Starting from scratch....

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I'm new to this so here goes. I'm getting Sky HD and the Toshiba 40XF355db 1080p LCD but I also want to purchase an audio set up that takes full advantage of Sky HD's 5.1 capabilities as well as those from DVD playback. Now do i go for an all in one system or separates? How do i connect them all?

Firstly budget, its tight. I've spent up on the two previous items so I'm looking at the bottom to medium end. Secondly style, it has to look right and fit in with my girlfriends idea of what is suitable for the living room so wacky looking and tall speakers are a no no. They need to be small'ish. Thirdly compatibility, id like to team up a Vista Media PC and/or PS3 or XBox at a later date and not have to keep unplugging cables every 5 minutes. Blu-Ray is a way off for me as well so at the minute im going to settle for a 1080p upscaling DVD player or Home cinema set up.

I liked the Panasonic PT450 but this does not team up with Sky HD due to lack of optical input. I looked at the Pioneer 363 but its a similar story. Or Onkyo DR-S501 but this doesn't upscale and I'm not sure if it connects to Sky HD. So then i started thinking separates but cost is prohibitive once you have the speakers, receiver and DVD player. And now my mind is swimming in a sea of Onkyo SR605, Denon 1940, Tannoy HTS 100 (I wish) and I'm lost.

I can spend about £500 and could at a push squeeze a little more but this was supposed to be for cables. What is one to do???? Can someone suggest a set up for a novice and the best way to connect it all. Oh, and did I mention id like a universal remote that can operate all??? Moon on a stick I know.

Thanks all,
 

professorhat

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For £500, and the style you mention, I'd just go for the Sony DAV-IS10 (just seen it online for £350 without really looking). I can't see you doing better for that budget and it allows for cables and remote upgrades. It has one optical input and one coaxial, but if you need to insert more opticals, this can be done with a simple adaptor (costing about £30).

Best just to check on the size of your room first though, as if it's too big, it could swallow the DAV-IS10's sound.

Unless you go second hand or can push your budget to £600-£700 (not including cables and remote!), in which case things can get interesting!
 
A

Anonymous

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Thanks professorhat. I did look at the DAV-IS10 and it does fit the bill in terms of style but it was £650 back then and wasnt a 1080p upscaling DVD player so I discounted it. Seeing as its available for £350 now it does appear to be the best option especially considering it has the optical input that allows me to connect the HD box so i can watch sport and HD programming in 5.1.

But what if ( and it is a what if in case the better half is watching) I was able to rustle up a few extra pennies and get to the £700 mark. Would that significantly improve the experience and allow for further upgrades. Most of my viewing is going to be SD and HD Sky, with SD DVD viewing next then XBox/PS3 much further down the line.
 

professorhat

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Well now, I've been looking around. Another choice you have is to go for Onkyo TX-SR505 (though better half probably won't like the look of this - it's an ugly machine but a tremendous bit of kit for the money) and get something like the KEF 1005 speaker package. It's hard to track down, but I have just seen it from a Google for £229. With the Onkyo, that would be a total of £479 so if you bung a cheap but decent upscaling DVD player in like the Samsung DVD-HD870, you're only £20-£30 over your budget (personally I wouldn't go mad on the DVD player if you're going to get a PS3 as this upscales DVDs very well and you'd have to spend quite a bit on your DVD player to improve on it).

Of course increasing the price gives you more choice - probably I'd advise spending a bit more on the speaker package e.g. the Q Acoustics 1010i 5.1 system. At £450, it ups the price to over £700, but it should give quite an improvement in sound.

Anyway, the best advice I can give is to go down to a dealer with this knowledge, have a listen to all the options (including any he / she makes) and seeing if you think it's worth the extra money.

Hope this helps!
 

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