Home audio & video: Why is having 2 HDMI inputs important?
Why is having 2 HDMI inputs important?
by teh_blake - 7/18/06 7:37 PMI know that I am probably asking all of the n00b questions here, but hopefully I can get these out of the way.
So, why is it important to have 2 HDMI inputs? I can understand wanting to have one for HD Broadcasts, but isn't the best that a DVD player can put out 480p? What advantage is gained over just using the component inputs?
I could be missing something, I don't pretend to know it all, just looking for the asnwers so I can make an informed decision. 
Ditto on that question
by djr1904 - 7/18/06 8:26 PM In reply to: Why is having 2 HDMI inputs important? by teh_blakeI just bought a TV (which has not yet arrived) that has two HDMI inputs. What will I use these for? I've seen a DVD player or two that upconverts and has HDMI, so that could be one. But what other products connect via HDMI? Home theater? DVR?
The Future is HDMI
by speleofool - 7/28/06 3:01 PM In reply to: Ditto on that question by djr1904HDMI is unique in combining video and multichannel audio into one cable. It appears to be gaining rapid momentum as the interconnect of choice for the future, so multiple HDMI inputs are a good thing.
Products that currently use HDMI (or DVI, which is video only, but compatible with HDMI via converter cabes) include DVD players, HD-DVD/Blu-Ray players and some cable/satellite boxes. Many computers also have DVI video out for LCD monitors, but this may be compatible with TV monitors, too (check your TV manual for PC hookup resolutions and connectivity options).
In the future, I fully expect to see every digital video source push toward HDMI: camcorders, game systems, DVRs, and perhaps even some digital cameras.
Keeping video in the digital domain keeps it cleaner. I'll write more about that in another post in this thread, but it's the cleanest source of video whether you're doing HD or SD.
Cheers!
Speleo.
In a nutshell
by Dan Filice - 7/18/06 8:50 PM In reply to: Why is having 2 HDMI inputs important? by teh_blakeYour cable or satellite box has, or will have, an HDMI connector for the TV. A new HD DVD player (not a standard DVD player) will also have an HDMI connector for the TV. Maybe a newer receiver will have an HDMI connector. The HDMI cleans up all of the wires as it has both video and audio in one cable, and the video signal is digital. Component isn't a digital path. I read where the new HD DVD players won't send an HD signal via component connections, but then I read elsewhere that this will be a function of individual DVDs where the studio can choosed to place a code on a DVD to only allow the HD signal to go through HDMI and not component. So, with these options, having multiple HDMI connections may be helpful.
Details on the "Image Constraint Token" and HD-DVD / Blu-Ray
by speleofool - 7/28/06 3:16 PM In reply to: In a nutshell by Dan FiliceBoth HD-DVD and Blu-Ray use an encryption scheme called AACS. In February or so of this year, the AACS standard was finalized to mandate support for the Image Constraint Token (ICT). This means that all HD-DVD and Blu-Ray players must support this token. So far, studios seem to be shying away from using the token, but they have reserved the right to do so in the fututre.
If a movie has the ICT, then analog (component, S-Video, composite) is crippled to 540 lines of resolution. HDMI should support a full 1080p, depending on the capabilities of your TV and player (and this is a big "if").
Cheers!
Speleo.
hdmi uses
by bevillan - 7/19/06 12:26 PM In reply to: Why is having 2 HDMI inputs important? by teh_blakeI have one HDMI input on my tv and 2 inputs on my Onkyo receiver. I am using one for an upconverting DVD player till the HD disc war is over and I plan on exchanging my Comcast digi-cable box with/DVI for one with HDMI to use up the 2nd port. Since not many other peripherals use HDMI yet other than those 2, I don't see a better setup.
switchers work great
by stewart norrie - 7/19/06 1:55 PM In reply to: hdmi uses by bevillanMy old Sony 65" 3 tube hi-def t.v. only had 1 d.v.i. input So I bought a Gifin d.v.i. switcher and run all my audio using optical audio cables works awsome Anyway with my new Toshiba which has 2 h.d.m.i. inputs I just changed to a d.v.i.h.d.m.i. adapter now I have the second h.d.m.i. port open for the new Sony blue ray player stewee
HDMI sources
by faloutboi - 7/19/06 5:06 PM In reply to: switchers work great by stewart norrieJust like the other posts, it's about the tech coming down the line and HDMI seems to be the next step.
