Sally Home

I have a Vista Media Center (MCE) PC in study and TV in sitting room which I want to link up, along with my satellite box. How do I connect these up keeping in mind that I want to be able to watch high definition content on the TV.

The TV is an LCD HD with 1080P with HDMI input. THe PC - See below for full spec (spec inc. triple TV tuner digital & analogue and HDMI output + Blu-ray and HD DVD drive).

CONNECTING AERIAL'S to PC - I guess the Satellite and roof analogue aerials must both be routed to where the PC is and the cables have to pass through the satellite box before connecting to the PC's TV card, am I correct.

CONNECTING PC to TV - I am unclear what is the best method to link up the PC and TV keeping in mind I want to watch best quality HD on TV. What are the options open to me and which is best. A friend suggested I use an HDMI cable ( 12 meters ) with an in-line repeater. I have heard mention of an Extender although know almost nothing about them, how would I connect one, do they Send and Receive signals, are signals through a router or some device connected to the TV out on the PC?

PC, TV & SKY BOX - what will happen with the sky box and channel selection, will the MCE controller be able to change satellite channels, or do I need some sort of infra-red controller to control the sky box from the TV room.

Any solution must provide the following functionality:

- From the TV I want to be able to use the MCE Remote Control to select the EPG and choose programs to watch.

- From the TV I want to be able to record and play back programs on the PC.

- I want to be able to use the PC for office tasks while the TV is using MCE to watch a live program or playing / recording a program.

- If possible I would like to be able to watch a different channel / program on the PC monitor at the same time as the TV is watching something else.

PC SPEC
Processor: Intel Core2 Duo Processor E6750
2.66 GHZ, 4 MB L2 Cache, 1333 MHZ FSB
Operating System: Vista Home Premium
Memory: 2048 MB DDR2 Dual Channel
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce 8600GS 256MB DDR2 SDRAM.
Connections: HDMI HDCP support
DVD: Blu-ray,HD DVD & DVD Player
TV Card: 3-in-1 for DVB-T, DVB-S, analogue
Wireless: 802.11n

yustr

Sally,

Wow, that's quite a set up. This might get complicated. Plus, I'm no expert in remote controls so I'll leave those questions unanswered for the moment.

It appears that the short straw will be the TV card in the comp. If does not have the capability to see high definition signals - these are different than digital signals - then the only way to see a hi-def picture (and you certainly want to) is to run the roof aerial to the TV and the sat aerial to the supplied sat box (these need decoding before your TV can use them). That assumes your TV has a hi-def tuner (many flat panels do not). If it doesn't maybe the sat box can serve both.

We'll only look at one path for simplicity. Hopefully you have two sat antenna cables coming down from the roof because you want one dedicated to the hi-def box/TV. With TV signal into the sat box, use a HDMI cable to feed the TV. All done there - enjoy the great picture.

You'll need another sat box over near the comp. This one does not have to be hi-def because I assume the TV card can't see hi-def anyway. Use the other sat antenna cable to feed this box. Then use co-axial cable from the box to the TV in on the comp. You'll have to follow the instructions for Vista MC to program the comp to tune the box. I don't know how that works as I just set my Windows MC TV card to channel 3 (or 4 depending) and use the sat box to change channels. I know it defeats the whole idea of a MCPC but ...

Now how to get TV from the PC to the TV. That's pretty easy. Just use another run of HDMI. For that long of a run HDMI an amplifier (extender) may be necessary but I'd try it without one first. Blu-ray and HD-DVD should look great but be warned: the picture quality on TV via the MCPC may not be very good - especially if you've got a large TV - and will certainly pale when compared to the hi-def channels.

I know you're trying to use the PC as a central video server but unless it has hi-def switching capabilities (multiple in's and outs) then its not going to work that way.

I hope that helps. And just think, we haven't even started on audio yet. And like I said, setting up all those remotes is beyond me.

Also, welcome to TSF. We're glad you found us.

yustr

__________________
I didn't mean to say it. But I meant what I said. J. McMurtry

In Vino Veritas

Sally Home

Yustr,

you're a real gent, I really appreciate your input.

OooP's - I hadn't realised the TV Tuner wasn't HD.

I don't have the HD Sat Box just yet, it's on my shopping list to buy soon, I will add an HD Tuner Card to it now.

LCD TV is 1080P with built-in Free-to-air digital receiver although I wasn't planning on using it, instead I will use a separate Free-to-air Box that I have.

WILL I BE GET HD ON THE TV WHEN PLAYING HD DVD's AND NORMAL DIGITAL ON EVERYTHING ELSE IF I CONNECT AS FOLLOWS:
- Roof Aerial (Free-to-Air digital) connected to Free-view Box connected to PC TV Card "DVB-T".
- Sat Aerial connected to Non HD Sat Box connected to PC TV Card "DVB-S".
- HDMI cable linking PC & TV, possibly with amplifier / extender.
- I have tested the MC Remote Control - when seated in front of the TV it's able to control MC on the upstairs PC, this is a benefit of living in an open-planned house.

SITTING IN FRONT OF THE TV WHAT FUNCTIONALITY WILL I HAVE:
Not having used Media Center yet can you clarify what I will / will not be able to do taking into consideration the above set-up. For example, will I be able to switch between Satellite and Free-to-air broadcasts, if so can I do it all via the MC Remote Control or will I need to use the Satellite and Free-to-air Remote Controls, in which case I will need to set up a transmitter/receiver to relay the signal. Will I be able to program MC to record programs or play back recorded programs, and not to forget, will I be able to pause/time shift live programs.
FYI I already have a transmitter/receiver to relay the signals, I use it to control my satellite box and DVD player that I have hidden away in a cupboard out of sight, really neat!

FINALLY - Am I correct in thinking I will simply (nothing is quite that simple) be able to swap the Sat Box and Tuner Card for HD the ones when I get them.

As you rightly said I / we haven't mentioned Audio. I've been looking into this also but didn't want to cloud the waters! If you have any basic advice please pass it on. So far I have been thinking of getting something simple, I don't have buckets of money to spend and I don't want to have cables running all over the place. One solution that I have seen is the Evesham Sound Stage, what do you think of it, see link below
http://www.evesham.com/products/info...E-B59E0B5D27C3

I am hoping that the PC's specification of "digital home cinema 8-channel high definition audio out" applies when connecting the PC and TV via HDMI cable, what do you think?

Thanks Again for your support

yustr

If you want the best picture, run the HD-DVD player directly to the TV.

From what I could see most HD-video cards have only two inputs. One is for an antenna and the other is for a cable/sat signal. So your set up should be fine. What you'll use to connect the PC to the TV will depend on the type of output the HD-card has. So check this out before you buy any long HDMI cabling. You can always buy converters to get the right feed type for your TV.

As for the functionality you'll have - The MC can control a set top box - through an axillary device that sits on the box and relays the remote signal to the box. But I don't know if it can control two different devices. I tend to doubt it. But that said, its been some time since I set one up so things may have changed.

Yes you should be able to just swap out the old non-HD for ones w/ HD. Your sat company may need to activate your HD service (we pay more for that over on this side of the pond).

That Sound Stage appears interesting. You'll not get true surround but if your room is set up right it may be just fine. If you have a large room I doubt it will be sufficiently loud to be satisfying. One issue: you have lots of equipment capable of supplying surround feeds but the Sound Stage only has inputs for one. There are switches you can buy that will allow you to chose which source is seen by the S. Stage. Or you could go the AV receiver route and let it do the switching. Just another thing to complicate your life.

yustr

__________________
I didn't mean to say it. But I meant what I said. J. McMurtry

In Vino Veritas