Blu-ray Audio question involving DVI

[PMWilson]

Hi There,

Another newbie question from someone trying to catch up...
All of my home theatre equipment is Sony from 2003. Absolutely no HDMI ports of any kind. However, I have all other cable options from an audio stand point. So I have to assume that HD-Dolby is out of the question. I can live with that I guess. But will standard 5.1 Dolby audio be possible if I get a Blu-Ray player? My TV has a DVI output so hooking up the Blu-ray player to my TV won't be a problem. But how should I hook up my Blu-Ray player to a receiver that has no HDMI to get standard Dolby 5.1? Any help would be appreciated. Again my reciever has everything but HDMI, so it has a coax, component etc. Will those audio options give me standard Dolby 5.1 with a Blu-Ray player?

[gearyt]

TosLink, Optical or Coax will give you 5.1

[Edh63]

I've got the same situation on my receiver... no HDMI. I hook the Blue Ray to the Plasma via HDMI cable and run the optical cable from Blue Ray to the receiver. You'll need to go into the Blue Ray and set PCM to Bitstream to get your 5.1 to sound correctly.

I had mine set to PCM at first and it was lacking. After grabbing some advice from these forums, I switched to Bitstream and the system rocked.

Anyone, please chime in a correct me if I'm wrong.

[un4gvn94538]

if i remember correctly i think you can get true hd via 5.1 inputs on your reciever if it has it. just need a player with 5.1 out

[PMWilson]

Thanks guys.
This forum rocks for information and advice.

On a side note:
I'm completely dissappointed with Sony support.
As I spent almost $10K on my Sony Home Theatre system back in 2003.
And what thanks did I get from Sony when I asked them for Blu-ray help?
Well I'm glad you asked.
They basically told me to get lost as any Blu-ray addition to my system would not be supported by Sony with my present 2002 / 2003 system. I can understand how technology changes and that Sony has to protect themselves, but they could at least give me the steps to at least "try" to get Blu-ray working on my system with a disclaimer that it might not work and that they won't suppoet me if problems persist.
That would at least set my expectations. And big chains like Best Buy have money back returns so I could always get my money back if all else fails.
Sony, you know how to treat your customers...or is $10K not enough to make me a real customer? If I ever get a new Home Theatre system...I gaurantee it won't be Sony...any of it.
Ok my rants over
And this forum still rocks
Looking forward to Blu-ray, and any technology challenge it may give me.

[crackinhedz]

Originally Posted by PMWilson

They basically told me to get lost as any Blu-ray addition to my system would not be supported by Sony with my present 2002 / 2003 system.

eh...what SONY home theater system? ...and why is it not compatible with Bluray? as long as it has audio / video inputs and can turn on, it is compatible.

[PMWilson]

Originally Posted by crackinhedz

eh...what SONY home theater system? ...and why is it not compatible with Bluray? as long as it has audio / video inputs and can turn on, it is compatible.

Exactly.
And...well, actually about $7K out of the $10K went to Sony.
Sony 60 inch Grand Wega LCD $5500
Sony Receiver 6.1 DTS/Dolby $600
Sony DVD player (top one at the time) $800
...but still.

I knew Blu-ray would work with it, but I like to be informed before I go out and buy Blu-ray. This forum is great for that. I like my Sony equipment, but damn there customer support is the worst for home theatre questions.

[Lord_Phan]

What's the Resolution of your T.V.?

The Receiver should work perfectly with Multiple Analog Inputs

[davidPS3]

A system that is 4 years old? yes some of it is going to be outdated. Time to upgrade.

[Lord_Phan]

Look for Multi-Channel Analog inputs on your receiver, If you have them, they are better then Optical and you'll be able to get Lossless PCM from the bluray player. Just make sure your player can do any decoding of the new Lossless Dolby and DTS.

[jfrankowski]

Originally Posted by PMWilson

Thanks guys.
This forum rocks for information and advice.

