HT newbie needs much help (1 Viewer)

[Shea]

Hey guys, just joined, and read through the HT faq/guide at the top of the forum.. I'll try to be as descriptive as possible here.
Monday got a Kenwood Audio Home Theater System #HTB-205
>InfoPicture, click on detail to see the back of the receiver

 

[Vince Maskeeper]

Sure- there are tons of models at various price points. Obviously the most low budget ones won't work as they tend to not have controls for receivers. But I would think that you could post (or better yet search) in the accessories forum here and find something that will work. If not, there is always the $150 PRONTO which can be completely programmed to do anything!

-Vince

 

[Shea]

Great thanks for the quick response. Yes, I meant watching cable tv. Yeah I use the TV tuner, don't have a cable box. Had one a few years ago to get some movie channels and didn't like it, made that loud thwap noise changing channels. I do plan to get Cox digital cable so I think I'll need that anyway. But for now, might just follow the advice of getting a good VCR and do it that way. Should have paid more attention when I got that crap VCR. Cost about $40- at Wal Mart. Shoulda got that $50 model!

 

[Vince Maskeeper]

OK, I found the manual for this unit on Kenwood site. Here's what you should do:
1) Take one of those yellow RCA cables for video and run it from the jack on the receiver marked "MONITOR OUT" (this is in the Video section directly below and to the right of the DVD input) to the TV set. On the TV there should be some sort of video input (you said there is one on the front, but usually if there is one on the front, there is also one on the back).
Once you connect to this, you will likely have to push a button on the TV remote or on the TV itself (like "INPUT") to access that input.
2) Connect the video output on the DVD player to the "DVD IN" jack in the video section on the receiver (this should be the very top jack). Use a yellow RCA>RCA cable.
3) Connect the OPTICAL output from the RCA DVD player to the optical input on the Receiver marked "CD/DVD Optical." Your receiver seems to want the DVD input to use the OPTICAL jack- so you're kinda stuck (there is also a coax type digital input above the one marked "Video 2/Monitor Coaxial" but either it's unmarked or the Video2/Monitor means that Video 2 is the top one and the bottom one is a digital monitor output).
You will need a special optical cable to connect from the DVD player to that jack... these are available at most major stores that sell DVD players.
You can, however, leave the 6 channel analog method that you have currently hooked up instead (if you don't want to buy an optical cable)- but this tends to complicate things later if you have any problems with surround sound. By connecting via digital connection- it streamlines things a bit.
4) Connect the Play Station's video output to the receiver's "VIDEO 2 IN" (this is right below the DVD IN within the video section).
5) How you connect the PSX2 audio will depend on how you are planning to use it. You can simply connect the 2 red/white analog audio lines from the PSX to the receiver's "VIDEO 2 PLAY IN" jacks.
If you'd like to connect it digitally instead (giving you Dolby Digital in some cut scenes in some games- and giving you dolby and DTS for DVD playback from the PSX2)- well then it gets more complicated...
You see, your receiver only has a single optical type input. That input SEEMS to be permanent;y assigned to the DVD channel of the receiver (it might be able to be reassigned- but I don't have the full manual so I can't tell). Since that one is used for the DVD- it doesn't leave any more for the PS2. The PSX2 uses an optical connection for it's output- so it needs a jack to plug into too. So, unless you can reassign that single optical input to be associated with Video2 and then use a different digital input type for the DVD player, your options are:
a) Connect the DVD player to Video 2 and the PSX2 to DVD input. This will work fine (the names are just names), but you'll have to remember that on the display of the unit, it will say VIDEO2 when you wanna use the DVD player and DVD when you wanna use the PSX2-- which might be confusing
b) You can buy a small box which will convert the PSX2's optical output to a coax type which could then plug right into the hole provided for video 2.
If you choose (A), then you can disregard this whole thing and I can outline again how to wire everything that way.
But I would say that wiring the PS2 digitally is not all that necessary. Dolby Digital is not available in too many games- and when it is it is only used in the cinema cut sequences (I think, not a PS2 owner myself). If you don't plan to use the PS2 for DVD playback (which, you have a DVD player for that)-- then you could just wire it using the red/white audio lines to the "VIDEO 2 PLAY IN" jacks and be just peachy!
-Vince

 

[Shea]

The only downfall to choosing (A) is that the unit will say Video2 when using the DVD player, and DVD when using PSX2? If so, could you outline the wiring that way? Or, which would you recommend doing, and if you recommend (B), what's the name of the box I'd need etc.?

 

[Vince Maskeeper]

Well, I added this line after I posted it initially:

I would say that wiring the PS2 digitally is not all that necessary. Dolby Digital is not available in too many games- and when it is it is only used in the cinema cut sequences (I think, not a PS2 owner myself). If you don't plan to use the PS2 for DVD playback (which, you have a DVD player for that)-- then you could just wire it using the red/white audio lines to the "VIDEO 2 PLAY IN" jacks and be just peachy!

So, you should decide what's important. If you want to wire it digitally (essentially so you can get 5.1 surround in the cutscenes of a handful of games that supply that option), then we can make that happen with one of the 2 workarounds I outlined. If you don't care- then you could just leave it analog and still do fine.

-Vince

 

[Shea]

Think I'll just leave it analog then..thanks.

 

[Vince Maskeeper]

Cool- then you can just follow the layout above:

1) Monitor out from the video section of receiver to the Input on the TV.
2) Video out on the DVD player to DVD IN on the receiver.
3) Optical cable from the optical out on DVD to the CD/DVD optical input on receiver.
4) PS2 video output to VIDEO 2 IN on the receiver
5) PS2 audio output to VIDEO 2 PLAY IN on the receiver.

