Having cabling problems

I have:

Sony DVD Player/VCR LSVD350P

Sony LCD Projection TV KDF-42WE655

Motorola HD Cable Box (from Patriot Media-I do not see a model number on it)


Cables go as follows:

-coax cable goes from the wall to a splitter

-one coax cable out of the splitter to Cable In plug on HD Cable Box

-other coax cable out of the splitter to In From Ant plug on DVD/VCR

-coax cable from Out to TV plug on DVD/VCR to Cable plug on TV


Cables from the Red/White/Green/Blue/Red plugs on the HD Cable Box (plugs not labeled) to plugs labeled Y/Pb/Pr/L/R on the HD/DVD In plugs on the TV, in the column marked "6". The cable guy brought these cables.


Yellow/Blue/Red/Blue/Red Cables from the plugs labeled Y/Pb/Pr/L/R on the HD/DVD In plugs on the TV, in the column marked "5"

to the three Component Video Out plugs on the DVD/VCR and the two Line Out Audio plugs on the DVD/VCR. These are Monster Cables I bought from Circuit City (I think the model name is CV2AV252M)


Also, there is what looks like a thin black electrical cord running from the HD Cable Box to the back bottom left of the TV (when looking at the back of the TV)


I asked the cable guy about the smart card, and he said, Everyone's asking about them. We don't have them yet.


When he hooked this up, he said when I watched the non-HDTV channels, they would look grainy, unless he did something with the splitter, so he did it.


On the TV, I can use theTV/Video button the TV remote control to scroll through C4, Video 1, Video 2, Video 3, Video 4, Video 5, Video 6, and Video 7. On Video 6, I can watch all the TV channels, including the HDTV channels, which looks great. However the non-HDTV channels look grainy. When he was here, he told me to use the TV/Video button to go C4 to watch the non-HDTV channels. After he left, I did this, and realized the C4 channels only went up to Ch 13. Then I programmed the VCR to find the other channels, which it did. On C4, the non-HDTV channels looked good, not grainy, and I could change the channels up to channel 125 via the DVD/VCR remote. So I thought I was good, until...


I unplugged all the cables when I put the TV on its stand. When I replugged them in, (I thought in the same plugs) I seemed to have messed up what I had before!


Now when I go to C4, I get:

with the DVD/VCR power turned on, channel 4, with a nice non-grainy picture. But when I try to change the channel with the DVD/VCR remote now, it stays on Ch 4, although the channel indicator changes on the DVD/VCR display. If I press the Set Up button on the DVD/VCR remote to try to reprogam the channels into the DVD/VCR, (which is what I did when I initially programmed the channels), instead of programming them, the picture changes to blurry lines, and it says "No Signal"


Whew...hopefully the above will provide enough info for someone to help me. If I can get back to where I can watch the non-HDTV channels on C4 (whatever that is), and not be grainy, I will be happy.


I'm happy to provide more info.


Thanks-Jamie

Ok, first, does your HD cable box have a DVI output? Is it active? (call your cable tech support and ask)

If it does, or your cable company does have a cable box with DVI out, then get it.

If you can get one then we would use 1 cable to convert DVI to HDMI for your TV, it would replace 3 cables and give you somewhat better PQ.

I see alot of things in your set-up that are uneeded.

well, first off you purchased a combo DVD/VCR. Never a good idea. One unit brakes, or goes out of date and the entire thing is gone. These units also lack features and outputs.

For now here is the set-up you need.

Coax output from wall->surge protector(if you don't have one that does coax, and regular power then get one!)->2 way balenced splitter->1 coax from spliiter to cable box, other coax from splitter to VCR.

Then go cable box->component video cable/composite audio (L+R)->HDTV.

Then go DVD->component video cable/composite audio (L+R)->HDTV

Then go VCR->S-Video/composite audio (L+R)->HDTV


OK, after that is set-up, you need to set the cable box to up-convert everything to 720p/1080i. See which one looks better.

It should clear up those fuzzy analog channels.

There is no reason to be using the TV's analog, unless it does give you much better PQ. (some do and some don't)

This set-up will make your life easier!

Select one input to watch every cable channel from the box.

select one input to watch every DVD or VHS tape.



I may have confused you a bit, some of the "advanced" terms may be new to you. Just tell me what you don't know.


And another thing, you picked a good TV! I love the grand Wega's! They combine proven LCD and CRT technology to create a great HDTV.

Just remeber to strech all 4:3 broadcasts to fit the screen, since this isn't a 100% LCD TV.

good luck!

Thanks. I just wrote out a reply, and when I tried to post it, it complained that I had included URL's in it, and I'm still a rookie. That I understand, but I think it just trashed my whole reply, so am typing out aagain from scratch.


My cable company says I have a DVI output on the HD Cable box, and it's active.


Now for a bunch of questions:


Where would I obtain the cable to hook up the DVI to HDMI jack on the TV? What should I look for when I go out to buy it? Can I get it a place like Circuit City?


I will get the surge protector. This would mean I need to buy a coax cable to connect teh surge protector to the splitter, right? Can one just buy a short length of coax with the connectors at CC too? Are these pretty generic?


The setup you suggested sounds pretty similar to what I have now, sans the surge protector; i.e.,

Ok, thanks for your reply. First things first. You NEVER want to buy cables from best buy or Circuit City, or Tweeter for that matter. Number one reason they either only carry Monster brand, or they carry something else but it super over the top overpriced also. You want to stay away from Monster brand cable, unless someone gives it to you for free. They are a complete waste of money. The DVI cables are about 300% overpriced. You want to buy from www.pacificable.com www.bluejeanscable.com or www.hdtvsupply.com.

Just type on DVI to HDMI cable in the search box. You will need to figure out the legth. Price shop these sites. I use all of them, and so do alot of people on the board. they are great retailers, and will save you lots of money. quality is same or better then Monster brand at a price that is far, far less.


You want a surge protector that also protects a coax cable line. visit www.APC.com for quite a few top quality protectors. APC is just about the best surge protection company out there. most come with coax line, or you can pick higher grade line up at one of the online retailers, radioshack or walmart. you want RG6 coax or better. just make sure the coax line runs thru the protector BEFORE it connects to any components. the splitter should be AFTER the protector.


Your DVD/VCR combo has two outputs, correct? One for DVD and one for VHS. That is what I meant above, it should be connected like two separate players.


By input, I mean selecting "input 6" for example for all your cable programming, or "input 7" for all your DVD's.