Home Cinema Novice With Kit Question

[admin_exported]

Good day to you all.

I've bought myself a nice 50" Panasonic Plasma TV and have also invested in SKY+ HD, so what I'd like to know from you guys is what happens next?

In other words, as I have a Panasonic TV, should I now go out and get a stack of Panasonic add-ons (BLU-RAY player, Speakers, Amp, etc), or should I mix and match?

I like the look of the Yamaha DSP-AX763 amp (£400), with perhaps the KEF KHT2005.3 speakers(£700) and possibly the Panasonic DMP-BD55 (£400), but should I get the Panasonic equivalent, if there is one?

I could also use a multi-region upscaling DVD Recorder too (£150?)

Thanks in advance.

 

[Messiah]

Seems you have already selected some well reviewed kit. Do you have a set budget in mind??

 

[Anonymous]

Hi there Messiah.

I've not set a budget, as such, but the prices quoted, in my original question, would be about right, I guess. I'm not really looking to spend almost £1000 on a BLU-RAY player, £2000 on Speakers, etc, but want to have a great system to complement the TV and SKY+ HD that I already have.

The kit I've looked at has been well reviewed, you're right, but, as I've said before, as I have a Panasonic TV, would it be better to stick to Panasonic stuff, VIERA and all that, or mix and match?

 

[Messiah]

Nah, stick with the stuff you have picked and I am sure it will deliver great results!!

 

[Liam19]

Well you've chosen three 5-star products there Alonso (amp, speakers, BD player) so, to be honest, if you can afford it all (which I wish I could!) I would go for those without question!

I'd say if you're looking for the best performance, you're much better off mixing and matching than looking to go all Panasonic (a brand known to be far better with TV's and BD players than with sound products!). With Panasonic's only multichannel amp receiving an awful review (http://whathifi.com/Review/Panasonic-SA-BX500/) and not even making separate speaker packages (as far as I know of), I would say the system you mentioned already should serve you fantastically well!

 

[Anonymous]

Great stuff, thanks.

Another question:

Looking at this month's What Hi*Fi, it says that the Yamaha DSP-AX863SE's downside is "only two HDMI inputs; no upscaling" (its bigger brother is £200 more!!!). Would both of these be negated by both an upscaling DVD Player/BLU-RAY Player; whilst wouldn't a HDMI Auto-Switch, such as the OCTIGEN HDMI SWITCHER 4 PORT device, suffice if further "ports" were needed?

 

[Liam19]

You first mentioned the Yam DSP-AX763, which does indeed have only two HDMIs, whereas the DSP-AX863SE which you just mentioned in your last post has three. It depends on how many HDMIs you think you'll need - with your previously mentioned set-up, you''l only need one (for the Panasonic BD player). If you connect your Sky+HD directly to your TV via HDMI (as I assume you're doing now), then you can just connect it to the amp via an optical cable (the only way to get 5.1 sound from Sky+HD).

Something like an external HDMI switcher should work fine if you were to need more ports, but there's always the risk of this affecting/degrading video and audio signals.

 

[Anonymous]

Hi there Liam19.

Thanks for your input.

I was wondering whether the £200 difference between the two Yamaha machines was worth it, as you can get an HDMI Switcher for a few pounds and doesn't an upscalling DVD Player and/or BLU-RAY Player take care of the upscaling?

 

[Messiah]

Personally I wouldn't worry about Scaling. Your TV will do the job for you just fine.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks Messiah, that's what I was thinking.

It's not worth another £200 for one extra HDMI port and Upscaling, when you're gonna by a BLU-RAY/Upscaling DVD Player anyway.

Thanks for your help.

 

[Sorreltiger]

Personally, I'd route the Sky signal through the receiver, so that you can use it for switching between inputs and not have to worry about the TV. ÿIf you get a Harmony remote (excellent IMHO), that makes life very simple indeed.

 

[Anonymous]

Hi there Sorreltiger.

Thanks for the tip; however, those Harmony Remotes are awfully expensive!!!

I've also thought of another problem that I've got. The KEF Speaker system I mentioned above might not be one what I need. Looking at my set-up, I cannot put the KEF's little front speakers on a wall by the TV, so I would have to have two tall speakers at the front.

Would anyone out there know of a great Speaker System, that has two tall speakers at the front, and is as good, and for about the same price, as the KEF?

Cheers guys.

 

[Big Chris]

I believe KEF make a stand for the 2005 series.