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Free Tool
Check whether your cable run is within the maximum supported distance for HDMI, SDI, USB, DisplayPort, XLR, Ethernet, and fiber optic cables.
Every cable type has a maximum distance it can reliably carry a signal. Exceeding that distance leads to signal degradation, dropouts, sparkles, or total failure. This free cable length calculator helps AV integrators, broadcast engineers, and live event professionals plan cable runs before purchasing or deploying.
HDMI 1.4 supports up to 15 metres for 1080p signals. HDMI 2.0 drops to around 10 metres for 4K60 HDR. HDMI 2.1 at 8K requires Ultra High Speed cables and is reliable to about 5 metres passively — active fiber-optic HDMI cables can extend this to 30m or more.
SDI is the professional standard for video in broadcast and live events. HD-SDI (1.485 Gbps) supports runs up to 100 metres on quality coax like Belden 1694A. 3G-SDI reaches about 70m, 6G-SDI about 50m, and 12G-SDI about 30m. For longer distances, SDI-over-fiber converters are the standard solution.
USB 2.0 is specified at 5 metres, while USB 3.0 drops to 3 metres. Thunderbolt 3/4 (USB-C) passive cables max out at 2 metres for full bandwidth. Active repeater cables or USB-over-fiber extenders can go much further.
Cat5e and Cat6a support 100m per the TIA/EIA standard. Cat6 supports 10 Gbps only to 55m. XLR balanced audio can run 100m or more with quality cable. Fiber optic has virtually no practical limit for AV applications.
H2R Gear lets you draw cables between gear items on a diagram and see exactly what connections you need. Combine this calculator with an H2R Gear plan to ensure every cable run is within spec before you arrive on site.
Ready to get organised?
Start using H2R Gear to plan your next setup.