AhViaMusicom

I dont think this question was answered, or maybe if it was I missed it. If I plan to run HDfiber to each existing location, do I need to run cabling for IR as well? if so, what is that cable?

whoa whoa whoa. What? Tell me more. What are mini apps? what does the IRUsb dongle do?

now ive just figured out that AI upscaling isnt even enabled for this show. head to head video the nvidea kills the atv, imho.

ok, so i just did a back to back quick comparison. Im using "Our planet" on netflix. Ive set the shield to AI upscaling on the sharpest setting. it may not be fair as I havent looked for any higher res on the ATV, but initial take says the NVidia BLOWS the 4k ATV out of the water. it isnt even close. Maybe there is a setting in the ATV that I am unaware of...

havent done a side-by-side, but i will say it has an AI upscaling setting that looks pretty good. ill try to compare and report back.

Just received the NVidia shield. Seems to be android version of AppleTV. pretty neat tho...

my house is older and newer in places. the insulation is all new so pulling it and replacing is a no go. lots of excellent points tho. Thank you. Id LOVE to have smurf tube everywhere. that would be very cool. Ill do that in the new section of the house for sure.

Dont know about VideoStorm, but will look into it. Watching sports in multiple rooms (or different sports on multiple tvs in one room) and having the audio and video synched is one of the main reasons I want distributed audio and video. I have speakers all over the places. Several rooms with surround, although ive only gone as far as 5.1. My "whole house" audio originates at my main equipment location in my main tv viewing room. The "whole house" sudio wiring will be redone and come from a new location that will be constructed. Good point on all cat6/7. I was only running the additional cat5 because its less expensive. Multiple spools have to be purchased so all the runs can happen at the same time. I am on a slab.

My thoughts so far for wiring to existing systems: 2 Fiber HDMI cables from Matrix location to each exiting receiver 2 cat6 cables from Matrix location to each existing receiver location 1 cat 5 cable from Matrix location to each existing receiver location (just because) once the consortium signs off on this, we can move to the fun stuff, the matrix itself as an example.

this is what im doing. I know my A/V guy leans toward running cat5/6 and using baluns as I was just invlved with him at a friends house. I want to be able to ask intelligent questions rather than just taking someones word for it because it is their preference or what they know. I am planning on having AOPs hardwired throughout as well as speakers in new locations. My questions are mainly about existing surround receivers, tvs etc.

Excellent. This is great. Im gathering that fiber hdmi from matrix to each location is better than baluns at each spot over cat5/6. Please correct me if wrong. Since wires are all being homerun, what other wires are recommended to be pulled? Ill run cat5/6 just because it makes sense. I live in a large 1 story home so if I may need something in the future, id like to do it now. I look forward to continuing to update this thread throughout so hopefully it can help someone else!

OK, first I am enjoying and learning... also i dont even know what the Nvidia Shield 2019 pro is, but i bought one by following the link above. Goofy, but a click to a "buy it now" is too much for me to pass! Any way, i'll figure that out. I love new tech. NOW, I want to be able to play the same source throughout my house and outside and have it and the audio be synchronized. Ive done this with cable and DTV boxes at each location and it isnt always in sync. Most frequently it is a DTV DVR on one tv (the main that feeds audio through the house) and the others. I also want to be able to play video on all tvs and the same audio through the house. For example, Im having a sporting event party and want to watch the same game (in sync) all through the house and when commercials come on, i want to listen to music in all rooms, or maybe in some rooms. Or maybe i want to leave the sporting even on on all tvs but i want a different even on the main tv and its audio playing everywhere else. Im also considering multiple tvs on one wall. All of my tvs are 4k and I upgrade them when it makes sense and there is a decent enough advancement. All of my audio equipment is decent, with my main room being the best. Receivers in house are all Denon and speakers are B&W. Main room is Pioneer Elite with Rotel amplification and some large floor standing B&Ws. Each room has its own sub as well. I take it pretty seriously, but havent made the jump to easy to control automation. I can run everything just fine, but literally no other human being can. Regarding cutting the cord, Im close now. Contractor cut the DTV line and I havent missed it. 4K ATV with ATTNow is working just fine.

Braintrust, could I: Leave the existing speakers and tvs connected to existing a/v receivers and and specialty components (turntable etc) in place, have a new rack built with the equipment i want to use to distribute audio/video (switcher, appltv, cable boxes, whatever) and send those signals to all the existing equipment via Fiber HDMI? If so, i would probably have 2 run to each location so I could also send a signal back to the distribution rack. Is there any additional wiring that I would need? cat5/6? cable for IR? Yall have been terribly helpful... I have an extensive system and have zero need t replace everything unless i Have to.

Wait. Are you suggesting fiber or fiber hdmi in lieu of cat5/6 and baluns?

thanks for advice on fiber. please forgive my newb questions... are baluns bi directional? I want video distributed from a central location, certainly, but is it possible to send a source from a location back to the central location for distribution to other locations?