Cable Idiot needs help, please

[admin_exported]

I hope this is the right section

I need some advice regarding cabling. I have recently bought some JAMO Speaker set and an ONKYO- TX-SR507.

The Amp finally arrived today! woohoo!

No cables. None came with speakers and none came with the ONKYO.

So for a complete Audio virgin like me, what should I get and who is a reputable supplier? So far have not been impressed with the 5 stores I have place orders with and had to cancel or be cancelled. Bear in mind I went over my £300 budget by £200 I am not looking to fork out lots of money. I realise I need another HDMI cable an oversight on my part I guess and I have read the massive debates on these forums about price vs quality and if there is or isnt a difference. I am not massively bothered at this stage, I just want to get my new speakers working its been close to half a year since I embarked on this journey to improve the sound element of my cinema experience...

Thanks in advance!

 

[idc]

You do not appear to have got very good service. If you bought your kit from a dealer I am amazed that they did not give you or do a deal on starter cables. When you say you have placed orders with 5 stores is that for cable, or the original kit?

There are loads of reputable cable suppliers; IXOS, QED, Russ Andrews, Clearer Audio, Oehlbach, Belkin the list goes on and on. I have, over the years used most of that list without a problem. Since you are over budget anyway my advice would be to head to Amazon and buy basic (unbranded, as any of the above are a step up) speaker and HDMI cabling, safe in the knowledge that many do not believe that different HDMI cables make any difference and speaker cable makes only a minor difference. Then, as funds come in, upgrade.

 

[Anonymous]

I read the thread from missybee tho they seem to have a better grasp of what theyre asking for.

soooo i went for a search for chord carnival? and found this

http://www.audioaffair.co.uk/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=945&gclid=CLKTm9WZzZoCFRFMagod7XpT2Q

Is this good? Do I want this? Should I get them terminated for me at £30 a pop?

I guess I need 1 for front speaker, 4x for satellite speakers and 1 for the sub woofer.

So 6 cables about between 1.5m to 4m long and £180 worth of termination in "banana"s?

Lol it might seem really obvious to you guys but I am totally out of my depth

 

[Anonymous]

Ooh thanks IDC

at Amazon I found these? are they what I am looking for. I dont know why they dont do an idiots guide in the description for these things "This product connects speakers to an amp".

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B000WTM24Q/ref=s9_simx_gw_s0_p23_i1?pf_rd_m=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE&pf_rd_s=center-1&pf_rd_r=0W3NGSB3V2ZPG4K4W1GJ&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=467198433&pf_rd_i=468294

Looks like the right kind of cable? but no banana look about it..

 

[Anonymous]

another quick question (presuming I find the right cables)

I have a load of holes in the back of the subwoofer to hook up speakers and I have a load of holes in the amp to hook up speakers _and_ subwoofer. I presume you hook em all up the amp and ignore the ones in the back of the subwoofer?

 

[idc]

Ha, you have picked a brand I have no experience of. But, if you read through other posters kit lists in the signatures and bios you will see that Chord have a good name and you can buy with confidence.

I have always had terminated cables purely because they are less of a fiddle to fit and it is easier to keep the contacts clean.

 

[idc]

You want an HDMI cable to connect amp to TV;

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_ss_w_h__0_4?url=search-alias%3Delectronics&field-keywords=hdmi+cable&sprefix=hdmi

Speaker cables to connect amp to speakers;

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_ss_ce_2_7?url=search-alias%3Delectronics&field-keywords=speaker+cable&sprefix=speaker

Subwoofer cable to go from amp to subwoofer;

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_ss_ce_2_3?url=search-alias%3Delectronics&field-keywords=subwoofer+cable&sprefix=sub

As for the various connections that will be shown on the back of the amp and in the instructions for both amp and speakers. I understand it appears a lot at first, but treat it like a jigsaw and lay all the bits out and fit one at a time.

 

[Anonymous]

Excellent thankyou

Ordered a basic HDMI to start with.

I bought a mixture of cheap cables hope 1 of them works is ok.

I think I got a subwoofer cable with it the speakers. I was looking at it before I came into work and it fit on the amp but I couldnt see anywhere obvious for the other end except a L and a R. Perhaps its the wrong type and needs to be a 1 to 2 cable instead of a 1 to 1.

 

[Anonymous]

confusion strikes again

Do I need Optical Cable?

someone mentioned that the PS3 and the Xbox 360 might need an optical cable as well as an HDMI.

