HDMI extenders

[GreenKiwi]

I'm moving my AV system into an office near our TV and HT, so that it is out of sight, but I need to get my HDMI signal to the TV. I feel like I have a few options. (Btw, I've just picked monoprice items because it's an easy way to describe items. I might look elsewhere for some items, if they made more sense.

1. 40-50' HDMI Cable with or without connectors
www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=102&cp_id=10240&cs_id=1024005&p_id=3965&seq=1&format=2

Just have it come out through holes in the walls in both locations.

Pros

• Only one set of connections
  
• Simple
  
• Cheapest
  

Cons

• Potential problems with runs at 40-50'
  
• ugly cable sticking through wall
  

2. similar cable with with wall plates on one or both ends
www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=104&cp_id=10425&cs_id=1042501&p_id=7330&seq=1&format=2

Pros

• Cleaner look
  

Cons

• Additional connections in the system
  
• long HDMI run still exists
  

3. HDMI Extended via CAT6
www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=104&cp_id=10425&cs_id=1042501&p_id=8008&seq=1&format=1#largeimage

Pros

• Cleaner look
  
• Really easy and cheap to run shielded CAT6
  

Cons

• Don't know how well they work
  
• Some comments that IR signals can't go back. Also don't know if I could "reverse" the IR. I want it to go from my source out to my TV, rather than the other way around.
  

4. Wireless HDMI
www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=109&cp_id=10110&cs_id=1011011&p_id=8087&seq=1&format=2

Pros

• Simplest solution
  

Cons

• Don't know how well they work
  
• IR probably isn't bi-directional
  

I'd love to hear what others have done and think of any of these solutions.

Thanks,
gk

[AudioHTIT]

I ran 50' of BlueJeans 24 AWG HDMI from living room equipment rack to bedroom. I currently drive it with the HDMI out from my Dish 722 DVR, it works great, it also worked fine with my Onkyo 5008 (haven't tried the UMC-1). I also let the cable come through the wall plates to reduce connections. I tried a Monoprice splitter in line with this so I could also run to UMC-1 but got no sound in the bedroom and black screen on UMC-1. I'll still need to figure out a solution before XMC arrives, change to Hopper/Joey, or give up HD in bedroom. Haven't tried anything bi-directional. I also ran a 4 conductor 24awg that I use to extend the Harmony emitter/blasters into the other room. Now that I think about it I also ran a Monoprice 12/4 to have zone 2 speakers off the Onkyo but never used them. I used keystone type connectors on everything except HDMI.

If I were going to string HDMI again I'd try the new Monoprice Redmere stuff. I bought one 6' to try it out and very nice to work with (but if you string 50' be sure to note that it's directional!) I haven't tried cat 6 for HDMI but I have a lot strung through the house (all home run to server rack though). I have a friend who uses wireless HDMI to his outdoor TV and loves it - I think it was IOGear he got at Costco.

The 24AWG HDMI is very awkward to work with and the weight and torque on the connectors is problematic. I'm considering adding wall plates and connectors to reduce stress. So I wouldn't do 24AWG too bulky, try Redmere, Cat-6, or probably wireless - I can get the model my friend is using if you're interested.

[spork]

50' is right on the edge of where HDMI begins to have problems with signal attenuation. It will probably work, but there are some pieces of gear which will begin to have handshake issues. It really all depends on what you have in the system and how strong your AVR/processor outputs the HDMI signal.

1. For 50' runs, use 24 AWG or thicker.

2. Each connector may further attenuate the HDMI signal (which, again, may or may not be an issue with a long run), but other than that, you shouldn't worry about additional connectors here, digital versus analog and all that.

3. I have had the best luck here with runs of up to 100 ft+. Use two runs of CAT6 per HDMI run. Ignore CAT5e, it has more issues than CAT6 for this implementation. At 50' you should be fine with passive plates, but truly long runs should be powered. IR compatibility is one direction (backwards only) and only for single band devices (dual band IR will not function through the extender). (Why do you need bidirectional IR?)

4. Keep in mind that the extender you linked from Monoprice only does 32.8 ft through walls. The 65.6 ft number is based on line of sight, so double check your distances. I don't have as much experience with through-wall extenders. Generally I use line of sight extenders, and the best I have found is the DVDO AIR. In any case, I would advise to go wired if at all possible.

5?. As AudioHTIT mentioned, Monoprice does stock Redmere which supposedly will go 50' without issue. Personally, CAT6 is my choice as it is the most versatile to have run through your walls and is the easiest to run. Otherwise, I would probably give Redmere a try.

Edit: Also, if you have issues with IR, you may want to look into an IR to RF to IR extender in place of using the IR on the plate.

[GreenKiwi]

Thanks for all the thoughts and experiences.

1. Yeah, either 24AWG or the Redmere, which I didn't know about, but sound interesting. I'm guessing that they are active cables?

2. while I'm not worried about connections and signal quality in the digital sense, each wall connector adds 2 connections to the mix, so any problems with the connectors, if i'm right at the edge or range, at 40-50'. Though maybe with Redmere it wouldn't be a big deal.

3. I was thinking dual shielded CAT6 was my plan. Maybe I'll just get the plates and try them with cables out side the walls to see how they work.

3. reverse IR
I'm going to have my main control device (IP based) in the server rack with all my components. The only items outside will be the TV power and volume, and unfortunately it doesn't have IP control. So I'll need an IR blaster of some sort. In the end, I might just get a second redeye command unit and set it up as a slave.

4. Regarding wireless HDMI and distance:
The point to point will only be about 15'. The 40-50' for HDMI is up from teh floor to the ceiling and back down(20'), and then over to the TV wall (15') and then back up to the TV (5-6')

And I agree, I'd rather do wired.

5. Completely, I'm really glad AudioHTIT mentioned that, it looks quite interezting.

[GreenKiwi]

I also have to figure out how I want to deal with selecting sources going out to the TV.

I have 4 sources:
1. Apple TV
2. TiVO
3. PS3
4. Mac Mini

I will have an XMC, so my thinking was have a matrixed HDMI switch in the rack, either 4x4 matrix or a 4x1 and some splitters. I was hoping the XMC would have HDMI for zone 2, but there are other solutions.

I did find something like this:
www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=101&cp_id=10113&cs_id=1011310&p_id=8151&seq=1&format=1#largeimage

I'd probably merge TiVo with the macmini with and EyeTV and then just have 3 inputs always to the XMC and 1 input setup for switching to the TV. It would remove one set of connections, having the CAT6 output from it directly. I wonder whether it is OK with having "connections" in the CAT 6 line, i.e. connect to a plug in the wall and then from a plug back to the device before the TV. I'm guessing these are more "active" so it might be more tolerant.

Also, RS232 would allow for better control from the remote unit.

-a

[wrinklemash]

I know a few people who have had luck with the following line amplifier and 24 AWG HDMI cables.

www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?partnumber=181-766

Supposedly, you can go up 90 feet with one of these.

[jlafrenz]

Have you thought about using a Balun?

[AudioHTIT]

Oct 16, 2012 21:18:21 GMT -5 jlafrenz said:

Have you thought about using a Balun?

I was always assuming the CAT-6 option was using baluns?

[rlw]

Get the MonoPrice Redmere HDMI cable, NO problem with a 50 ft. run....

-RW-

[GreenKiwi]

rlw is it ok to have the redmere in the wall, with wall plates and then short runs from the wall up?