optimizing sound and picture

seabeerob213

during my bit of abstinance from this site, i played around with my system, and found that certain set-ups, have greatly improved the quality of sound and picture, any thoughts, comments, or help with this, and what i can to to further it more?
one example is movies, while i know PS3 isnt the best blu-ray player in the world, its one of the two i have and seems to work better than the sharp one that i have(model unknown at the moment). i had hdmi to the yammy and the hdmi to tv, but wasnt impressed, looked kinda like ii wasnt getting what i payed for with the tv, blu-rays, and didnt sound right. so i hooked the hd straight to the tv, and set the audio to the toslink, and ran that to my yammy. completely different reproduction and new faith in my ever expanding but still small knowledge of this world of hi-fi. i know better hdmi cables will help, as i dont have many decent to good ones, and a better toslink would be nice, and i have a decent one in the states, just waiting till i move to get it.
i have one of the upper middle series monster hdmi that was free, and various others i picked up on the cheap or free. one is nyko(the video game accessories brand), one is GE, but made by someone else, not sure who, and its a heavy flat beefy 16 foot cable. another is some cheapo probably tartan 6 footer i bouth for 13 bucks at our exchange, no real packaging, just a plastic zip bag, think it said manhattan. the last one is a zune/microsoft/xbox brand one that came with my zune hd dock kit. it seems like a nice cable, but i havent really seen ferrite cores on higher quality cables, so i dont know, maybe im just over thinking that one. my cd player is hooked up with digital coax from ethereal, bought on accesorsies4less, not sure the model, 12.8 feet(the toslink i mentioned earlier is the match), was 125, now 20-25. sub woofer is hooked up with a monster thx(mhmm sure, whatever that means) component av, as it was 2.50 for a set of 3 1 meter cables. the ps3 is hooked up to the tv with the monster hd andtoslink to the avr, xbox witch the zune one, yammy to tv with the nyko, pc to tv withe the ge one. the anonymous one isnt in use, as i dont use my zune dock, because i have most of those files on my pc uncompressed, and thats hooked up to the avr with a second digi coaxmatching the one from the cdp. speakers are hooked up, canare starquad 14/4 w/ nak to the left and right, home made monster 14/4 with matching nanners, and surrounds with monster 14/2 using their nanners as well.(i know, they arent my first choice in cables, but when you get them super cheap(50-90%off) they seem like a lot more bang for the buck, now if only they'd clearance the hdmi's). xbox will probably get a toslink as well here soon, once i get the power cord for my slim again(fried it, so stuck with the first gen, toslink only available when using component). i know this is more a system post, but i wanna know what to do to improve it, and everything i have is through digital connections. sp/dif for the pc would be nice, but not in the budget right now.

recoveryone

One thing I think you are caught up in is cabling, without knowing the specs on the TV being used or the setup on the sharp BDP. Many people buy these new gear and think its just like a computer (plug & play). It would be helpful if you would go into more detail about which settings you are using and does your TV or BDP support deep color, highspeed cables and 1080p/24 FPS all of this can make a difference in the end result. From the looks of your AVR you have a good unit to run everything through it. Some still feel its better to run the HDMI direct to TV, but with the newer sound formats its recommended to run the HDMI through the AVR then out to TV. Most BDP can decode the newer formats, but most TV's cannot pass on all 7.1/5.1 signals only sending a stereo downmix via toslink back to the AVR. Older sound formats (DD & DTS) can be pass via coax & Toslink but newer ones (DD HD & DTS HD MA) will only work via HDMI. Your AVR unit supports the newer sound formats, but PS3 and Xbox does not so all your getting is DD & DTS. While we are on sound also check the settings on the sharp to see if it supports the newer sound formats (decoding) or does it pass it to the AVR and let it decode (must use HDMI).

seabeerob213

the toslink is from source to avr, i would never run it through the tv,. my tv supports 1080p and i think deep color, i'll have to look tomorrow, bought it from a friend so im lacking in specs. all the hd ports on my tv are in use, may need a switch so i can run more into it? the sharp was bought in 2011 or early 2012, and was the model which retailed about 100-130$, i can look tomorrow, but it has spent a few months in a drawer unused, as it was so slow to load and respond to anything. i played around with all my settings on the tv, avr, and ps3 till they looked and sounded best to me as well.

recoveryone

your TV should only need one input from the AVR, I suggest running everything else through the AVR. you should have 4 HDMI inputs and one out on the rear of the AVR, so you have room to hook up the BDP, PS3 and Xbox and if you need to save one for your cable box and use the component input for one of the game system.

gmcman

Just curious but would the 50Hz of European frequency play any part in his issues?

