Ask Engadget HD: What's the best HDMI splitter on the market?
"What is the best HDMI splitter on the market? I want to split my signal to a 42-inch LCD TV (about 9-feet away from the source) and a projector (through a 50-foot HDMI cable). Considering the distances needing to be covered, would a powered splitter be better than a passive one?"
We'll go ahead and assume Daniel's looking for one that can pass a 1080p signal without degradation, so recommending that Dollar Tree box you saw probably isn't the best thing to do. On the real, feel free to shout out any positive / negative experiences you've had with extenders and switches -- hopefully one of 'em will fit the bill here.
Got a burning question that you'd love to toss out for Engadget HD (or its readers) to take a look at? Tired of Google's blank stares when you ask for real-world experiences? Hit us up at ask at engadgethd dawt com and keep an eye on this space -- your inquiry could be next.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
yaksplat @ Oct 1st 2008 12:20PM
Splitter or switcher? You're talking splitter and showing a switch.
Big Sam @ Oct 1st 2008 12:29PM
I bought the HDMI Matrix switcher from Monoprice and have one of the outputs running 75 feet.
DEEZNUTZ @ Oct 1st 2008 12:46PM
I used the switch that monoprice sells for a while, and didn't experience any degredation of PQ whatsoever. I didn;t have any long runs, if that helps. Worked like a charm, no handshake issues either. Had the cable box DVR (SA 8300HD), 360, PS3, and HD DVD player connected to it.
Upgraded my receiver with 4 HDMI inputs, so no need for it any longer.
Steve @ Oct 1st 2008 1:02PM
Major SKIP on the 5-Port Impact Acoustics HDMI switch. It worked fine with my OPPO 981 and HD DVR but when I got a new Toshiba HD-XA2 last year, it wouldn't pass signal through at all. Regardless of my cables, it was a problem with the switch and Impact Acoustics wouldn't return it and said it was Toshiba's fault...
Then I bought a 3-port OPPO HM-31 HDMI switch and it worked flawlessly with all else exactly the same.
I'm using all BluejeansCable Series-2 HDMI cables: 3' near components and 40' to my projector.
Wryker @ Oct 1st 2008 1:14PM
I bought an Oppo HDMI splitter and it works great passing the 1080p/24 signals through. And for $100 you can't beat it.
DaveTehWave @ Oct 1st 2008 5:44PM
Yes you can. At Monoprice you can get one for $37.
MadMike @ Oct 1st 2008 1:35PM
Do NOT get the Octava HDMI SW4A with Fiber Optical audio. I went through 3 of them - all complete worthless crap and overpriced too. $300 for a non-working black box.
Mark @ Oct 1st 2008 1:52PM
Are these Switches (such as the Monoprice one) automatic or would I have to program this into my Harmony remote?
Loban @ Oct 1st 2008 2:24PM
Like everyone else has said, a switch and a splitter are completely different. This post concerns a splitter, but the picture is of a switch.
A switch has multiple inputs, and one output so you can switch between multiple sources with one TV.
A splitter has one input, and multiple outputs so you can feed one source to multiple TVs at the same time.
gregrun @ Oct 1st 2008 3:21PM
Well, does a switch work both ways? Switch between multiple outputs and a single input?
Loban @ Oct 1st 2008 3:35PM
Well, that doesn't really make much sense if you think about it. Why would you need to switch between outputs. Each output could be active all the time, why would you "switch" between them? That doesn't even make any sense.
TrentD @ Oct 1st 2008 3:44PM
Gregrun,
There is no way to make a real switcher or distribution amplifier work both ways. They're single-direction only devices.
HDMI ports have either a transmitter or receiver chip, not both.
dj @ Oct 1st 2008 2:43PM
What is the best matrix switch on the market? Need 4 in and 4 out? Gefen, Atlona, others? And does anyone know if they've fixed running the outputs from the switcher into a receiver (instead of direct to the TV)?
TrentD @ Oct 1st 2008 3:43PM
Use the stuff that high-end retailers put in their stores.
