The new HDMI: AudioQuest's Indulgence
There should be nothing routine about your home theater experience. Every time you sit down to watch an HD movie with multi-channel surround sound or chill out with your favorite album, you should be enthralled, astonished, impressed, mystified, transported . . . and above all else, indulged. The folks at AudioQuest work to ensure that your home theater experience is unparalleled, and a crucial component of true high-fidelity audio and video is secure, stable, clear data transmission. In other words, killer cables. Redefining HDMI, AudioQuest presents the Indulgence series. These cables excel where other cables dare not tread — exceptional video transfer, unprecedented audio-signal transmission, ethernet communication, and audio return capability . . . And all this is thanks to the innovation and sophistication of AudioQuest engineering. As your introduction to the Indulgence series, the 2M Forest cable offers solid long-grain copper conductors and solid polyethylene dielectric for high-speed, high-fidelity audio and video signal transmission. All from a single cable.
A change in focus: Speed to sound
The High Definition Multimedia Interface (a.k.a HDMI) emerged in 2004 as the only cable capable of transmitting both Full HD 1080p video and 7.1-channel lossless audio along a single cable. Instantly, it revolutionized home theater, allowing simple, yet advanced, system connectivity even for the most complex HD systems. Since HDMI's inception, the focus of HDMI cable quality has always been on speed. In other words, on the signal-transmission rate (Gigabytes-per-second) of which a cable is capable. Unfortunately, this focus is misleading. Very misleading. Historically, it has been assumed that higher speeds meant better cable performance. History, however, has been wrong. Because HDMI licensing ( and physics) mandates a maximum output rate of 10.2 Gbps, no device can output data at any higher rates. Accordingly, claims that HDMI cables rated as high as 29 Gbps are superior are irrelevant, especially since most media output data at less than 10.2 Gbps. For this reason, with the Indulgence series, AudioQuest redirects the focus . . . to fidelity and sound. Video signals can be fairly easily corrected by A/V components, so that signal fidelity is only of moderate concern. Audio signals, however, cannot be easily or accurately corrected once the signal has degraded due to poor transmission, so the Indulgence series dedicates itself to exceptional and unprecedented audio-signal transmission. From conductor materials and geometry to dielectric insulation and precision of manufacture, Indulgence series HDMI cables deliver industry-leading audio-signal transmission ideal for high definition, multi-channel home theater applications. The key to their success, however, is conductor material. Beginning with high-fidelity solid long-grain copper and adding progressively more silver plating, the Indulgence sub-series cables achieve increasingly higher-integrity signal transmission.
No back seat for video
True, with the Indulgence series of HDMI cables from AudioQuest, the shift in focus has been to audio performance . . . and the results are staggering. However, AudioQuest shares the spotlight with video, too. The same attention to material-quality and construction that was given to the Indulgence Series' audio performance applies equally to video-signal transmission. Accordingly, the 2M Forest cable is able to deliver 100% of the data required for Full HD 1080p video displays, including 120Hz, 240Hz, 600Hz, and even 3D content.
Beyond HDMI
Even when only considering audio- and video-signal transmission capabilities, Indulgence Series HDMI cables are impressive enough. If only they limited themselves to traditional audio and video transmission. But, they don't. Creating a cable equipped for both the present and future of HD home theater, AudioQuest has engineered the 2M Forest — and all other Indulgence cables — to meet the HDMI v1.4 standard. The result is a versatile expansion of the cable's functionality. First, bi-directional ethernet communication allows for a 100Mbps ethernet connection between two HDMI connected devices, expanding single-cable connectivity. Second, an integrated audio return channel allows for audio&ensp— such as microphone audio used in online gaming — to also be transmitted along the 2M Forest cable. Third, the HDMI v1.4 protocol supports the 4k x 2k resolution (4096 x 2160p @ 24Hz), the same resolution used in HD theaters. Finally, the HDMI v1.4 Forest cable is 3D capable, ensuring compatibility with 3D-enabled HDTVs and Blu-ray Disc players.
Another word on speed
Earlier, we discussed the exaggerated importance ascribed to signal-transmission speed (Gbps) in recent HDMI history. You might find it odd to learn, then, that HDMI cables complying with the latest standards are grouped into two classifications: High Speed and Standard Speed. As we've already noted that current HDMI protocols (and practical physics) limit data output speeds to 10.2 Gbps, these two classifications can be thought in terms of potential, rather than application — the limit applies to the output of HDMI-enable devices, not the capacity of HDMI cables. While High Speed HDMI cables must be capable of transmitting 10.2 Gbps (Standard Speed cables transfer at any lower rate), they may also accommodate higher speeds. In fact, all AudioQuest Indulgence HDMI cables exceed 10.2 Gbps at cable lengths under 8m, and 12m cables only narrowly miss the mark. The original emphasis on data speed was based on the notion that upcoming audio and video technologies would require higher and higher transfer rates for full performance. However, this is extremely unlikely because of serious physical and technological obstacles and the high capacity of 10.2 Gbps-rated devices. Nevertheless, thanks to its High Speed rating, even in a hypothetical future with extremely high data-transfer needs, the 2M Forest cable would still be the last component you would need to replace in your home theater.
