Planning to buy new home theatre for PC

[sp karthick]

I'm planning to buy new home theatre for my pc but i dont have a HDMI compatible device , the player i have selected only supports HDMI , is it possible to use HDMI to DVI cable to view the settings menu for adjusting audio settings(for using the player i have optical out on my PC and optical in on the player and regarding video i will give from pc to moniter) i need the display only for setting up. i need to know whether it's possible to use HDMI to DVI converter on BENQ GW2250 moniter , or do we have high end systems dedicated for PC with optical in , thanks.
http/www.sony.co.in/product/bdv-e3100

 

[ssddx]

normally i advise against purchasing "home theater in a box" type kits. these are the ones which come with a central dvd player/blueray player/receiver combo box and speakersk. basically everything in one box. the speakers are typically rather subpar in terms of build quality (although some dont sound bad) and in some cases the receiver (the main control box with the dvd player built into it) doesnt accept external inputs. its even known that some sets even though they have a hdmi input only accept stereo 2.0 sound even though hdmi supports more. now i've also heard of some where external sources work fine.

it can be a huge gamble and you really need to do your research and/or be able to return it if it doesnt work.

as far as dvi to hdmi is concerned... there should be no issues there. dvi-d and hdmi conversion cables/boxes work fine. i have a sony tv hooked up via a dvi (pc side) to hdmi (tv side). i actually route through a receiver so that cable goes to the receiver and outputs via a straight hdmi cable but pretty much the same difference. i could have exported the receiver with a hdmi to dvi cable and had it work just the same.

your budget is about $431 usd. now i clearly dont know exactly what the pricing is like in your country or what is easily available and what is not but a good set of speakers would be the energy take 5.1 classic set which is about $350 here in the states. you would need to pair your own receiver AVR box with it (the set is just 5 speakers and a subwoofer) but the quality and sound will be better than HTIB sets in the same price range. a true receiver AVR is also going to give you more options than a HTIB set. you would need to get your own dvd player or blueray player though (or just use the pc to play this media).

if you really dont want to do that (or cant because prices are too high in your country) then you could make due with a HTIB set however i would definitely make sure it supports surround sound via a hdmi input (or be able to return it if it doesnt).

 

[sp karthick]

normally i advise against purchasing "home theater in a box" type kits. these are the ones which come with a central dvd player/blueray player/receiver combo box and speakersk. basically everything in one box. the speakers are typically rather subpar in terms of build quality (although some dont sound bad) and in some cases the receiver (the main control box with the dvd player built into it) doesnt accept external inputs. its even known that some sets even though they have a hdmi input only accept stereo 2.0 sound even though hdmi supports more. now i've also heard of some where external sources work fine.

it can be a huge gamble and you really need to do your research and/or be able to return it if it doesnt work.

as far as dvi to hdmi is concerned... there should be no issues there. dvi-d and hdmi conversion cables/boxes work fine. i have a sony tv hooked up via a dvi (pc side) to hdmi (tv side). i actually route through a receiver so that cable goes to the receiver and outputs via a straight hdmi cable but pretty much the same difference. i could have exported the receiver with a hdmi to dvi cable and had it work just the same.

your budget is about $431 usd. now i clearly dont know exactly what the pricing is like in your country or what is easily available and what is not but a good set of speakers would be the energy take 5.1 classic set which is about $350 here in the states. you would need to pair your own receiver AVR box with it (the set is just 5 speakers and a subwoofer) but the quality and sound will be better than HTIB sets in the same price range. a true receiver AVR is also going to give you more options than a HTIB set. you would need to get your own dvd player or blueray player though (or just use the pc to play this media).

if you really dont want to do that (or cant because prices are too high in your country) then you could make due with a HTIB set however i would definitely make sure it supports surround sound via a hdmi input (or be able to return it if it doesnt).

Thanks for the reply , Maybe you are right , i will do my own research , for now i'm postponing this plan. do you have any links that might help?

