We connected a new Samsung HDTV to our Dish Receiver via the HDMI cable. The Receiver and TV are now fried. To my knowledge, no electical current of consequence should be flowing through this connector. No one seems to no what happened. But now, our $2000 TV is toast. We have no idea what caused the problem.
Anyone have a clue?
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HDMI is signal-level, meaning less than a volt. However, equipment which is not properly grounded can end up using signal cables as a path for current, and it sounds like the TV and the receiver were at different grounds or not grounded. A malfunctioning electrical device is supposed to use the ground connection, instead of going through other connections.
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by: MylesCPosted on 2009-06-02 at 08:32:06ID: 24527997
You are correct! The HDMI cable itself carries no electrical current as such.
Do you have any sort of signal amplifier or booster in this equation that requires electricty to power it?
Also, it's worth remembering that the HDMI cable itself does have the capability of providing and electrical current and it may be that the receiver had a power surge of some sort and/or that the receiver was faulty. This could result in it "forwarding" an electrical current through the HDMI cable.
I hope this makes my sense?