Building an audio system.

[chrisaudionewb]

Hey all,

I'm trying to set up a new stereo system for my TV and computer. right now, i have a sony dreamsystem. it came with the speakers and a cd/dvd player built into it. ive had it for years, never had a problem. unfortunately, its starting to die. I've been looking into building a new system, but i'm starting to get in over my head

So, any help that anyone can suggest would be greatly appreciated. I'm pretty new to the whole audio thing.

My TV: Sony 30" HDTV. It has a couple of component in, 2 i think. Its model number is KV-30HS420, if that helps.

Cable: I have an HD cable box, so it has component out on it.

DVD: im goign to need a new DVD player, since my old one was built into the speaker receiver. probably needs to be component out, so i can watch DVD's on the HDTV.

PS3: I'm planning on getting one as soon as possible, and that is supposed to be in high definition as well, so tahts another component in.

computer: i'd like to connect the audio from my computer to the audio on the receiver.

So, thats three component video, plus the audio and such.

As far as i can tell, i need a receiver, a dvd player, speakers, and a sub. ive got about $1200-1500, but thats a prett stiff upper limit. suggestions would be welcome.

 

[chrisaudionewb]

update, more questions.

ive been looking more into this whole updating thing, and unfortunately, im just getting more confused. slightly. but hopefully ill get someone who can explain all this to take a look at the thread over the weekend.

first off, HDMI. Since i'm buying a new receiver and DVD player, and my cable box has HDMI, and my TV has HDMI in, is it worth it to get an HDMI dvd player and receiver, or just do the component stuff? It seems to be significantly harder to find all the required HDMI jacks [2 in for dvd/cable, 1 out for tv] at the price im looking for [around 600 or so.] Since my total budget is only about 1400, is it worth it to put more into my receiver? it appears that the DVD player would be about $100.

second, video upconversion? im a little confused as to what this is and what it gets me. If I have an HDTV, do i need to have a DVD player with upconversion to get the most out of my DVD's? and if i have a DVD player with upconversion, do i need to have a receiver with it as well? And if i do go this route, do all the connections need to be HDMI? or do they work with the component as well?

lastly, the computer connection. I'd like to be able to set up my computer to play video and audio on my TV and through the speakers. what kind of connection do i need to get the best outputs, both video and audio? I've tried it before, but i always get really crappy resolution on the TV. It struck me as odd, because i figured that i should get decent resolution with the high def TV.

again, any suggestions or help would be great.

 

[chrisaudionewb]

How about this...

http://www.onkyousa.com/model.cfm?class=Receiver&m=TX-SR674&p=i

As far as I can tell, this has pretty much everything I need. I was looking for one with 100watts per channel, but 95, 100, pretty close [would this really be much of a difference?]

It has the HDMI upconversion and the HDMI passthrough, which the more I read about, more it seems like something I should do. If I plug in the DVD and cable box via HDMI, then I can plug my computer in via component video, and get pretty decent resolution. lots of optical plugs, which i guess is the best way to move audio.

So how is Onkyo as a company? Any are there any other receivers that would be comparable to this one, with the HDMI inputs and outputs, but at the same price range? This is pushing the edge of the top line of my receiver price range.

 

[jcPanny]

HT system

Chris,
Check out the recent AH review of the Yamaha RX-V659. It is a good option in your budget and is less than $350 online from authorized dealers. Spend the bulk of the remaining money on a 5.1 speaker system like the Onix X-LS from av123.com ($800) or the SVS 5.1 speakers system ($999). Both will be a major improvement over the Sony HTIB.
If you have any money left, get one of the Oppo DVD players ($150 or $200) to take advantage of their upconversion and HDMI connection.

If you spend most of the money on the receiver (and not the speakers) than you will get something comparable to your current sony system.