HD TV purchase and hookup

[JimD]

I have been holding off purchase of a new flat panel TV, HD, until now but I think I will pull the trigger next week. I need to find a home for the 32 inch conventional but I think I can. The box over the fireplace can only hold a 40 inch even with the doors removed (they never get closed anyway so they might as well come off). So I am looking at a 40 inch, probably LED, possibly Samsung. The Sony's look nice in the adds, however, and Vizio is not thought of as well but looks nice to me in stores. If I go Samsung, I am thinking of the 6300. It is not their latest but seems available at a good price.

My primary concern is hooking things up, however. I think I have room to put the blueray under the TV, the box is sized for a 36 inch conventional TV so proportions are not great for the newer models. So I can get the video from the blue ray to the TV but what about the sound to the sterio? Do blue ray players have optical sound out? That's the way my DVD player, which was not functioning last time I tried it, sends sound out. I would prefer not to replace the receiver due to cost but also the large number of wires to move around. I have 5.1 surround including a sub I really like. So would one of the new cables from blue ray to TV + an optical out to the sterio work? Other ideas?

I am also thinking of a Roku which I presume will also need a newer cable to the TV? Does it put out an audio signal I would want to take to the sterio? Or do I just feed the signal to the TV and take sound out of the TV to the sterio? Should I just get a blue-ray with wireless capability and avoid the need for the Roku?

Obviously I have not thought this through yet and need some help. All comments welcome. I know a lot of you guys like your Roku which is why I am thinking of getting one. It looks like the cost will be similar for a basic blue-ray + Roku or a fancier blue-ray.

Jim

[Cochese]

Most BD players will have optical out, based on the last time I looked. You should be able to run HDMI to the TV, and optical to your receiver. If not optical, digital coax. The specs should say.

Get your cables from Monoprice if they don't come with the purchase.

[bthorne]

My primary concern is hooking things up, however. I think I have room to put the blueray under the TV, the box is sized for a 36 inch conventional TV so proportions are not great for the newer models. So I can get the video from the blue ray to the TV but what about the sound to the sterio? Do blue ray players have optical sound out?

All the Blu-ray players that I've seen have either optical or the digital coaxial sound outputs (or both). Check the specs on the player you're looking at to make sure it has the optical out.

So would one of the new cables from blue ray to TV + an optical out to the sterio work?

By new cable, I'm assuming you mean HDMI? If so, that's how I have my blu-ray hooked up - HDMI cable to the TV and optical cable to my stereo, and it works great.

If you're going to be using an HDMI cable, I'd suggest ordering it from Monoprice. They've got the cheapest cables around, and they work just as well as the insanely priced ones that most big box stores will try to sell you on.

I am also thinking of a Roku which I presume will also need a newer cable to the TV? Does it put out an audio signal I would want to take to the sterio? Or do I just feed the signal to the TV and take sound out of the TV to the sterio?

All the newer Roku players have an HDMI output. Only the $99 one has its own optical audio out - the others would need to be passed through the TV over the HDMI cable and then out to your receiver. Netflix has started rolling out 5.1 surround with their streaming movies on some devices, so I'd imagine you would want to get it to your stereo somehow.

Should I just get a blue-ray with wireless capability and avoid the need for the Roku? Obviously I have not thought this through yet and need some help. All comments welcome. I know a lot of you guys like your Roku which is why I am thinking of getting one. It looks like the cost will be similar for a basic blue-ray + Roku or a fancier blue-ray.

That question I can't really answer - I got a blu-ray player that has Netflix streaming capability, and I had already run ethernet cable to my entertainment center, so a blu-ray model without wireless fit my needs. Mine only gets Netflix and Pandora, and the Roku gets many more services.

For me, it'd be a question of price, which services you think you'll use, and how many remotes you want to be able to lose in your couch cushions.

[BobSch]

I'm with Bryan, go to Monoprice for HDMI cables. There's no reason to spend the ridiculous prices most retailers want.

[wbsettle]

I have been holding off purchase of a new flat panel TV, HD, until now but I think I will pull the trigger next week. I need to find a home for the 32 inch conventional but I think I can. The box over the fireplace can only hold a 40 inch even with the doors removed (they never get closed anyway so they might as well come off). So I am looking at a 40 inch, probably LED, possibly Samsung. The Sony's look nice in the adds, however, and Vizio is not thought of as well but looks nice to me in stores. If I go Samsung, I am thinking of the 6300. It is not their latest but seems available at a good price.
{snipped for space}

You might want to double check your width against the TVs you're considering. My parents' custom wall unit was supposedly built for a 36" CRT as well, but I managed to find a 46" Toshiba LCD that fit like a glove with the doors removed..like maybe 1/8" gap on each side. See the attached photos for how I rebuilt their cabinet for 16:9...maybe some ideas you can use. Monoprice is also a good source for TV wall mounts in addition to cables.

