HDMI cable clamping force woes

[swt61]

While reading the new July issue of Stereophile, I came across a good article on HDMI cables. The article is mostly about the cables one achilles heal... light clamping force. The article goes on to state that the problem is not just aggravating, but can lead to cable and or socket failure. If the cable connection is dislodged too many times it can cause the cable or socket to fail permanently.

They go on to give a few cable solutions, namely cables with a tighter clamping force, cables with a PC type screw connector, and finally a clamp system for use on any HDMI cable.

The latter is the solution that most interested me, since I will soon be putting my A/V system together, and plan to use HDMI between my Oppo Blu-ray player & A/V receiver, and from the receiver to the plasma TV.

The company is Blue Echo Solutions, and the clamp is called hd EZ lock. While maybe not the best solution for those constantly moving gear around, it seems like a good solution for my needs. It's not exactly cheap at $20.00 per pair, but can be a bargain compared to socket replacement or cable failure.

I'll expound more on them once they've arrived and have been installed in my system.

Blue Echo Solutions: hd EZ lock - Universal HDMI Locking Adapter, HDMI Cables, and more Consumer Electronics Solutions | www.blueechosolutions.com

[Fitz]

Yeah, whoever designed the HDMI connector deserves a good . Those locking adapters are indeed kinda pricy (more than the cable), but might be very useful for installations where the cable just won't stay put. Keep us posted on how well they work.

[Duggeh]

The difficulties with the connector, bad though they are, are a far second to the difficulties caused by the cable topology. Blue Jeans FAQ section gives a most marvelous breakdown of HDMI hate.

[Grahame]

You reali(s/z)e of course, that its going to change, again (and again ...) .

New hdmi cable standard comes out - The Inquirer

And it was such a good idea in the first place

What's the Matter with HDMI? — Reviews and News from Audioholics

[screaming oranges]

You reali(s/z)e of course, that its going to change, again (and again ...) .

New hdmi cable standard comes out - The Inquirer

And it was such a good idea in the first place

What's the Matter with HDMI? — Reviews and News from Audioholics

Audioholics reference the BJC article in their citations.

[kevin gilmore]

Yep hdmi seriously sucks.

I've built small metal brackets, custom for each device. Attaches to
a nearby screw, and holds the cable perfectly level about 3 inches
away from the connector. No problem so far.

For the long runs of which i have 2, i'm using hdmi to dual 100T ethernet
converters. Works great with cat6 cable even at 1080p.

[Dusty Chalk]

Do you use them just for video?

So that makes Parasound's choice to use them for I2S even more questionable?

[swt61]

I'm going to try it for video and audio.

[tkam]

I've been reading about these complaints regarding HDMI cables for years now and while I agree the design is pretty piss poor I still wonder how many people have actually had connectors fail and that sort of thing?

[JBLoudG20]

I've been using HDMI for just about a couple years, and have no complaints what so ever. And I plug-unplug my PS3 two to three times per week when I move it.

[swt61]

So these have shown up, and have been installed.

They're easy to install and clamp like a son of a gun! You could drag your piece of gear behind the car by the HDMI cable, with this thing installed!

[ronnielee54]

I have found that the Audioquest HDMI cables have pretty good clamping force. I use the HDMI-A's which are their low end cables, and have had no problems with them coming loose. Their audio and video performance is pretty good to for a reasonably priced cable.

[guzziguy]

Here's my idea of a reasonably priced HDMI cable.

[swt61]

Here's my idea of a reasonably priced HDMI cable.

I bought mine from cablesforless.com...

CablesforLess - Standard Quality HDMI Cables (For those on a budget)

They're pretty heavy, and seem to be well made, with gold plated connectors as well.

[Duggeh]

Yep hdmi seriously sucks.

I've built small metal brackets, custom for each device. Attaches to
a nearby screw, and holds the cable perfectly level about 3 inches
away from the connector. No problem so far.

For the long runs of which i have 2, i'm using hdmi to dual 100T ethernet
converters. Works great with cat6 cable even at 1080p.

We have a 50 foot run of the Blue Jeans long run cable, at 1080p/50 and 1080p/60 we get unacceptable signal corruption (sparklies).

How difficult and expensive is this network cable solution?

[guzziguy]

I bought mine from cablesforless.com...

CablesforLess - Standard Quality HDMI Cables (For those on a budget)

They're pretty heavy, and seem to be well made, with gold plated connectors as well.

Those look good to me. If I needed HDMI cables, I'd order those.

[swt61]

We have a 50 foot run of the Blue Jeans long run cable, at 1080p/50 and 1080p/60 we get unacceptable signal corruption (sparklies).

How difficult and expensive is this network cable solution?

I have one long run at 15'. I won't know how that will look until the TV arrives (hopefully within the next week). But this sounds like a good solution if the current setup is unacceptable.