Connecting Laptop + Receiver + HDTV - Help please!

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SirSavage

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Okay so I have a receiver that I want to connect my laptop to for watching movies, music, etc. Problem is, the receiver doesn't have an HDMI port.

Now I can't just connect the laptop directly through the TV's HDMI, and then have the TV connected to the receiver via AV cables and still get audio, can I? Doesn't the audio input have to go directly to the receiver?

Another question: Do I even need the video to go through the receiver, or can I put the video directly to the TV via HDMI on the laptop, and get a separate audio cable to connect, like this:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882754029

I've tried finding help on this but most people had a receiver with HDMI, so I'm not sure what to do.

Thanks for any input!


EDIT: I see you can get adapters like this:

http://www.amazon.com/Etekcity%C2%AE-Composite-Video-Audio-Converter/dp/B008FO7PQA/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1378320732&sr=8-2&keywords=hdmi+to+rca

But that is ridiculously expensive. I already have a 15 foot HDMI cable because I thought I was just going to be able to use that. So if I could just get an audio cable for a few bucks and do that, that would be much better than spending $35+ on a damn adapter.
 
Solution
ssddx
well... you have a few choices.

you could connect hdmi from laptop to television and the tv would get sound however getting it from the tv to the receiver depends on what type of audio outputs your tv has. some have a stereo headphone out, some have optical outputs while some have no outputs at all.

that 3.5mm to rca cable would only give you stereo sound. this is fine if your sound system is only 2.0/2.1.

another option is to use a hdmi to component cable adapter provided your receiver has component cable inputs.

yet another option is to use an external soundcard to send the data to the receiver although this would process the sound twice which really is not required.

another option is to have a box which splits off coax spdif...
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ssddx

ssddx

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well... you have a few choices.

you could connect hdmi from laptop to television and the tv would get sound however getting it from the tv to the receiver depends on what type of audio outputs your tv has. some have a stereo headphone out, some have optical outputs while some have no outputs at all.

that 3.5mm to rca cable would only give you stereo sound. this is fine if your sound system is only 2.0/2.1.

another option is to use a hdmi to component cable adapter provided your receiver has component cable inputs.

yet another option is to use an external soundcard to send the data to the receiver although this would process the sound twice which really is not required.

another option is to have a box which splits off coax spdif and optical spdif to go to your receiver while maintaining the video aspect in a hdmi out to the tv.

yet another option... use hdmi out to the tv for video and the headphone port on your laptop to the receiver for 2.0/2.1 sound only.

no... you dont need to output video through the receiver. quite a few of us do it though since we have multiple devices or because its simpler that way. i have to admit that i use a dvi->hdmi cable to my receiver so i never had to worry about your issue.

anyways... just a few ideas for you to decide on. of course everything depends on what inputs/outputs you have and what kind of speaker system (and how many channels) you intend to use.

 
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SirSavage

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Man I really had no idea this was going to be so complicated. This is the TV I just bought:

http://www.amazon.com/Sceptre-X408BV-FHD-40-Inch-1080p-Black/dp/B0081UUYWA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1378343985&sr=8-1&keywords=spectre+tv+40

http://usa.yamaha.com/products/audio-visual/av-receivers-amps/htr/htr-5830_silver__u/?mode=model

It sounds like it is going to be a hassle to get 1080p quality and 5.1 surround sound with most options. Is there any way to say, hook up a Blu-Ray player to the TV, and I could have HDMI from the laptop input straight into that? If at all possible, I'd like to have 1080p and 5.1 surround.

Thanks a ton for your help with this.
 
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ssddx

ssddx

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your tv lists spdif coax output. i believe the port on the top left labeled coax will work with this. no idea why its labeled cd though.

edit:

so try...

pc->tv by hdmi and then that coax cable. might need to enable the output in the tv menu.
 
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SirSavage

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Sorry, stupid question, but where is the coax cable going? From TV to receiver? Would it just be this cable?

http://www.amazon.com/Cables-29115-Meters-Velocity-Digital/dp/B0002J2B8I/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1378346178&sr=1-1&keywords=spdif+coax+output
 
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ssddx

ssddx

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without delving down into the product manual yes it looks like that is a coax input port. it has the orange color signifying spdif coax and all except it says CD which i'm not sure what it means. unless it is supposed to mean coax digital or something (not cd player).

short answer... yes and yes.

i'm not going to say 100% it will work but it looks like a good chance.
 
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SirSavage

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Okay and that would allow 5.1 surround sound?

So just to make sure I get it, it should go like this:

Laptop to TV (via HDMI), TV to receiver (via coax)? And with some minor tweaking to the TV's audio (output?) the receiver should pick it up and be able to do 5.1 surround?
 
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ssddx

ssddx

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spdif coax is capable of providing 5.1 sound yes.

there are limitations however.

The supported audio formats by S/PDIF are:

- Stereo PCM
- Dolby Digital
- DTS

Mulitchannel LPCM, Dolby TrueHD, DTS-HD are not supported.
Click to expand...

so provided your game or movie uses a supported format it will carry 5.1

well... of course this is providing that you tv is able to output the signal as surround sound. i've heard of some televisions being limited to a stereo signal. this would be a question for the product manual or manufacturer.

if everything is kosher though? yes it should work. buy your cable local in case you have problems so you can return it. its what i would do.
 
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