What is the longest length of HDMI cable I can use for HD live video streaming?

[Karl Egan]

Hi, I am about to dip my toe into the word of live video streaming for various types of events. My cameras are HDMI, and I have read there are limitations on HDMI cable length before degradation. I have also read there are different types of HDMI cable that allow for a longer run than the standard, but cant seem to find a definitive answer. Could anyone with some experience please advise me on the longest HDMI cable I can use without degradation, and if there are any good work arounds like converters etc?

Many thanks.

[Clifford Steinberg]

I wouldn’t go farther than 50′ on a standard HDMI cable. They make longer ones, but all of the 100′ cables failed on my quite quickly. I also wouldn’t recommend HDMI couplers to extend 2 – 50′ HDMI’s to make a 100′. The cable and the couplers aren’t designed to go that long without assistance and will not work. Couplers are fine for short extensions, like 2 – 6′ HDMIs.

If you need longer than 50′ there are a couple options I’d recommend:

1. Optical HDMI like the Kramer CP-AOCH/XL. Those range from 33′ – 328′. Note that these are directional so you need to connect the source end to the source, display end to the display. This is fiber optic cable, so you have to be careful and not kink it.

2. HDMI over Catx converters. There are a lot of different options out there. I use Liberty AV’s, Crestron, or Extron. Depending on the model, they usually have a range of 70 meters up to 100 meters. You need to use good quality Cat cable. I use shielded Cat6a cable which is overkill, but I can’t risk any dropouts. Cat5e is a minimum, but you may not get the same distance you can with Cat6a.