap-out on the HDMI as much as you like, though some of the super-cheap ones are a bit flimsy, so watch for that.

.... I was going to say..

On that note, if you're looking for good cheap HDMI cables, monoprice.com has em at good prices.

[S1500]

I do component with my 360, for alas I don't have MS's proprietary HDMI cable thingy.

The nice thing is that my cable TV is also component, and the mechanical switchbox handles component. With the press of a button, my audio & video are switched to/from cable to the 360.

[JamesD]

I've used both and can't see any noticeable difference. Due to lack of enough HDMI connections for all my crap... er... toys, I'm currently using Component.

[Lord Helmet]

S1500, on Tue Nov 3, 2009 9:22 AM, said:

I do component with my 360, for alas I don't have MS's proprietary HDMI cable thingy.

What proprietary HDMI thingy?

I'm guessing you have one of the older 360's without HDMI?

[roland p]

Lord Helmet, on Wed Nov 4, 2009 8:53 AM, said:

S1500, on Tue Nov 3, 2009 9:22 AM, said:

I do component with my 360, for alas I don't have MS's proprietary HDMI cable thingy.

What proprietary HDMI thingy?

I'm guessing you have one of the older 360's without HDMI?

I have a HDMI thingy, it does nothing for HDMI, but it provides an output for optical sp/dif. It's a way of Micro$oft to cash extra money.

[S1500]

I have HDMI out, but the port next to it is so darn close(and covers over a bit), a regular HDMI cable won't fit. You either have to buy MS's proprietary cable, or shave down your 360's audio cable to do it.

[NE146]

You only need the proprietary HDMI cable if you want digital optical audio.

..or do you? http://www.chadledford.com/?p=50

Yep.. all you have to do is pop off that fat-ass casing.

Edited by NE146, Wed Nov 4, 2009 9:56 AM.

[SoulBlazer]

Makes me glad that when I got my Elite, Microsoft was still including the HDMI cable with it. Now I understand if you get a Elite today you'd have to buy it sep. I hate things like that.

It's like when Nintendo redesigned the GameCube after it had been out for a while to remove the Component port and once again I was glad I had a older unit.

[roland p]

SoulBlazer, on Sat Nov 7, 2009 1:14 PM, said:

Makes me glad that when I got my Elite, Microsoft was still including the HDMI cable with it. Now I understand if you get a Elite today you'd have to buy it sep. I hate things like that.

It's like when Nintendo redesigned the GameCube after it had been out for a while to remove the Component port and once again I was glad I had a older unit.

On european models they even dropped s-video.

It seems that game-console manufacturers find it hard to provide lots of connections, while every media-player/dvd/blu-ray have them.

[moycon]

SoulBlazer, on Sat Nov 7, 2009 1:14 PM, said:

Now I understand if you get a Elite today you'd have to buy it sep. I hate things like that.

Seriously? So paying $3.03

http://www.amazon.co...57662435&sr=8-1

bothers you so much you'd take the time to complain about it and hate over it?
And folks wonder why they have high blood pressure.

[SoulBlazer]

I'm not sure I'd trust those off brands. Seems MS or Monster would be the best ones.

Hey, it doesn't affect ME any, I have one left from my original XBox Elite. I was just saying.

Too bad the consoles don't last as long as the cables!

[roland p]

moycon, on Sun Nov 8, 2009 12:44 AM, said:

SoulBlazer, on Sat Nov 7, 2009 1:14 PM, said:

Now I understand if you get a Elite today you'd have to buy it sep. I hate things like that.

Seriously? So paying $3.03

http://www.amazon.co...57662435&sr=8-1

bothers you so much you'd take the time to complain about it and hate over it?
And folks wonder why they have high blood pressure.

Nothing wrong with that hdmi cable, but the whole point in buying the overpriced ($53.15) microsoft xbox 360 cable

http://www.amazon.co...7679304&sr=1-43

is the optical output it provides.

The other option for me would be upgrading to a better receiver with hdmi inputs (audio over hdmi) which would set me back another $2000,- This would give me a slight increase of blood pressure

[moycon]

SoulBlazer, on Sun Nov 8, 2009 2:33 AM, said:

I'm not sure I'd trust those off brands.

