[tommy50]

this is my current setup. i have audio through surround dvd from dvd player / vhs and sky. i need to rig it up so i get surround from all of these plus the dvd recorder and also so the dvd recorder is linked to the dvd player so i can copy my own family dvd's. can anyone please help me.

right the makes are as follows:-
TV = PHILIPS DVB-T 42INCH LCD WIDESCREEN PH42PFL55 AV1 /2 /3 /4
DVD RECORDER = FUNAI DR-B2737 AV1 /2/ 3/ 4
DVD HOME CINEMA = SANYO DC-TS760
VIDEO = SAMSUNG SV-671B
SKY BOX

i am sure this is not the way to set it up properly. i can now record from dvd and video but get no sound when recording from dvd via the s-video lead. not sure what to do next.

[Gavtech]

Welcome to the forum.

Whereas I appreciate you going to the trouble of making a diagram, unfortunately it makes no sense at all... and no model numbers are supplied.

What are inputs and outputs is not clear ... and this is nothing like the conventionally accepted way of connecting devices for best results.

You also need to understand that Surround sound cannot be obtained from devices which do not produce it... and that DVD players are normally only output devices which can feed surround out to additional amplifiers and not intake surround sound feed sources... unless you have a unique model.
So I think you may have to adjust your objectives.

[tommy50]

Originally Posted by Gavtech

Welcome to the forum.

Whereas I appreciate you going to the trouble of making a diagram, unfortunately it makes no sense at all... and no model numbers are supplied.

What are inputs and outputs is not clear ... and this is nothing like the conventionally accepted way of connecting devices for best results.

You also need to understand that Surround sound cannot be obtained from devices which do not produce it... and that DVD players are normally only output devices which can feed surround out to additional amplifiers and not intake surround sound feed sources... unless you have a unique model.
So I think you may have to adjust your objectives.

i've changed the drawing. hope it helps. also put the model numbers in. thx

[Broadz]

Originally Posted by Gavtech

and that DVD players are normally only output devices which can feed surround out to additional amplifiers and not intake surround sound feed sources

At a guess, what he is calling a DVD player is actually an all-in-one home cinema system, which will hopefully provide some (though probably not enough) inputs for some of his external AV equipment.

[Broadz]

Just noticed, he's actually listed what his DVD player is, and it is indeed a dreaded home cinema system. With no optical or coaxial inputs, only a single stereo input.

So, OP, you can't utilise this for providing surround sound from any external piece of kit. The best you can achieve is to plug one thing into it which has a stereo output, and be able to hear it through the speakers of your home cinema.

S-video does not carry audio, only video, so you wouldn't use s-video for recording (unless you were going to provide the audio through separate stereo inputs to your DVD recorder as well).

If you only have a standard Sky box as opposed to Sky+ or Sky HD then you can't listen to anything in surround sound from your Sky box - DD5.1 is only available on Sky+ and Sky HD boxes. And only by connecting a digital optical audio cable from the Sky+ box into a DD capable of amp with an optical input. So, your Sky box doesn't have the capacity or the correct output, and your home cinema doesn't have the correct input. I'd forget that option if I was you.

Digital surround sound is also not available via a VCR - obvious really seeing as a videotape is analogue, not digital. But, you could achieve Dolby Pro Logic from a video, which could be fed via stereo outputs alone to an amp/receiver capable of decoding DPL and output in pseudo-surround sound.

I think you need to take a stand back, look at all the kit you have got, realise what is and what isn't useful/capable of producing DD5.1/DTS, and plan on replacing the stuff that isn't up to scratch. And the Sanyo home cinema thing is the first item to be flogged on ebay. Replace it with a proper AV amp with multiple optical, coaxial and stereo inputs which you can then connect your DVD recorder, your Sky box (and ultimately a Sky+ box), your video and your telly to. In terms of copying DVDs, don't use two DVD set top boxes (one a player, one a recorder) to do this.

Get a DVD writer for your computer for less than twenty quid, which will copy your home made DVDs perfectly including the menus in under ten minutes, rather than messing about with a scart lead or an s-video cable between a home cinema and a set-top DVD recorder, playing the recordings back in real time and having to be present to press stop after each title finishes and before the next one starts.

[tommy50]

just to let you know, the dvd surround system and the dvd recorder both have digital optical connections.