Does cable length affect HDMI quality?

[Jimmyboy]

I'm after a HDMI cable but it needs to be a minimum of 3metres. I'm just wondering if the picture quality will devalue in comparison to the more typical 1.6metre length cables or not?

[deftone666]

Not 3 metres no, they reckon when you start getting up to 10-15 metres the signal might drop if you dont use good quality cable. You'll be fine with 3.

[thescrounger]

Over 3 metres, build quality becomes important for HDMI. The data has to travel further and has more chance to degrade or break up. You're probably OK with about 3 metres.

[nwgarratt]

3m will be fine. At longer distances it is harder to keep 1080p without problems (handshaking issues, snow effect like interference) so more money needs to be spent on the cables.

[Ste7en]

http://www.hdmi.org/consumer/how_to_connect.aspx

http://www.hdmi.org/learningcenter/kb.aspx?c=13#44

[Todd Tomorrow]

I have a 10 meter cable from my PS3 to my projector and it looks fine. It's certainly no worse than the 1.5 meter cable of my previous set up. It wasn't that expensive either.

[LV426]

Well, yes. The thing is that "picture quality" won't be affected in any of the traditional ways - sharpness, colour depth, noise etc etc... if the signal is degraded. It will either be perfect (meaning, as good as it will ever be) or non-existent (with just the slightest chance of intermittently unwatchable). So the simple answer is - if it works, then it works.

For interest my projector is fed from my DVD player using a 10m HDMI cable which cost £23. And "it works". So there is absolutely NO reason to spend more.