I can think of 3 sources that I will purchase down the line that will need this input
1.newer DVD players can convert up to 1080i and HD-DVD or Blue ray player
2.HDcable or HD-Dish
3.next gen HD recorders
4.next gen Game consoles
Wrong!
by kena10 - 7/19/06 6:42 PM In reply to: switchers work great by stewart norrieStewart,
Switchers don't work great all the time. Especially since you pride yourself with this "Gifin Switcher". Since you're plugging this thing into the wall to enable the switcher to work, you're introducing more noise in your signal which degrades the video signal and your chances of getting a better image get diminished.
Think of it like a hub in a computer system. The more pc's you plug into the hub, the slower your connection will be because per every computer you plug into a hub, your signal gets cut in half and so on so forth.
Although you claim that you can "fine adjust your video sources to each input, IMO, I think that as long as you properly set up one input on your tv and it goes plugged into the receiver, it simplyfies everything. Yeah, you're going to start arguing that you're going to "need more cables" as you've said in the past and the reality of it is that you already have all the cables you're going to need. So food for thought...
Jimmy
JIMMY NOT WRONG, RITE
by stewart norrie - 7/19/06 8:35 PM In reply to: Wrong! by kena10switcher does not use an exterinal power source so there is no noise problem at all it draws power from the componits. The reaqson I have my system set up this way is because I saved money on my amp because i did not need h.d.m.i. switching . and by using my t.v. for vidio switching lets me fine tune all my inputs seperetly stewee
(NT) Some of your exaples are not correct.
by jcrobso - 7/31/06 2:50 PM In reply to: Wrong! by kena10A HDMI switch is NOT a network hub!!! With digital signals noise is not a problem like it would be with analog. The wall example just does not fly, then maybe we should unplug all of our gear from the wall to stop of noise????
If you have one HDMI and need more,, get a switcher or a new reciver with HDMI switching. When Stew got his switcher, there weren't any HDMI switching Recivers. John
very important
by julian111x - 7/19/06 11:31 PM In reply to: Why is having 2 HDMI inputs important? by teh_blakereason you are going to need at least 2 hdmi , because u need one for your cable or satelite provider to obtain the best hd picture (1080i) , and when blue ray gets popular , or hd dvd players , you are going to need a hdmi for that as well,
other things re: HDMI
by Dabonka1 - 7/20/06 2:22 PM In reply to: very important by julian111xFew things currently have HDMI but keep hearing in the "near" {whatever that means} future... I've heard... Sat, Cable boxes, Blue Ray, HD DVD, PlayStation 3{BD}, other Audio equipment, PC connectivity , network connectivity...
Personally, I can foresee {only for me personally} my Comcast Cable box and {anxiously waiting} PS3...
Another HDMI question
by jo48 - 7/26/06 12:53 PM In reply to: Why is having 2 HDMI inputs important? by teh_blakeThe TV I am considering buying only has one HDMI input (a Vizio 37 inch HDTV). I will have an HDMI output from my upconverting DVD player and one from my cable box. I have to use the DVD player's HDMI because it won't upconvert without the HDMI cable.
Will I lose any quality if I connect the component analog HD outputs from the cable box to the component analog HD inputs on the TV set? Or should I jump through hoops to get a second HDMI (a switch or whatever...)
Thanks.
HDMI 1.3
by Lawrence Morrison - 7/28/06 11:44 AM In reply to: Another HDMI question by jo48Sorry to muddy the waters, but I have to...
What about HDMI 1.3? On another message board, I inquired to the group about HDMI and its advantages. I'm thinking of buying a new Onkyo receiver that has 2 HDMI inputs and one output, one reader claimed they had to tweak the color when using his HDMI inputs to make the color match his component inputs; and another reader advised HDMI 1.3 would solve that problem.
I don't want to purchase a receiver now if models coming out in the next 6+ mos. are going to have superior technology. (Granted, that's going to pretty much happen all the time anyway, right?)
T.
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