[Mainegod]

I'm looking to upgrade my ancient Pioneer receiver and have spent a good bit of time wrestling with the issue of whether I need and/or want an HDMI-upconverting receiver versus one that just does HDMI switching. The particular models I've been looking at are the Onkyo 604 and the 674.


My Samsung HDTV has a couple of HDMI inputs, and I don't image I will need much more than those plus the 2 HDMI inputs on the 604 for connecting my STB plus PS3. Between cable and video games, watching DVDs takes a distant third in my tv usage, and I figure the PS3 can serve in that function.


Several questions:


So if I don't really have the connectivity requirements for the HDMI upconversion, is there any benefit in getting the 674?


How well does the Onkyo (or other receivers) switch HDMI vs. upconverting non-HDMI feeds to HDMI (if such a comparison could be made)? From what I understand, the 604 can passthrough 1080p, correct?


And finally, presuming I ran 2 HDMI inputs into the 604, and from there 1 HDMI input into the tv, if I needed to add a 3rd HDMI device down the road, couldn't I just run it directly into the tv, and then run an optical out to the 604?


Thanks for your help, and sorry if this is all fairly newbie--I haven't bought a new receiver since 1996!

 

[Bailey151]



Quote:
And finally, presuming I ran 2 HDMI inputs into the 604, and from there 1 HDMI input into the tv, if I needed to add a 3rd HDMI device down the road, couldn't I just run it directly into the tv, and then run an optical out to the 604?

Yes.

 

[Mainegod]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Bailey151 /forum/post/0


Yes.

Thanks for the response. Would this allow all audio-formats to be supported, or only a certain few (Dolby Digital, 5.1, etc)?


Would it be preferable to just run 2 HDMI inputs into the TV, and then the optical out to the receiver, or run the HDMI's to the receiver, and then into the tv?


I ask because as of right now my Comcast 6412 HD-DVR doesn't have the firmware upgrade to allow it to pass HDMI signals through a repeater, like a receiver.

 

[MichaelJHuman]

If you like the convenience of switching video through your receiver, you can get a receiver with HDMI upconversion. That let's you convert component to HDMI and run a single HDMI cable to your display. In your case you could run component from your cable box to this type of receiver.


These are definitely more expensive than switching only receivers though.

 

[Mainegod]



Quote:
Originally Posted by MichaelJHuman /forum/post/0


If you like the convenience of switching video through your receiver, you can get a receiver with HDMI upconversion. That let's you convert component to HDMI and run a single HDMI cable to your display. In your case you could run component from your cable box to this type of receiver.


These are definitely more expensive than switching only receivers though.

Wouldn't the picture quality suffer in that case? I thought it would be best to stick to HDMI connections when possible, rather than mixing.

 

[Bailey151]



Quote:
Thanks for the response. Would this allow all audio-formats to be supported, or only a certain few (Dolby Digital, 5.1, etc)?

The 604 does bitstream (DD/DTS 5.1), LPCM 5.1, and 2ch LPCM over HDMI. That covers most material. It can also do 7.1 over multi-channel analog = it will work with a player that has a built in TrueHD etc decoder & analong outputs.