HT setup help/receiver advice (1 Viewer)

[MaggieD]

i just purchased a Panasonic plasma TH-50px60u to replace an old tube tv. i get more and more confused everytime i try to figure this stuff out. so any help would be greatly appreciated!! here is what else i have: 2 DVD players (one is progressive and the other is a region free), an old VCR, older TIVO and a sony receiver (came in box with 5 speakers and subwoofer, only composite video inputs). i am upgrading to digital cable with hdtv tomorrow and my tv isn't on the wall yet! comcast told me that the digital/hdtv box they are bringing is not HMDI (they say the only HDMI box they have is with their DVR which i don't need) anyway i am not sure what HDMI is and how it works with other components. Sorry for the big ramble but is my main problem here that i need to upgrade the receiver? if so can anyone recommend a mid-priced receiver ($300-$400) don't laugh but that is my leftover budget. and can someone please tell me how to hook all these things up? i split the cable now so i don't have to watch TIVO all the time. i am planning to wall mount the tv and hide the cables with a raceway. any hookup/connection help would be appreciated as well!!!

thanks so much,
maggie

 

[Bob McElfresh]

Hi Maggie. Welcome to HTF!

You dont need a new receiver, but a new one with more connection options would make hookup easier.

HDMI: This is a digital cable that carries both video and audio and can handle high-def. It is a one-cable solution to hooking up a source to your television.

DVI: This is a digital cable that carries only video. You typically use this to connect the video to your television, and run a separate wire to your receiver for the audio.


Here are my suggestions:

• Call your cable company and upgrade to the high-def DVR. After using Tivo - you will be frustrated not having similar features with your high-def content.
• Loose the VCR unless you have lots of tapes or really use it a lot. (Mine - is gathering dust in a closet after I discovered DVR's).
• If you dont go with the DVR from your cable company, plan on using component cables straight from the CATV box to the TV. You will also need to run L/R audio to the TV. I would also suggest running either coaxial or optical from the CATV box to your receiver so you can have the higher-quality sound for special movie/TV nights.

Hope this helps.

 

[MaggieD]

thank you so much bob for your response and the welcome. sorry for the late thank you as i had the computer unplugged while i was working on the wall mount and all the wires/cables. i have been offline for a few days. however, i just want to say i am ready to cry/scream/have a nervous breakdown!! haha, just kidding but almost! when the cable guy was here the tv was not plugged in or on the wall. i had component cables in the component video 1 spot and audio cables in the audio out to amp spot in the back of the tv. cable guy said all i need in the tv are the component cables. he told me to take the audio cables out of the back of the tv and hook them up from the cable box to the cd spot in the receiver. then he left and i put the tv up on the wall. i can't get anything else to work but the tv. i do need the vcr unfortunately as my nieces and nephew still watch some video tapes when they come over.
right now i have plugs and cables everywhere and i am not even sure i have the best cables for my setup or even where to put them. i have stared at it so long i forget the difference between what is input and what is output??

any more suggestions would be appreciated!!
thanks so much,
maggie

 

[Wayne A. Pflughaupt]

He was right about that.

The fact that a CD input is the only place you have on your Sony receiver to plug in your cable box tells me you really need to get a new receiver. That way all of your components – the Tivo, VCR, DVD player and cable box – can plug into it, and send a single video feed to your TV. It would go a long way towards simplifying everything for you. Just make sure the one you get has all the inputs you need, for audio as well as video equipment.

You won’t have a problem finding a rreceiver with all the inputs you need in your price range. However, you might have problems finding one that will up-convert your VCR and Tivo to component video. This is necessary because basically, the various video protocols (composite, s-video and component) are not compatible with one another. (I know, I know... )

If you can’t get a receiver that up-converts, you will have to use the composite signal path for all your video connections. In that case, you would have to re-apportion the component cables going to your TV – i.e., use just one of them, and move it over to a composite input.

Hope this makes sense.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

 

[MaggieD]

thanks so much for your reply wayne and your sympathy! i think i am more confused then ever. i emailed panasonic and they said all i need is another video cable from the tv to the receiver and also to switch the audio cable to an optical cable from receiver to cable box. will that work? if i have component cable from tv to cable box only now, will hooking up the receiver with only a video cable in the composite input solve my problem? i don't understand the incompatability between cables and i want to get it all right this time. my dvd players have component and composite types, tivo has composite and s video, vcr only has composite type and current receiver only has composite types....i am so stressed!!!

thanks so much for any replies,
maggie

 

[MaggieD]

one more question if anyone can help......i checked my old receiver and i dont have enough imputs for all my stuff so it looks like i will need a new receiver....thanks wayne for pointing me in that direction......however i have another question...if i get a receiver that upconverts, can i hookup the receiver to the tv with a component cable and then hookup everything else to the receiver with composite cables?......then this will mean i have 2 sets of component cables going into tv right? (one for cable and one for the receiver?) sorry i guess that was more than one more question! haha!

thanks so much,
confused and surrounded by useless cables, old equipment and such,
maggie

 

[Bob McElfresh]

Ok, Maggie. Here is what I would do:

DVD: Component cables straight from DVD player to TV.

Tivo: Svideo and L/R audio to the receiver

VCR: Go to Radio Shack and buy a "Composite to SVideo" adaptor for $15. Then use it to run SVideo and L/R audio to the receiver.

Receiver: SVideo from the "monitor out" to a SVideo input on the TV.

Hook up the DVD player first. Test it to make sure it works.

Hook up the Tivo second and practice switching between the DVD and Tivo with the TV remote for video, and the receiver remote for audio. Do this 8 - 10 times until the amusement wears off.

Hook up the VCR last and practice toggling among all 3 sources.

 

[MaggieD]

thanks so much for your reply bob. i worked on it for 12 hours today and i finally got video and audio to everything!!! don't ask me what i did and i am not sure i would ever want to do it again!! i think the sky opened and the angels were singing!!

anyway, thanks for your great advice......and thanks to wayne too for responding to this thread.... i don't think i would have kept my sanity without this forum!!! well maybe some of my sanity!!!

thanks again,
maggie