AudioQuest ThunderBird 48Gbps, HDMI 2.1 cable
An HDMI connection links a video source to a television or a video projector, and it must carry the full bandwidth required by recent formats without loss. AudioQuest’s ThunderBird 48Gbps is an Ultra High Speed HDMI 2.1 cable that carries up to 48 Gbps: it supports high resolutions, dynamic HDR and the standard’s gaming features, with detailed work on the metals used and radio-frequency noise dissipation.
48 Gbps bandwidth
The ThunderBird 48Gbps reaches a data rate of 48 Gbps, the value defined by HDMI 2.1. This figure comes from four balanced audio-video pairs, each capable of carrying up to 12 Gbps. It is this bandwidth that makes the features introduced with HDMI 2.1 accessible. The cable carries the Ultra High Speed certification issued by HDMI Licensing, the designation that guarantees it delivers the throughput and features specified by the standard. A system only uses this capacity if its devices, source and display, are also able to take advantage of it.
Silver-plated long-grain copper
The conductors are made of Long-Grain Copper, plated with 10% silver, and the ground reference drains are 10% silver. Silver is placed on the surface of the conductor for a specific reason: in a digital signal, very high-frequency components travel mainly near the surface of the wire. Applying the most conductive metal to the outside, where the fast signal travels, is therefore where this choice matters most. The conductors are solid, eliminating interactions from one strand to another. The connection is HDMI male to HDMI male, with both plugs identical, and the cable is fitted with a braided jacket.
Noise dissipation and conductor directionality
The ThunderBird 48Gbps features Level 5 Noise-Dissipation technology. Around the four data pairs and the eARC pair, a high-loss carbon layer enriched with graphene is enclosed between metal layers; a high-loss carbon layer then surrounds all the conductors. These materials drain radio-frequency noise away from sensitive circuits. The cable’s 19 conductors—audio-video pairs, eARC pair, ground drains, control and power conductors—have a controlled installation direction to dissipate this noise as effectively as possible. Arrows printed on the plugs indicate this direction: they should point toward the television, in other words from the source to the audio-video receiver. On such a fast digital connection, this shielding supports signal integrity, which either arrives intact or results in dropouts rather than gradual degradation.
Resolutions, dynamic HDR and gaming features
The 48 Gbps data rate provides access to video up to 10K at 30 Hz, 8K at 60 Hz and 4K at 120 Hz. The cable supports dynamic HDR, with metadata that adjusts scene by scene. Its eARC (Enhanced Audio Return Channel) pair sends sound from the television to an amplifier or a soundbar in high-resolution audio formats, including object-based formats; this pair receives the same metals and noise treatment as the audio-video pairs. For gaming, the ThunderBird 48Gbps supports 4K at 120 frames per second, Variable Refresh Rate (VRR), Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM) and Quick Frame Transport (QFT), with a PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X or gaming PC. It remains backward compatible with existing 4K HDMI equipment, with the connection then adapting to what the connected devices support.
Connection and required space
The cable connects between a source (player, console, set-top box) and the display, or between the television and amplifier for the eARC function. Since both plugs are HDMI male, only the direction of the arrows matters, pointing toward the television. The thick shielding and braided jacket make for a firm cable: it is best to allow some clearance behind a wall-mounted screen and monitor the bend radius near the plugs, so as not to put strain on the connector or the device socket.
