How many HDMI in the wall? (1 Viewer)

[bozobytes]

I have a Samsung 750 46" goint up on a wall. Mount is in,one CL2 rated in wall HDMI cable going into the TV. Tv is not hung yet because i'm getting comflicting answers on how many HDMI cables I will need.
I know there are a myriad of setup choices for A/V receivers,but this is what I want to end up with.

I have a TimeWarner HD box now. I want to get a 5.1 receiver to use in a 9'x12' foot room,but want an investment,but don't want to go broke at the same time.

I also want a blue Ray player.

Some say to get a receiver with HDMI switching,HDMI pass through,DTS,Pro-Logic,Dolby Digital,etc.

Some say I will need two optical cables.

so I will end up with a receiver,Timewarner HD box, a blue ray player,and maybe a upconverter or regular DVD to play MP3's and view jpgs,although the tv already can do this, I also want to be able to watch tv and not use the surround all the time. I was looking at this Yamaha RX-V463 BL, although the RX-V363 is lower price and offers HDMI passthough. Please advise....tanks!

Speakers...is the 8 ohms better than the 6 ohms? what is standard?

I used to beat my tubs.

 

[Ed Moxley]

Get the right receiver, and you'll only need one HDMI cable to the tv. Since you're gonna get a blu ray player, you really don't want a receiver with HDMI "pass through". You'll want one that can handle the HD audio formats of the blu ray movies, which the RX-V463 does not. In the Yamaha line, you'll need to step up to at least the RX-V663, to get those capabilities. But, it has only two HDMI inputs.

You'll be better off with the Onkyo TX-SR706. It has four HDMI inputs, so it should have you covered. With Yamaha, you have to go much more expensive to get four HDMI inputs. Amazon.com has a pretty good price on the Onkyo. See here: Amazon.com: Onkyo TX-SR706 7.1 Channel Home Theater Receiver (Black): Audio & Video It also has plenty of optical and digital coax inputs.

As far as an upscaling dvd player, the blu ray players do this. Some better than others, I think. The receiver will also do it too. Your tv will probably do it also. You'll just need to try each one's ability, and see which one does it best.

As for watching tv without the surround (I, personally, don't understand why some want to do this

). You can run the red and white analog audio connection, from the cable box to the wall plate also, and connect them to tv.

A lot of people are liking the Sony BDP-S350 and BDP-S550 blu ray players. I think the 550 is the same player as the 350, except it has 7.1 analog outputs that the 350 doesn't have. If you get a receiver that can handle the HD audio, the 350 will do you just fine.

Speaker standards are pretty much 8 ohm or 4 ohm. The lower the ohm number, the more power it takes to drive them. So, 4 ohm speakers require a good bit more power to drive them. Try to drive 4 ohm speakers with an 8 ohm receiver, and it could possibly cause it to go into "Protection Mode" and shut down, before it fries something.
Hope this has helped. Good luck with whatever you get.

 

[bozobytes]

Thanks Ed!
OK, I agree with using the surround all the time. And sorry for being so dense,but with all the jargon of switching and pass through and optical,etc.,etc., whew! it's no wonder I'm

So what I'm guessing is that I have to spend around $500-$1200 dollars for a decent 7.1 system that has more HDMI inputs?
This room is 9' x 12',so I was only thinking about 5.1 channel. I was looking at the ONKYO HT-S4100, on the reviews one guy said ..." If you do not have the wallet, this is a great system--which can be later upgraded with the purchase of an HD audio receiver capable of using those formats. I plan to do this at some point in the future when the prices have become more affordable."

So unless I spend alot of money on a system, I will not get a HD audio receiver?

I really don't want to break the bank on this purchase, I would like to get more of a component rather than a Theater in a box, if that's possible.


Ed, this also has 2 in/1out HDMI like the Yamaha RX-V663.
Here is the rear of a Yamaha HTR-6130 BL receiver...

http://images.amazon.com/images/G/01...rxv363rear.jpg

 

[Ed Moxley]

The HTR-6130 doesn't do HD audio decoding over HDMI. See here:
HTR-6130
It does have 5.1 analog inputs though. If you get a blu ray player with 5.1 analog outputs and does internal decoding, you can get some HD audio that way. You may not get dtsHD Master Audio that way though. I had said the TX-SR706 because it had four HDMI inputs, so you'd have enough to hook everything up, and be ready for future purchases. The TX-SR606 is cheaper, and does great too, and it has four HDMI inputs also (I forgot that earlier). It usually sells for under $400 at Amazon.com. It's worth the difference to get one, than get a "pass through" receiver. You can do 5.1 with a 7.1 receiver, if that's how you'd rather go. It's all in how you set it up.

For the difference in some jargon, maybe this thread will help you.......
http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htf/...ver-speak.html

I want a new receiver, and am going with the TX-SR706, or the TX-SR805, depending on how much money I have.

 

[bozobytes]

Thanks again Ed,
If I were to get the ONKYO TX-SR606, how would I find matching speakers with the right amps/ohms,etc?

So even if this is a 7.1 channel receiver, I would be able to just use the five speakers and a sub with this or any other 7.1?