If you have trouble finding this stuff on the receiver- let me know and I can probably post some pics to help.

Once you get a VCR or a cable box to add to the mix, you can just run that to Video1 (audio and video connections)

-Vince

 

[Shea]

I found the receipt for the VCR I got not long ago, and plan to return that tomorrow and get another at Wal Mart. So I'll do it that way. Thanks!

 

[Vince Maskeeper]

Cool. Make sure the one you get is STEREO (and Hi-Fi wouldn't hurt either). My mom is a VCR fiend- and she buys $50 units from Walmart all the time (Stereo Hi-Fi)-- but she also watches sales so it might be a few extra bucks if they're not on sale.

But again- make sure it is STEREO and you should be good to go!

When you get it, hook up the incoming cable line (the Cable TV cable) to the RF input on the VCR (usually labelled "IN FROM ANTENNA") and find the Yellow/Red/White RCA outputs on the back and connect them to the INPUTS on the receiver for Video 1! When you use the VCR tuner, it will pass audio out and the receiver will have it on Video 1!

-Vince

 

[Shea]

Sweet, looks like I'll be good to go once I hook all this up tomorrow.

 

[Shea]

Went to Wal Mart tonight and exchanged the VCR for a stereo hi fi VCR(on sale for $48 ). Hooked that up, and use it for the TV tuner, works perfect. But when putting a video tape in, the screen is screwed like the tracking is bad(it has auto tracking, manual does nothing either) but the audio is fine. Something in the wrong plug or what?

 

[Vince Maskeeper]

I doubt you're in the wrong plug.

Did you JUST run the vid/aud/aud cables to the receiver- or did you also run another cable from the VCR directly to the TV (you should only need to run from the output on the VCR to the receiver)?

Is the cable picture clear? Did you try other tapes? Are these all store-bought tapes, or all stuff you recorded-- or some of both?

Double check to make sure there isn't a button to activate the tracking control (some with auto tracking still require the user to push a button to activate it).

If the cable picture is clear, and the unit just goes nuts on tapes (and does it on all tapes)- and there is no manual means to initiate tracking-- I would say it's likely a bad unit. As you can imagine- quality control on $48 VCRs is a bit hit and miss.

-Vince

 

[Shea]

Some store bought, some recorded on. Cable picture perfect(better than when using just the TV). Weird thing is, I found one single tape that played with a good picture, a recorded over tape with an old football game on it.

 

[Vince Maskeeper]

I would say unless the manual has some way to engage the tracking command- something is certainly wrong.

-vince

 

[Shea]

Well dang.. I guess I'll have to exchange the unit.:frowning:

 

[Shea]

Ok dumb question I just thought of. If your use the VCR to run the TV channels as I'm doing, and the VCR remote doesn't have a last channel button(button to switch back and forth between 2 channels) and then you end up with a universal remote, and switch the VCR remote controls to the universal remote, does that mean that even with the UR I wouldn't be able to use a last channel button? Hope that makes sense.

 

[Vince Maskeeper]

Chances are pretty good that even with a universal remote, you won't have a last button. As I'm sure you realize, the universal will not give you features the VCR can't do...

However- some products use a single "brain" in all their products, and simply only supply access to certain features on higher-end models. While it certainly isn't every product- the majority of stuff I own has 1 or 2 features built in that the original remote didn't offer that I was able to get with a universal.

-Vince

 

[Shea]

Why oh why is it that the more expensive something is, the crappier it seems? I had to take back the defective VCR, and got a more expensive $90 Sony. The remote isn't nearly as good as the one on the $48 Toshiba. When you change channels it flashes a blue screen, which will drive me to insanity. And you can't input a channel directly without pushing enter after hitting the numbers. On my TV tuner, and the Toshiba VCR, it would display the channel you were on in the corner of the screen, which I'm used to and like. But on this one I have to have a bright blue screen flash between channels, and if I want the channel displayed on the screen, I also have to have this big long rectangle on the bottom(has to do with playing tapes in the VCR, even if there is no tape in it). And it doesn't have a channel back button. Haven't found a VCR remote that does. So I can buy a 50 million dollar remote, but watching TV, I can't have my channel back button, the most important button in the whole home theater experience in my opinion! And I read about remotes that cost over a hundred bucks and up. And each one seems to have some major flaw, like not being able to flip through channels by holding the button down, etc. I guess I have no choice to get a cable box, which I don't like, then hope it comes with a remote with a channel back button. If not I guess I'm just screwed.

 

[Vince Maskeeper]

When you have tons of specific details that are make/break issues for you- strolling into Walmart and buying the first thing you find probably isn't the best approach. I would say you could try using the Internet to do some research before making the purchase... like here on the forum.
While you might not get an overwhelming number of responses (since VHS is going the way of the buffalo around here)-- you might have some luck posting something along the lines of:
I'm unsure about which remote you are referring to- but again realize that most of the functionality / non-functionality of the remote is actually a product of the unit you're controlling rather than the remote. Usually if a remote won't "ramp" (which is the name of that function of repeating channel up or volume up or whatever)-- it is because the original remote didn't really work properly. Some remotes are setup to just continue sending the stream when you hold down the button, other remotes are actually designed to turn the stream on/off when you hold down the button.
If your original remote was internally designed to send on/off IR pulses when the button is held- you will likely be SOL finding a replacement that will work because most of those just continue to send the IR stream. Since the device (like the VCR for example) would be programmed to not recognize a continual IR stream, rather is expect the pulse method of the original-- then they're little you can do.
-Vince