Various versions of HDMI

On Wed, 03 Apr 2013 03:05:44 -0500, "Steve Thackery"
wrote:


I didn't realise there was another way of doing it, though I'm still
not sure how I would use an HDMI audio return signal, because in my
case there would be four of them on four separate cables, and of
course they'd be digital so I'd need another piece of equipment to
select and decode them before feeding them to the hi-fi amplifier.

I'm fairly sure I'm missing something here, but my approach sounds
simpler. Each box (PVR, DVD, etc) is connected to the TV with an HDMI
cable. The 'digital audio out' from the TV is connected to the
'digital in' on my amp.

Thus the sound system always plays whatever I'm watching on the screen
(complete with necessary delay).

No need for any audio returns, or anything like that. The audio out
from the TV doesn't mess with the digital sound, so 5.1 from a DVD
comes out as 5.1, stereo from a CD comes out as stereo, and so on.

What could be simpler?

Yes, that does seem simpler than either my present system of separate
audio and video switching, or trying to make some use of digital audio
returned via four separate HDMI cables.

On checking the manual, it seems my TV does have a separate digital
output. It's optical apparently, so I'd still need to get something to
decode it to audio for the amplifier, but it would eliminate the need
to switch audio and video separately. I did investigate this before,
because there is an analogue audio output on the SCART connector, but
it only plays audio from the built-in TV tuner, which I don't use, not
the audio from other AV sources, so I abandoned the idea.

I simplified the wiring recently with the disposal of the last piece
of AV gear that didn't have HDMI, and of a SCART switch and associated
cabling. Without all those thick cables there might be room in the
equipment rack to experiment.

Rod.

On 03/04/2013 09:05, Steve Thackery wrote:
Roderick Stewart wrote:

I didn't realise there was another way of doing it, though I'm still
not sure how I would use an HDMI audio return signal, because in my
case there would be four of them on four separate cables, and of
course they'd be digital so I'd need another piece of equipment to
select and decode them before feeding them to the hi-fi amplifier.

I'm fairly sure I'm missing something here, but my approach sounds
simpler. Each box (PVR, DVD, etc) is connected to the TV with an HDMI
cable. The 'digital audio out' from the TV is connected to the
'digital in' on my amp.

Thus the sound system always plays whatever I'm watching on the screen
(complete with necessary delay).

No need for any audio returns, or anything like that. The audio out
from the TV doesn't mess with the digital sound, so 5.1 from a DVD
comes out as 5.1, stereo from a CD comes out as stereo, and so on.

What could be simpler?




ARC does exactly what you describe, but instead of needing to use an
audio out from the tv it uses the hdmi cable that the tv is connected to
the amp with - so it's simpler as in you'll have one less cable but in
practise no difference.
with my setup i have the pc, playstation, sky box, blu ray player with
intergrated surround sound amp, all conncected via hdmi to the tv - and
whatever i'm watching comes out of the amp speakers even though the
other items are not connected to it.

--
Gareth.
That fly.... Is your magic wand.

Roderick Stewart wrote:

On checking the manual, it seems my TV does have a separate digital
output. It's optical apparently, so I'd still need to get something to
decode it to audio for the amplifier..

Are you sure you amp doesn't have an optical in? Lots of them do,
these days.

--
SteveT

the dog from that film you saw wrote:

ARC does exactly what you describe, but instead of needing to use an
audio out from the tv it uses the hdmi cable that the tv is connected
to the amp with - so it's simpler as in you'll have one less cable
but in practise no difference. with my setup i have the pc,
playstation, sky box, blu ray player with intergrated surround sound
amp, all conncected via hdmi to the tv - and whatever i'm watching
comes out of the amp speakers even though the other items are not
connected to it.

I like the sound of this, but could you just clarify something? In my
present solution, the TV acts as the "switching hub", so to speak. All
sources go to directly the TV via HDMI leads, and the TV digital sound
out goes to the amp.

My mental picture of yours has the amp as the switching hub. That is,
all sources go to the amp; you select which source you want on the amp;
and that source is then "forwarded" to the TV up the HDMI lead between
the TV and the amp. The ARC on that lead goes back to the amp and
comes out of the speakers. Is that right?

One thing perhaps you could clarify for me: how do you tell the amp to
"listen" to the ARC, rather than directly to the inputs which you are
selecting?

Sorry if this is a daft question, but I'm always open to finding better
ways of setting up my system.

--
SteveT

Steve Thackery wrote:

My mental picture of yours has the amp as the switching hub. That is,
all sources go to the amp; you select which source you want on the amp;

Yes, seems to work well that way for me.

and that source is then "forwarded" to the TV up the HDMI lead between
the TV and the amp. The ARC on that lead goes back to the amp and
comes out of the speakers. Is that right?

It might be able to be used that way, in most cases the kit can send
audio+video to the amp, which sends the video to the TV and the audio to
its speakers.