ATC certified, HDCP compliant, version 1.3 compliant HDMI Distribution Amplifier (the technical name for a "splitter").
http://www.audioauthority.com/product_details/1392A/HDMI/5/2
myuzickman @ Oct 1st 2008 4:23PM
I asked the question, and am looking for a splitter. I have no need for a switch, since my receiver does the switching for me. However, if I want to watch on my projector, I have to unplug the HDMI cable to the TV from my receiver, which is a headache. Any input is helpful. I just don't want to waste my money.
SeanG @ Oct 1st 2008 5:07PM
Check Gefen and AudioAuthority. I had issues with the latter but the Gefen worked flawlessly for me. Still think AA is worth checking out tho cuz I use some of their other equipment and never had a problem with it. The issues I had could very well be incompatibility with my particular equipment (Vista Media Center PC being split to a Panasonic plasma, the HDMI input to my Anthem D2 processor and to a HDMI -> Component video converter).
grey area @ Oct 1st 2008 9:35PM
I have a panasonic projector, and a samsung dlp t.v. I use the monoprice 4x2 matrix hdmi. Works great. Sometimes have to switch receiver on/off source to get hdmi to re-handshake. Couple of times, the ps3 wouldn't resync until I switched the t.v. to the opposite input. I have a 50ft cable run to the projector. Unless you see a different splitter in the 80 dollar range, I'd give that one a go. (I spent 120 on amazon, didn't realize it was monoprice til I got it)
Bruf @ Oct 1st 2008 5:24PM
Anyone can comment on Monoprice HDMI switches? I'm looking for a switch to add a couple of ports to my Yamaha RX-V663 AV receiver (only has 2). I want to hook up an SA 8300HD cable box, PS3, X360 and Apple TV so I would like 1080p/24 passthrough.
Thanks in advance,
DEEZNUTZ @ Oct 1st 2008 10:26PM
See my comment above. I used it and it worked like a charm. They claim 1.3b HDMI on their switches so it handles 1080p just fine. I cannot confirm 24p though, so perhaps AVS forums or the reviews section of the product may provide the answers you're looking for.
Andy @ Oct 1st 2008 5:59PM
Well to add some fire to the conversation...
I have about the same setup, 1 HTPC that does it all, and 2 displays (plasma and projector)
Since only one display is used at a time, I was able to mod a cheep switch that monoprice sells (the 2 port **passive** only $20) to work toe other direction (open it up and short the two diodes, or resolder them in reverse).
This has worked great for me over the last year, with zero picture degradation, even though the cable to the projector is 50ft, so i'm in no rush to find a better solution when the $20 one works this well.
sam @ Oct 1st 2008 7:52PM
Keep reading people saying things about "picture degradation" so i gotta add this in here:
HDMI is a digital connection. you CAN'T get signal degradation with a digital connection. You either have signal or not. if you don't understand what i'm talking about, wait for the digital TV switch next year. You will not get "fuzzy" stations anymore. period. you either get the channel or not. A long distance run with a digital signal will not produce degradation the way that analog connections did (composite, s-video, component, etc). This is not to say that a long distance digital run will always work, it just won't "degrade"...
ok, while i'm ranting. your super-name-brand $500 HDMI cables are no better than the cheapos from monoprice, so long as you have a picture when you turn it on. This should be extremely obvious from the above paragraph. think about it...
sorry, used to work for a "high end" AV retailer... watched so many stupid rich people let themselves be fooled (hell, most of them just wanted to say how much they spent...) that i'd like to save the engadget readers a bit of money...
stumlad @ Oct 3rd 2008 12:20PM
I have the monoproce 1x2 HDMI powered splitter. I split to my 40" LCD tv and my projector. For the most part it works great. I can pass PS3 1080p24 with no problem, but my HD DVD Toshiba wants to verify 1080p before it sends the signal, and the splitter doesn't handshake with it or something. I verified I can get 1080p24 with my toshiba directly to projector, but it doesnt want to work with splitter except fort 1080i.
bcp10415 @ Oct 15th 2008 6:44PM
I got a Monoprice 1x5 HDMI switch last year that mostly works. It connects my Samsung DLP to 1) Tivo HD, 2) PS3, 3) Apple TV, 4) Std DVD player.
The Tivo HD complains HDMI connection not permitted about 30% of the time when making a switch. Have to power cycle both the HDMI switch & the Samsung to clear the handshaking.
I'd love to get a replacement switch that doesn't have this problem, but am hesitant to internet order an unknown replacement.