Hey guys, I did this on another forum and people seemed to enjoy it (and the results were fascinating), so I thought I'd bring it here too.
I am posting a link to a gallery of screen shots. The shots compare the performance of 4 different brands of component video cables in my system. These are DVD images on my Panasonic 42" ED plasma. I used freeze-frame images and switched between the 4 brands of cable, taking a screen shot of each.
In the gallery, for each DVD image, you'll find 4 uncompressed file screen shots - one of each cable brand image - and then those same screen shots "ZOOMED IN" or enlarged via photo editing software, so you can look for more fine details.
Before I reveal which brand is which, this will be a "blind test" poll with each brand only represented by A,B,C or D. Please view the shots and then post your vote for the Cable that seemed to produce the best images. (Cable A, B, C, D..or if you can't tell a difference between them please say so). Also, please post any comments you have about the images. I will reveal the identity of each cable in the screen shots after the poll (maybe after a day or so).
I've found two methods are good for comparing the shots. One is to click on the first shot in a sequence (make sure ORIGINAL SIZE is indicated below the image, if not select original size and all subsequent shots will open up in original size). Then, to the top right of the image just click on "Next" to switch to the next screen shot. Alternatively you could open up the shots in separate browser windows...or whatever.
Here Is The Link To The Cable Comparison Screen Shots
Obviously there is nothing definitive about this, but I figured I'd share the fun (pain, actually) of my own comparison with the folks here.
The 1 Meter Length Component Cables I used were these 4 brands:
XLO ER DVD3 Component Cables. ($170 Canadian)
Ultra Link Challenger Home Theater Series. The cheapest cables at $40 CDN a meter.
Canare V3-3C Component Cables. These cost me about $70 CDN to have professionally made locally.
Nordost Optix Video Cables. Top of the line boutique cables. These are always reviewed as about the top performance you can buy for video cables. 1 meter costs $360 CDN.
BACKGROUND / DISCUSSION
As a long time audiophile and more recently videophile (hideous labels, but what the heck) I am well steeped in the issue of Cable Wars: how much if any difference do various brands of cables make in terms of perceptible differences in performance. I've done the rounds with audio cables and power cables many times, including blind testing. It's only been the past couple years that I've started comparing video cables. The part of me that is an inveterate tweaker wants cables to make a difference, because I always want more performance out of my system. My rational, scientific side says the basic facts of engineering say that, any competently made cable, appropriately deployed (e.g. at a length at which it performs properly, and not in an abnormally "noisy" interference environment) SHOULD look indistinguishable from another competent cable. My wallet also does not want to see a really expensive cable outperform one I can afford.
I had to re-cable a bit of my system recently and whished to purchase 17 ft of cable from my video switcher to my 42" Panasonic Plasma. I wanted a known quantity, a professional-grade cable well made. After agonizing of the specs of RG6 cables from Belden and Canare I ended up "letting go" of my specs infatuation in order to get the more flexible Canare LV-61S cables. These seemed a good choice because they have some bending and twisty routes, including attaching to my plasma, which I move about on it's articulated arm mount. I also had a 4 foot length of Canare V3-3C (included in the test images) made up to go from my DVD player to my Inday Video Switcher. While the specs aren't as impressive as the Canare and Belden RG6-based cables, my Canare cables are in engineering terms supposed to easily meet the needs of HD transmission (at the lengths I'm using) and be way over-kill for Progressive DVD. After all, this is the stuff - Canare and Belden - typically used in the professional studios that are actually making the content we view.
But of course each boutique cable manufacturer makes it's claim to how their cable affects the images on your display. "Clearer, sharper, richer color than the other brand." We see reviews mentioning "smoother, lower picture noise, more vivid reds, more dimensional etc." Now, it would be one thing if these claims were associated with really, really long runs of cable (for instance, you might start looking for trouble with some cables after the propagation of one video wave length which I think is about 66 feet). However, these claims are generally made for comparisons between short lengths of cable - 1 or two meters for instance. At which point many Electrical Engineers will tend to scoff that one would see any performance difference between decent cables.
So, out of curiosity I did my own little shoot out between the fairly low cost Ultra Link cables up through to the most lauded Nordost video cables to see if I could see a difference. I didn't have anyone to help me so it wasn't a blind test, just me trying to spot differences. Now, it might be protested that DVD on a 42" ED plasma wouldn't be good enough to spot cable differences. I would counter that with: The cable makers and reviewers make claims that one WILL see differences on set-ups like mine. Secondly, the resolution of 480p (progressive scan DVD) is way below any frequency limitations one should find in a decent cable. And it's not like an ED plasma doesn't have enough resolution - it has plenty of resolution for the limits of DVD.
Now, while the screen shots represent 4 brands of cable at about 1 meter length each, my own testing went beyond that to testing my 16 ft length of Canare against those shorter-length cables too, and also testing my Inday Video Switcher for any visible degradation. At one point I compared my DVD playing through the meter of Canare V3-3C cable, into the Inday switcher, out the 16 foot length to the plasma, against the Nordost 1m length of cable directly into my plasma. Unfortunately I'll have to elaborate on what I saw after the Poll is done here.
Have fun.
