Novice needing help!!

mikeyboy76 · 24-09-2008, 16:35

Hi there, I am a complete novice in all that is hdmi etc etc. I have a small budget of around £200 because i am poor!! I am looking for a home cinema system that will allow me to plug in my tv(sharp hdmi), sky+ box, xbox 360 and a seperate dvd (if one isn't included in the home cinema system!!). What one, how do i do it so i can get 5.1 surround sound no matter what i watch. I am honsetly a complete novice and after reading some threads on this site i have been confused even more!!!

Cheap and easy to set up is what i am looking for in a nutshell, I am not a heavy user of this sort of equipment but thought it would be nice to have some cinema sound while watching tv/dvd's with the family and while playing the xbox.

Thanks in advance for your help,

Mike.

Willie Wontie · 24-09-2008, 16:45

Quote:

Originally Posted by mikeyboy76

What one, how do i do it so i can get 5.1 surround sound no matter what i watch. I am honsetly a complete novice and after reading some threads on this site i have been confused even more!!!

You won't get 5.1 surround sound if the source is not encoded in DD5.1/DTS audio - the best you will achieve is DPL (pretend surround sound). But, Sky HD and Sky+ movies, and most DVDs, do include a 5.1 surround sound audio soundtrack. Videos, Freeview and analogue terrestrial TV programmes, and all other Sky SD channels are in stereo at best.

mikeyboy76 · 24-09-2008, 17:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by Willie Wontie

You won't get 5.1 surround sound if the source is not encoded in DD5.1/DTS audio - the best you will achieve is DPL (pretend surround sound). But, Sky HD and Sky+ movies, and most DVDs, do include a 5.1 surround sound audio soundtrack. Videos, Freeview and analogue terrestrial TV programmes, and all other Sky SD channels are in stereo at best.

So really any system would do what i want in the way of DPL it just won't be REAL surround sound, am i right? ( The kids and wife will never know will they??) lol.
I had my on this and wondered if it would the business for me? http://www.digitaldirect.co.uk/sony/dav-dz260.html

What do you think?

Chorlton Fisher · 24-09-2008, 17:25

That's very cheap!

I'd check the outputs on your kit and the inputs on this (Sony website?) to make sure you have enough inputs on this and compatible outputs on yours.

mikeyboy76 · 24-09-2008, 17:29

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chorlton Fisher

That's very cheap!

I'd check the outputs on your kit and the inputs on this (Sony website?) to make sure you have enough inputs on this and compatible outputs on yours.

I think this is what i'm gonna need help in working out! I have a sky+ that is connected by scart, my dvd player which is by scart and my xbox 360 which is connected by HDMI. I'm not sure how i would connect these things up or what the best way to connect them is, I don't understand about optical out or audio in so i hope this helps?!

MAW · 24-09-2008, 18:10

At this kind of money you'll struggle like this to get everything you need. Both sky and X-box use optical inputs, and this only has 1. The coaxial will be unused, I suppose you could get a converter for one of the opticals, but it doesn't make it any easier to understand! Other than that, it'll do what you want, not well, but at £130 what do you expect?

mikeyboy76 · 24-09-2008, 19:19

Quote:

Originally Posted by MAW

At this kind of money you'll struggle like this to get everything you need. Both sky and X-box use optical inputs, and this only has 1. The coaxial will be unused, I suppose you could get a converter for one of the opticals, but it doesn't make it any easier to understand! Other than that, it'll do what you want, not well, but at £130 what do you expect?

Ok. Thanks for your help. I'm not after the best system in the world, we don't use enough for that. But if an optical converter will allow me to get the best out of my equipment then i'll do it.

thanks for your help,

mike.

mikeyboy76 · 26-09-2008, 12:13

Ok will this work guys and give me 5.1 surround sound? My Tv has 1 hdmi input, can i get a hdmi switch and put my xbox into it and my tv obviously? Then use and optical cable to put the sky+ box in? This way everything will be surround sound? Am I right?