The Toshiba has an IR passthrough on it for relaying remote signals, but I never could get it to work. So, there's a Terk Leapfrog relaying the remote commands to the gear behind the TV. The mount is articulating, so it's simple to pull the TV out of the recess to load discs.

Don't worry about brand names, so much. Vizio has more than held their own in the A/V mags, including objective testing. It's really kind of hard to buy a bad HDTV, IMO. I avoid true no names and store brands, but Vizio, Panasonic, Toshiba, Samsung, Sony, LG, Sharp, Olevia, etc. have all tested/reviewed well in the A/V press.

If you decide to consider a new receiver so you can do HDMI switching (cable/sat box, Blu-ray, Roku, etc.), ShopOnkyo.com usually has a number of current gen refurb units available. The other day, they had 508s for $229...Audyssey audio processing, latest audio codecs, and 3D ready HDMI. I purchased a couple of refurbs (506,507) over the years and the units were packed as if new off the line. After living with it for several years now with 3 different receivers, I'd rate Audyssey EQ as a must have feature by itself. HDMI ends your cable clutter if you can get all of your sources converted.

-Brent

[AvidDIyer2010]

Definitely measure your space and the TV's at the store. However, I think your on the right track with the TV style and brand. go with a good brand and you will see good results! As far as the sound, I would invest in good, quality cables! That will make the difference in your sound output.

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LCD HDTV

[JimD]

I bought a Samsung UN40C6300 and a LG BD570 yesterday. The Samsung is the TV and the LG is a WiFi blue ray player. I went ahead and added an overpriced 6 foot HDMI cable from Amazon to the order (and a couple blue rays). The cable was 7.99 and I figured Monoprice was cheaper but it was convenient and the shipping was free.

My box is about 37.5 inches with the doors in place and 40 inches wide with the doors off. The Samsung is 37.8 inches wide so the doors need to come off, which is no big deal. The height on stand is about the same as the existing 32 inch old style TV. That puts several inches of box open above the TV but that is what I'm used to. Without the doors, my opening is 40 inches. I thought about trying to squeeze in a 42 inch TV but decided it was too much trouble for only a small difference in size. The LG says it is 40 inches wide but trying to wedge a relatively expensive TV into the box did not seem like something to do.

I think the blue ray can go into the rack and the HDMI cable through a conduit to the box over the fireplace. I thought my old CD/DVD 5 disc changer had quit but it is playing CDs great as I type this. It uses the one optical input to the Kenwood VR-405 receiver. I have another digital input but it is coaxial. That should work for the LG. I do not remember how I hooked the VHS/DVD recorder up but if it is in the digital input it will have to move to a tape deck input (2 channel). Time to check out prices on monoprice for a short coaxial.

Now I need to sign up for netflix and probably to switch from Time Warner cable to Direct TV (to get HDTV channels at a better price). I'm hoping the TV arrives next week (I went supersaver so Amazon kind of drags their feet sometimes) but it will be sometime in January before I have everything set up. Should be nice once I get there.

Jim

[JimD]

TV and blueray player came Wednesday. HDMI cable has still not come. I hooked up the blueray using the component connection and cables I had laying around. I hooked the digital output of the LG to the old receiver (no HDMI connections) using a leftover coaxial I had been using for the cable hookup. I used adapters from Home depot ($5 each) to adapt the cable connection to the RCA type connection for digital audio. The blueray sits under the TV (I made a shelf on 2 inch high legs). I plugged screw holes from the hardware for the doors that had to come off and repainted the box before putting the TV in it. Old 32 inch was not too bad (heavy) by myself (CRT type).

I got Netflix going and the input you guys provided earlier was good (not surprising). I used my existing "g" router and DSL (I think it is nominally 5 mbs) to watch a Netflix movie (Iron man 2 on blue ray is coming) with my daughter (bounty hunter - OK, not really good). Worked fine as you predicted with no pauses and picture similar to a dvd. Sound seemed OK too but the amp to my sub seems to be shot so we were missing that part which I really like. Vudu doesn't work yet and I also have been unsuccessful at upgrading the LG software after a couple tries. Not sure what is going on there, may have to call them.

Overall I am pleased. Thanks for all the input, it helped.

Jim