But if you don't have an STB and watch TV using the TV's tuner, you need
to get audio out of the TV the "wrong" way along the HDMI lead between
TV and amp, that's what ARC allows for, you can select any input to the
amp, and watch it on the amp and listen to it on the surround speakers,
you might need to tell the TV to default to digital audio rather than
its inbuilt speakers, and enable CEC (or whatever your manaufacturer
calls it BlahLink) then the TVs remote vol+/vol-/mute should control the
amp volume, while the prog+/prog- still control the TV.

One thing perhaps you could clarify for me: how do you tell the amp to
"listen" to the ARC, rather than directly to the inputs which you are
selecting?

Don't know on that, my TV doesn't "send" ARC, so I used optical to get
audio to the amp (I could have used phono instead but there was a niggle
with that) thankfully my amp has a matrix to associate different audio
inputs with each HDMI input, so in my case I just linked SPDIF audio
with HDMI input1 (and named that TV), I daresay most amps have similar.

In message , Andy
Burns writes
Steve Thackery wrote:

My mental picture of yours has the amp as the switching hub. That is,
all sources go to the amp; you select which source you want on the amp;

Yes, seems to work well that way for me.

and that source is then "forwarded" to the TV up the HDMI lead between
the TV and the amp. The ARC on that lead goes back to the amp and
comes out of the speakers. Is that right?

It might be able to be used that way, in most cases the kit can send
audio+video to the amp, which sends the video to the TV and the audio
to its speakers.

But if you don't have an STB and watch TV using the TV's tuner, you
need to get audio out of the TV the "wrong" way along the HDMI lead
between TV and amp, that's what ARC allows for, you can select any
input to the amp, and watch it on the amp and listen to it on the
surround speakers, you might need to tell the TV to default to digital
audio rather than its inbuilt speakers, and enable CEC (or whatever
your manaufacturer calls it BlahLink) then the TVs remote
vol+/vol-/mute should control the amp volume, while the prog+/prog-
still control the TV.

One thing perhaps you could clarify for me: how do you tell the amp to
"listen" to the ARC, rather than directly to the inputs which you are
selecting?

Don't know on that, my TV doesn't "send" ARC, so I used optical to get
audio to the amp (I could have used phono instead but there was a
niggle with that) thankfully my amp has a matrix to associate different
audio inputs with each HDMI input, so in my case I just linked SPDIF
audio with HDMI input1 (and named that TV), I daresay most amps have
similar.

My amp has the Freeview box, Freesat box, Blu-ray player, and Xbox all
connected to it via HDMI.

The TV is connected to it via the HDMI ARC input/output.

When it's in standby mode, the amp passes whatever box is not in
standby, or off, through to the TV.

If I want to use the amp speakers, I bring it out of standby.

My PC is connected to the TV via HDMI, and uses either onboard sound via
the HDMI cable, or my PCI sound-card via optical to the amp.

Clear as mud?
--
Ian

Ian wrote:

My amp has the Freeview box, Freesat box, Blu-ray player, and Xbox all
connected to it via HDMI.
The TV is connected to it via the HDMI ARC input/output.

If I want to use the amp speakers, I bring it out of standby.

Turning my TV on/off, turns the amp on/off, maybe I could stop that if I
wanted to.

My PC is connected to the TV via HDMI, and uses either onboard sound via
the HDMI cable, or my PCI sound-card via optical to the amp.

Clear as mud?

If everything's connected to the amp (and you receive TV using STBs)
when do you make use of ARC?

On Wed, 03 Apr 2013 13:35:29 -0500, "Steve Thackery"
wrote:


On checking the manual, it seems my TV does have a separate digital
output. It's optical apparently, so I'd still need to get something to
decode it to audio for the amplifier..

Are you sure you amp doesn't have an optical in? Lots of them do,
these days.

It's a Cambridge Audio 540a. Lots of switchable inputs, but no sign of
anything other than audio.

Rod.

In message , Andy
Burns writes
Ian wrote:

My amp has the Freeview box, Freesat box, Blu-ray player, and Xbox all
connected to it via HDMI.
The TV is connected to it via the HDMI ARC input/output.

If I want to use the amp speakers, I bring it out of standby.

Turning my TV on/off, turns the amp on/off, maybe I could stop that if
I wanted to.

My PC is connected to the TV via HDMI, and uses either onboard sound via
the HDMI cable, or my PCI sound-card via optical to the amp.

Clear as mud?

If everything's connected to the amp (and you receive TV using STBs)
when do you make use of ARC?

The TV has it's own DVBT2 tuner, so I don't always use a STB.

With the ARC, I can send any audio source to the TV, so I can watch TV,
and listen to Radio, CD/DVD for example, with the amp on or in standby.

If the TV and amp didn't support ARC via HDMI 1.4, I would have to
listen through the amp all the time, or have a separate phono cable to
the TV's Audio In, and I'm not sure if I could tell the TV to use that
audio with broadcast video.
--
Ian

In article ,
Steve Thackery wrote:

I'm fairly sure I'm missing something here, but my approach sounds
simpler. Each box (PVR, DVD, etc) is connected to the TV with an HDMI
cable. The 'digital audio out' from the TV is connected to the
'digital in' on my amp.

Can you adjust the volume using the TV's remote? Avoiding the use of
two remotes for normal TV watching was my main reason for using the
HDMI return channel.

-- Richard