As far as watching TV without the surround on all the time, You mentioned :
''You can run the red and white analog audio connection, from the cable box to the wall plate also, and connect them to tv."

Did you mean RCA (red and white) right and Left 10' cables from the TV hanging on the wall, running in the wall - to the TimeWarner HD Box?

Thans again and to all who answers this post.

 

[Ed Moxley]

Almost any speaker should work fine with the Onkyo. Most speakers are 8 ohm, I believe. A lot of the higher end speakers tend to be 4 ohm.

Yes.......... if you want to listen to tv without the system being on, you'll need the red & white audio cables (left & right), going from cable box to the tv. Then use tv's remote for volume.

 

[bozobytes]

______________________________________ Costco
I was @ Costco today and saw this system. I've tried to find it at Costco.com but it's not listed. Has anyone purchased this system? I don't think you'll find this at the "other" stores like Frys, Best Buy,or Circuit City...I believe it's made just for Costco.

In-Store Costco Item number #285793
Yamaha YHP-C200 BL ($499.00) (#285793) 7.1

The guy at the store told me for this systemm, I would need >
Receiver to TV…..only One HDMI In-Wall 15'
Cable Box to receiver…..short HDMI 3' or 4'
Blue Ray to receiver….short HDMI 3' or 4'

(For TV audio Only no surround) >RCA Audio cables from cable box to TV...Optical Digital Toslink won't work?

I'm not giving up the idea of that SR 706 ONKYO unit you mentioned Ed, still looking. I might kick myself, but for this small room, I think I'd better just go for a cheaper and smaller 5.1 for now. Thanks again!

 

[Ed Moxley]

As long as the system has enough inputs, to hookup everything you want, and as long as you'll be happy with the sound of it, it will probably be ok. Inputs is usually the short comings of a home theater in a box system. I'm guessing that's what it is since there's no link to it.

Sounds like the salesman told you right about the cables.
Optical may work, but why go to that expense to listen through tv's speakers? Besides, the tv probably doesn't have an optical input. All the tvs I've seen that had an optical connection, had an optical output, to get 5.1 surround from the built-in tuner, when getting the HD signal from an OTA antenna, instead of cable or sat. RCA audio cables is all you need from cable box to tv, for listening without system being on.

Does this system decode the HD audio formats, or have 5.1 analog inputs? If not, you can forget hearing the HD lossless audio from the blu ray movies. It's not possible over optical or digital coax connections.

 

[bozobytes]

I said "The guy at the store told me for this system, I would need ...
Receiver to TV…..only One HDMI In-Wall 15'
Cable Box to receiver….. HDMI
Blue Ray to receiver…. HDMI."

Then I went to Fry's and that person told me he has his hooked up in this configuration below. (He said the other above way, has the possibility of the lip/sound getting off sync) is this true?

TimeWarnerHD HDMI to TV
BlueRay HDMI to TV
TV Toslink Optical to AV Receiver
_______________________________________

I know this all depends on the receiver I choose. There has been alot of talk about Theater in a box speakers being not that good as buying an AV receiver,then buying good speakers, in the 4-6 ohm range.

I might be sorry, but I don't want to buy the $750.00 Onkyo TX-SR706 7.1 receiver with lets say the Polk-Audio RM6750 5.1 Speaker system for another $250.00, totaling about $1000.00. Is this the norm for such a system, and is this what I have to shell out?

There has to be a good 5.1 channel system along with decent,good voice/music/movie speakers on the market for less expensive. The Polk Audio reviews fro a few customers said that these polk were better sounding than some Harmon Kardon,or even Klipsch speakers.

 

[Ed Moxley]

Everyone has their own tastes, so some may like the sound of the Polks better than the Klipsch speakers. I think Klipsch sound kind of bright. I don't care much for bright sounding speakers either.

Most HTIBs (home theater in a box) have very small, cheap speakers included, and they just don't sound good. That's why we tell people that if you want a good system, you need to buy component pieces, instead of an HTIB.

You can get the Onkyo TX-SR606 receiver cheaper than the 706 (it doesn't cost $750). It does basically the same with the new HD audio formats. 706 has a few more bells and whistles.

If you definitely want an HTIB, our local Sam's Club has a Samsung Blu ray HTIB system, that really sounds pretty good, for $948.
Sam's Club - Samsung Blu-ray Home Theater System
If you want GOOD, you gotta pay for it. Good stuff doesn't come real cheap, thought you can get some good stuff fairly cheap, compared to a lot of other stuff.

I don't see how the guy gets surround sound hooked up this way:
TimeWarnerHD HDMI to TV
BlueRay HDMI to TV
TV Toslink Optical to AV Receiver
The best he can hope for, like that, is pro logic (simulated surround).
The optical output on the tvs isn't to piggy back digital connections like that. It's for getting 5.1 surround from the built-in tuner, when using an antenna to get your local stations in HD. A few tvs will allow the hookup he made, but they down convert the signals, and send stereo to the receiver. The receiver will take a stereo signal and play it as pro logic. They don't send 5.1 surround to the receiver, through the tv, from dvd players or cable/sat boxes. Either he doesn't realize he's only getting pro logic, or he lied to you (I'm pretty sure about this).