Willie Wontie · 26-09-2008, 12:28

Quote:

Originally Posted by mikeyboy76

Ok will this work guys and give me 5.1 surround sound? My Tv has 1 hdmi input, can i get a hdmi switch and put my xbox into it and my tv obviously? Then use and optical cable to put the sky+ box in? This way everything will be surround sound? Am I right?

Your TV has HDMI input? Not output.

How will connecting your TV's HDMI input to a HDMI switch input achieve anything? You'll just have a cable between two ports each expecting to receive something from the other end.

mikeyboy76 · 26-09-2008, 12:33

Quote:

Originally Posted by Willie Wontie

Your TV has HDMI input? Not output.

How will connecting your TV's HDMI input to a HDMI switch input achieve anything? You'll just have a cable between two ports each expecting to receive something from the other end.

No sorry i meant output. If i put a switch in surly it will be the same as putting in a optical switch but hdmi instead? The reason for this is that i cannot find an optical part on my xbox at all. I have av on it and hdmi.

Willie Wontie · 26-09-2008, 12:48

Quote:

Originally Posted by mikeyboy76

No sorry i meant output.

What exactly does your Sharp TV output via its HDMI output? Cos I've been on the Sharp Electronics website and looked at every one of their HD Ready (and Full HD) televisions and none of them seem to have HDMI output. I'm just trying to work out what you would expect to be output by a television in HDMI? It's audio - which will be Dolby Pro-Logic at best, therefore would be far better carried by stereo or optical audio cables? It's video - where would it carry it to, and in what format?

mikeyboy76 · 26-09-2008, 12:57

Quote:

Originally Posted by Willie Wontie

What exactly does your Sharp TV output via its HDMI output? Cos I've been on the Sharp Electronics website and looked at every one of their HD Ready (and Full HD) televisions and none of them seem to have HDMI output. I'm just trying to work out what you would expect to be output by a television in HDMI? It's audio - which will be Dolby Pro-Logic at best, therefore would be far better carried by stereo or optical audio cables? It's video - where would it carry it to, and in what format?

Ok firstly, did you not read my first post which told you homw much of a novice i am? You have completely confused me and I have no idea what you are talking about!! lol

The situation is this, I currently have a Sharp Aquos, I have my sky+ box connected via scart and my dvd player as well. My Xbox is connected via the hdmi socket, so if i bought the sony system i thought by conecting the new system via hdmi and the xbox 360 it would guarantee 5.1 surround sound?! Sky+ would be conected via optical cable. I am right or completely off and should I just give up if i'm not getting it?

chrisjr · 26-09-2008, 13:29

If your TV has two HDMI sockets then you will be able to connect both xbox and home theatre system to it at the same time.

However. The HDMI sockets on the TV will more than likely be INPUTS only. In other words they take signals from external devices to display the pictures on screen and make a noise from the speakers. But they do not send any signal back out of the socket.

Similarly the HDMI socket on the home theatre system is likely to be OUTPUT only. ie it can send pictures and sound to the TV but cannot receive anything back.

Think of it like the HDMI being two one way streets that join together at the TV. So you can go xbox to TV or home theatre to TV but cannot do TV to either xbox or home thatre. So therefore cannot go xbox to TV then back to home theatre.

And even if it were possible to do that I doubt you would get 5.1 surround from the xbox via the TV into the home theatre anyway. The xbox would still think it is talking to a TV which does not understand 5.1 so is likely to only send it a stereo sound signal. Which would in turn be passed back to the home theatre.

I suspect the only way to get 5.1 out of the xbox is to use a direct connection from it to the home theatre system. keep the TV out of the sound loop altogether and just use it for the pictures.

mikeyboy76 · 26-09-2008, 13:38

Quote:

Originally Posted by chrisjr

If your TV has two HDMI sockets then you will be able to connect both xbox and home theatre system to it at the same time.

However. The HDMI sockets on the TV will more than likely be INPUTS only. In other words they take signals from external devices to display the pictures on screen and make a noise from the speakers. But they do not send any signal back out of the socket.

Similarly the HDMI socket on the home theatre system is likely to be OUTPUT only. ie it can send pictures and sound to the TV but cannot receive anything back.

