Hi-Fi Guides

HDMI have certainly made an impact in the home entertainment systems market, and all new hardware is now manufactured to include HDMI ports, however, although the single cable system makes the connection process and the picture and audio quality much better over the shorter distance, if you need to have a longer cable then there is real deterioration in the quality. Developments and improvements are being made constantly, but even with the highest quality components and the most expensive cable, there is still a limit of around 40 to 50 feet for full effectiveness of the connection quality.

So what can you do if your HDMI cable needs to be longer than the optimum 15 feet? Well, fortunately there are other means to boost the signal strength and retain picture and audio quality. These vary quite a bit in both cost and suitability, so it is important to find the best option for your particular circumstances before forking out lots of cash for something which will make little or no difference.

Signal Boosters

These do exactly as you would expect, boost the signal. They are designed to boost the signal strength so that it can remain stronger over longer distances, you can then attach a number of short cables together and maintain picture quality, this can often work out cheaper than buying one completely line of cable.

Signal Restorers

This is a small separate device which can be attached to the end of the HDMI cable and enable the signal to travel over a much greater distance, even over 100 feet in some cases. The weak signal is, in effect re-synchronized back to the full quality you would expect to receive from your HDMI cable.

Signal Extenders

These work in a similar way to the signal boosters above, and mean that you can attach multiple shorter HDMI cables together and effectively extend the distance that the signal is able to travel.

Fibre Optic Cable

If your HDMI signal needs to travel over very long distances then you will need to invest in fibre optic cable.  This makes transmission possible of over 1500 feet, but is the most expensive option available. If you need your signal to travel this sort of distance though, you will need to invest in fibre optic cable.

So you see, there are options available to you if you need to make your HDMI cable work effectively over greater distances. Maybe with future developments some of these options won’t be necessary, but until then you really need to discuss your requirements with an experienced home entertainment specialist who can advise you on your best and most cost effective option. There have been remarkable innovations over the last few years and new techniques are still arriving constantly onto the marketplace. If you are in the market for a new method of connecting of home entertainment equipment, then HDMI cables are still typically the most cost effective, easy and efficient method of connecting your equipment. When used correctly the picture and audio quality is much higher than with many other methods.