Which is better 7.1 Analog or Optical??

[timoteo]

I just picked up my Sony BDP-S550. I am currently running an optical cable to my HK-340 reciever. My reciever does not have any HDMI's & does not decode HD sound. I watched a movie that had DTS-HD & it sounded awsome. My reciever said DTS-NEO6 on it. I was told that I wasnt hearing HD sound and that I could if I connected RCA cables through the 7.1 analog......My Question is: Would I get better sound from the 7.1-analog, letting the Blu-ray decode the HD sound or am I getting better sound through my optical cable?...& if the 7.1 analog is the way to go what cables should I use, because the instructions say to use monaurals for the center & sub connections?

I'd appreciate any help!
I'm completely addicted to this!!!

 

[tbergman]

I'm pretty sure that you aren't getting true 7.1 through your optical because it can't handle the bandwith, but if your run the analog cables you should get 7.1 because the player will decode it.

 

[Seth=L]

Analog would be better than optical. The reason being is that the Blu-ray player would be decoding the full DTS-HD track, where the optical (spdif doesn't allow it) isn't capable of handling it. If you use optical you are limited to standard DTS, Dolby Digital, and 2 channel PCM. DTS NEO:6 is post processing you can add to 2 channel PCM, 2 or 6 channel Dolby Digital and 6 channel DTS.

 

[Adam]

Whether one will sound better than another will depend on what you prefer, if you prefer either. Whoever you talked to was right - if you have 7.1 inputs on the receiver, then the Sony can decode the DTS-HD and pass it over the 7.1 analog connections. The optical connection is certainly easier, as it's just one cable. However, the optical connection can't handle the bandwidth requirements for the new lossless codecs (like DTS-HD).

You can use any cables with RCA connectors on each end. You just need eight of them. You can buy cables that are junk, but you don't need to spend much to get cables that are good. As one example, here is a set that has two cables per bundle (a typical stereo set). You would use four of those for a total of about $12 plus shipping.

EDIT: I'm late to the party, but everyone seems to agree.

 

[GlocksRock]

If you can't use HDMI, then use 7.1 analog.

 

[OttoMatic]

Check out this thread, where we discuss what real benefit there is to using the lossless codecs. I continue to use the optical output, as I don't believe that there's much (if any) sonic benefit.

 

[davidtwotrees]

Hey, Otto. That thread was awse. I just replied with my recent wisdom in this regards. I bought a receiver just to get the wonder codecs and it was a waste of money, imho. I have a modded twelve year old Lexicon prepro that is much nicer to use than the chineseplasticwonderbox that I bought.
I might just try the analog outs vs optical on my Lexicon.

 

[MinusTheBear]

You pay a premium for the 7.1 multichannel analog outs when purchasing a Blu-ray player with that capability, so use them. Personally, I feel no need to get a receiver with HDMI after watching a bunch of movies using the analog outs. I am thrilled with the sound quality!

 

[AVRat]

One thing to remember, when using the 7.1 analog outs of the BD player, is that you need to do the speaker and any bass management set-up in the player because the receiver/processor doesn’t usually do this from the 5/7.1 analog inputs.

 

[GlocksRock]

also, if you have a 7.1 speaker setup, you can't get true 7.1 from optical, but you can apply PLIIx processing to get 7.1, but I would sitll go the analog route.

 

[Missionman]

hmmm. where as i always thought optical would be best, due to purer transfer rate. hmm. learn something new everyday i guess

 

[Disturbed932]

not sure on that. i guess if blu ray is hd, then its hd audio

 

[OttoMatic]

not sure on that. i guess if blu ray is hd, then its hd audio

No, the lossless audio formats will only be passed on HDMI.

Those formats can also be decoded in the player and sent via analog.

The HD audio formats cannot be sent on optical or digital coax.

 

[Missionman]

i didnt think audio could be HD, High definition is high contrast of pixelation, dont get pixels with audio

 

[OttoMatic]

All right, all right. It's not "high def" in a video sense. BluRay (and the now essentially dead HD-DVD) uses lossless audio formats called True-HD and DTS-MA. That's what I, and many others, might refer to as HD audio formats.

 

[lsiberian]

hmmm. where as i always thought optical would be best, due to purer transfer rate. hmm. learn something new everyday i guess

Theoretically optical would be better, but the HDMI standard was adopted to combine signals and reduce cables. Fiber is only better than copper over great distances because it won't lose it's signal(talking pure cable not on a specific standard.) Copper still runs info at near light speed.

You could always use this as an excuse to upgrade to a nicer receiver

 

[Starmax]

HDMI or 7.1 analog?

My receiver doesn't decode HD audio (True-HD & DTS-MA) but does have HDMI inputs. I'm ready to try BluRay, and as I understand it, the player will decode the HD sound and send to my receiver via LPCM. So I don't need to pay more for a BluRay player with 7.1 analog outs because the HDMI connection will be as good or better than analog? Are there any other quality factors in BluRay players I need to consider?

 

[billy p]

The only advantage to be gained here is if your AVR will process the incoming signal and decode it via bitstream, which IMO allows for proper B/M. I believe even with an HDMI receiver, unless it can fully decode lossless, you'll not be able to use the receiver's B/M but still be able to send the audio via LPCM.

PS: It just make things more simple, Bill