HD AUDIO

[STUMPY007]

I have a Panasonic dmp bd35, which I believe decodes all hd audio.

My question is do i need a Av reciever that will Decode HD audio as my blu ray can.

Have been looking at spending 500 on a amp and speakers, any suggestions. considering the Onkyo HT S5205 or the Yamaha AV 4103.

suggestions please>>>>

 

[Anonymous]

The BD35 can send HD audio via bitstream (undecoded) to an amp which will then do all decoding duties. On your budget you should consider Onkyo (605, 606, 507 and 577 should be within budget), Sony (DG820 or new 800) or Denon (1909 i think), then add some speakers such as the Jamo A 102 HCS 5s or the Harmon Kardon HKTS 7s (you can find these on ebay for £179.99).

 

[STUMPY007]

Thanks, so you are saying that to receive hd audio, I need a HD amp??

 

[professorhat]

The BD35 can decode all the HD audio formats onboard so you don't have to have an amp which can decode onboard, but you do need one which has an HDMI input capable of accepting multichannel PCM audio as the BD35 doesn't have any multichannel analogue outputs.

However, if you're buying a new amp, I would certainly recommend that you get one which can decode onboard because (a) it future proofs you for any future devices you buy which may require this and (b) a lot of people believe the sound is generally better when decoded onboard by the amplifier.

Recommendations, for £500, if you can find them, I'd probably look at the Sony 2400ES or the Yamaha DSP-AX763.

 

[Anonymous]

STUMPY007:
Thanks, so you are saying that to receive hd audio, I need a HD amp??

No, but you will need an amp capable of receiving LPCM audio over HDMI (as professorhat has said), the amps I've mentioned include this feature as well as on-board decoding so you can try both options and see which sounds best to you (strictly speaking there should be no difference).

 

[STUMPY007]

Am new to the whole home cinema thing, Can I get away with a HDMI pass thru and connect the blu ray through a coaxial cable.

I have sky+, is there anyway I can get HD surround sound from this?????

 

[STUMPY007]

Apologies, forgot to add the 500 is for amp and speakers all in.

financial restraints set by the wife.

 

[daveh75]

STUMPY007:

Am new to the whole home cinema thing, Can I get away with a HDMI pass thru and connect the blu ray through a coaxial cable. No, digital coaxial and optical for that matter dont have the bandwidth for HD audio,so you will need an amp that accept's audio over HDMI.STUMPY007:

I have sky+, is there anyway I can get HD surround sound from this?????

Sky doesn't have HD audio, the best you'll get is Dolby digital 5.1 using the optical out on the Sky box

 

[Anonymous]

STUMPY007:
Am new to the whole home cinema thing, Can I get away with a HDMI pass thru and connect the blu ray through a coaxial cable.

I have sky+, is there anyway I can get HD surround sound from this?????

you can only get HD audio via HDMI, coaxial and optical will only give you standard dolby digital and dts.

 

[professorhat]

As others have said, you can connect the Blu-Ray through co-axial, but you'll only the get standard Dolby Digital / DTS, not the HD audio formats as a digital coaxial (or optical) connection is not able to handle the bandwidth required for the new formats. With the BD35, you would have to use an HDMI connection to get these.

It's still possible to get this though in your budget, e.g. from Richer Sounds, you can get the Onkyo TX-SR507 and the Tannoy SFX 5.1 speaker package for under £500 or better still, you could try and find the Sony STR-DG820 which has been selling for around £250 but is coming to end of life so is becoming tricky to source. If you can though, you could combine that with the KEF 1005.2 package for a good home cinema system. Also, you could look at getting an older amp like this Onkyo 605 which would fit the bill.

These are obviously just suggestions, have a look around, go to a few dealers for some demos and advice and if you're not sure on something, post back here and someone should be able to help.