I was hoping someone could take a look at this and make sure I am connected correctly. So as to get the most from my components.

I have;
Monitor: Sony KDS-50A2000
HD Cable Box: Motorola QIP6200
DVD:Yamaha DVD-S659
Receiver: Yamaha RX-V659

The components are currently connected as such:
DVD-S659 => HDMI to Sony & COAX-Digital Audio to RX-V659
QIP6200 => YPbPr & SPDIF to RX-V659
Receiver => YPbPr to Sony

Should I leave the DVD-S659 connected HDMI or switch it throught the receiver using YPbPr? How much worse is YPbPr then HDMI with DVD's?

dbranger, it sounds like you have things connected just fine. As for whether to connect via HDMI or component from the DVD player, there's no hard and fast rule saying that HDMI is always better. From what I can tell, your DVD player doesn't upconvert, so it will be sending 480i or 480p, which means either connection will (theoretically) carry the same signal. Most upconverting players will only output the upconverted video via HDMI, so it makes sense in those situations. For you, I'd recommend just checking both connections to see which you prefer. There shouldn't be a difference, but some players do better over one or the other--just check and see which you like best. If they look the same to you, you might consider hooking the player via component, so that you won't ever have to change inputs on the tv (just turn it on and off). Anyway, do what looks best to you, that's all that matters--but theoretically, there really shouldn't be a difference. Unfortunately, theories don't always hold true, which is why you test! In any event, good luck with the test and enjoy your setup. I hope I didn't give you more information than you really wanted--if you have any questions, ask away!

Actually this player will upconvert to 720P/1080i through HDMI. Yamaha says the receiver will upconvert also, using either YPbPr or S-Video.

As far as switching inputs, I let my remote do that for me. :D I have a Logitech Harmony 880.

I'm just not sure I'm doing something right though. It seems to me that the first time I had HDMI hooked up YPbPr looked better. Now, I hooked it up again and HDMI seems to look better. Albeit a little more grainy looking, but perhaps a bit brighter. Sunlight and headlights and such seem to be more intense with HDMI. Maybe a setting on the receiver got changed? I'll have to look in the manual in the morning when I get home.

Does anyone know which processors Yamaha uses for video conversion? Especially these two units.

Thanks!

It sounds like you've got a good handle on things. Basically you're just going to look and see which scaler you want to do the work (the player, the receiver, or the tv). I don't know which scalers are in your components, but I would suggest to make sure that your picture settings are the same on both inputs of your tv. The first time I did a check between the two on my system, I had a similar response to you...then I found out that my HDMI input was set on the picture mode I'd calibrated, while the component video input was on vivid (torch) mode. So, the component looked, like you said, brighter, but a little grainy. Once I switched them to each use calibrated settings, the differences were so small I couldn't really see them. So, you might want to check that. Good news about the Harmony though--they sure do simplify life!

Last night (early this morning) I did that very thing. I went through the settings on both inputs on the TV including the advanced menus. I made sure both inputs had the exact same settings. When I was done I have to admit I like the YPbPr a little bit better again.

They both look great, but the YPbPr took the nod due to better color balance. The picture just looked more realistic, not exaggerated. I'm not sure if this is a product of running the signal through the receiver or if the difference lies in the outputs of the DVD-S659.

Another point I might mention, I read a couple more articles about the upconversion in the RX-V659. I believe what Yamaha intends by upconverting is that the reciever will upconvert S-Video or Composite video inputs to YPbPr output. I may be wrong. But, I e-mailed them and should recieve an e-mail shortly.

Thanks drrick for your help. I appreciate it.