I'm new here, need help please...

[Skitch]

I just signed up with this form and was wondering if someone could help me? Now I'm an idiot when it comes to receivers and such so please bare with me.

Now I'm going to make this easier for (Me) the idiot to understand. I need a receiver because I don't have surround sound, I can't switch well for my Xbox 360 to play games in 1080i and so on. Now here's how my set up is going to be by JAN.....

'42 plasma TV that is 1080i (Will save for a 1080p TV after the new year)

Whatever receiver I choose between the Pioneer, Yamaha or the new Sony coming out.

http://gizmodo.com/gadgets/home-entertainment/cedia-2006-sony-strda5200es-71-surround-sound-av-receiver-201128.php

http://www.pioneerelectronics.com/pna/v3/pg/product/details/0,,2076_310069789_310985784,00.html

http://www.yamaha.com/yec/products/productdetail.html?CNTID=451511

I will hook up to component Xbox360, PS3, Cable box..... The reason why is, even though the receiver has HDMI ports, my TV is older, they didn't have HDMI ports in the TV. So, I am guessing I can't hook the 360 or PS3 via HDMI, correct? Because my TV doesn't have it, only my receiver.

Now I will have the choice to buy Blu-Ray DVD's for the PS3 or HD-DVD's for the Xbox 360. What will these movies play in for the Blu-Ray and the HD-DVD? Another wards, I'm confused. If it's hooked up to component until I get an 1080p TV, will the movies play in 1080i? If so, isn't that a better picture then standard DVD's? And isn't the sound just a little bit better?

I'm going to be honest with you, I'm in a wheelchair..... The reason why I say this is, I can't get out much. I have kidney failure and on kidney dialysis 7 days a week. Movies are my life, I have over 1,500 DVD's, I collect the game units, play games and I come on here, the internet. My Grandpop is going to help me buying these electronics because I am unable to work. I can get these receivers for $900 basically. So I'm not going to have the best of the best like you but I'm just looking for have better quality then I have now since my stuff is older.

Simply, will the Xbox 360 and PS3 play movies in 1080i with one of those receivers and with out a 1080p TV but a 1080i TV? Then when I upgrade the TV, will I be ready for 1080p for DVD's with either one of those receivers or will I have to buy a new receiver?

Or would any of you guys not use the Xbox 360 add on they are putting out in DEC for HD-DVD and just buy the Toshiba HDA1 instead?

Thank you and if I have any other questions after this from someone's response, again please bare with me. I've heard so many different things, theories and have read so many articles, I'm confused.

 

[MDS]

Simply, will the Xbox 360 and PS3 play movies in 1080i with one of those receivers and with out a 1080p TV but a 1080i TV? Then when I upgrade the TV, will I be ready for 1080p for DVD's with either one of those receivers or will I have to buy a new receiver?

The resolution of an HDTV and the resolution of a DVD or broadcast from cable or satellite are related but not the same. There is no such thing as a '1080i TV' - what that means is that the TV can accept an input signal in 1080i (it will also likely accept 480i, 480p, and 720p).

An HDTV - whether Plasma, flat panel LCD, rear projection LCD, or DLP - is a 'fixed pixel display'. That means that there are fixed number of pixels ('picture elements') on the screen. The TV will ALWAYS use that number of pixels so if the incoming signal is at a different resolution, the TV will scale the signal to match its native resolution. So if eg. you bought a Sony rear projection LCD that has a resolution of 1366 x 768 (which is a few more pixels than a 720p signal, which would be 1280 x 720) the TV will scale that 1280 x 720 signal to 1366 x 768. If you bought one of the other models that has a resolution that exactly matches 720p, then no scaling will be done.

The 'i' (interlaced) and 'p' (progressive) refer to the format of the signal. An HDTV is ALWAYS progressive (meaning it draws each line of the image as opposed to interlaced where it draws the even lines first and then the odd lines). If the incoming format is interlaced (eg. 1080i), the TV will 'deinterlace' that signal which converts it to progressive scan and then as said before it will scale the image if the resolution differs from the TV's resolution.

So to answer the real question:
- The TV will be able to accept a 480i signal from a cable box or satellite, deinterlace it and scale it to the TV's resolution.
- The TV will accept a 480p signal from a DVD player set to output progressive scan and will scale that signal to the TV's resolution. [A DVD player may also be set to output interlaced, in which case the TV will deinterlace and then scale].
- The TV will accept a 720p or 1080i HD signal from your cable/satellite/over the air broadcast.

All of the above will pass over the component video cables just fine.

In the future when most TV's are advertised as '1080p', that will mean either that it can accept an input signal in 1080p format (of which there are none currently) OR it will mean that the TV's resolution is exactly 1920 x 1080.

 

[Skitch]

Thank you very much for explaining that to me. But what receiver do you think?

The resolution of an HDTV and the resolution of a DVD or broadcast from cable or satellite are related but not the same. There is no such thing as a '1080i TV' - what that means is that the TV can accept an input signal in 1080i (it will also likely accept 480i, 480p, and 720p).

An HDTV - whether Plasma, flat panel LCD, rear projection LCD, or DLP - is a 'fixed pixel display'. That means that there are fixed number of pixels ('picture elements') on the screen. The TV will ALWAYS use that number of pixels so if the incoming signal is at a different resolution, the TV will scale the signal to match its native resolution. So if eg. you bought a Sony rear projection LCD that has a resolution of 1366 x 768 (which is a few more pixels than a 720p signal, which would be 1280 x 720) the TV will scale that 1280 x 720 signal to 1366 x 768. If you bought one of the other models that has a resolution that exactly matches 720p, then no scaling will be done.

The 'i' (interlaced) and 'p' (progressive) refer to the format of the signal. An HDTV is ALWAYS progressive (meaning it draws each line of the image as opposed to interlaced where it draws the even lines first and then the odd lines). If the incoming format is interlaced (eg. 1080i), the TV will 'deinterlace' that signal which converts it to progressive scan and then as said before it will scale the image if the resolution differs from the TV's resolution.

So to answer the real question:
- The TV will be able to accept a 480i signal from a cable box or satellite, deinterlace it and scale it to the TV's resolution.
- The TV will accept a 480p signal from a DVD player set to output progressive scan and will scale that signal to the TV's resolution. [A DVD player may also be set to output interlaced, in which case the TV will deinterlace and then scale].
- The TV will accept a 720p or 1080i HD signal from your cable/satellite/over the air broadcast.

All of the above will pass over the component video cables just fine.

In the future when most TV's are advertised as '1080p', that will mean either that it can accept an input signal in 1080p format (of which there are none currently) OR it will mean that the TV's resolution is exactly 1920 x 1080.

 

[MDS]

Given your three choices, I would pick either the Yamaha or the Pioneer. Both of those models are near their top of the line and you can't really go wrong with either of them.

I would visit the Yamaha and Pioneer websites and download the manuals for each of the receivers you are considering and read through them to get a feel for what features they offer and how easy (or difficult!) they may be to operate. I can't give you any personal experience with either brand because I buy Onkyo.

 

[skasol]

I also saw the pioneer elite and I was very impressed by it, I will also vote on the pioneer, as far as hooking up your components, they will be fine thru Component hook up, this is fine and will provide you with the 1080i signal that you need, good luck and you may want to consider Denon as well they are very good and pretty nice, they are a pain to follow the manual. take care.