Think of it like the HDMI being two one way streets that join together at the TV. So you can go xbox to TV or home theatre to TV but cannot do TV to either xbox or home thatre. So therefore cannot go xbox to TV then back to home theatre.

And even if it were possible to do that I doubt you would get 5.1 surround from the xbox via the TV into the home theatre anyway. The xbox would still think it is talking to a TV which does not understand 5.1 so is likely to only send it a stereo sound signal. Which would in turn be passed back to the home theatre.

I suspect the only way to get 5.1 out of the xbox is to use a direct connection from it to the home theatre system. keep the TV out of the sound loop altogether and just use it for the pictures.

Thanks for that. But i think I'm getting confused on the switch situation. The HDMI switches are designed if your tv only 1 HDMI so in theory if I buy a switch it's surely like a hub for usb's and will enable me to connect both as if the tv had 2 HDMI? Yes or No?

chrisjr · 26-09-2008, 13:47

No and Yes.

A switch selects two or more sorces to one destination. So you can connect the xbox and home theatre to the TV and select which one you want to watch on the TV. But it will not connect xbox to home theatre.

And in any case as I posted above even if you could send sound up HDMI to the TV from the xbox and get it sent back down the HDMI to the home theatre you still have the problem that the home theatre will probably not even know the signal is there and it is unlikely to be 5.1 anyway.

mikeyboy76 · 26-09-2008, 13:50

Yes, get you now Chris thanks....slowly learning. So HDMI switcher for xbox and home theatre plus an optical switcher to connect sky+ and Xbox for 5.1?

chrisjr · 26-09-2008, 13:58

Don't need the optical switch. The Sony you linked to has both types of digital input (at least so Sony claimed last time I looked on their website).

Therefore you can connect both Sky and xbox direct. If the xbox has a coaxial digital out (conventionally on an orange phono socket) then connect that direct to the Sony and use optical for the Sky box.

If the xbox only has optical digital out then get yourself over to your local Maplin store and ask them for an optical to Coaxial convertor box. Slightly more expensive than a switch but saves faffing about with more switches and you can select xbox or Sky sound from the comfort of your armchair on the Sony's remote

MAW · 26-09-2008, 19:53

That's exactly the setup I had in mind, that works for sure.

mikeyboy76 · 27-09-2008, 09:17

Quote:

Originally Posted by chrisjr

Don't need the optical switch. The Sony you linked to has both types of digital input (at least so Sony claimed last time I looked on their website).

Therefore you can connect both Sky and xbox direct. If the xbox has a coaxial digital out (conventionally on an orange phono socket) then connect that direct to the Sony and use optical for the Sky box.

If the xbox only has optical digital out then get yourself over to your local Maplin store and ask them for an optical to Coaxial convertor box. Slightly more expensive than a switch but saves faffing about with more switches and you can select xbox or Sky sound from the comfort of your armchair on the Sony's remote

As well as connecting the xbox via HDMI as well yes?

chrisjr · 27-09-2008, 16:44

There is another thread on DS about the Sony DZ660 system. Having looked closer at that I discovered it cannot do digital audio in properly. Unfortunately I suspect the 260 will be the same.

The problem is that the digital audio inputs are designed to be hooked up to a TV and there is no obvious way to switch between them. Nor does it seem is there any guarantee they will work in the first place, at least not if the poster with the 660 experience is anything to go by.

I have a feeling that these systems are not really suitable to be used as the hub of a home entertainment system. It would seem they simply cannot properly handle multiple sources. Which means I feel that you are going to end up somewhat frustrated and disappointed if you go this route.

Nigel Goodwin · 27-09-2008, 17:11

Quote:

Originally Posted by chrisjr

There is another thread on DS about the Sony DZ660 system. Having looked closer at that I discovered it cannot do digital audio in properly. Unfortunately I suspect the 260 will be the same.

The problem is that the digital audio inputs are designed to be hooked up to a TV and there is no obvious way to switch between them. Nor does it seem is there any guarantee they will work in the first place, at least not if the poster with the 660 experience is anything to go by.

