Metra Home Theater Group’s tech team has fielded numerous phone calls about home theater cables not supporting 4K — even though the packaging says it will support this technology. The practice of misleading consumers is not new but in the world of 4K technology, it is causing problems for custom installers.

How can electronics companies get away with these false claims on their products? We’ve seen other manufacturers sell a cable claiming a “rated” bandwidth of 27 Gbps or even 31 Gbps on their HDMI® cables. However, it doesn’t work with 4k.

This is what we call “magic” math. If a signal can be measurable, certain manufacturers are measuring this and including this number to reach 27 and 31 Gbps. Keep in mind that this signal is not usable signal. This will make their cable “specs” look better, but it does not in any way make it perform better.

Bottom line, if the claims on the cable packaging are not backed up with certification and testing from a trusted brand name, we are hearing from custom installers that they are failing. Metra Home Theater Group has built its reputation over the past 70 years on offering the highest quality products, superior technical support, and being your trusted source for education and resources. We will never cut corners or mislead our customers to make a quick profit — it’s not part of our business model and never will be.

Don’t wait until you are in the middle of a custom job to discover faulty cables. Start out with the proper tools, like our EHD Velox cables that support the next generation of HD and Ultra–HD / 4k video. If you need to update existing cables, the new award–winning Gigabit Accelerator will upgrade your existing passive 24 gauge HDMI cables at a distance of up to 15 meters.

If you need a more technical answer to your 4k questions, our tech and engineering team is here for you. Call to speak to a live person at 866–839–9187 and we will be glad to help.