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Bought a new TV, now what? with audio & blu ray?

Hello fellow Audiogoners,

I need some education and insight to point me in the right direction. I've done some research on my own, but would like some direct responses to some questions I have.

Like a lot of you folks, I'm a 2-channel analog junkie more than a HT guy. I just bought a Pioneer 6020FD for my modest home theater system, which consists of older NHT speakers and dated, but still great ROTEL separates. Up until now I enjoyed movies on my old 36' Sony CRT, so I never concerned myself with HDMI, Dolby tryHD, etc. As of now, I am not looking to purchase a new sound processor.

Regarding blu ray, I am under the impression that if I use a simple digital coax to my receiver, which decodes only DD and DTS, I will not get any Dolby TrueHD and DTS HD audio. My sound processor does have analog inputs, but via DB-25 connectors, which will bypass all but the master volume control. If I get a blu ray player that decodes the HD audio signals and use the analog connectors, will I be able to enjoy these formats?

Given the above, what blu ray players would be good for me? (under $300, preferably closer to $200). I don't need a universal player, just one that will play blu ray and upsample DVD's well.

Another question...
What do you folks commonly connect (audio) your HD cable box to you system? digital connections?

Thanks.
drewyou
kennyt
1,226 posts
 
Srwooten is wrong, even poorly implemented DTS HD MA and Dolby TrueHD will sound better then DD and DTS, the Pannie Johnny recommends is a solid player and it will get you into the new codecs for cheap.
johnnyb53
3,510 posts
 
07-08-09: Srwooten
Great Hi-rez sound from the analog outputs from a $200-300 BR player seems doubtful at best to me compared to what your Rotel should be capable of.
Nope, for two reasons: economy of scale and high resolution source trumps lower-rez plus processing.

Panasonic can build a $300-350 Blu-ray player that performs to a high level. A $300 Blu-ray's picture is certainly better-looking than that of a $5000 std-def DVD player. The same goes for the sound. The Rotel's higher build quality can't overcome the fact that it's decoding a very lossy surround scheme while the Panasonic is putting out a lossless signal.

When Wes Philips in Stereophile reported on hearing Dolby TrueHD processed through an Onkyo AV receiver a couple years ago, he stated that it was the best-sounding surround playback he had ever heard. Wes is no stranger to expensive, esoteric gear, and yet a lossless source, even when played through a mass-market receiver, trumped std-def DTS or Dolby Digital he'd heard through cost-no-object components.
drewyou OP
24 posts
 
Great comments Johnny. I checked the website for the DB-25 cables. Any info on how I determine what RCA cable corresponds to which channel?
drewyou OP
24 posts
 
I have another question...

With a blu ray player such as the panasonic BD80, if I want to watch a DVD, do I need to connect to my sound processor with a digital cable (coax/optical) along with the 5.1 analog connections? Or will the analog 5.1 connections allow me to listen to standard Dolby Surround and DTS formats as well.
johnnyb53
3,510 posts
 
There is a THX color code for the six channels; here it is according to this HTGuide forum discussion:

BLUE------Front Left
GREEN-----Front Center
RED--------Front Right
BROWN----Subwoofer
BLACK----Left Surround)
YELLOW---Right Surround)

When using the Blu-ray for std-def DVDs, you *may* get a little better sound by letting the Rotel do the digital processing, but you never know until you try.

My Oppo DV-980H has pretty good internal processors, and I use them for SACD and DVD-A, but I also connect a coax SP/DIF to my Boston Acoustics AVP7 (originally $2K) for CDs and sometimes for regular DVDs. I think the Boston sounds a little better for CDs.

But inexpensive audio components keep improving, and with the Panasonic, you won't know until you try both ways, and even then, it'll be close.
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