Help with system. (1 Viewer)

[Mark-LaSalle]

I have a very low end 'home theater' setup, with tv, dvd/vcr combo, and AIWA cd stereo system with 5.1 inputs and full surround speaker set. Note that my DVD player does not have the 5.1 outs but it does have an optical digital audio out. My DVD manual claims that it outputs Dolby Digital or dts bitstream. I do not think the stereo has a decoder. So, two main questions:

1. Do I need to purchase a decoder to interface between the DVD player and the stereo? If so, are there decoders with optical digital audio inputs (from DVD player) and 5.1 outs (to stereo)?

2. Should I scrap the decoder idea and got a better DVD player? One with the proper decoders. In addtion, is there a converter from optical digital audio to the 5.1 RCA cables (as I assume the optical output is the best, but my stereo does not have optical in, so i need to tranform it into the 5.1 ins)?

Thank you for your help.

DVD/VCR Combo is Panasonic PV-D4761
Stereo is AIWA NSX-MA845

 

[AaronJB]

You need one of a couple of options:

1. A receiver with DTS/DD decoding and a digital cable from the DVD player to the reciever. The player can also do the decoding and feed the signal via the digital cable to the receiver (that's if the reciever has an optical input).

2. A DVD player with internal decoders and a 6-channel analog output to the reciever, hooked up via 6 analog cables.

I had an AIWA set myself a couple of years ago before replacing the whole thing. I had the DVD player doing the decoding and feeding the signal via 6-channel output (the AIWA had no optical digital inputs). Worked fine, but not optimal (the digital cable connection provides better audio quality, while it's also only one cable to deal with, not 6).