Need some setup help please

[ikandari]

I have tried doing it myself and consulting Geek Squad (which turned out to be as useful as visiting the "Genius Bar" at the Apple Store...Doh!) and am at the end of my rope, I fear.

I have the following components:
1. Samsung LNT4065F 40" 1080p LCD HDTV
2. Sony BRAVIA DAV-HDX267W Theater System with Wireless Speaker Kit
3. Motorola DVR, from Comcast
4. Sony BDP-S350 1080p Blu-ray Disc Player

Everything worked just fine until I tried to connect the Blu Ray. I connected an HDMI cable from the Blu Ray to the HDMI 3 source on the TV (HDMI 1 connects the home theater to the TV; HDMI 2 connects the DVR to the TV), following the advice from Geek Squad that the audio would flow through the home theater from the Blu Ray while the TV/VIDEO function was selected. This sort of made some sense. The picture is working fine, but the audio is still coming from the DVR.

The home theater only has no optical input and only one set of audio-in inputs, which is currently connecting the DVR to the home theater, providing sound from broadcast television while TV/VIDEO function is selected.

My question is how can I connect all these components correctly so that I can watch a Blu Ray and hear the audio through the home theater?

 

[TLS Guy]

I have tried doing it myself and consulting Geek Squad (which turned out to be as useful as visiting the "Genius Bar" at the Apple Store...Doh!) and am at the end of my rope, I fear.

I have the following components:
1. Samsung LNT4065F 40" 1080p LCD HDTV
2. Sony BRAVIA DAV-HDX267W Theater System with Wireless Speaker Kit
3. Motorola DVR, from Comcast
4. Sony BDP-S350 1080p Blu-ray Disc Player

Everything worked just fine until I tried to connect the Blu Ray. I connected an HDMI cable from the Blu Ray to the HDMI 3 source on the TV (HDMI 1 connects the home theater to the TV; HDMI 2 connects the DVR to the TV), following the advice from Geek Squad that the audio would flow through the home theater from the Blu Ray while the TV/VIDEO function was selected. This sort of made some sense. The picture is working fine, but the audio is still coming from the DVR.

The home theater only has no optical input and only one set of audio-in inputs, which is currently connecting the DVR to the home theater, providing sound from broadcast television while TV/VIDEO function is selected.

My question is how can I connect all these components correctly so that I can watch a Blu Ray and hear the audio through the home theater?

I have bad news for you. The specifications of that unit show it to be pretty much useless.

That unit does not even support Dolby digital let alone Dolby true HD. It only supports matrix pro logic synthesized surround, no multichannel discrete codecs.

I have established that your TV has R & L analog outs, so you could use an analog switch box to switch between your BD player and DVR. This is your only solution.

This switch would work and it has a remote.

Basically your system is extremely obsolete and in sore need of updating. HTIBS are products to avoid.

 

[Davemcc]

My question is how can I connect all these components correctly so that I can watch a Blu Ray and hear the audio through the home theater?

Simple answer - you will have to switch the audio wires from the Blu-Ray to the DVR every time you change watching the source. Either that or get a simple audio switcher. You have two external sources and one input. Something's gotta give.

Ideally, you will look into replacing the Sony unit as the center of your home theater system. It only has analog audio inputs. You are missing out on the entire domain of digital audio like Dolby Digital and DTS, never mind the HD audio formats that the BD player is capable of delivering. The Sony is really holding you back since it lacks the connections to support the other equipment in your home theater.

Following up on TLS Guy's observation that the TV has analog outputs, you might be able to connect the audio output from the TV to the home theater system. This might be need some experimentation since some TV's will not convert HDMI audio into an analog signal that you can send to the home theater. To see if this will work, run a cable from the TV's audio output to the home theater, select an HDMI source on the TV from the DVR or BD player. It might work, it might not.

 

[Adam]

I may be missing something, but I don't think that it's so complicated.

ikandari, you have almost everything set up. The one change that you need to make is that instead of running the audio cable from the DVR audio outputs to the home theater audio inputs, you would run that audio cable from the TV audio outputs to the home theater audio inputs.

That way, you would select between watching and listening to the DVR or the blu-ray by selecting the different video inputs on the TV. Keep the home theater set to TV/VIDEO for those two sources.

I don't see anywhere in the TV owner's manual where it mentions having trouble converting HDMI audio to a stereo analog output, so I think this will work for you.

Because you are using a stereo connection to the blu-ray player (through your TV), you won't be getting true 5.1 sound (as the others have mentioned). You could certainly buy something new and get better sound...but that's true for all of us here.

I'd sure appreciate it if you would update us and let us know if this worked for you. Thanks!

 

[TLS Guy]

I may be missing something, but I don't think that it's so complicated.

ikandari, you have almost everything set up. The one change that you need to make is that instead of running the audio cable from the DVR audio outputs to the home theater audio inputs, you would run that audio cable from the TV audio outputs to the home theater audio inputs.

That way, you would select between watching and listening to the DVR or the blu-ray by selecting the different video inputs on the TV. Keep the home theater set to TV/VIDEO for those two sources.

I don't see anywhere in the TV owner's manual where it mentions having trouble converting HDMI audio to a stereo analog output, so I think this will work for you.

Because you are using a stereo connection to the blu-ray player (through your TV), you won't be getting true 5.1 sound (as the others have mentioned). You could certainly buy something new and get better sound...but that's true for all of us here.

I'd sure appreciate it if you would update us and let us know if this worked for you. Thanks!

The problem is Adam, his AVR has practically no inputs, it only has one set of analog inputs, and those are used for his DVR.

 

[Adam]

The problem is Adam, his AVR has practically no inputs, it only has one set of analog inputs, and those are used for his DVR.

Yes - that's why the OP needs to route audio from the DVR and blu-ray through the TV. That should work just fine.

I agree that the connections on that home theater are limited! Most are. However, I do believe that it can be made to work. It won't be optimal, but it should work.