seabeerob213

dont have a cable box, dont watch much tv, and the ps3 and pc go hdmi for video only, to the tv, because i have the digital audio connection going to the avr. i had run it the other way, all through hdmi, and it didnt seem like it was what it could be

Nightfall

Keep in mind what recoveryone said, though. Toslink and digital coax are only capable of so many discreet channels and out of date audio codecs. Using HDMI remedies this.

seabeerob213

ah, well for the channels, im ok for the time being, codecs, i dont even know what that means so i probably dont know if im missing anything there or not.

tonyb

Codecs as in surround formats, DTS master Audio, DD+. Available on games and Blu-ray movies only by way of HDMI. The newer surround modes are way better than the older DD/DTS.

Keep in mind any input you use on the receiver, you have to set it up in the menu. On the PS3 you also have to set the audio out correctly. The reason maybe it didn't sound good to you using HDMI is because you possibly didn't set up everything correctly.

seabeerob213

thanks guys, i thought the optical supported dts master, and i'll check that out tony, and get back, but there's no doubt the picture looks better straight into the display

Nightfall

tonyb wrote:

Keep in mind any input you use on the receiver, you have to set it up in the menu.

This.

Check out what your AVR is doing to the video signal in it's menus. Perhaps if you bypass all the upconvert and video altering options it will look better.

recoveryone

In most cases the AVR only upconverts when a source is connected via S-Video, composite or component. Also LCD/Plasma made after 2007-08 (mid level to highend models) have their own upscalers built in, so you can choose which works best, the AVR or TV. For Blu Ray the best PQ comes from a BDP that can handle 1080p in 24FPS (Movie cinema standard) 24FPS gives the movie a more smooth look. Now with TV's settings I would suggest getting the Joe Kline DVD/Blu Ray setup disk this can be the best investment on the cheap in how to properly setup your TV. People think having the settings all the way up on the contrast and brightness is good but in reality it just the opposite. I don't have top of the line gear, but try to get the most out of it.

seabeerob213

thanks guys, when i track down that ever elusives remote, i will change my settings and give it a whirl

recoveryone

Correction on the name "Joe Kane" Title DVD/Blu Ray "Digital Video Essentials" get it real cheap on Amazon. Let us hear back after some tweaking.

steveinaz

The one benefit I like about a 2-channel/HT, is having my video sources directly connected to my HDTV; rather than routing thru some other component first. I then run my 2 video sources' audio, through my DAC. Simple, clean, outstanding video/audio quality.

seabeerob213

sound is now very good, after some monkeying around with it hdmi only. my only complaint is that i can not run 1080p through my avr. it supports up to 1080i, and passthrough, but the tv wont read the signal. when straight to the tv, 1080p works.

seabeerob213

are there ways to update tv software? avr software?

recoveryone

I just happen to see this thread again. You would need to check with Yamaha and see if your AVR is capable of being updated to support 1080p or be able to allow a passthrough of the signal. Mostly the higher end units allow for firmware updates and then it may require you to take the unit to a authorize shop to have it done if it does not have network port. Every brand is different, so read up or give them a call.

seabeerob213

there is an update available, and i have already downloaded it, i just dont know how to do it, and pass through is either limited to 1080i, or my tv is, but the ps3 looks better when hooked directly to the tv.

recoveryone

The odd part of what you say is happening is that the TV will not show a signal if you use the AVR or are you saying that it won't show a 1080p signal only?

1. Could be that your TV is only able to support video formats up 1080i

2.Your TV will show at its highest capable level, but it may not be 1080p

3. Same with the PS3 or any other source they will do only the highest level that the TV will support.

recoveryone

Forgot to this part, Did you get that instruction for the update, it should be a USB port plug and play once you enter into the setup menu.

seabeerob213

i have no instructions or anything yet, got busy with work and other hobbies and kinda put this stuff on the backburner, and the tv wont get a signal if i try to run the ps3 through the avr when the ps3 is set to 1080p. I dont remember if i got to changing the display output when i switched to it straight into the tv, but it was noticeably better, my ex with poor eyesight asked if i got a new blu-ray, because the picture was better.

recoveryone

I went and D/L your manual for the Yamaha http://download.yamaha.com/api/asset/file/?language=en&site=au.yamaha.com&asset_id=23033

I did not see a USB or any other port to be used for a update, anyhow doing some quick reading your AVR is very capable of supporting most if not all video formats, so it is a bit confusing why your PS3 will not work through the Yamaha. Again can you tell me how you have the PS3 connected?

seabeerob213

rcone, i have it hooked up with an HDMI to the tv now, and optical to the avr