 

[Sgarciav]

normally i advise against purchasing "home theater in a box" type kits. these are the ones which come with a central dvd player/blueray player/receiver combo box and speakersk. basically everything in one box. the speakers are typically rather subpar in terms of build quality (although some dont sound bad) and in some cases the receiver (the main control box with the dvd player built into it) doesnt accept external inputs. its even known that some sets even though they have a hdmi input only accept stereo 2.0 sound even though hdmi supports more. now i've also heard of some where external sources work fine.

it can be a huge gamble and you really need to do your research and/or be able to return it if it doesnt work.

as far as dvi to hdmi is concerned... there should be no issues there. dvi-d and hdmi conversion cables/boxes work fine. i have a sony tv hooked up via a dvi (pc side) to hdmi (tv side). i actually route through a receiver so that cable goes to the receiver and outputs via a straight hdmi cable but pretty much the same difference. i could have exported the receiver with a hdmi to dvi cable and had it work just the same.

your budget is about $431 usd. now i clearly dont know exactly what the pricing is like in your country or what is easily available and what is not but a good set of speakers would be the energy take 5.1 classic set which is about $350 here in the states. you would need to pair your own receiver AVR box with it (the set is just 5 speakers and a subwoofer) but the quality and sound will be better than HTIB sets in the same price range. a true receiver AVR is also going to give you more options than a HTIB set. you would need to get your own dvd player or blueray player though (or just use the pc to play this media).

if you really dont want to do that (or cant because prices are too high in your country) then you could make due with a HTIB set however i would definitely make sure it supports surround sound via a hdmi input (or be able to return it if it doesnt).

Ssddx, I have a question. You mention:

"as far as dvi to hdmi is concerned... there should be no issues there. dvi-d and hdmi conversion cables/boxes work fine. i have a sony tv hooked up via a dvi (pc side) to hdmi (tv side)."


From what I've read, one objective of using HDMI on the player and display is to help protect the content against piracy. If I am playing protected content on my player through HDMI, the display will also have to have a matching HDMI interface to receive the encrypted content. Would this be correct?

Then again. if I don't have any plans on using a medium with protected content (maybe my PC has no blu ray) and all I want is to see the computer's video on the big screen then perhaps having HDMI on boths ends is not as critical.

If I have a converter from HDMI (player/PC) to DVI on the display, will I be able to view protected content such as blu ray discs? I've yet to venture to blu ray and home theaters, but am interested in understanding these technologies and how they work together, Thanks, Salvador

 

[ssddx]

the copy protection is not tied to the cable but instead hardware/software.

what you are refering to is called HDCP (high-bandwidth digital content protection).

both the source device and the destination device need to support HDCP for bluerays to play correctly (and things like ps3's and other such devices need it). this normally isnt an issue unless your devices are old. HDCP has been around since at least 2001.

i have a blueray drive in my computer and i export video+sound via the dvi port on my gtx470 from 2010. using cyberlink powerdvd i can play blueray movies perfectly fine with my dvi-d to hdmi cable.

in this threads case the monitor would need to support hdcp and it does as per the specifications below
http/www2.benq.us/product/monitor/gw2250/specifications/

 

[Sgarciav]

the copy protection is not tied to the cable but instead hardware/software.

what you are refering to is called HDCP (high-bandwidth digital content protection).

both the source device and the destination device need to support HDCP for bluerays to play correctly (and things like ps3's and other such devices need it). this normally isnt an issue unless your devices are old. HDCP has been around since at least 2001.

i have a blueray drive in my computer and i export video+sound via the dvi port on my gtx470 from 2010. using cyberlink powerdvd i can play blueray movies perfectly fine with my dvi-d to hdmi cable.

in this threads case the monitor would need to support hdcp and it does as per the specifications below
http/www2.benq.us/product/monitor/gw2250/specifications/

Thanks for the info. Good to know; I'll have to check to see if my LCD TV supports HDCP for when I move to BluRay. Salvador