Bandwidth is the frequency scope of a transmission. The bandwidth of a typical audio signal ranges from 20Hz to 20 kHz. A narrower bandwidth transmits fewer frequencies, a telephone typically transmits around 300 Hz to 3 kHz, a larger one will transmit more. DVB-S (satellite) systems currently use bandwidths of more than 2 GHz

The wave resistance, or impedance, is an important key figure for cables, calculated from the ratio of inductivity to capacity.

Capacitance is the measure of the capacity to store electrical charges. However, cables should be able to transmit 100% of the signal without temporarily storing it. The less capacitance a cable has, the better.

Each conductor that is flowed through forms a magnetic field around it. If the flow of current changes, the strength of the magnetic field also changes. This in turn results in an inductive current which counteracts the change of current in the conductor. A frequency-dependent resistance develops (also called inductive resistance) which has a negative impact on the transmission. Special designs reduce the inductivity of a cable.

CEC enables several devices, such as TV or DVD player, to be operated with only one remote control. Several devices from any manufacturer can be controlled, provided all the connected
components are CEC compatible.

The conductors are covered in a non-conductive material to protect  against short circuits, corrosion and damage. However, because these materials store energy (capacitance), which is undesirable in audio and video cables, in-akustik takes special care to reduce this.

The cross section is the size of the face surface of the conductor in a cable and is specified in square millimetres. The greater the cross section, the lower the losses. It should not be confused with the diameter.

When serially transmitting A/V data, “one” and “zero” are coded by different impulse durations. Cable properties affect these impulse durations so that the data is not received perfectly. In the case of pronounced jitters, the D/A converter has to frequently correct the error and consequently the quality of playback for pictures and sound suffers.

The weakening of a signal transferred in a cable is called damping and it is specified in dB (decibels). I.e. it is a measure of signal loss. The damping of a cable depends on frequency and increases with rising transmission
frequency. This specification is important for planning antenna cables for antenna systems. It should not be confused with the shielding dimension, which is also specified in dB.

The transmission of picture and sound signals is highly complex and susceptible to interference. Any contamination in the conductor material prevents the flow of current, impairing the conductance and increasing the background noise. Therefore, we only use especially pure-grade, oxygen-free copper (OFC) with an especially high conductance.

The data rate specifies how many data units (bits) are transferred per second. The maximum data rate with an HDMI 2.0 interface is up to 18 Gbps. That is 18 billion bits or 2.25 billion characters per second (8 bits = 1 byte).

PE is a high-quality insulating material (dielectric) which is ideal as an insulator. It reduces the capacitance of a cable by a factor of two compared with PVC (polyvinylchloride). The electrical loss of PE is also very low.

With the EDID function, the display (e.g. LCD monitor) transmits information via the HDMI cable to the source (e.g. DVD player) as to which resolution formats it supports. The source, in turn, sends back the highest suitable format.

Each of our cables complies with the RoHS directive. RoHS (Restriction Of Hazardous Substances) is an EU directive (2002/95/EG) with the aim of reducing substances damaging to health and the environment in electronic devices.

Many individual wires are twisted into a braid to make the cable more flexible. The sum of the individual wires makes the total Cross-section. The thinner the wires, the more flexible the cable.

To protect against electromagnetic interference such as from mobile devices or wireless networks, cables are shielded with one or more layers (e.g. a wire braid and/or an aluminium coated Mylar film). The impact of the screening is measured in dB and describes the reduction of any interference.

Full-HD or 1080p has established itself as the term for the maximum HDTV resolution of 1920x1080 pixels. Full HD enables the use of larger screens or far better picture quality with the same screen size.

High frequencies are mainly transmitted on the surface of the conductor (skin effect). As silver is the best conductor, the high frequencies are transmitted better via silver-plated conductors. On audio and speaker cables silver-plated cables boost the high-frequency range. On HDMI connections the silver-plated conductors also ensure optimum signal transfer even on long cables.

The 24 carat gold-plated plug contacts considerably reduce contact resistance and transfer signals optimally. The quality of the connection can be expressed in the contact resistance. Poor contacts have a high contact resistance and cause signal losses. Special surface treatment such as gold-plating contact surfaces considerably reduce resistance, improve contact and therefore the sound and picture quality.

On standard cables the many fine wires are bundled, meaning the electrons can „jump“ from one wire to another. The signals travel for different lengths of time, fast impulses are „braked“. Solid conductors prevent this by providing the same transit times and clear, strong contours. Solid conductors also provide another benefit for digital and video quality: The smooth surface allows the impedance to be precisely adjusted and the high signal frequencies which mainly move on the surface of the conductor can be transmitted perfectly.

HDTV stands for high definition television. All new TV and video formats belong to the HDTV family. The assignment of the HDTV resolutions is simple and clear: The resolution in video lines gives the names to the American HDTV formats 720p (p = progressive, i.e. 720 full lines per picture) and 1,080i (i = interlaced, i.e. 2 x 540 line half-pictures). In addition, a horizontal resolution that matches the vertical resolution was selected that forms the picture format factor in the following simple manner: 720 x 16:9 = 1,280 and 1,080 x 16:9 = 1,920 horizontal pixels.

Loudspeaker cables with the wires arranged in the same direction tend to get twisted. This makes laying the cable and installation difficult. Cables with S/Z stranding have wires with opposite stranding to avoid this effect. Laying the cable is then much easier.

As the HDMI interface sound and picture content is available in absolutely perfect resolution, the film and software industry have instructed that data may only be released as copy-proof. This is the reason for using HDCP.

With symmetrically designed cables, two exactly identical wires are used for the initial and return conductors. This counteracts the level of electromagnetic interference and provides an extremely high immunity to interference. In addition, separate shielding protects the signal.

UHQCD stands for Ultimate High Quality Compact Disc and is a development of the Japanese CD replication company Memory-Tech and the Audio Quality CD Company from Hong Kong. Unlike conventional CDs, UHQCDs are not pressed from polycarbonate but cast from a photopolymer and cured with UV light. To protect the softer photopolymer, a further layer of high-purity polycarbonate is applied as scratch-protection. The combination results in a significantly reduced reflection of the laser light inside the CD and an unmatched precise edge transitions between pits and lands of the CD. UHQCDs are 100% compatible with regular CD players. Musically, there is a sound image reminiscent of analog master tapes

Ultra high definition TV abbreviated to Ultra HD or UHD. An ultra high-resolution, digital video format introduced in 2013 that incorporates two resolutions (4K and 8K). In Japan, the 8K Format is also known as super hi-vision (SHV). The UHD standard introduced in Europe in 2013 has a calculated pixel resolution of 3,840 x 2,160 pixels (4k) and is also known as UHD 2160p.