I have a feeling that these systems are not really suitable to be used as the hub of a home entertainment system. It would seem they simply cannot properly handle multiple sources. Which means I feel that you are going to end up somewhat frustrated and disappointed if you go this route.

If you buy the wrong thing, it won't do what you want - the low-end Sony's are basically a DVD player with surround sound, nothing else.

If you want a unit with multiple inputs, then you need to buy one that does that.

mikeyboy76 · 29-09-2008, 11:46

Ok thanks for all the info guys it really helps. Any suggestions on what websites i can look at for a cheapish amplifier and speakers? I assuming i need an amp!! lol

mikeyboy76 · 29-09-2008, 16:58

Guys this may be a really stupid question but when i've connected sky+ and xbox by optical lead to the system do i still nedd to keep both of these connected by scart or hdmi to the tv? So i would basically have sky+ via optical to the amp and connected to the tv for picture and the same for Xbox? Sorry for being so stupid but i really am crap at all this!!

Thanks guys,
Mike.

mikeyboy76 · 29-09-2008, 18:41

Guys, another quick question. I am struggling for HDMI's on my Tv but have notice that my Sharp Aquos has a dvi? connection. Can I but a dvi/hdmi cable and plug the hdmi end into my theatre system, will it work?

Thanks, i'd be completely lost without this forum!1

Mike.

Willie Wontie · 30-09-2008, 09:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by mikeyboy76

Guys this may be a really stupid question but when i've connected sky+ and xbox by optical lead to the system do i still nedd to keep both of these connected by scart or hdmi to the tv?

If you want to watch as well as hear the Sky and XBox then obviously they need connecting to your TV.

24-09-2008, 16:35	#1
mikeyboy76 Forum Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 13	Novice needing help!! Hi there, I am a complete novice in all that is hdmi etc etc. I have a small budget of around £200 because i am poor!! I am looking for a home cinema system that will allow me to plug in my tv(sharp hdmi), sky+ box, xbox 360 and a seperate dvd (if one isn't included in the home cinema system!!). What one, how do i do it so i can get 5.1 surround sound no matter what i watch. I am honsetly a complete novice and after reading some threads on this site i have been confused even more!!! Cheap and easy to set up is what i am looking for in a nutshell, I am not a heavy user of this sort of equipment but thought it would be nice to have some cinema sound while watching tv/dvd's with the family and while playing the xbox. Thanks in advance for your help, Mike.

24-09-2008, 16:45	#2
Willie Wontie Inactive Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Posts: 2,847	Quote: Originally Posted by mikeyboy76 What one, how do i do it so i can get 5.1 surround sound no matter what i watch. I am honsetly a complete novice and after reading some threads on this site i have been confused even more!!! You won't get 5.1 surround sound if the source is not encoded in DD5.1/DTS audio - the best you will achieve is DPL (pretend surround sound). But, Sky HD and Sky+ movies, and most DVDs, do include a 5.1 surround sound audio soundtrack. Videos, Freeview and analogue terrestrial TV programmes, and all other Sky SD channels are in stereo at best.

24-09-2008, 17:12	#3
mikeyboy76 Forum Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 13	Quote: Originally Posted by Willie Wontie You won't get 5.1 surround sound if the source is not encoded in DD5.1/DTS audio - the best you will achieve is DPL (pretend surround sound). But, Sky HD and Sky+ movies, and most DVDs, do include a 5.1 surround sound audio soundtrack. Videos, Freeview and analogue terrestrial TV programmes, and all other Sky SD channels are in stereo at best. So really any system would do what i want in the way of DPL it just won't be REAL surround sound, am i right? ( The kids and wife will never know will they??) lol. I had my on this and wondered if it would the business for me? http://www.digitaldirect.co.uk/sony/dav-dz260.html What do you think?

24-09-2008, 17:25	#4
Chorlton Fisher Forum Member Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: London Posts: 3,104	That's very cheap! I'd check the outputs on your kit and the inputs on this (Sony website?) to make sure you have enough inputs on this and compatible outputs on yours.

