connections HD antenna & cable box antenna using both

[Imre__]

I have toshiba dvd/vcr combo record/play with built in tuner. I have samsung smart tv UN40H6350 built in tuner. I have cable dvr box to. I want to use both antennas for now, getting rid of cable getting disgusted with their shoddy boxes & prices. Want to try over the air free tv signals of 23 channels in my area. Best way to hook up over the air antenna & cable box antenna using dvd/vhs toshiba DVR670KU model. Toshiba has antenna in & out coax, tv has one ( 1 ) coax in antenna . I want to be able to switch sources between cable channels & free over the air channels. TV has 4 hdmi in ports, Toshiba has one hdmi output. Also have have Denon AVR -4308CI Reciever 4 hdmi in-ports & 2 hdmi out-ports. The Samsung Smart has 6 sources ( 4 hdmi -in, a/v composite/component & dtv ). Do I need a cable/antenna switcher and/or 2 way splitter to hook rooftop antenna into the Toshiba input antenna, then hook up cable box coax to TV antenna in ? Then use hdmi output from Toshiba to one of TV's hdmi input source. By switching sources on tv will I be able to have either cable channels & digital channels from Toshiba once it does auto tune from outdoor antenna ?

 

[americanaudiophile]

A lot of information and more than one way to connect all that gear.
First you will need to split the OVA antenna to connect via 75 ohm RF to the VCR/DVD and TV RF inputs. Use a good quality splitter or a distribution amplifier so you don't loose signal strength. Digital channels either come in or not at all so if the signal is low you won't get that channel.
If you want to use your HT system for audio all the time then connect the VCR/DVD and cable box (while you have it) to the receiver with HDMI. Connect the HDMI out of the receiver to the TV.
If the TV and receiver both have ARC then the HDMI cable above will also output audio from the TV tuner back to the receiver. Turn on ARC in both and set the audio out to give you surround sound.
If you can't use ARC then you use an optical audio cable to provide audio out from the TV to the receiver.
If you want the option of not using the HT then connect all your sources to the TV. Connect TV audio to the receiver with an optical cable.
If your cable box has av outputs as well as HDMI then you can connect the cable box to the DVD/VCR through its line input and select either the built in tuner or cable box to record from You would not want to watch the cable through the DVD/VCR since you would not get a HD picture.
If it doesn't have av outs then you would need to split the HDMI out of the cable box with a distribution amp and convert one of the outs to av. Not worth the hassle if you are getting rid of cable anyway.

 

[Imre__]

A lot of information and more than one way to connect all that gear.
First you will need to split the OVA antenna to connect via 75 ohm RF to the VCR/DVD and TV RF inputs. Use a good quality splitter or a distribution amplifier so you don't loose signal strength. Digital channels either come in or not at all so if the signal is low you won't get that channel.
If you want to use your HT system for audio all the time then connect the VCR/DVD and cable box (while you have it) to the receiver with HDMI. Connect the HDMI out of the receiver to the TV.
If the TV and receiver both have ARC then the HDMI cable above will also output audio from the TV tuner back to the receiver. Turn on ARC in both and set the audio out to give you surround sound.
If you can't use ARC then you use an optical audio cable to provide audio out from the TV to the receiver.
If you want the option of not using the HT then connect all your sources to the TV. Connect TV audio to the receiver with an optical cable.
If your cable box has av outputs as well as HDMI then you can connect the cable box to the DVD/VCR through its line input and select either the built in tuner or cable box to record from You would not want to watch the cable through the DVD/VCR since you would not get a HD picture.
If it doesn't have av outs then you would need to split the HDMI out of the cable box with a distribution amp and convert one of the outs to av. Not worth the hassle if you are getting rid of cable anyway.

I have only arc on one of the four hdmi ports in on tv, Denon reciever has no arc hdmi 4 in, 2 out, but all components involved cable box, tv, & reciever & vcr/dvd player/ record have optical with reciever having 3 opts in & 2 opts out. Also does cable boxes cause loss of HD signals vs over the air HD signals using the antenna? I am in a good location for recieving 22 digital channels with 15 of them within 5 miles of my antenna which reaches out 60 miles. I don't have a hdmi splitter, I do have cable coax splitters & a coax cable- antenna switch wher you can switch between two antennas, cable or over the air signals. Not sure what you mean by ( distribution amp ) .