I've got three of them, so far they all work fine.
I was just messing with you though. Not sure why these companies are so cheap when it comes to cables. My state of the art PS3 that set me back $500 only came with standard audio/video cables!!
Silly.

roland p, on Sun Nov 8, 2009 5:25 AM, said:

in buying the overpriced ($53.15) microsoft xbox 360 cable

Snag the < than $20 one instead (Amazon has lots of 3rd party sellers, just click the "new" tab.)

http://www.amazon.co...&pf_rd_i=507846

Edited by moycon, Sun Nov 8, 2009 11:06 AM.

[Lord Helmet]

SoulBlazer, on Sun Nov 8, 2009 2:33 AM, said:

I'm not sure I'd trust those off brands. Seems MS or Monster would be the best ones.

Hey, it doesn't affect ME any, I have one left from my original XBox Elite. I was just saying.

Too bad the consoles don't last as long as the cables!

Monster Cables are the biggest ripoff in consumer electronics. Total waste of money. I always get my cables at monoprice.com.

[potatohead]

Heck yes they are.

I know a guy that made "high end" cables and racked in an absolute killing near the beginning of the USB tech roll out.

All he did was source some really cool looking wires, had the assembly done overseas, then sold them here for a gross markup plus!! It was silly. His cost on a cable was like $0.30 - $0.50 in lots of 1000. Sold the things for $5 - 10 bucks!!! This kind of thing happens all the time. Beware. He sold enough to start a computer business, just on the damn cables!

With digital HDMI type cables, there are minimum signal requirements they must meet to carry the logo. Bottom line is they all just work. Get the cheaper ones. For longer length cables, it's worth getting the next tier up, and it's also worth ones with good, solid end connector construction. Mechanically, some of the cheaper ones wear easy, but that's something you can avoid by look and feel pretty easy.

Other than that, the extra markups for the Monster and manufacturer brand cables (SONY, for example), are just pure profit items. A good HDMI can be had for like $10, and that includes a nice markup, making it at profit item at that price. The $40 HDMI cables are just total gravy.

For analog cables, there is something to be said for good cables, with appropriate shielding, and conductor gauge. Still Monster just adds a bunch of stuff that really does nothing but give them the excuse to mark it through the roof. Sellers do it again, for a nice double dip outta your wallet. Some items, like RF coaxial cable is worth not scraping the bottom of the barrel.

On USB, btw, the really thin, highly flexible cables do have a voltage drop that impacts some devices that operate right at the limit of the power specifications. I do avoid those, favoring a nice, stiff, larger diameter conductor, or good alloy quality conductor. External disks are sensitive to this. Those cables matter for those devices, YMMV there.

Monster is always a bad deal, unless you feel really good about their cool looks! I know some people like that and will pay, but that's not me, generally.

[Video]

I like HDMI for convienance. One plug on both ends, none of this three cables for color and two for sound (or one for color if you do AV) As for which is better? Hell, I wouldn't buy a new TV just to get HDMI over componant, they both do what they are supposed to do, without a A-B side by side comparision, you're not going to see the difference either way.

I will say, be careful what you plug it into though, I was excited cause one of my friends came over, so I was going to put the X-box in the living room and hook it to the 52"TV in there, and saw an extra HDMI cable laying on the VCR and thought, why not. I picked it up, plugged one end into t x-box, but the TV only has one port, so I tried to plug it into the back of the cable box, damn, it was hard to plug it in, and then I heard something snap. I couldn't see the port to good, so I had to pull all the plugs out to get the box out, and looked at it and was like "sonovabitch" What the hell is SATA? I do know HDMI is close in size, but doesn't fit right. I guess when Direct TV comes back in a few years to update the box again, they'll be wondering what happened to that, but as long as the box still works I'll deny everything

Anyhow, it's handy, just don't plug it in the wrong place (don't know how many times I've plugged a USB into a ethernet port cause it fits perfectly, but nothing breaks there luckily )

Shannon, on Tue Nov 3, 2009 3:32 AM, said:

Component or composite?

The nice thing about HDMI is it carries the audio signal as well, so definitely less wires!

I don't know, all the loose wires won't benoticed behind the TV