Need HDMI Cable Input: Knowledge/Comparison Assist, Please

@sfcfran That's a real shame, but I understand after a bad experience not going there again. Sounds like it was definitely defective, not just the connector.

I have had all 3 versions of the Mapleshade HDMI cable. The last, v3, was a huge jump over the previous 2 and better than any other HDMI I have ever tried. It even massively improves the Xbox X video output. It was way better than the Nordost Heimdall HDMI. I admit to not yet having tried the Valhalla HDMI, perhaps that one is king, but look at the cost differential...

The Vivlink 3 has much better physical geometry than the previous versions, being a single conductor run, but it has the usual Mapleshade negatives, fragile construction, and its shield cannot touch any metal, it essentially has to hang in the air, or only touch wood. But like all Pierre's designs, that's the price you pay to get the world beating performance.

BTW I have hard wired my last 2 OLED tv’s using high end audio power cable.

The very recent one, done 2 months ago, an LG G2, I had to take off the entire back shell, as there was no small panel port to access the hardwired power cable like there usually is on LG tv’s.

I have done this twice now, many years apart, and noticed the same thing,,, if the TV is only a 2 core power input, make sure to only use 2 core (figure 8) cable, or if using good 3 core, leave the ground/earth wire disconnected at both ends so it floats. For me having the earth/ground connected at the wall point (but not at the TV, as it only accept positive and neutral) resulted in slightly reduced performance both times.

@agisthos   Thank you!  It actually makes sense, but I probably wouldn't have thought to leave the wall receptacle end of the ground floating.  Most likely on sheer reflex I would have terminated that ground to the male receptacle ground port.  Curious, since you've been there-done that twice already ... were the conductors going into your tv sets clamped in place or soldered?   Big fingers crossed you're going to tell me it's a simple clamping mechanism in there.

@sfcfran Of course it will differ from model or manufacturer, but check this thread for what is going on in the LG tv’s;

The cable is connected to the TV power supply via a white connector, but pushed into that connector is spade plugs, which you solder your wires into first. You can try and clamp them into the spade, but its safer to solder IMO. It was all very straightforward, until LG decided to remove the small access port to even get to it on 2022 models. Perhaps this year will return to normal.

I now believe C7/Figure 8 cables, when using 3 core wire but floating at the component end, are compromised in performance due to the connected ground acting as an antenna up the cable length. I have tried it enough times now to confirm this for myself, the first time back 2012. Back then I had the Nordost Heimdall 2 Figure 8, which was just their normal power cable but with a C7 connector on the end. Floating the ground both ends was always better. On a Sony FALD TV, not floating the ground introduced a very slight extra judder in panning shots and fast movement. Floating it fixed that. And now the exact same thing occurred on the new LG G2, it was uncanny.

Wireworld used to be the top pick with respected videophiles.