24-09-2008, 17:29	#5
mikeyboy76 Forum Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 13	Quote: Originally Posted by Chorlton Fisher That's very cheap! I'd check the outputs on your kit and the inputs on this (Sony website?) to make sure you have enough inputs on this and compatible outputs on yours. I think this is what i'm gonna need help in working out! I have a sky+ that is connected by scart, my dvd player which is by scart and my xbox 360 which is connected by HDMI. I'm not sure how i would connect these things up or what the best way to connect them is, I don't understand about optical out or audio in so i hope this helps?!

24-09-2008, 18:10	#6
MAW Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 28,577	At this kind of money you'll struggle like this to get everything you need. Both sky and X-box use optical inputs, and this only has 1. The coaxial will be unused, I suppose you could get a converter for one of the opticals, but it doesn't make it any easier to understand! Other than that, it'll do what you want, not well, but at £130 what do you expect?

24-09-2008, 19:19	#7
mikeyboy76 Forum Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 13	Quote: Originally Posted by MAW At this kind of money you'll struggle like this to get everything you need. Both sky and X-box use optical inputs, and this only has 1. The coaxial will be unused, I suppose you could get a converter for one of the opticals, but it doesn't make it any easier to understand! Other than that, it'll do what you want, not well, but at £130 what do you expect? Ok. Thanks for your help. I'm not after the best system in the world, we don't use enough for that. But if an optical converter will allow me to get the best out of my equipment then i'll do it. thanks for your help, mike.

26-09-2008, 12:13	#8
mikeyboy76 Forum Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 13	Ok will this work guys and give me 5.1 surround sound? My Tv has 1 hdmi input, can i get a hdmi switch and put my xbox into it and my tv obviously? Then use and optical cable to put the sky+ box in? This way everything will be surround sound? Am I right?

26-09-2008, 12:28	#9
Willie Wontie Inactive Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Posts: 2,847	Quote: Originally Posted by mikeyboy76 Ok will this work guys and give me 5.1 surround sound? My Tv has 1 hdmi input, can i get a hdmi switch and put my xbox into it and my tv obviously? Then use and optical cable to put the sky+ box in? This way everything will be surround sound? Am I right? Your TV has HDMI input? Not output. How will connecting your TV's HDMI input to a HDMI switch input achieve anything? You'll just have a cable between two ports each expecting to receive something from the other end.

26-09-2008, 12:33	#10
mikeyboy76 Forum Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 13	Quote: Originally Posted by Willie Wontie Your TV has HDMI input? Not output. How will connecting your TV's HDMI input to a HDMI switch input achieve anything? You'll just have a cable between two ports each expecting to receive something from the other end. No sorry i meant output. If i put a switch in surly it will be the same as putting in a optical switch but hdmi instead? The reason for this is that i cannot find an optical part on my xbox at all. I have av on it and hdmi.

26-09-2008, 12:48	#11
Willie Wontie Inactive Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Posts: 2,847	Quote: Originally Posted by mikeyboy76 No sorry i meant output. What exactly does your Sharp TV output via its HDMI output? Cos I've been on the Sharp Electronics website and looked at every one of their HD Ready (and Full HD) televisions and none of them seem to have HDMI output. I'm just trying to work out what you would expect to be output by a television in HDMI? It's audio - which will be Dolby Pro-Logic at best, therefore would be far better carried by stereo or optical audio cables? It's video - where would it carry it to, and in what format?

26-09-2008, 12:57	#12
mikeyboy76 Forum Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 13	Quote: Originally Posted by Willie Wontie What exactly does your Sharp TV output via its HDMI output? Cos I've been on the Sharp Electronics website and looked at every one of their HD Ready (and Full HD) televisions and none of them seem to have HDMI output. I'm just trying to work out what you would expect to be output by a television in HDMI? It's audio - which will be Dolby Pro-Logic at best, therefore would be far better carried by stereo or optical audio cables? It's video - where would it carry it to, and in what format? Ok firstly, did you not read my first post which told you homw much of a novice i am? You have completely confused me and I have no idea what you are talking about!! lol The situation is this, I currently have a Sharp Aquos, I have my sky+ box connected via scart and my dvd player as well. My Xbox is connected via the hdmi socket, so if i bought the sony system i thought by conecting the new system via hdmi and the xbox 360 it would guarantee 5.1 surround sound?! Sky+ would be conected via optical cable. I am right or completely off and should I just give up if i'm not getting it?

