Oh Dear....

Relax- you'll love it.

Get the engineer to perform the Firmware download while he's there, so you know you're on the latest software (then you should have no lipsync issues).

Also, the supplied HDMI will work, but you won't get the best from your box: even a minor upgrade (say, to Cambridge Audio HDMI at £30; even better to QED HDMI Performance at £45) should bring noticeable benefits.

I have ixus cables that i paid to much for when really the signal is digital. Its either off or on there is no analogue noise there is no interference you either have a signal or you dont so unless you need a really long cable different hdmi makes no difference apart from looking nicer and .. well thats it. Sorry but i dont want to see anyone else suckered into buying expensive hdmi when it can scientifically make absolutely not one iota of difference to your pq or sq. 

dansmith:

I have ixus cables that i paid to much for when really the signal is digital. Its either off or on there is no analogue noise there is no interference you either have a signal or you dont so unless you need a really long cable different hdmi makes no difference apart from looking nicer and .. well thats it. Sorry but i dont want to see anyone else suckered into buying expensive hdmi when it can scientifically make absolutely not one iota of difference to your pq or sq. 

We've had this argument a million times and I don't intend to wade into it all over again.

If people remain sceptical, they can always try before they buy - plenty of places offer money-back guarantees.

dansmith:

I have ixus cables that i paid to much for when really the signal is digital. Its either off or on there is no analogue noise there is no interference you either have a signal or you dont so unless you need a really long cable different hdmi makes no difference apart from looking nicer and .. well thats it. Sorry but i dont want to see anyone else suckered into buying expensive hdmi when it can scientifically make absolutely not one iota of difference to your pq or sq. 

Before anyone begins 'Interconnects WW14' on here just look at the thousands of previous posts on the subject. Saves a lot of time and tempers  

there is no arguement im a software engineer and you simply cant argue with scientific fact any difference people claim to see is percieved and i spent alot of money on my hdmi cables i certainly wont do it again. but as i said they look alot nicer than the simple one that comes with the box.

dansmith:

you simply cant argue with scientific fact .

A preposterous statement.

I refer to my last remark. After trawling through thousands of posts, tell me there is no argument. Oh and there are scientists who argue both sides. Enjoy.

you can't. You need ot produce evidence that reputes it not argue it.

Those threads do that - i suggest you read them before you pass judgment. And, in the best scientific tradition, keep an open mind.

what do i search for? id love to think the 80£ a cable i paid for 3 of them wasnt just paying for snake oil but i doubt i'll be convinced and before i waste my time reading the threads is going to be people's percieved differences or actually measurable quantitve differences.

See, you're 'arguing' and haven't examined the 'evidence' of the thousands of posts on the subject. I'm not a believer, but many are, and some of those have lots of pens in their top pocket. Feel free to take a look at those posts and then come back.

shado, do as Clare says and use your eyes to decide. You can return a cable if you're not happy.

Good luck. 

dansmith:

what do i search for? id love to think the 80£ a cable i paid for 3 of them wasnt just paying for snake oil but i doubt i'll be convinced and before i waste my time reading the threads is going to be people's percieved differences or actually measurable quantitve differences.

Here you go with just one example - there are some great links within this thread, too.

The world is flat. There, i said it.

Direct from the HDMI web site:

Although a Standard HDMI cable may not have been tested to support the higher bandwidth requirements of cables rated to support high speeds, existing cables, especially ones of shorter lengths (i.e., less than 2 meters), will generally perform adequately in higher speed situations. The quality of the HDMI receiver chip (in the TV, for example) has a large effect on the ability to cleanly recover and display the HDMI signal. A significant majority, perhaps all, of the HDMI TVs and projectors that support 1080p on the HDMI inputs are designed with quality receiver chips that may cleanly recover the 1080p HDMI signal using a Standard-rated HDMI cable. These receiver chips use technology called "cable equalization" in order to counter the signal reduction (attenuation) caused by a cable. We have seen successful demonstrations of 1080p signal runs on a >50 ft. cable, and a 720p signal run on a >75 ft. cable. However, the only way to guarantee that your cable will perform at higher speeds is to purchase a cable that has been tested at the higher speeds and labeled as "High-Speed."

So yes there are differences - 2 catagories of HDMI cable are recognised by the HDMI group. There is more on the HDMI web site http://www.hdmi.org/ 

But to an extent the subjective stuff you see written beyond that is just that - subjective. As long as you have a certified HDMI cable of either catogory 1 or catoagory 2  that meets your need you are home free.

There is also some useful stuff about attenuation of signal on Wiki for those contemplating long runs of cable.

JohnDuncan:

The world is flat. There, i said it.

Sorry, but with 'snakeoil' already used in this thread, we are now exceeding our cable-argument cliche allocation...