Which HDMI cable for I2S?


I'm currently using an inexpensive 12 inch long Monoprice cable to connect my dac to a Gustard U18 interface. Honestly, it sounds quite good.

I don't want to buy a pricey cable, but maybe something by DH Labs, etc. 

There are some deals on older cables that meet HDMI 1.3, 1.4, or 2.0 standards. I know these standards are for video. Would all of them work for I2S digital audio? Would the higher standard HDMI 2.1 be better? 

sls883

Showing 3 responses by big_greg

I bought a DH Labs cable when I first got my DAC and server.  I then bought a Revelation Audio Labs Prophecy CryoSilver Reference cable.  Both my server and DAC have 2 i2s connections, so it was super easy to A/B them.  I'm a bit of a cable skeptic, but there was a noticeable difference in sound quality between the two with the RAL having a clear edge. 

Did you do any a/b comparisons between a cheap cable like the Monoprice and the DH Labs? 

I did not.  It would be easy enough to do though, I have some entry level HDMI cables in the cable closet.

@big_greg

Did you do any a/b comparisons between a cheap cable like the Monoprice and the DH Labs? 

I did this for giggles the other night and could not tell much, if any, difference.  The same happened when I did A/B with the DH Labs vs. Revelation Audio Labs cable. 

I currently have some rather laid back speakers in my system, so it could be that it's a matter of the system not being revealing enough at the moment to clearly delineate the differences, that my ears weren't up to the task, or that when I first bought the Revelation Audio Labs cable, confirmation bias kicked in.  What fun hobby!  

If there's anything you might be able to takeaway, it's that your system needs to be pretty revealing for differences like that to be noticeable.  With my KEF Reference 1 speakers in the system, the difference between the DH Labs and Revelation Audio Labs cables was clearly noticeable, and I did the comparison on more than one occasion.