26-09-2008, 13:29	#13
chrisjr Forum Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Reading Posts: 27,916	If your TV has two HDMI sockets then you will be able to connect both xbox and home theatre system to it at the same time. However. The HDMI sockets on the TV will more than likely be INPUTS only. In other words they take signals from external devices to display the pictures on screen and make a noise from the speakers. But they do not send any signal back out of the socket. Similarly the HDMI socket on the home theatre system is likely to be OUTPUT only. ie it can send pictures and sound to the TV but cannot receive anything back. Think of it like the HDMI being two one way streets that join together at the TV. So you can go xbox to TV or home theatre to TV but cannot do TV to either xbox or home thatre. So therefore cannot go xbox to TV then back to home theatre. And even if it were possible to do that I doubt you would get 5.1 surround from the xbox via the TV into the home theatre anyway. The xbox would still think it is talking to a TV which does not understand 5.1 so is likely to only send it a stereo sound signal. Which would in turn be passed back to the home theatre. I suspect the only way to get 5.1 out of the xbox is to use a direct connection from it to the home theatre system. keep the TV out of the sound loop altogether and just use it for the pictures.

26-09-2008, 13:38	#14
mikeyboy76 Forum Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 13	Quote: Originally Posted by chrisjr If your TV has two HDMI sockets then you will be able to connect both xbox and home theatre system to it at the same time. However. The HDMI sockets on the TV will more than likely be INPUTS only. In other words they take signals from external devices to display the pictures on screen and make a noise from the speakers. But they do not send any signal back out of the socket. Similarly the HDMI socket on the home theatre system is likely to be OUTPUT only. ie it can send pictures and sound to the TV but cannot receive anything back. Think of it like the HDMI being two one way streets that join together at the TV. So you can go xbox to TV or home theatre to TV but cannot do TV to either xbox or home thatre. So therefore cannot go xbox to TV then back to home theatre. And even if it were possible to do that I doubt you would get 5.1 surround from the xbox via the TV into the home theatre anyway. The xbox would still think it is talking to a TV which does not understand 5.1 so is likely to only send it a stereo sound signal. Which would in turn be passed back to the home theatre. I suspect the only way to get 5.1 out of the xbox is to use a direct connection from it to the home theatre system. keep the TV out of the sound loop altogether and just use it for the pictures. Thanks for that. But i think I'm getting confused on the switch situation. The HDMI switches are designed if your tv only 1 HDMI so in theory if I buy a switch it's surely like a hub for usb's and will enable me to connect both as if the tv had 2 HDMI? Yes or No?

26-09-2008, 13:47	#15
chrisjr Forum Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Reading Posts: 27,916	No and Yes. A switch selects two or more sorces to one destination. So you can connect the xbox and home theatre to the TV and select which one you want to watch on the TV. But it will not connect xbox to home theatre. And in any case as I posted above even if you could send sound up HDMI to the TV from the xbox and get it sent back down the HDMI to the home theatre you still have the problem that the home theatre will probably not even know the signal is there and it is unlikely to be 5.1 anyway.

26-09-2008, 13:50	#16
mikeyboy76 Forum Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 13	Yes, get you now Chris thanks....slowly learning. So HDMI switcher for xbox and home theatre plus an optical switcher to connect sky+ and Xbox for 5.1?

26-09-2008, 13:58	#17
chrisjr Forum Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Reading Posts: 27,916	Don't need the optical switch. The Sony you linked to has both types of digital input (at least so Sony claimed last time I looked on their website). Therefore you can connect both Sky and xbox direct. If the xbox has a coaxial digital out (conventionally on an orange phono socket) then connect that direct to the Sony and use optical for the Sky box. If the xbox only has optical digital out then get yourself over to your local Maplin store and ask them for an optical to Coaxial convertor box. Slightly more expensive than a switch but saves faffing about with more switches and you can select xbox or Sky sound from the comfort of your armchair on the Sony's remote

26-09-2008, 19:53	#18
MAW Forum Member Join Date: Jul 2004 Posts: 28,577	That's exactly the setup I had in mind, that works for sure.

