2 CH vs Surround Sound TV Modes

[Lockettk]

99% of the time for daily use I want to watch and use my TVs internal video and audio capabilites to watch Satellite TV. However, for special TV programs and DVD programing, I want to watch this content on my TVs processed by my AVR with full Suround Sound audio. Programing/configuring C4 to operate in these two discrete modes is proving challenging for my C4 installer who has a lot of C4 install expereince.

Can anyone offer tips on how to use/program/configure C4 or my H/W to support these operating modes within a C4 network?

My current H/W configuration is a Pioneer PDP-4350SX Plasma TV, Denon 2307 CI AVR, Sony CX777ES and Key Digital 8x4 HD Fat Boy Component Matrix Switch and C4 v1.7.1

Thought changing architecture from Analog Component to HDMI and using HDMI Pass through capabilites of the AVR might facilitate setting up the system the way I want to use it.

Appreciate help anyone can offer...

[tigrzeye]

I do this same thing in my living room. For normal viewing I didn’t want the “thump” of the sub-woofer when viewing late night TV while the rest of the family is asleep.

For the Blu-Ray and HD-DVD player as well as Digital Music the system functions normally using the Surround Receiver to handle the audio side of content being viewed or played.

Here is what I did:

First I made all the connections for the room in Composer – EXCEPT that I did not make the connection in Composer for the audio from the Cable HD/DVR box to the Surround Receiver (Onkyo TX-SR304). I physically made the coaxial SPDIF audio connection from the Cable HD/DVR to the Receiver however.

-----Please Note: My receiver does not handle HDMI pass through. All HDMI cables go directly to my TV. Audio only is connected to my Receiver via Coaxial or Digital SPDIF cables-----

Then I also set the TV in the Living Room, a Samsung LN46A650, as the Video Audio End-Point 2 in the Living Room.

So when you select the Cable HD/DVR from Nav screen or Watch list on remote, audio and video is through the TV only. Since the system doesn’t know that the Cable HD/DVR box has an audio connection to the Receiver, it doesn’t power on the Receiver or set the input on the Receiver.

To get the sound from the Cable HD/DVR to the Receiver when I wanted it I created Custom Buttons called Surround On and Surround Off that can be used from either the SR250 remote or the Nav screen. I had the volume turned down on the TV in this programming so there was no "echo" effect.

And you can still use the Watch/Listen buttons and lists on the SR250 remote to toggle between controlling Receiver for volume and the Cable HD/DVR box to change channels, view the TV guide, etc.

I have included screen shots.

EDIT: just noticed a redundant programming line in the Surround On Custom button. You do not need the "Turn On The Living Room>Receiver - Onkyo TX-SR304 program line. The line selecting the receiver as the audio source in the room turns it on. Sorry 'bout that.

[Lockettk]

Tigrzeye,

Thakn you very much for the quick reply. This is very helpful. I will share your approach with my installer when he arrives tomorrow to do a v1.8 upgrade and test a Just Add Power HDMI over IP implementation that I'm planning to switch to from my current analog configuration.

My thought is doing what you and I want to do shold not be that hard using C4. Developing work arounds to do this is certainly not consistent with what my C+ programming prof use to call .."the Elegant Solution".