Considering going HD and need some advice... (1 Viewer)

[Nevin]

First of all, I should mention we already have a Sony 36" HDTV; it's a 4:3. We currently have a rooftop off-air antenna and are thinking about upgrading to HD. Since we've never had satellite, this would be a HUGE step up for us.
Anyway, I went to Circuit City yesterday and got some info. on Directv and their HD programming. The salesman said since we're not currently Directv subscribers, we could get the HD dish and installation for free. All we'd need is an HD receiver and an antenna (a $69 Terk) to receive our local channels in HD. The receivers range from a $299 Hughes model to the Samsung, Toshiba, Sony models that go for a around $599. I will be connecting the HD receiver to my 5.1 setup and was wondering if there were any real differences or advantages to these different models. For example, would we see an improvement using the DVI connection featured on the more expensive models, or would a component cable make more sense? Thanks a lot for the help.

 

[John S]

Great post... I would like to know this information as well. Even though I have sort of decided on Camcast HD cable for my source. As you get closer and closer to the mountains west of Denver here, the over the air HD gets worse and worse marks. That was the main reason I decided on the Comcast HD anyways, as I am located very close to the mountains in the extreme western suberbs of the Denver metro area.

I don't have DVI, it still seems very new and I don't have a good grasp on it at all. Are their Pre/Pros out there that actually switch it through even?