connecting new system

[padmaster]

I recently purchased a new system as follows:

Samsung 61" DLP projection TV HL-R6167W
Yamaha receiver - HTR5890

5.1 Speakers:

Front and center - Klipsch Synergy SLX
Surround Back - Klipsch Synergy S-2
Subwoofer - Klipsch Synergy Sub-12

I'll most likely purchase another set of SLX and connect them to surround (back) and move the S-2 speakers to surround (side) for a 7.1 setup.

first dilema..... connecting the subwoofer.....

1. Receiver pre-out sub to sub line in left/lfe? 1 RCA cable is all I need?
2. Receiver speakers A to sub high level in, then sub high level out to speakers A?
3. or both?

Second dilema..... video connections

I currently have the HD cable tuner/DVR and DVD player connected to the receiver with component video cables. The cable tuner has DVI out and the TV has HDMI in. Will DVI to HDMI give me a much better picture than component video? This also defeats the purpose of having an HD compatible receiver as I will have to change video source on the TV if I use the DVI connection.

 

[droeses58]

I recently purchased a new system as follows:

Samsung 61" DLP projection TV HL-R6167W
Yamaha receiver - HTR5890

5.1 Speakers:

Front and center - Klipsch Synergy SLX
Surround Back - Klipsch Synergy S-2
Subwoofer - Klipsch Synergy Sub-12

I'll most likely purchase another set of SLX and connect them to surround (back) and move the S-2 speakers to surround (side) for a 7.1 setup.

first dilema..... connecting the subwoofer.....

1. Receiver pre-out sub to sub line in left/lfe? 1 RCA cable is all I need?
2. Receiver speakers A to sub high level in, then sub high level out to speakers A?
3. or both?

Second dilema..... video connections

I currently have the HD cable tuner/DVR and DVD player connected to the receiver with component video cables. The cable tuner has DVI out and the TV has HDMI in. Will DVI to HDMI give me a much better picture than component video? This also defeats the purpose of having an HD compatible receiver as I will have to change video source on the TV if I use the DVI connection.

1. one will work, but I'd get a "Y" split cable to connect both to sub.
2. No, connect speakers to back of receiver, thats it

As far as video goes, I have the same dillema and to be honest I didn't notice any improvement going from component cables to dvi.

 

[Hanse18]

You might want to try wiring the cable box straight into the tv. It's more convenient and the difference between component and DVI is minimal for ur cable. I also wired my audio straight into my tv from my cable, then did an optical cable from my tv (sharp aquos 45" LCD) to my receiver. I found this alot easier because you don't need the receiver to get picture and sound, but it's available if u want it, and I didn't notice much loss in quality. (Plus, it's alot easier for the less electronically-minded people in the house to turn the tv on)

P.S. Did you by any chance purchase that system at Best Buy? I know the one by my house is always pushing the synergy speakers with the yammy receiver.

 

[padmaster]

Best Buy? Yep

I'm still a little fuzzy on the subwoofer issue. Connect speaker A to receiver only, I understand that.........but Y split what?

receiver/pre-out/sub - to - sub/line in/left-lfe....what's there to split? Am I missing something?


I'm thinking about taking back the S-2 speakers and trading them for another set of SLX......the SLX just fit the room better.

 

[MDS]

I'm still a little fuzzy on the subwoofer issue. Connect speaker A to receiver only, I understand that.........but Y split what?

receiver/pre-out/sub - to - sub/line in/left-lfe....what's there to split? Am I missing something?

Just looked at the back of the sub from the link you provided. If you look at the picture in the manual, they show a receiver/pre-amp that has stereo pre-outs connected to both the left and right inputs on the sub. Note that it also shows the single connection to the 'left/lfe' input when using a receiver with an LFE output; ie the receiver subwoofer pre-out in your case. You only need to use the single connection from the receiver sub pre-out to the 'left/lfe' input on the sub.

If you use a Y splitter as droeses58 suggested, you would be able to connect the single receiver pre-out to connect to both the left and right inputs. Doing so will give you a slight volume boost, but is unnecessary as you can do the same thing by turning the volume knob up a bit.

 

[padmaster]

I guess that's what was confusing me, the receiver isn't labeled LFE output. What does LFE stand for anyway?

I'm growing a little weary of this receiver. Yesterday I connected my VCR to the receiver with traditional A/V cable (yellow/red/white) and popped in a tape. The picture and audio was very very jumpy. I know this receiver has component video upconversion. Could that be the cause?

There is also seems to be an overall noticable lag between the audio and the lip movement in the picture. Also my HD channels sometimes "jump" and "pixelate" at times. Maybe the cable company? Maybe the receiver?

 

[MDS]

LFE = Low Frequency Effects. It is the ".1" channel in 5.1/6.1/7.1 etc and carries only very low bass.

Yes, the labeling on the subs is confusing if you aren't familiar with the terminology because it is misleading. That input can be used to get bass to the subwoofer even when the source of the bass is not from the LFE channel of a multi-channel disc. Many posters (who do understand the difference) will use LFE as a shortcut to just mean 'bass' as well and that adds to the confusion.

I think they label it LFE in an attempt to simplify things because your typical receiver manual will say 'to get LFE from DD/DTS you must connect the subwoofer pre-out jack to the LFE input on the sub'. So the sub manufacturers label the input LFE. Now if you want to play a normal CD, but have the bass go to a subwoofer, you still use the same connection (and set the bass management to all channels Small and subwoofer = yes).

Note that on some subs, the input labeled LFE has a special meaning. When you use that input, the sub's internal xover is disabled (which is what you want because you will usually use the receiver to do the bass management). Others have a switch you flip to disable the internal xover. Other subs don't have any label other than 'line in'. It doesn't really matter what the label says.