For reference the monster I am looking at is

http://g-ecx.images-amazon.com/images/G/01/electronics/detail-page/OnkyoSR507back.jpg

 

[idc]

Hi, yes optical cable needed to connect a PS3 to the amp and you can find them here;

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_ss_w_h__0_7?url=search-alias%3Delectronics&field-keywords=optical+cable&sprefix=optical

 

[Anonymous]

Do I also need an optical cable for the xbox 360 and the sky HD box to get the most out of the sound system?

At the moment all 3 are connected to the amp via HDMI Cable which in turn is connected to the TV by a HDMI.

 

[idc]

I take it eveything is working fine and as you would expect? I found this guide on another forum to setting up an Onkyo, which is a bit technical, but may also help;

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=949414

Which cables did you go for in the end?

 

[ElectroMan]

I don't know that you need optical cables for the PS3 and 360 - I have mine connected just via HDMI cables.

 

[Anonymous]

Still not hooked up yet, stuff I ordered arrived today will let you know.

So far out of all the bits n pieces I orderd

Radio Shack 24ft Heavy Guage Speaker Cable (which was around £4)

Belkin Pure AV 15 Guage flat speaker cable and pins (9m) A little more pricey

 

[Anonymous]

*update*

Well so far I have had and have tried the following cables.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0010E252G/ref=ox_ya_oh_product

These done seem to fit in any shape way or form. (perhaps if I cut them to pieces?)

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00030577S/ref=ox_ya_oh_product

Well the pins dont seem to fit the end of the wire so I have filed them in a drawer. But I have the front speaker and the left and right speaker working using this very crude and seemingly non compatible very flat and wide wire. The sound is certainly a massive improvement on the TV's built in speakers but I have nothing to compare it too. Am I getting closer to £500 worth of quality sound?? Who knows. Its certainly louder .

So far normal Sky channels sound pretty much the same? I watched the last 3 episodes of 24 on Sky 1 HD channel and I was very impressed with the sound on this channel (especially the "tinkly" sponsor advert at the beginning and end of the commercials. (Even tho I dont have enough wire for the surround or rear speakers yet).

I am _still_ waiting on http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0013ND6AO/ref=ox_ya_oh_product to arrive which hopefully will fit the speakers and the back of the amp better than my jury rigged efforts on the Belkin. Hopefully smaller and circular, ideal for looping round teh connections at the back of the amp and sticking in the clip holes on the Jamo speakers.

Looking at that guide you linked. I am a little lost in some of the things it mentions and a little more terrified now I know that if I slip with the wires I could blow up my Amp, which I probably did already.......and a Audyssesy?!? whats that.

 

[idc]

Grove, I can go over this again, but who did you buy this kit off and why were no cables provided at the time? Did you get manuals with the amp and speakers?

For the TV to amp (and it will also work for X-box to amp) you need something like this, an HDMI cable;

http://www.amazon.co.uk/1-8M-HDMI-Cable-Gold-Connectors/dp/B0017RW94A/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1243516690&sr=1-1

for speaker cable standard stuff like this is fine

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Fisual-Miniature-Speaker-Cable-30m/dp/B0013ND6AO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1243517143&sr=1-1

and if you get banana plugs (probably 4mm ones but check manual) you can fit them onto the cable as connect to the amp and speakers as the best and easiest fit

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_ss_ce_0_5?url=search-alias%3Delectronics&field-keywords=banana+plugs&sprefix=banan

 

[Anonymous]

I got these speakers from Amazon

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000QEB270/ref=ox_ya_oh_product

The manuals for both the speakers and the amp are pretty poor, a couple of diagrams and a list of do not eat peanut butter in sunlight kind of thing....The only cable was for the subwoofer to amp and its a single to single even tho the subwoofer has a L and R output..thats just crazy supplying the wrong cable in your own kit.

HDMI I got sorted am pretty good on the Visual side of things, just have never looked at Audio before.

Speaker cable vs banana plugs. The speakers and the amp seem to require a bare cable. In the case of the speakers, one that you can clip into what I can only describe as a cigar cutter type connection and the amp which needs you to feed a "thin" wire through the "hole" wrap around then screw down...

So although I would feel safer with banana plugs I think I better get a stanley knife and strip some cable...

I am still waiting for this item http://www.amazon.co.uk/Fisual-Miniature-Speaker-Cable-30m/dp/B0013ND6AO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1243863802&sr=8-1(I have to wiat 14 days before royal mail can declare missing for the company to send me another one).

I cant believe I started this epic journey towards the end of october....