Single cable Vs. Cable + adapter

Redgie

Redgie

Redgie

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Joined
18 Nov 2008
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Liverpool
I have a hypothetical question for you all. All my IT life I have preferred my cables to have three attributes:
1. Be as short as they can afford to be and with no adapters
2. Be gold plated where possible
3. Be colour coded

However, I have hit a snag when trying to get hold of two Mini Display Port to HDMI cables, which are easily found thanks to their common use with Apple products and Surface tablets (though I'm actually using them for a straightforward graphics card to monitor connection).

The snag in question, is that while the white version of this cable is available everywhere for £3-£5 per cable at 2m long, the black version is either impossible to find, or available for £15-£20 (which I'm not paying, I might as well just paint it...).

However, what IS readily available is a Mini Display Port to HDMI adapter (in both black and white), which I could then plug a black HDMI cable into.

Now here's the problem, I don't personally like complicating things like this, even if the latency is unnoticeable (which it of course will be), I still don't like the idea of the signal going through an adapter and then into a cable, even though using a cable with a built in adapter effectively does the same thing.

Is anybody else like me? Or am I bonkers and suffering from a bout of OCD?
 
Redgie said:
I have a hypothetical question for you all. All my IT life I have preferred my cables to have three attributes:
1. Be as short as they can afford to be and with no adapters
2. Be gold plated where possible
3. Be colour coded

However, I have hit a snag when trying to get hold of two Mini Display Port to HDMI cables, which are easily found thanks to their common use with Apple products and Surface tablets (though I'm actually using them for a straightforward graphics card to monitor connection).

The snag in question, is that while the white version of this cable is available everywhere for £3-£5 per cable at 2m long, the black version is either impossible to find, or available for £15-£20 (which I'm not paying, I might as well just paint it...).

However, what IS readily available is a Mini Display Port to HDMI adapter (in both black and white), which I could then plug a black HDMI cable into.

Now here's the problem, I don't personally like complicating things like this, even if the latency is unnoticeable (which it of course will be), I still don't like the idea of the signal going through an adapter and then into a cable, even though using a cable with a built in adapter effectively does the same thing.

Is anybody else like me? Or am I bonkers and suffering from a bout of OCD?
Click to expand...

Bonkers !:D
 
I must admit I get picky with wanting cable runs to be the right length and simple as possible, but in this case, unless the white cable would be particularly offensive I'd stick with it and save the cash.
 
I always try (and succeed for the most part) to hide my cables so wouldn't care less what colour it was.

NOTE TO OCUK. STOP HIGHLIGHTING COLOUR AS BEING SPELLED WRONG !!!!
 
Sandycheeks said:
I always try (and succeed for the most part) to hide my cables so wouldn't care less what colour it was.

NOTE TO OCUK. STOP HIGHLIGHTING COLOUR AS BEING SPELLED WRONG !!!!
Click to expand...

I'd suspect your web browser it the one claiming you're spelling colour wrong, presumably thinks you're typing US English.
 
Is it worth getting some cheap black cable braid and making it look nice yourself? That way you can paint the cable black and it not be noticeable?
 
I'm afraid you're bonkers OP....just get the white version and do some cable management so the extra length is tidy.
 
I'm kinda the same, i hate having adapters as they look messy, not so much the cable colours as i like to hide my cables as best as possible but if they are able to be seen they either have to match to discrete.
 
You're not alone OP. In my head having an adapter where you could get away without one is simply an extra potential point of failure.

I recently had to use (for a couple of days) a mini Displayport to Displayport adapter, to an Active Displayport to DVI adapter, to the DVI cable to the monitor. It almost physically hurt - it felt like I was plugging an electrical extension lead into an extension lead into an extension lead!

For this reason I also shy away from using VGA inputs on an LCD/LED monitor - we are converting a digital signal from the PC to an analogue one for the cable, then back to a digital one for the screen - CRAZY! I don't care if the drop in quality at each point of conversion IS imperceptible these days, it's still technically there and that's a good enough reason for me to not use it.

OP - be proud of your OCD-ness, and enjoy the knowledge that your setup is technically (even if un-noticeably) better than those of your more laid back friends. :D
 
Confused Stu said:
OP - be proud of your OCD-ness, and enjoy the knowledge that your setup is technically (even if un-noticeably) better than those of your more laid back friends. :D
Click to expand...

Ha, glad to know that I'm not alone in this belief :p

Thanks guys, I'll see if I can hide it away any more (though it's already fairly discrete) and if not, I'll replace them. A friend of mine found a 3m equivalent in black reasonably cheap, so can always trade the wrong colour for the wrong length :p
 
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