Hi,
Looking at buying a component system and a 37”LCD TV – but utterly baffled by HDMI. After reading countless threads and listening to podcasts, think I have it straight but I would like to double-check...
From what I gather, HDMI passthrough in a receiver means the HMDI cable will carry audio and video; HDMI switching means the HDMI cable takes only video, and a coaxial or optical cable is needed as well for audio.
HDMI upconversion in a receiver takes a signal from a lesser-quality connection and makes it look better- but if the source (eg DVD) has an HDMI output you can just run that cable direct to the TV and have the sound running in a coaxial or optical cable from the TV to receiver, which still allows the surround sound..
Is that right???
Final thing, how important is HDMI/upconversion in a receiver? Seems you pay a hefty premium for it. I'm notlooking for stellar performance, just better than the average HTIB.
Cheers,
Blair