keep in mind you do not have to spend big for hdmi cables. The high dollar deluxe ones like monster are no better than the less expensive ones you can get elsewhere!

 

good add.....that is by far one of the biggest rip offs I have ever seen. bestbuy was carrying some of the monster HDMI cables for almost $100, then you go to cablewarehouse.com or whatever its called, and get an HDMI cable for $20....almost a tough desicion huh?

 

Yeah, for real, it's ridiculous.....I bet some of these companies make more money off of their cables than they do any other product!

 

That Denon you mention is WAY out of the ball park on price. 1200, I think I would rather spend that on the upcoming Bushmaster ACR then my TV.

What I am working with right now is a JVC 32" LCD 1080p and an old DVD/VCR player. No surround sound as of yet, though that is in the future. Not quite like some of what you guys play with for home theaters, but this is just for the living room.

 

agreed, there are alot of online venders that sell good, quality cables for much less. I have 3 monoprice cables going to a monoprice hdmi switch and then another to my tv. Unless you are running very long lenths(20'+, my guess) where emi might interfere, stay away from high end cables.

monoprice.com saved me a ton and have SUPERB customer service. my first switch from them did not play well with my ps3, so they sent me a slightly different one, and called to see if it worked.

 

PS3

HDMI to hook it up. Fiber for the audio.

I have one of the 80gb ones. Works great. Shows BluRay very well. Great games also.

Did have to get a HDMI switch - have three HDMI inputs and only two on the plasma. Simple $100 fix though.

Hal

 

HDMI can also push sound if you're lucky enough to have a receiver that can play PCM or other higher end sound options. Toslink is your best bet though.

 

I have two HDMI inputs on the tv but isnt it one imput for each HD box under the tv? We dont actually have Direct TV in HD just the regular stuff. It is just not worth the money every month in my mind for that.

 

Does the PS3 play old DVDs as well? I want to be able to watch the old ones too. Does it upgrade it like some of the players do?

 

It is now. Direct TV has added about 100 channels in HD. Depending on what you watch, it is great. NASCAR, NHRA, Sports are all in HD and are better than being there.

Hal

 

It does. here is a link to the capabilities of the PS3:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PlayStation_3

Yes the software in the PS3 is upgradeable and has been several times - adding more features.


Hal

 

For a fee. It is already expensive. No need to add a HD box, pay monthly for the HD box, add HD channels and also pay monthly for the HD channels. Nope. It will eventually become standard I think.

 

Digital TV will be the standard next year. Have heard nothing about HDTV being a standard.

The monthly cost for the HD box is the same as the cost for the non-HD box you use now. The DVR is a bit pricy, but worth the cost in my mind. The 9.95 per month for HD was a joke before the new channels - DTV only had 8 available and two or three were premium channels. Now though most of the channels I watch are HD. Still had to have an outside antenna for my local HD channels until very recently. Adds some function when DTV can't get a signal.

Hal

 

i paid $100 for my HD-DVD a year ago... it connects to the XBox 360.

I paid 350 for the sony blu-ray 6 months ago.

 

I dont see it happening this year but it will become the standard like digital TV is going to be soon.

As for the cost. A HD box from Direct TV is 200 bucks and they are not doing anything but the DVRs so no cheep ones. The HD package is only 4.99 a month. So, I think I will pass for now. Its more money then I wish to spend on TV and still not have a blu-ray dvd player.