Quote:

Originally Posted by donthaveacow9

Hey guys,

I will be building an HTPC shortly and had a question about the speaker set up.

We currently have a Sony DAV-S880. The amplifier is a bit dodgy now though, I guess just from age, in that sometimes it must be left off for a few hours before it will turn back on. Is it possible to ditch the amplifier and plug the speakers straight into the HTPC? Or is it better to get a new amplifier and plug that into the HTPC instead? Just wondering as I have not seen a sound card with speaker jacks that match what are on the back of the amp. Can someone suggest a new amp for me if that is the case?

Thanks in advance!

Denon, Yamaha, Onkyo, Harmon Kardon, or Pioneer. Find a receiver that suites your needs (5.1 / 7.1, connections, features, etc). Make sure you use a digital signal from the HTPC to it, and you won't need a sound card.

 

Okay so if I get a new receiver from one of the brands you listed, do I just hook up all the speakers to it and then connect it to the HTPC with an HDMI cable? Or is it connected to the HTPC in a different way?

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by donthaveacow9

Okay so if I get a new receiver from one of the brands you listed, do I just hook up all the speakers to it and then connect it to the HTPC with an HDMI cable? Or is it connected to the HTPC in a different way?

If you have audio over HDMI enabled, yes. You can also use the optical line as well (optical is 5.1, HDMI is 7.1).

And yes, the speakers will connect in exactly the same way. The ends of the wires are bared, and you connect positive and negative to the receiver.

 

Would that mean I need two HDMI ports on the HTPC? One to connect to the TV and one to the receiver?

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by donthaveacow9

Would that mean I need two HDMI ports on the HTPC? One to connect to the TV and one to the receiver?

Nope. You would run HDMI out from the HTPC into the receiver's input. Then from the receiver's HDMI output to the TV (that's EXACTLY how mine is setup).

If, for some reason, you can't get the HDMI audio to work...you can always run optical as 99% of modern motherboards will have an optical output too. And any modern receiver will have optical inputs.

 

Ah ok! Makes sense now, I just assumed that the HTPC would kind of be the central bit that everything goes into

Thanks for all your help! I'll be posting up some more questions shortly I'm sure

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by donthaveacow9

Ah ok! Makes sense now, I just assumed that the HTPC would kind of be the central bit that everything goes into

Thanks for all your help! I'll be posting up some more questions shortly I'm sure

Actually....usually in a home theater setup, you'll want to use the receiver as the part that everything connects to. This way you can use a single output to the TV from the receiver.

You could make things even easier by having a TV Tuner on your HTPC as well, so the HTPC handles your TV channels. Only works REALLY well if you don't require a set top box though (cable box / satellite box). It works well with a set top box, but not needing one it'll work even better.

 

Yup I plan on getting a TV tuner, I do require the set top box for Sky TV unfortunately.

So just to see if I have it all sorted in my head... The Sky TV box gets plugged into the TV tuner on the HTPC, the HTPC HDMI output is plugged into an input on the receiver, and the TV HDMI input is plugged into an ouput on the receiver? Does that sound right?

Btw, is it possible to use my current receiver? I'm perfectly happy with the audio quality but it has no HDMI ports. Heres an image of the ports it has:

I assume I would need to buy different cables or converters to use with the current cables? If so I will probably just get a new receiver as it would be annoying if I bought them all and then this one finally died.

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by donthaveacow9

Yup I plan on getting a TV tuner, I do require the set top box for Sky TV unfortunately.

So just to see if I have it all sorted in my head... The Sky TV box gets plugged into the TV tuner on the HTPC, the HTPC HDMI output is plugged into an input on the receiver, and the TV HDMI input is plugged into an ouput on the receiver? Does that sound right?

Btw, is it possible to use my current receiver? I'm perfectly happy with the audio quality but it has no HDMI ports. Heres an image of the ports it has:

I assume I would need to buy different cables or converters to use with the current cables? If so I will probably just get a new receiver as it would be annoying if I bought them all and then this one finally died.

You could, but you'd need a sound card...and you'll never get even 5.1 out of that receiver.

 

No 5.1? Why's that?

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by donthaveacow9

No 5.1? Why's that?

Lacks the connections for it. It's only got RCA inputs for audio from the looks of it...which is 2.0 only (or 2.1). You can upscale to Dolby Prologic with it though (technically 4.0 or 4.1). You'd have mono rear channels instead of stereo.

 

Would I be able to achieve 5.1 with those speaker on a new receiver?

 

Not too sure if I have this right or not but if I plug the speakers I currently have into a new receiver and use a HDMI input from the HTPC will I have full 5.1?

 

Quote:

Originally Posted by donthaveacow9

Not too sure if I have this right or not but if I plug the speakers I currently have into a new receiver and use a HDMI input from the HTPC will I have full 5.1?

HDMI or optical...yes. The speakers don't matter (except for sound quality). So long as you have 5 speakers and a subwoofer its 5.1 (and as long as its set up correctly).

 

Okay I had another question about connecting the sub, which I asked in the audio section though probably should have just asked you. Would you mind taking a look? http://www.overclock.net/t/1211044/new-5-1-receiver-for-htpc-questions#post_16388683