Help with home theater hook ups

[terrylee79]

First I searched this forum and got nothing. I searched on google and got more confusing. Let me tell you about my current setups. I have a hdtv, vhs/dvd player combo and a ps3. I have the vhs/dvd player hooked up to hdtv via component I believe. I have ps3 hooked up to the hdtv via hdmi. I checked the back of the vhs/dvd player and it has coaxial. I checked the back of the ps3 and it has optical. I know optical are basically the same thing as coaxial.
Now I will be purchasing this home theater system from radio shack.
http://www.radioshack.com/product/in...entPage=family

I know it has at least one coaxial and optical input/output or whatever. Do I buy both coaxial and optical for both vhs/dvd playe and ps3? Receiver to vhs/dvdplayer via coaxial and receiver to ps3 via optical? Is that all I need to do?

[NoobieNooberson]

lol @ vhs

[terrylee79]

I know vhs is played out but my mom loves em.

[Anomoly]

Originally Posted by terrylee79

I know vhs is played out but my mom loves em.

you have no fucking idea...me and my GF just moved in together.....she has about a few hundred VHS tapes..... i dont like watching them they look like ass compared to all my DVD's.... but we dont have cable or dish yet, so ive watched all my maybe 50+ dvd's and now im stuck watching her VHS........ive got cable internet though

[92toneintegra]

Coaxial is video and audio I think and optical is audio. Why don't you use rcas anyway?

run the red and white rcas (audio) from both the ps3 and vcr/dvd combo to the reciever. Then run the yellow rcas (video) from each to your tv.

The optical cable is just a digital alternative to the rcas which is analog. The optical cable send the signal via laser instead of wire which gives a clearer sound.

[.TheCriMson[K20]]

Originally Posted by terrylee79

First I searched this forum and got nothing. I searched on google and got more confusing. Let me tell you about my current setups. I have a hdtv, vhs/dvd player combo and a ps3. I have the vhs/dvd player hooked up to hdtv via component I believe. I have ps3 hooked up to the hdtv via hdmi. I checked the back of the vhs/dvd player and it has coaxial. I checked the back of the ps3 and it has optical. I know optical are basically the same thing as coaxial.
Now I will be purchasing this home theater system from radio shack.
http://www.radioshack.com/product/in...entPage=family

I know it has at least one coaxial and optical input/output or whatever. Do I buy both coaxial and optical for both vhs/dvd playe and ps3? Receiver to vhs/dvdplayer via coaxial and receiver to ps3 via optical? Is that all I need to do?

Optical carries digital audio only. its used for surround sound
HDMI carries HD digital video, and up to 8 channels of digital audio
for your dvd/vhs, the cable quality is as follows from better to worse: component (y Page Ranking pb- video only), S-Video (video only), composite (RCA, red white yellow- video and audio) and finally coaxial (video and audio).

the link in your post doesnt have any indication of what type of ports the home theater system has. i would assume it has the basics, so this is how i would set it up:

PS3:
HDMI to tv, optical to home theater

DVD/VHS:
if the home theater has component in and component out, run component to the home theater, then out to the tv. with component, you will need the 3 video cables (green blue and red) and two RCA audio cables (red and white)

if the HT system doesnt have comp in and out, run component straight to the TV, and then optical or RCA (red and white) to the HT system.


Just try to avoid coax at all costs, its the worst type of connection from device to tv.

[.TheCriMson[K20]]

Originally Posted by 92toneintegra

Coaxial is video and audio I think and optical is audio. Why don't you use rcas anyway?

run the red and white rcas (audio) from both the ps3 and vcr/dvd combo to the reciever. Then run the yellow rcas (video) from each to your tv.

The optical cable is just a digital alternative to the rcas which is analog. The optical cable send the signal via laser instead of wire which gives a clearer sound.

optical travels as a light signal, hence the name "optical". Optical is 100% digital so your signal wave doesn't depreciate like analog signals do. Digital sends either a 1 or a 0, so its either there or its not.

[terrylee79]

I checked the vhs/dvd player on the back and the hdtv and I think it's hooked up s video, only 3 wires white red yellow? I forgot the colors but it's not hooked up component. ps3 is working fine with the home theater. I'm having trouble wit the vhs/dvd player. I thought rca cables only puts out stereo sound. The left and the right speaker only, not center channel or the woofer. I could be wrong tho. I researched and coaxial audio cables are digital and basically same as optical til a certain distance.

[.TheCriMson[K20]]

Originally Posted by terrylee79

I checked the vhs/dvd player on the back and the hdtv and I think it's hooked up s video, only 3 wires white red yellow? I forgot the colors but it's not hooked up component. ps3 is working fine with the home theater. I'm having trouble wit the vhs/dvd player. I thought rca cables only puts out stereo sound. The left and the right speaker only, not center channel or the woofer. I could be wrong tho. I researched and coaxial audio cables are digital and basically same as optical til a certain distance.

the yellow cable carries video, red and white are audio. the S-video cable has a circular plug on it with 5 pins on the inside i belive. it has a little improvement over the yellow RCA, but it only carries video, you still need the red and white RCA's for the audio.

the red and white only put out stereo audio (left and right). Your home theater system MIGHT have a mode that simulates surround sound, but all it really does is send it to all speakers and alternate the levels a bit to make it sound surround.

[terrylee79]

Thx for the help crimson. Instead of buying the yamaha, I bought the Sony HTDDW795. I'm not using the 2 surround speakers for the back which I don't like to carry all that wire so I'm just running the 2 L and R, center channel and the woofer. I'm gonna be replacing the L and R speakers with polk 150s, do you have any recommendation for center channel around 100 bucks?

[.TheCriMson[K20]]

Originally Posted by terrylee79

Thx for the help crimson. Instead of buying the yamaha, I bought the Sony HTDDW795. I'm not using the 2 surround speakers for the back which I don't like to carry all that wire so I'm just running the 2 L and R, center channel and the woofer. I'm gonna be replacing the L and R speakers with polk 150s, do you have any recommendation for center channel around 100 bucks?

i love sony components. honestly with that setup, the center speaker will really impress you considering its size. run with it for a while, theres a good chance you will decide to not buy another center speaker.

[terrylee79]

I'm not planning to buy it anytime soon so i'll play it out for a bit. I just looked at the cheapest center speaker that polk has and its about $150. Most of the centers are expensive

[.TheCriMson[K20]]

Originally Posted by terrylee79

I'm not planning to buy it anytime soon so i'll play it out for a bit. I just looked at the cheapest center speaker that polk has and its about $150. Most of the centers are expensive

yeah usually they are, mainly because the center is what does most of the work.

[tjones]

You are going to need the following
PS3-HDMI to the TV and Optical to the Receiver
VCR/DVD player- Component for the DVD part Coaxial to the Receiver, the VCR will take ether s-video or composite video and left and right audio.