Hi, Just info... avoid buying cables from the place that sells TVs. They have seriously inflated prices. That is where they make a lot of the profit on the sale. I use Amazon and generally figure on a cost of about $2 a foot. Beware of the really cheap ones though. At 50 cents a foot you get what you pay for. Look for only ones that are 1.4 compliant.
Yes, I've gotten seriously burned when buying cables from places like Best Buy. Amazon is a much better deal.
Like you, timron, I was shocked when we switched to HDMI and I saw the difference.