Cables

Cables are like paperwork... A job's just not finished until the last cable hookup. In the end, it does not matter how good of a HDTV, surround sound home theater or gaming system you have. The quality is only going to be as good as the cables that move the music and picture between the components.
I did a simple experiment with my LCD. I first hooked up the PS3 system and home theater system to the LCD using only component cables and s-cables and then follow it up with HDMI cables. The picture and sound quality were drastic. Not only does the system perform better but it is also a cleaner look. You know what I mean… in the back of the cabinet and behind the TV if you have all kinds of wires, it’s eventually going to look like spaghetti. Using the HDMI cables, you only have three cables. One cable goes from the TV to the PS3 and one more from the TV to the home theater system. One more thing about HDMI cables… if you go to your local big box electronic store, you’re going to get sticker shock. These things are not cheap. When I first got my system, Norm bought one me HDMI cable and paid over $70 for ONE cable. Don’t get me wrong, she wasn’t taken from the sales rep; it’s just what they cost. Actually, it almost was a deal breaker for me. Just after that, I saw the exact PS3 game system at Blockbuster, they threw in a remote and a HDMI cable, and the bottom line was that it cost less. I found a great place to get HDMI cables. It’s an online store called http://mycablemart.com/. They have just about every kind of cable and they test each one to ensure that it meets minimum standards. The thing that I wanted to point out is that the exact same cable is 1/10 of the cost of the big box store. The ordering process is straightforward and the cables arrive when they said they would. Communication is via email and the experience was painless. They are a great company to work with. One last thing… if you want to use them, they gave me a 10% off coupon that I can share with my friends. Just type RTNCUST10PER at checkout. One thing that you want to note is that the quality of the cable is not diminished and if I was, you don’t go out and buy a “Monster” cable or any of the other name brands. You will not be able to see the difference as long as the length of the cable is less then twenty-five feet. Check out what c/net had to say on this same point… http://reviews.cnet.com/4520-10166_7-6677266-1.html. Other great sites that review cables are http://www.hdmi.org/learningcenter/faq.aspx and http://www.mycablemart.com/help/hdmi_versions.php; these last two sites are more for the tech savvy.