Preparing to Install Your Home Theater System

By: Vic Metten
Submitted: 2008-06-02 16:33:03
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So getting that new HDTV and Hi-Definition DVD player sure has you excited.   Now that your home and everything is unboxed and sitting around you on the floor, you see the 50 or so colored jacks staring at you, saying, “Plug me in!”  Yes, connecting your Home Theater system can be a daunting task, especially if you don’t know what should be hooked up for best quality.

Nearly every new HDTV on the market today will have a variety of connections on the back of the unit to get it hooked up and running in your house.  Here’s a quick run-through of the connections you might see on the back of your new HDTV.

Analog Coaxial RF Connection:  This is the lowest quality connection for your television. Basically it’s the old cable connection from the beginning of the Television Era.  This connection will pass both audio and video in an Analog only format.

Composite Video:  This is the yellow jack you see on the back of your TV, and it is also an Analog only connection that passes video only.  This one cable combines the Chrominance and Luminance portions of a video signal and can pass a maximum of 480 interlaced lines of resolution.

S-Video:  This is the little 4-pin jack you see on the back of your TV.  A definite step up in terms of image quality on your television, S-Video separates the Chrominance and Luminance portions of a video signal, increasing the quality of your video image.  S-Video is also an Analog only connection that passes video only with a maximum of 480 interlaced lines of resolution being passed.

Component Video:  This is the red/green/blue set of RCA jacks on the back of your new HDTV.  This is also an Analog only video signal that does not contain Audio.  Component Video separates the Luminance and 2 colors into its connection, providing true High Definition image quality.  Component Video connections can pass up to 1080 progressive lines of resolution (known in the industry as 1080p or FullHD by some manufacturers). 

DVI:  Digital Video Interface is a true digital video connection only; again no audio is passed along the DVI connection.  This connection allows up to 1080 progressive lines of resolution and was the Hi-Def standard of connection until just recently.

HDMI:  High Definition Multimedia Interface is a fully digital Audio and Video connection, allowing a single connection between your source equipment and HDTV.  This is the connection you will find on nearly all new HDTV’s.

Here are a few scenarios that will help you in determining the correct way to get the most out of your new HDTV.

Scenario 1: A brand new HDTV with a new Blu-ray DVD player.  The best way to connect these 2 devices together is by a single HDMI cable.  This will allow the maximum image and audio quality to be passed between the new Blu-ray and your HDTV.  Other than power plugs, this is the only thing you need to connect these 2 components together.

Scenario 2: Brand new HDTV, new Blu-ray DVD player, and a full surround sound system.  If your Surround A/V Receiver is capable of using HDMI inputs and outputs, the best way to connect these 3 devices is via a short HDMI cable from the Blu-ray player to the A/V Receiver and a longer HDMI cable from the output of the A/V Receiver into the new HDTV.  This will allow the receiver to switch the HDMI connections (especially useful if your new HDTV only has a single HDMI jack, and you have more than one piece of equipment with HDMI jacks you want to use). And it will allow the A/V Receiver to utilize the digital Audio from your Blu-ray player to produce that stellar surround sound on your new Blu-ray DVD’s. 

Scenario 3: Older HDTV, DVD player, and a surround sound system.  The best way to factor your connection in this scenario is to see what your DVD and HDTV have in the way of video connections.  If your older HDTV has an HDMI or DVI connection on the back, and your DVD player has either, then refer to Scenario 2 above.  If your HDTV has DVI as its best connection and your DVD player has HDMI, then a simple conversion cable can be used to pass the digital Video signal to the HDTV.  In this situation you will also need either a Coaxial Digital (normally an orange jack on you’re A/V Receiver) or a Toslink Optical (normally a small square looking jack that says “Optical” on you’re A/V Receiver) connected from your DVD player to the A/V receiver to pass the digital Audio portion of your signal. 

Using one of the above scenarios will provide you the best connection possible for connecting your Hi-Definition equipment together.

Many other scenarios than the ones listed above exist for connecting your equipment.  Make sure to refer to your manufacturer’s documentation if one of the above scenarios does not cover your connections on your equipment.

Article source: Expert Articles