Home Theater Hookup ????

[FKy.Guy]

I apologize for this newbie question, but I`ll be damn it I can figure it out by reading all the various instruction manuals I have here before me for the surround sound receiver/tv/ DirecTV-HR20 receiver/dvd-vcr combo unit and a cd player.I am pretty sure on the correct hook up for the surround sound speakers to the receiver,but what is confusing to me is as follows.

Do I hook up the dvd/vcr and the satellite receiver directly to the tv via HDMI and component video cables and then run the audio cables for the cd player to the H.T. Receiver ??????.

Question No.#2 - Audio,if I run a optical {digital} cable from the HR-20 into the surround sound receiver will that take care of all of the audio needs for the tv/dvd-vcr player or do I need to run the cable from the tv into the s.s. receiver ???

Question No.#3 - By running the regular audio cables from the cd changer into the back of the receiver will take care of that unit,correct ???

I once again apologize for asking such confusing simple minded question,but I think I confused my own self by reading all the differant Manuel's and got myself to thinking too much and got all it all a$$-backwards.
Many thanks in advance for any who may be able to assist me in this endeavor

 

[griz_fan]

I apologize for this newbie question, but I`ll be damn it I can figure it out by reading all the various instruction manuals I have here before me for the surround sound receiver/tv/ DirecTV-HR20 receiver/dvd-vcr combo unit and a cd player.I am pretty sure on the correct hook up for the surround sound speakers to the receiver,but what is confusing to me is as follows.

You're not the first person confused by all of this Here's what I would do, though there are a few options available. My aproach is to have dedicated video cabling to the TV and dedicated audio cabling to your AV receiver.

Do I hook up the dvd/vcr and the satellite receiver directly to the tv via HDMI and component video cables and then run the audio cables for the cd player to the H.T. Receiver ??????.

So far... good. But, this will really only give you audio. While HDMI can cary audio as well as video, most TVs that I know of can't in turn pass the audio on to your AV reciever. So, look at the connection for the HR20 and DVD/VCR as video only. The CD player is pretty straigh-forward, though.

Question No.#2 - Audio,if I run a optical {digital} cable from the HR-20 into the surround sound receiver will that take care of all of the audio needs for the tv/dvd-vcr player or do I need to run the cable from the tv into the s.s. receiver ???

Not quite... the optical out for your HR20 will only take care of audio for the satellite receiver. For your DVD/VCR unit, you will need to have separate audio connections for the DVD portion and the VCR portion. Use a digital audio cable for the DVD side (either optical or co-ax). Then, use standard left/right AV cables for the VCR's audio.

Question No.#3 - By running the regular audio cables from the cd changer into the back of the receiver will take care of that unit,correct ???

Yep...

Now, here's where things get to be a pain. Say you want to watch a DVD. Well, first, you need to switch over the TV to the DVD's input, then switch over your AV receiver to the DVD's audio. Want to switch over to satellite? Again, you need to switch inputs on both the TV and the AV receiver. Same for VCR. That's where a good universal remote that supports macros really comes in handy. With a little effort, you can program in all the various switching commands into a macro and assign it to a single button on the remote to switch everything around.

When done right, you'll be sure to get both the best picture and best sound possible for your HR20, your DVD and VCR.

Hope that helps!

 

[hbk409]

Now, here's where things get to be a pain. Say you want to watch a DVD. Well, first, you need to switch over the TV to the DVD's input, then switch over your AV receiver to the DVD's audio. Want to switch over to satellite? Again, you need to switch inputs on both the TV and the AV receiver. Same for VCR. That's where a good universal remote that supports macros really comes in handy. With a little effort, you can program in all the various switching commands into a macro and assign it to a single button on the remote to switch everything around.

When done right, you'll be sure to get both the best picture and best sound possible for your HR20, your DVD and VCR.

Hope that helps!

They way I have mine set up, is I have all audio & video going to the reciever first then a set of componet going to the tv for the dvd player & cable box and a set of composite cables for the vcr. This way if I press dvd on the receiver remote it displays the dvd input without having to switch the input on the tv. Would I get a better picture quality if I connected all video connections directly to the tv and just the audio to the reciever?