Using CAT5/6 HDMI™ Extenders to “Go Long”

When my two sons throw a football around every fall, it is common for my older son grab the ball tightly and bark “go long” to his younger brother who takes off running to catch a long pass from his big brother. Likewise, installers and integrators often talk about the need to go long with their HDMI™ installations. It is an issue that we at DPL hear about all the time.

Installers often need the ability to install systems with extended cable runs – a problematical situation when working with an HDMI™-based installation. For short runs in equipment racks, most HDMI™ cables of reasonable quality will work well. However, when the situation calls for a longer run of say ten meters or more…like to a ceiling mounted projector, for example…you may run into difficulties even with a quality HDMI™ cable.

One solution that is gaining in popularity with installers is HDMI™ over Category 5/6 cable solutions. There are two big advantages to employing this type of “extender” system in your longer-run HDMI™ installations are:

1)    These systems can offer distances of generally anywhere between 50 – 150ft. lengths.

2)    These systems offer the installer the opportunity to field-terminate exact length cables. This capability is not generally available with dedicated HDMI™ cables.

DPL Labs is the originator of the DPL Certification Program – an HDMI™ performance testing and certification program – and our tech support team has been fielding countless letters, emails, and phone calls every day on this hot new category. Researching the issues surrounding Cat.5/6 HDMI™ extender solutions has enabled us to address and resolve many of the emerging challenges and problems inherent in this relatively new phenomenon.

DPL Labs has published a detailed white paper of its findings on these systems called, “HDMI™ Over Category Cable: The Solution? Or Part of the Problem?” HDMI™ Over Category cable extenders can work well – but only if you are aware of their limitations, and utilize proper techniques when installing them. It is also important to remember that each system is unique and utilizes different “tricks” to fool the Cat.5/6 cable into thinking it is a long HDMI™ cable…and also tricks the system into thinking it is connected via a genuine HDMI™ cable.

HDMI™ technology incorporates four fundamental elements in which installers need to be conversant. These four key elements are: 1) digital video; 2) intelligence; 3) +5 volt power; and 4) timing. Problems can arise with any one of these elements that will affect the functionality and reliability of your HDMI™ over Category cable installation. And it is easy to inadvertently induce a problem with a minor lapse in attention to detail.

DPL Lab’s white paper reveals, for example, that standard installation techniques used by installers for years can be problematical with an HDMI™ installation. Simple bends and twists in an HDMI™ cable can cause a complete installation failure.

Equally important, DPL Labs research showed that pulling and stretching of Category 5/6 cable can potentially induce timing errors that cause system malfunctions. Cable length is so critical that the individual pairs of wires in a Category cable must be within 100 thousandths of an inch of each other! Pull too hard and the inter-pair skew or intra-pair skew will throw the timing off…and you’ll have an unhappy customer.

The key to these systems is to learn how they work and make sure you employ proper installation techniques. Material such as DPL Labs latest white paper can really help get you up to speed on this hot new category!