Hi All, Just a quick question about home cinema.

I have a philips Plasma and the sound is ok but I want to add a half decent speaker system (Surround sound) I have looked on sites such as empire direct etc but I'm confused. I want to have the speakers on all the time when watching normal tv (Footie) etc not just when I want to watch a DVD. I have seen systems with a HDMi pass through (I have Sky HD) and was wondering if this is what I'm after????

Any help guy's (and gal's) would be great......

:thumbup:

You need a small HC amplifier. You can get some which are like a DVD player and decode the surround sound on that, but as you say, unless they have a separate digital input, you won't be able to benefit from surround sound coming from your sky HD box.

The only way to get surround out of your HD box is with the optical output. The HDMI output from the sky HD box does NOT carry multichannel audio AFAIK - you need to use the dedicated optical out. Therefore you need to get an amplifier which has an optical input, plus a set of speakers. Many manufacturers do cheap bundles... For example: Sony : HT-SS1100 (HTSS1100) : United Kingdom

Note that any "surround sound packages" won't set your lounge on fire - they're good for just getting some surround sound. If you were to go into a proper setup and want to enjoy movies at full pelt, then I'd recommend going down the separate AV amp and get some proper speakers.

Also, not sure if wife approval is an important factor or not - a surround sound system will involve more boxes around the room and more cables.

If you are after cheap thrills on a modest budget, then a style system is the way forward.

If you want awesome realism and depth to the sound that is so involving you'll never want to stop watching movies... then a few compromises in looks and price can get you a breathtaking system.

Many manufacturers do cheap bundles... For example: Sony : HT-SS1100 (HTSS1100) : United Kingdom

Anyone would think you worked for them or something

I've gone from a surround system down to an amp and a pair of decent speakers myself and even with just this the transformation over the TV alone is huge.

I think you have to ask yourself do you really want surround, or just better quality stereo.

The stereo option doesn't require lots of cabling and speakers all over the place.

I've gone from a surround system down to an amp and a pair of decent speakers myself and even with just this the transformation over the TV alone is huge.

I think you have to ask yourself do you really want surround, or just better quality stereo.

The stereo option doesn't require lots of cabling and speakers all over the place.

I think you have a point, I would love to have good quality sound Without the cable etc maybe thats a better way to go....

What setup do you have???

you really cant beat surround sound for watching any tv. even music channels sound fantastic when in dolby surround.

a stereo system does sound good, but how many times are you listening to music via it?

ive gone for a happy medium. ive got a sony 6.1 amp, connected to a dvd player and freeview and watching a sony lcd screen.

for the front speakers i opted for some book shelf size speakers, mounted on stands next to the tv. then smaller speakers for the surround sound. this gives me cracking stereo when i want it (although i dont use it allot) and decent surround sound when i need it.

if you use the optical output from your sky box you will get sound cracking sound. even the simpsons is in dolby surround these days!!

if you want to go for a all in one, sony do a system with thin tower speakers and a subwoofer, plus smaller speakers for the surround sound aspect. most have the model code DAVS (digital audio visual surround) and include speakers, intregal amp, dvd and usually radio too. plus you can play audio via cd, mp3 cd etc.

Go to a Richer Sounds shop...they are usually helpful and won't break the bank...

if you use the optical output from your sky box you will get sound cracking sound. even the simpsons is in dolby surround these days!!

.

Would it just be a case of optical out to optical out??

Would it just be a case of optical out to optical out??

optical out on the sky box to the optical input on the amplifier. you can see if the sky box is outputting a signal if you take a look at the socket on the sky box when its on. you should see a red light which is the optical light used to transmit the data.

if you look at the specs on these systems they normally state what connections you have to use HTH

dont look directly into the light though

dont look directly into the light though

lol no best not, although i dont think its all that bright iirc. but you should never look into these things i suppose just in case

How about this:

SONY STRDG510-SIL at Richer Sounds - HI-FI Separates, Home Cinema, Speakers, MP3 DVD Portables, Plasma LCD, etc.

Plus:

KEF KHT1005 at Richer Sounds - HI-FI Separates, Home Cinema, Speakers, MP3 DVD Portables, Plasma LCD, etc.

That would be a good system and you can choose not to connect some of the speakers should you feel you don't need the rears.

Richer Sounds - The UK's Hi-Fi, Home Cinema & Flat Panel Tv Specialists! - that would be a reasonable system but you wouldn't build on it much.

Personally I'm perfectly happy with a decent amp and a pair of floorstander or standmounts as you can get very good sound from just two speakers.

Dont forget that sky HD does not output 5.1 sound through the HDMI cable, only DD 2.0. To get surround from sky HD you need to connect the optical out of the HD box to the optical input of the amp. You also need to enable the optical output and set it to Dolby Digital on the sky menu.

Hi All, Just a quick question about home cinema.

I have a Philips Plasma and the sound is OK but I want to add a half decent speaker system (Surround sound) I have looked on sites such as empire direct etc but I'm confused. I want to have the speakers on all the time when watching normal TV (Footie) etc not just when I want to watch a DVD. I have seen systems with a HDMi pass through (I have Sky HD) and was wondering if this is what I'm after????

Any help guy's (and gal's) would be great......

:thumbup:

Earlier this year I went for an Onkyo AV receiver with Epos surround speakers and I’m thrilled. Be warned though, if you do it properly and get a proper subwoofer, they start at £250+ just for the Sub Woofer itself (sounds like thunder in a bad mood mind you) I use Superfi, as they have a proper Demo room and are willing to haggle (they will match Richer Sounds usually) I got My Pioneer Kuro Plasma from Empire Direct and they were not only very cheap, but they have showrooms where you can see the kit.

Have you a top budget? as you really do get what you pay for imho. My telly has an Optical output that can be used to feed things back to the Amp from the stuff that you are watching on the telly (eg the telly on it’s own with no DVDs, PVRs on etc) but if you plug your DVD into an decent AV amp directly using a digital connector, you will be able to listen to 5.1 or 7.1 surround sound if it is recorded on the disc in this format (nearly all are) As has been said though, a decent amp with a pair of speakers is still great but make sure you buy the best AV amp you can, as you will be able to upgrade to 5.1/7.1 at a later date. Dolby Prologic and Neo 6 amongst others, give pseudo surround through a 5.1 system when you are listening to a 2.0 (stereo) source. things like normal telly sound can be transformed (a bit) into sounding like a proper-ish surround sound.