Extending an HDMI Cable

[Dennis Brown]

I'm trying to extend an HDMI cable from my Dish 722 receiver in one room to a new HDTV in another. My wife brought a 25' HDMI cord which we thought would be long enough. It wasn't. So I brought an HDMI coupler from Monoprice and coupled the 25' cable with a 6' one that was lying around. It's still not long enough.

I know I should have checked the distance with a tape measure. I need to purchase a 10' or 12' HDMI cable from Monoprice. There seem to be a variety of cables of different quality.

Can someone recommend a grade of HDMI cable from Monoprice which will minimize signal degradation in my setup.

Thanks,

Dennis

 

[Kevinw]

You can return the Monoprice coupler and buy a 5o ft from Monoprice and then have waht you need.

 

[Dennis Brown]

Thanks Kevin:

The problem with replacing the existing cable with a new 50' one is that it took me 4 hours to fish the cable in my attic crawlspace. I'm black and blue and am sore all over from squeezing into tiny spaces. My wife, bless her heart, assisted me in this ordeal and will do unspeakable things to me if I start the process over.

Do you have a less desireable but more pragmatic solution.

Thanks,

Dennis

 

[Kevinw]

Use something from Monoprice that is similar to what you are currently using.
Is it possible to connect a 50 ft length to what is behind the wall/in the attic and reverse pull it through? Were the openings that you snaked the cable through wide enough for the HDMI ends to easily be pulled back through?
I feel your pain crawling through my attic multiple times to run Cat5 and Rg6 was downright unhealthy.

 

[jayn_j]

I tend to worry about runs that are upwards of 50 ft.

First, if you think you need 10 ft, buy 15. You don't want to keep doing this in pieces. In addition, a run that "just makes it" causes grief when you need to pull the set out to add a cable or make an adjustment. You really want 2 to 3 ft extra for this.

Second, instead of a coupler, I would consider a repeater, such as this one:
For only $18.90 each when QTY 50+ purchased - HDMI Active Equalizer Extender Repeater - Extend Upto 100FT | HDMI Repeater/Coupler

A repeater will take a signal that is degrading and clean up the edges, returning it to a good signal. This would eliminate the possibility of sparklies.

I agree with kevin about trying to match the cable with what you already have. You don't want worse, and after 25', there is probably no advantage to going with one with a higher bandwidth.

 

[Ilya]

The problem with replacing the existing cable with a new 50' one is that it took me 4 hours to fish the cable in my attic crawlspace. I'm black and blue and am sore all over from squeezing into tiny spaces. My wife, bless her heart, assisted me in this ordeal and will do unspeakable things to me if I start the process over.

You may not like this advice, but if I were you, I would bite the bullet and replace your current setup with a single 35' or 40' cable. Preferably using a higher grade 22 AWG wire.

I know it's pain just to think about all the work involved. But you've done it once, you can do it again. It might be easier this time: perhaps you can just attach the new cable to one end of the old cable, wrap it with a masking tape or something and pull the other end of the old cable.

At this cable length, there is always a possibility of you experiencing some HDMI issues, if not now, then down the road. And if that ever happens, it will be a big headache to troubleshoot the problem. Too many suspects: two cables, the coupler, intermediate connections. Perhaps it's better to avoid all that and do it right in the first place. Just give it another thought.

 

[lakebum431]

I tend to worry about runs that are upwards of 50 ft.

First, if you think you need 10 ft, buy 15. You don't want to keep doing this in pieces. In addition, a run that "just makes it" causes grief when you need to pull the set out to add a cable or make an adjustment. You really want 2 to 3 ft extra for this.

Second, instead of a coupler, I would consider a repeater, such as this one:
For only $18.90 each when QTY 50+ purchased - HDMI Active Equalizer Extender Repeater - Extend Upto 100FT | HDMI Repeater/Coupler

A repeater will take a signal that is degrading and clean up the edges, returning it to a good signal. This would eliminate the possibility of sparklies.

I agree with kevin about trying to match the cable with what you already have. You don't want worse, and after 25', there is probably no advantage to going with one with a higher bandwidth.

No need to get a repeater at this length on a HDMI run. I have twice (once at my house and once at my dad's house) run 100' runs with no issues at all. Both going to large Pioneer Plasmas and I've noticed NO loss in signal quality at all.

 

[Dennis Brown]

Thanks for all your help everyone. My black and blue marks will be gone in a week or so. I'll order a new 45' HDMI 22AWG cable from Monoprice and redo the job.

In Hawaii it's 6:45 am and my wife is still asleep. Is it ok to blame you guys

Aloha and mahalo from the Big Island,

Dennis

 

[Kevinw]

As I was saying earlier, tape the new end securely to the old end and pull back through the openings. Sort of like using a fish tape

 

[Ilya]

I'll order a new 45' HDMI 22AWG cable from Monoprice and redo the job.

Make sure to get ferrite cores too. They may not be included with the 22AWG cables intended for in-wall installation.

 

[Dennis Brown]

Make sure to get ferrite cores too. They may not be included with the 22AWG cables intended for in-wall installation.

I checked the Monoprice website and couldn't find any HDMI cables with ferrite cores in longer lengths. Am I looking in the wrong place or do I need to purchase ferrite core cables from another internet vendor.

 

[Kevinw]

NBuy th e cores seperately and add them after pulling the wire. Makes it easier
For only $2.21 each when QTY 50+ purchased - Ferrite Cores (1 PAIR) for 22AWG HDMI Cable | Ferrite Core

 

[Dennis Brown]

Thanks Kevin. Based on your previous recommendations I have the following on order from Monoprice:

1. 4035 HDMI tin-plated CL2 cable (22AWG)-45';
2. 5312 4X2 True Matrix HDMI 1.3a w/remote controller (on back order);
3. 4154 Ferrite cores for 22AWG HDMI cable.

Will these items work together to accomplish the task.

Thanks for your help.

Dennis

 

[Kevinw]

How did it work out?

 

[Dennis Brown]

Hi Kevin:

The 45' HDMI cable and ferrite cores arrived earlier this week and have been installed (more black and blue bruises). The reception on HD reception on the remote TV is perfect. The 4X2 True matrix HDMI is still on back order from Monoprice and is not expected to be available until April, when I'll be out of the country.

If you can recommend an alternative that is available now, I'd appreciate it.

Nevertheless, Thanks for all your help.

Dennis

 

[John Kotches]

Dennis and everyone else that participated in this thread... A much more effective solution than very long runs of HDMI cables are the Cat5/Cat6 extenders. They aren't cheap, running anywhere from $100 on up. The tradeoff is they allow you to extend out more than 100 feet using relatively inexpensive and easy to fish Cat 5 cabling.

How much are Dennis' bumps and bruises and all that time worth?

We often get wrapped in the $$$ cost and ignore other valid factors.

 

[Dennis Brown]

Dennis and everyone else that participated in this thread... A much more effective solution than very long runs of HDMI cables are the Cat5/Cat6 extenders. They aren't cheap, running anywhere from $100 on up. The tradeoff is they allow you to extend out more than 100 feet using relatively inexpensive and easy to fish Cat 5 cabling.

How much are Dennis' bumps and bruises and all that time worth?

We often get wrapped in the $$$ cost and ignore other valid factors.

Oh well. The black and blue bruises are healing.