27-09-2008, 09:17	#19
mikeyboy76 Forum Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 13	Quote: Originally Posted by chrisjr Don't need the optical switch. The Sony you linked to has both types of digital input (at least so Sony claimed last time I looked on their website). Therefore you can connect both Sky and xbox direct. If the xbox has a coaxial digital out (conventionally on an orange phono socket) then connect that direct to the Sony and use optical for the Sky box. If the xbox only has optical digital out then get yourself over to your local Maplin store and ask them for an optical to Coaxial convertor box. Slightly more expensive than a switch but saves faffing about with more switches and you can select xbox or Sky sound from the comfort of your armchair on the Sony's remote As well as connecting the xbox via HDMI as well yes?

27-09-2008, 16:44	#20
chrisjr Forum Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Reading Posts: 27,916	There is another thread on DS about the Sony DZ660 system. Having looked closer at that I discovered it cannot do digital audio in properly. Unfortunately I suspect the 260 will be the same. The problem is that the digital audio inputs are designed to be hooked up to a TV and there is no obvious way to switch between them. Nor does it seem is there any guarantee they will work in the first place, at least not if the poster with the 660 experience is anything to go by. I have a feeling that these systems are not really suitable to be used as the hub of a home entertainment system. It would seem they simply cannot properly handle multiple sources. Which means I feel that you are going to end up somewhat frustrated and disappointed if you go this route.

27-09-2008, 17:11	#21
Nigel Goodwin Forum Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: North Derbyshire Posts: 41,789	Quote: Originally Posted by chrisjr There is another thread on DS about the Sony DZ660 system. Having looked closer at that I discovered it cannot do digital audio in properly. Unfortunately I suspect the 260 will be the same. The problem is that the digital audio inputs are designed to be hooked up to a TV and there is no obvious way to switch between them. Nor does it seem is there any guarantee they will work in the first place, at least not if the poster with the 660 experience is anything to go by. I have a feeling that these systems are not really suitable to be used as the hub of a home entertainment system. It would seem they simply cannot properly handle multiple sources. Which means I feel that you are going to end up somewhat frustrated and disappointed if you go this route. If you buy the wrong thing, it won't do what you want - the low-end Sony's are basically a DVD player with surround sound, nothing else. If you want a unit with multiple inputs, then you need to buy one that does that.

DS Forums

Novice needing help!!

29-09-2008, 11:46	#22
mikeyboy76 Forum Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 13	Ok thanks for all the info guys it really helps. Any suggestions on what websites i can look at for a cheapish amplifier and speakers? I assuming i need an amp!! lol

29-09-2008, 16:58	#23
mikeyboy76 Forum Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 13	Guys this may be a really stupid question but when i've connected sky+ and xbox by optical lead to the system do i still nedd to keep both of these connected by scart or hdmi to the tv? So i would basically have sky+ via optical to the amp and connected to the tv for picture and the same for Xbox? Sorry for being so stupid but i really am crap at all this!! Thanks guys, Mike.

29-09-2008, 18:41	#24
mikeyboy76 Forum Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 13	Guys, another quick question. I am struggling for HDMI's on my Tv but have notice that my Sharp Aquos has a dvi? connection. Can I but a dvi/hdmi cable and plug the hdmi end into my theatre system, will it work? Thanks, i'd be completely lost without this forum!1 Mike.

30-09-2008, 09:21	#25
Willie Wontie Inactive Member Join Date: Jul 2008 Posts: 2,847	Quote: Originally Posted by mikeyboy76 Guys this may be a really stupid question but when i've connected sky+ and xbox by optical lead to the system do i still nedd to keep both of these connected by scart or hdmi to the tv? If you want to watch as well as hear the Sky and XBox then obviously they need connecting to your TV.