I bought a new Plasma TV, now what?

[elderboy02]

PS3's rock

Enjoy your new TV D. And now that you have it may I suggest picking up a Wii for countless hours of interactive fun with your new TV!

[pektel]

Remember to securely fasten the wristband.

Originally Posted by mariogolbee

Enjoy your new TV D. And now that you have it may I suggest picking up a Wii for countless hours of interactive fun with your new TV!

I have a Wii, if I didn't I would have bought yours.

[T.G]

Originally Posted by Darrell

I bought a new Plasma TV, now what?

Message from Ahbroody: Don't play ball in the house.

[GTsetGO]

PS3 again. can't go wrong with it.

also, let me know if you need any HDMI cables. i can get them wholesale.

Originally Posted by GTsetGO

PS3 again. can't go wrong with it.

also, let me know if you need any HDMI cables. i can get them wholesale.

I appreciate the offer.

On that note, since I am new to this HDMI stuff. Am I going to need HDMI cables for ALL of my components (XBOX 360, DVR, Blu Ray, etc)?

Originally Posted by Darrell

I have a Wii, if I didn't I would have bought yours.

It was a shameless plug. I should have posted a link too.

Seriously though, congrats. I'm still at least lucky enough to be floating in the rear projection 1080i/720p realm. Some day I'll get up to speed. Until then, I'll be at your house playing Wii!

Originally Posted by Darrell

I appreciate the offer.

On that note, since I am new to this HDMI stuff. Am I going to need HDMI cables for ALL of my components (XBOX 360, DVR, Blu Ray, etc)?

Only if you want to be like,"WOW!" And only if you have HDMI inputs for all of your components.

Originally Posted by mariogolbee

It was a shameless plug. I should have posted a link too.

Seriously though, congrats. I'm still at least lucky enough to be floating in the rear projection 1080i/720p realm. Some day I'll get up to speed. Until then, I'll be at your house playing Wii!

You're welcome to come over and play Wii at my house on any day that doesn't end in y.

[Jbailey]

There are calibration DVD's you can buy that help adjust your TV's picture. I have a few I've used on my CRT tubes and on plasmas. I still have them if you would be interested Darrell I can send one out.
http://www.ramelectronics.net/Video-calibration.ep

Originally Posted by Darrell

You're welcome to come over and play Wii at my house on any day that doesn't end in y.

How about Huy play your Huy together on Sundae!

[stewshi]

Originally Posted by Darrell

I appreciate the offer.

On that note, since I am new to this HDMI stuff. Am I going to need HDMI cables for ALL of my components (XBOX 360, DVR, Blu Ray, etc)?

You DVR, Xbox 360, PS3, Blu Ray will need the HDMI cable in order to get the best picture out of the unit. It is also the easiest since its just one cable for both the picture and the sound.

Do How many ports do you have?

For my house I have a Xbox 360 and PS3 and the cable box installed so I just need 3 HDMI ports on the TV. The fourth is usually just used if I need to hook up the camcorder or anything else to be viewed on the TV including a laptop if you have a port on that also.

Originally Posted by mariogolbee

How about Huy play your Huy together on Sundae!

On a serious note though. You should bring your daughter over to play with Abby sometime. I think they are around the same age?

Originally Posted by stewshi

You DVR, Xbox 360, PS3, Blu Ray will need the HDMI cable in order to get the best picture out of the unit. It is also the easiest since its just one cable for both the picture and the sound.

Do How many ports do you have?

For my house I have a Xbox 360 and PS3 and the cable box installed so I just need 3 HDMI ports on the TV. The fourth is usually just used if I need to hook up the camcorder or anything else to be viewed on the TV including a laptop if you have a port on that also.

It has three HDMI inputs. So that will cover Blu Ray, XBOX, and Cable.

Originally Posted by Darrell

On a serious note though. You should bring your daughter over to play with Abby sometime. I think they are around the same age?

My daughter is 8 and due to be 9 in December. She finds playmates between 2 and 13 usually. That's a pretty darned good idea. More on this later...

[T.G]

Originally Posted by mariogolbee

Only if you want to be like,"WOW!" And only if you have HDMI inputs for all of your components.

Outputs Mario. Outputs. You can get HDMI switchers if you run out of inputs.
(there are also external HD upconverters, but that's probably unnecessary for a system at this level)

Some stuff is debatable, like the Wii. IIRC, it's only a 480p output, so the difference is minor.

Unless you have an HD-DVR, your current DVR might not have the connector.

Remember, component video (YPbPr) can go up to 1080i, whereas HDMI goes up to 1080p currently. Depending on the source resolution, there might be no difference and no reason to upgrade. HDMI does carry a digital audio signal that component video would require to be carried on a separate cable(s), and for digital audio, you would need TOSlink or digital coax.

A lot of what you do with cabling also depends on if you have a surround sound system and how it is designed, configured and installed and can get quite convoluted in a hurry depending on number of components and their connections.

I am getting a new surround sound this weekend. I just want to hear it in person before I buy it. I already saw the TV in person, but the price was better online and Sears doesn't match the online price of THEIR OWN WEBSITE!

I have an HD DVR, I know it has HDMI. Honestly the Wii never occurred to me to hook up via HDMI, the graphics are pretty lame on it, I doubt HDMI will improve it at all.

[T.G]

Originally Posted by Darrell

I am getting a new surround sound this weekend. I just want to hear it in person before I buy it. I already saw the TV in person, but the price was better online and Sears doesn't match the online price of THEIR OWN WEBSITE!

I have an HD DVR, I know it has HDMI. Honestly the Wii never occurred to me to hook up via HDMI, the graphics are pretty lame on it, I doubt HDMI will improve it at all.

In order for the surround sound system to get the digital audio signal from your HD components, it will most likely include an HDMI input switcher as part of the processor that you will have to connect through. You'll run all your device HDMI outputs into the switcher/processor, and then, from there, a single HDMI output to the display device.

The Wii graphics improvement over HDMI is likely negligible on smaller screens like yours.

Can anyone recommend a nice Blu Ray player (that is NOT a PS3) that up converts standard DVD's and also has Netflix?