Best way to route sound from source to speakers (via TV or direct?

[admin_exported]

I've recently purchased my first LCD (Pioneer KRL-37V) and am now in the market for a surround sound system. I would love to go for a nice separates system, but I think I will struggle to get a budget of much more than £500-600 from the other half!

My question here is about the best way to et up my system, which may influence how much I spend & what system I go for. At my budget I think i am looking at a decent tall-in-one set up rather than a separates system. There seems to be two ways I could set all my kit up. 

1) Feed all of my inputs (PS3, Sky HD) directly into the TV, and then use the Optical Audio Out from the TV to the surround sound system. I assume this will maintain the 5.1 channels from the source?

2) Feed all of my inputs straight into the surround sound system via HDMI, and then take a single HDMI out from the surround system into the TV. 

I guess a third option is to send the picture to the TV via HDMI,and as long as there are enough inputs Optical Audio from the source straight to the surround sound amp. 

I know the two options will mean I have to use a slightly different combination of remote controls, and option two has the advantage of reducing the tangle of cables going to the TV, but will I notice any difference in sound or picture quality with the different set-ups?

Thanks! 

 

[Andrew Everard]

2)

Every time.

You probably won't get surround from any of the sources via the TV's digital output, since the TV will 'tell' the source component it can only accept stereo. And it's a non-starter from Sky (which only outputs stereo, not 5.1, over HDMI, so you'll need a digital link to the surround system as well as the HDMI for that source).

And not all TVs will feed all inputs' audio out through the digital out.