Everyone loves their expensive home theater setup. Some of us have poured thousands of dollars into enjoying reruns of the Brady Bunch; and after splurging on the TV, audio setup, and next gen media player, said devices need to be wired up for optimum viewing pleasure. Most people with money to burn would decide on outrageously overpriced Monster cables to get the job done.
Sure, Monster has –up until recently– had a pretty spotless reputation with HDMI and other cabling, but did you know that retailers make about an 80 percent profit off of pretty much every Monster cable that they force down your throat? The Consumerist put together a handy table which outlines the wholesale price of these cables as compared to what you and I would actually pay. A 19 foot Monster HDMI cable retails for about $180 with the wholesale clocking in at just under $100, creating a comfortable profit margin of 80 bucks.
You’re probably thinking right now: “But Ilya, if Monster Cables make things just a smidge more ‘Hi-Def’ then aren’t they worth it? Can’t you spare some of your advance journalistic integrity and rugged good looks to explain to me why the price is actually worth it?”. Sorry, but they’ve been proven to offer just about no visible improvement over cheaper wires.
In short: Go with cheaper cables and put the extra few hundred towards some new equipment.
Tags: cables, HDMI, monster, monster cables, monster ripoff