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Thinking about getting a new TV...... (1 Viewer)

Gino43

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Jan 14, 2015
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Gene
and I have some questions. This is what I'm currently eyeing: http://www.lg.com/ca_en/tvs/lg-43LF5100-led-tv

I have a Samsung blu-ray player and an old Pioneer receiver that does not have HDMI.

The blu-ray player has a coaxial out and so does my amp. My questions are:

1) If I hook up my amp to my blu ray player via coax, will I get 5.1 audio? The TV may or may not have a digital audio out. Does this matter?

2) If the TV doesn't have a digital audio out, how can I get a movie to play in 5.1 through my receiver? Some websites say the TV has one other sites says it doesn't have it.

Alot of negative reviews about this TV are from the fact it doesn't have any digital audio out connections. I'm not looking to watch TV (broadcasts) in 5.1 or through my amp. Regardless of which set I buy, do I really require the TV to have a digital audio out for my blurays to get dolby digital?

The real reason I'm eyeing this particular LG set is I have a bunch of points saved up on my store card to get it for about $175 bucks! Unfortunately this is the ONLY set they have for you to "cash in" your points. I realize it's probably 2-3 years old (discontinued) model. That doesn't bother me as long as I can watch movies in 5.1 audio. I would love some advice or help! Also, what is ARC and should that matter? I know it stands for Audio Return Channel but is it important for what I want?
 

Martino

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Need a few answers to be able to help answer your questions:

"old Pioneer receiver that does not have HDMI."

What is the model number of your receiver - and besides not having an HDMI input - what inputs does it have? Is it a multi-channel receiver (5.1) or only a stereo model (2.0)...

What are you using for a TV source? Is it an over the air antenna, or do you have some kind of satellite or cable box?

What is the model # of the bluray player? - You say it has a a coaxial out.


Now I can answer some of your other questions..

For "normal" modern hookups - you use an hdmi cable from your bluray player to the receiver, and then another hdmi cable from the receiver to the TV.

Since you do not have a modern receiver that has HDMI - and not knowing your receiver model - here are some suggestions.


If your receiver does have at least 1 digital input (usually this is an RCA cable) - then the setup is easy. If it has more than 1 then you may be in luck.



- Hook up HDMI cable from the bluray player to one of the HDMI inputs
- Hook up the digital output of the blu-ray player to one of the digital inputs on the receiver.

When you want to watch a movie - turn off the sound on the TV, and select the hdmi input. Turn on your receiver, and select the digital input.

You will now have your system hooked up for movies
.

As far as TV goes...depends on your answer to: "What are you using for a TV source? "

- Over the air antenna

I followed the link you provided above for the TV - and it shows that that TV has:

- Digital Audio Out (Optical) 1 (Rear)

So you look up an optical cable from the TV to the optical input on the receiver (if it has one) - then anything that comes into the TV will go out to the receiver. Again turn off the speakers on the TV and use your receiver.
 

Gino43

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Gene
My receiver is a Pioneer 5.1 Dolby Digital / DTS model VSX D309. It has both a coaxial and optical out.

My bluray player is a Samsung BD-F5100. It only has a coaxial output, no optical. It's currently hooked up to my TV via hdmi. I am watching movies in 5.1 at the moment via the coaxial hookup.

I do not have a TV source. I don't have cable, satellite or OTA. I'm streaming all of my movies and tv shows via a Raspberry Pi2. I only care about watching media in 5.1 through my bluray player. My Raspberry Pi2 can't be hooked up to my amp anyways. (amp doesn't have HDMI)

I realize the LG link states that this tv has a rear optical audio out but some other websites like amazon.com say it doesn't have one. (according to what reviews/people are saying). Does it really matter if the tv has an optical out? Sounds to me as long as my bluray is hooked up via coax to my amp, I should get 5.1 audio.

I look forward to hearing back from you soon. :thumbs-up-smiley:
 

Joseph Bolus

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IMHO, that old Pioneer A/V receiver just needs to be upgraded.
Check out this 5.2 DENON with 5 active HDMI inputs (three 4K compatible) and Bluetooth streaming for around $270:

http://amzn.com/B00YAO43YG

The receiver will greatly enhance your Blu-ray viewing since it includes full DTS-HD MA decoding as well as all iterations of Dolby Digital short of Atmos.

It also includes PLII Cinema mode which will derive split surrounds from movies with just stereo soundtracks. Your current receiver only provides the original Pro Logic circuitry which sends the same signal to both of the rear speakers.

The receiver would allow you to easily upgrade later to a UHD 4K Blu-ray player; accommodate your current Raspberry; and later support multiple streaming boxes (ROKU, Apple TV).

As a bonus you can wirelessly listen to your smartphone's music library via the included Bluetooth.

All in all, you should consider upgrading your Receiver along with your Display.
 

Gino43

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Gene
Your current receiver only provides the original Pro Logic circuitry which sends the same signal to both of the rear speakers.

This is actually incorrect Joseph. My Pioneer amp offers discreet split surrounds. I know this for a fact because when I watch movies I can distinctively hear audio only on one side where the action is. For example, if a car is driving by and moving from left to right on screen, my left rear speaker will amplify the noise and then it'll move over to the right speaker. I used to have an amp with only Pro Logic and the sound would be coming out on both speakers. The VSX D309 is a Dolby Digital and DTS multi-channel amp.

Secondly, I'd love to buy a new amp but don't have the funds for it right now. My wife's currently unemployed and with only one income it's tough to spend $300-$400 bucks on an amp. To be completely honest, I love my amp. It sounds great and so do my speakers. I've read online that the master audio tracks don't offer a HUGE improvement. Not enough to warrant a new purchase IMO. But thanks for your input regardless. ;)

I'd love to watch my Raspberry Pi media through the amp but since I'm only getting 10 mbps speeds, streaming HD video with Dolby Digital audio would really create too much buffering and I just don't have the patience to wait it out. I tried watching a movie this way and it literally buffered every 30 seconds. I'm just content to watch standard def video and 2.0 audio in order to get smooth streaming with no slowdown. If I really loved the movie, I'd just buy it on bluray to get better quality and re-watch it through my amp.

Once day I'll definitely upgrade my amp but I'm in no rush at the moment.
 

Joseph Bolus

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I understand that you're getting split surrounds from your current receiver when listening to Dolby Digital and/or DTS 5.1 sound tracks. I was referring to movies encoded with just 2.0 stereo tracks. In those cases -- should you choose to use it -- you could create a simulated surround track utilizing your Pro Logic circuitry. In those cases your current receiver will send the same signal to both of the rear speakers, while current receivers can actually derive split surrounds from the same source with Pro Logic II Cinema mode.

Anyway, it's a moot point if you can’t afford it.

And, yes, you can just hook up your current Blu-ray player to the A/V Receiver via either digital or optical.
 

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