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Need some help on a very basic home theater setup

#1
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1/4/09 at 1:20pm
  • Joined: January 2009
  • Post Count: 3
Hey everybody! This is my first post, so here goes:

I just got a new TV and home theater system, and I'm looking to find the best way to setup everything in my house. I'm really new to all of this, so any help is VERY appreciated!

Here are the components involved:

Television: Sony KDL-46Z4100 - 46" LCD, 120Hz Refresh Rate, Full 1080P.
Surround System: Sony DAV-HDX576WF - 5.1 Surround w/ iPod Dock
Blu-Ray Player: Sony Playstation 3
Video Game Console: Microsoft XBOX 360
HD-DVR: Scientific Atlanta Explorer 8300HD
MP3 Player: 2nd Generation Apple iPod touch
Cable Provider: Time Warner Cable
Available Cables: 4 HDMI Cables, 1 Optical Audio Cable

I'm not sure the best way to set this up, but I'm looking for full 1080P and surround sound on all inputs if possible. I'm more than willing to purchase more cables or whatever, but hopefully I don't have to purchase anything beyond that.

If you need me to give any further info, just let me know. Thanks so much!
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#2
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1/4/09 at 1:45pm
  • Joined: December 2003
  • Location: Charlotte, NC
  • Post Count: 2,799

Re: Need some help on a very basic home theater setup

Unfortunately, if you want surround sound on all inputs you would have to return your surround system and buy something else.

Your surround system only has two digital audio inputs and does not accept video inputs.

So, with your current equipment, your best bet is to run an HDMI cable from each source to your TV. You run into a problem here too, though. If you plan to use the upscaling DVD player in your surround system then you have 5 HDMI sources and only 4 HDMI inputs on your TV . . . so you would have to run one source from component (I would probably run the XBOX through component).

Then you could run digital audio from two of your sources to your receiver. One through optical and one through digital coax. You will get true surround sound from those two sources. All the other sources would need to be run analog, but will give you a simulated surround sound using Dolby Pro Logic.
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#3
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1/4/09 at 6:15pm
  • Joined: January 2009
  • Post Count: 3

Re: Need some help on a very basic home theater setup

Hi Seth, thanks for the advice. Unfortunately, I got the surround sound for free with the purchase of the TV. It was a great deal, which is why I picked them both up.

Here's a couple of quick questions that have now arisen:

1. The Playstation 3 upscales DVDs up to 1080P, so I'm probably better off just using that as my DVD player full time, right?

2. I have a number of leftover component and regular RCA cables, will those connect for the digital coax or do I need a special digital coax cable? I know they're under $10 on eBay, but hey, if I don't have to spend money I'd rather not!

3. Can I just plug all of the HDMI inputs into the TV and then use the optical output on the TV to the surround system? Or will I lose sound quality that way since I'm not sure how well the TV outputs are?

4. You said that I have 5 HDMI inputs, but don't I only have 4?
1. HD-DVR
2. Surround System DVD Player
3. XBOX 360
4. Playstation 3

Sorry for all the questions, I have very little clue as to what I'm doing and the manual is very little help!

Thanks again!
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#4
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1/4/09 at 7:26pm
  • Joined: May 2003
  • Location: Eastern NC
  • Post Count: 1,734

Re: Need some help on a very basic home theater setup

I agree.............
With this system, you can't listen to the HD audio tracks (Dolby TrueHD, dtsHD Master Audio), on blu ray movies, played on the PS3. Not possible.
Samsung HL61A750 (LED DLP)            Onkyo TX-SR805
Denon DVD-2200                                  Polk Audio LSi9
Polk Audio LSiC                                  Sony SS-MB100H
JBL PSW1200 (Sub)                          
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#5
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1/5/09 at 2:48am
  • Joined: December 2003
  • Location: Charlotte, NC
  • Post Count: 2,799

Re: Need some help on a very basic home theater setup

1. The Playstation 3 upscales DVDs up to 1080P, so I'm probably better off just using that as my DVD player full time, right?


That will work.

2. I have a number of leftover component and regular RCA cables, will those connect for the digital coax or do I need a special digital coax cable? I know they're under $10 on eBay, but hey, if I don't have to spend money I'd rather not!


Using your current cables should be fine for the digital coax.

3. Can I just plug all of the HDMI inputs into the TV and then use the optical output on the TV to the surround system? Or will I lose sound quality that way since I'm not sure how well the TV outputs are?


Typically the optical output on a TV only pass surround sound signals from the TVs built-in tuner which you won't be using since you have cable service.

4. You said that I have 5 HDMI inputs, but don't I only have 4?
1. HD-DVR
2. Surround System DVD Player
3. XBOX 360
4. Playstation 3


I said that you would have 5 HDMI sources if you used the upscaling DVD player that is built-in to your surround system. If you do not use that and just use your PS3 instead, then you only have 4.
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