Help me go on a shopping spree: TV, digital cam, Xbox 360

[Felon]

Thanks again for your answers. Hate to ask for the hand-holding, but it sounds like just buying a new TV and trying to make it work with my current setup ain't gonna work. So, what else do I need to make this work?

I gotta call up Comcast and tell them I want hi-def content, and I'll need a special box to connect into one of my TV's hi-def ports...?

And I'll need to upgrade the DVD player too, though I guess the Xbox Elite will take care of that...?

What's this "receiver" I'm hearing about? Is that yet another extra component, or is that going to be the box Comcast provides...?

Am I missing out on any essentials?

 

[nerfherder]

A receiver is an amplifier+radio for surround sound. You only need one if you are interested in getting surround sound (or better sound quality if your tv already has surround sound).

You can often plug the video and audio acbles of all you sources (DVD, cable, xbox, etc) into the receiver, and then just have a single video cable to your TV (plus speaker cable to your surround speakers). Sound volume is then controlled on the receiver and not the TV.

 

[nerfherder]

You don't have to have all your sources be high def from the start.

You could plug in your standard cable, DVD and your xbox, and your TV would scale everything up to the resolution of the panel (LCD and plasma have a fixed output resolution determined by the physical number of pixels on the panel). Of course, scaled up standard def cable looks no better than before, other than it would be bigger, but you will get the advantage of the high def xbox 360.

You will want to look at upgrading your other sources to high def, of course, but the point is that you don't have to do them all immediately.

 

[Felon]

A receiver is an amplifier+radio for surround sound. You only need one if you are interested in getting surround sound (or better sound quality if your tv already has surround sound).

You can often plug the video and audio acbles of all you sources (DVD, cable, xbox, etc) into the receiver, and then just have a single video cable to your TV (plus speaker cable to your surround speakers). Sound volume is then controlled on the receiver and not the TV.

Ah, thanks. So this part of what is billed at Best Buy as a "home theater"?

 

[hong]

Ah, thanks. So this part of what is billed at Best Buy as a "home theater"?

Yep. These days you can get home theater outfits which package the receiver, DVD player and speakers into one box. Typically the receiver and DVD player are a combined unit, and there's also a subwoofer, and at least 4 other speakers.

 

[Felon]

Thanks. I'm looking at some with "tallboy" speakers, which seem to save one the effort of hanging or otherwise positioning a speaker where the sound won't be blocked by furniture.

Oh, and I'm getting that Samsung I posted a link to. Lots and lots of glowing reviews.

 

[Lazybones]

It sounds like you may have already gotten your set, but I have an earlier Samsung DLP (50", 720p), that I bought about a year ago, and I love it. Awesome picture for both DVD and Xbox 360. Looks like the price has come down quite a bit on the 1080p sets; that's just a bit more than I paid for my set.

I also got mine from Amazon, and despite some initial worries (a big TV isn't quite a book) delivery was fast, easy, and free.

If you are still looking for a receiver, I recommend the Yamaha HTR-5840.

I got a nice set of Athena Micra speakers. Great sound in a small package. They have stands that allow you to stick them behind a couch, etc.

In fact, I think the entire home theatre set up (including the Xbox) was less than $3k, which was your upper limit for the TV alone.

 

[Felon]

It sounds like you may have already gotten your set, but I have an earlier Samsung DLP (50", 720p), that I bought about a year ago, and I love it. Awesome picture for both DVD and Xbox 360. Looks like the price has come down quite a bit on the 1080p sets; that's just a bit more than I paid for my set.

I also got mine from Amazon, and despite some initial worries (a big TV isn't quite a book) delivery was fast, easy, and free.

If you are still looking for a receiver, I recommend the Yamaha HTR-5840.

I got a nice set of Athena Micra speakers. Great sound in a small package. They have stands that allow you to stick them behind a couch, etc.

Thanks for the recommendations!

 

[John Crichton]

Yeah, if there is one component (besides the TV) that you don't want to skimp on, it is the receiver. It can make up for many shortcomings when it comes to TV inputs, videogames and the like.

Also, I will suggest topping this whole package off with a Monster Cable brand power cleaner. They run easily $100 and way up but they are worth it if you are dropping this much already.

 

[Lewis526]

I don't know if you've already pulled the trigger for the TV, but you may want to consider the size of the room you're going to put it in. A 32 or 37" TV will be plenty big if you're sitting fairly close to it (like around 10 feet or less). I wouldn't by a 50" unless I'm going to put it in a large room and sit way back from it.