On a side note:
I'm completely dissappointed with Sony support.
As I spent almost $10K on my Sony Home Theatre system back in 2003.
And what thanks did I get from Sony when I asked them for Blu-ray help?
Well I'm glad you asked.
They basically told me to get lost as any Blu-ray addition to my system would not be supported by Sony with my present 2002 / 2003 system. I can understand how technology changes and that Sony has to protect themselves, but they could at least give me the steps to at least "try" to get Blu-ray working on my system with a disclaimer that it might not work and that they won't suppoet me if problems persist.
That would at least set my expectations. And big chains like Best Buy have money back returns so I could always get my money back if all else fails.
Sony, you know how to treat your customers...or is $10K not enough to make me a real customer? If I ever get a new Home Theatre system...I gaurantee it won't be Sony...any of it.
Ok my rants over
And this forum still rocks
Looking forward to Blu-ray, and any technology challenge it may give me.

I spent big bucks on Sony, One for $7,000 for their 70 wbx wega TV.
Now I'm sending emails about their Sony BDPS301 and all I get is, no fixes, just comments saying 'thanks for buying Sony'.
NO MORE, and you can send this to Sony.

[crackinhedz]

Originally Posted by PMWilson

Sony Receiver 6.1 DTS/Dolby $600

Have an old school receiver and want Lossless audio??



...so you could get a Bluray player that has built in decoding and multich. analog outputs.

But I think the wisest thing to do would be to update the Receiver (Onkyo TX-SR605 $400+Free Shipping) and maybe get the new Panasonic DMP-BD30K to go along with it.

[Blu-Dog]

Originally Posted by PMWilson

Exactly.
And...well, actually about $7K out of the $10K went to Sony.
Sony 60 inch Grand Wega LCD $5500
Sony Receiver 6.1 DTS/Dolby $600
Sony DVD player (top one at the time) $800
...but still.

I knew Blu-ray would work with it, but I like to be informed before I go out and buy Blu-ray. This forum is great for that. I like my Sony equipment, but damn there customer support is the worst for home theatre questions.

You're in good shape, don't sweat it. I have the 70" version of the same TV, as well as a 52" XBR LCD.

The LCD connects with HDMI on both end (I have a Pioneer Elite in between, but that's not the issue here). On my Grand Wega, I go from the Blu-Ray player to the TV with an HDMI to DVI converter.

DVI and HDMI are the same, except DVI does not carry audio. What you will do is go to the receiver with an optical output cable for audio, and the HDMI to DVI cable for video.

Your receiver will accept the core DTS and Dolby streams from the Blu-Ray player without hassle. Essentially, it will play Dolby 5.1 or DTS 5.1/6.1 streams, and sound pretty good, too.

Your TV has settings for the inputs on the back - the component, DVI, and S-video stuff, as well as normal antenna. I doubt if you're using the DVI connection now - your high-end DVD probably isn't using it, no doubt you're using RGB component - so you're free and clear, hook this stuff up!

HDMI to DVI cables are very common, and will probably run you $30-$60. There are also adapters that slip on to a normal HDMI cable, with a DVI connector for one end, but the full cable is a better solution.

No need to break into the piggy bank for a new rig just yet...

[crackinhedz]

Originally Posted by Blu-Dog

HDMI to DVI cables are very common, and will probably run you $30-$60.

$12. Been using it for more than a year now...works great.

[Edh63]

Originally Posted by Blu-Dog

You're in good shape, don't sweat it. I have the 70" version of the same TV, as well as a 52" XBR LCD.

The LCD connects with HDMI on both end (I have a Pioneer Elite in between, but that's not the issue here). On my Grand Wega, I go from the Blu-Ray player to the TV with an HDMI to DVI converter.

DVI and HDMI are the same, except DVI does not carry audio. What you will do is go to the receiver with an optical output cable for audio, and the HDMI to DVI cable for video.

Your receiver will accept the core DTS and Dolby streams from the Blu-Ray player without hassle. Essentially, it will play Dolby 5.1 or DTS 5.1/6.1 streams, and sound pretty good, too.

Your TV has settings for the inputs on the back - the component, DVI, and S-video stuff, as well as normal antenna. I doubt if you're using the DVI connection now - your high-end DVD probably isn't using it, no doubt you're using RGB component - so you're free and clear, hook this stuff up!

HDMI to DVI cables are very common, and will probably run you $30-$60. There are also adapters that slip on to a normal HDMI cable, with a DVI connector for one end, but the full cable is a better solution.

No need to break into the piggy bank for a new rig just yet...

This is exactly what I said in my original response above. Works great! Again, make sure your PCM is set to Bitstream on the Blue Ray.