Digital Audio ports/jacks.

[Red_Breast]

Hello all,
Bit confused as to where I should post this. Here goes.
I have a Xbox 360 and I take audio from it via the TosLink port. I don't have an amp with TosLink input. Instead I plug it into my 37" CRT TV. I can set it to 5.1 Dolby Digital. (Bet flat panels would have trouble with that!)
Anyway I have to plug it in to the TV's "Digital Audio In" using one of those mini jacks by way of a little adaptor.
I would like to try another bit of equipment on the TV which only has coaxial digital output. I went googling and found out that I think I need a converter.

However I came across a coaxial to miniplug cable.
[url]http://geraldtomyn.tripod.com/cables.htm[url]

It says they were used with DAT recorders. I take it this wouldn't work with my TV? Are there 2 types of digital jack? The jack seems to have 4 dividers.

(Funny but my TV has one port for "Digital Out" and yes! It's coaxial.)

Sorry if the link isn't linking. I gave up trying to figure out how links work on this site.

[Andy98765]

It would REALLY help if you told everyone the exact make and model of your TV with the unique digital in on it. I have seen TV,s (LCD/Plasmas) with digital out (optical) due to having a digital tuner built in but that is it.

[Mark.Yudkin]

Coax to optical requires a transcoder, such as those sold by Gefen (www.gefen.co.uk). The cable you've linked to is mostly used on DCC/DAT devices using a 3.5mm jack for its digitial connection: it doesn't convert anything. Whilst it's possible that your unidentified TV could have such a connector, it's very unlikely.

As Andy says, you really must identify your equipment if you want a proper response. We have no idea what your TV actually offers, nor do we know what you amp can do.

[Red_Breast]

Sorry but I thought I explained everything well enough. But you're both right. If the TV was common I would of given the model and make originally.
"Grundig Lenaro 92 MFW 92-6110/9 DVD"
In the manual it says " Digital In (combination socket for jack plug 3.5mm (ǿ - this symbol now appears but without the apostrophe on top, nearest I could find in the character map) or optical cable)" Like I say the 360 goes to it using TosLink with a small adaptor (female TosLink TO jack plug).
I've just had a look on the back of the TV at the port/socket. It has a light green outer moulding but it's still flush with the surface. Hard to explain. The thing is I just noticed what it says next to it. "Digital In Coax /Optical". Do you think the "combination" from above, which I mentioned from the manual, means I could use the type used on DCC/DAT devices. This TV is about 8 years old.

I've got to admit I'd feel very apprehensive about just trying it. I'd have to track down one of those cables. Then I'd be plugging something which uses electric (digital coaxial) into a port which I've always thought was just for TosLink digital which is just light for want of a better word.

If you're wondering what I want to plug into the TV it's a Xbox (original) by way of a cable called "Xbox One VGA Frozen Cable".

Thanks for your replies.

[Red_Breast]

http://www.europeantv.com.au/mfw92-6110.html

This web page has the best description for my TV. I quote "Digital input optical / coaxial".
I really wish Grundig hadn't gone out of business. I had to have it repaired recently. I was lucky my man found some parts. I'd started saving for a flatpanel untill I saw my 360 plugged into it's VGA socket. So it's only 640x480 but being progressive makes the difference. Halo 3 looks better on it than on my mate's cheap (I stress cheap) LCD at 720p. But this is off-topic.

So what's the verdict.

[Mark.Yudkin]

OK, a better source is http://www.areadvd.de/hardware/grundiglenaro92.shtml (BTW, nice TV), but it doesn't give details on the jacks.

The jack you have is exactly a 3.5mm / optical combination. You can use it as you're doing with the XBox for optical. I think your TV will also work with the cable you mention, but obviously you will not be able to use both source devices simultaneously. To do that, you would need a transcoding switch (see link in previous post).

If you go flatscreen, you should look at something like the Loewe Individual Compose (LCD) or Pioneer Kuro (Plasma), and only the 1080p models. Even then you will suffer picture deterioration on any non-HD source. For DVDs and SD TV, your current TV's picture quality will thrash any LCD or Plasma, whatever the resolution.

[Red_Breast]

Thanks Mark. That link. Don't know if they have it in English but I'll try with Google translator or something later. I can speak Dutch as I lived there for about 8 years and I started picking up some German but not much.
I think a combo socket is weird. I'd love to know if any other equipment uses it not made by Grundig. Even with all the proof so far I still feel apprehensive. Where would I find such a cable anyway? The one in the picture from my first post has 4 poles on the tip ring sleeve (jack) end. I take it that somehow 6 (5.1/5+1) channels fit into 4 signals/poles.
I was reading recently about how next year's Kuros will solve the black problem for good. I'd like to see it. I was visiting my mother's recently. My stepfather has a new Sony Bravia. He is a typical buy it because it looks good and it's hi-def.
I said to him "you are aware you're just watching upscaled standard aren't you?"
He's not into games. Has no HDDVD or Blue Ray. I thought the Sony looked horrible. I keep hearing they're getting better but I don't see it. He even has an upscaling DVD player but it's plugged in with SCART and it has component.
I explained to him about interlaced and progressive scan then I asked for the money for a cable, got it and plugged it in. He was impressed.
The thing is unlike me he can easily afford it. And it looks "so good". How can the look of a TV matter more than the look of the actual TV picture to what seems like the majority of people?
By the way I take it you meant flat panel in your post? My TV is flat screen.
I've also wrote an email to Grundig support. I understand it all changed hands a few years back so maybe my TV isn't supported. I just said any advice will be appreciated.
I got the TV second-hand from a friend and I'm trying to contact him but he has a lot of work on. Maybe a "Coaxial TO Miniplug/Jack/whatever" cable came with the TV. It's almost verging on proprietary so maybe.
Thanks again.

[Mark.Yudkin]

It's a digital coax - there's no channel separation or such like with digital coax connections: it uses 2 poles for up to 8 channels (as per the phono end).

The combination socket used to be more popular. I'm still not absolutley convinced that it's what you have, and would really like to know what it says in the manual that came with your Grundig.

The Bravia is an LCD, the Kuro is Plasma. LCD works by blocking light coming from behind it, plasma by emitting light. Black is created on LCD by blocking all light, and therefore fails. On a plasma black is the result of not emitting light in the first place (like your CRT), so perfection is trivial. Also plasma uses phosphors (like your TV), and so has the same brightness and colour characteristics. It merely replaces the CRT guns with pixel-addressed plasma chambers: hence the high price and weight.

Since you had a Grundig, I figured you probably lived in a German-speaking country. Area-DVD is a popular German site for A/V matters: it's German only. I also assumed you'd bought the TV when it was new (€4000 in 2002), and therefore made an assumption concerning your budget for a new LCD/Plasma. Given your latest statements I would now assume that the Loewe Individual Compose, which also has internal 5.1 decoding etc. is over your budget.

[Red_Breast]

Hello Mark.
Thanks for replying. I've had questions before where nobody was replying, probably because they didn't know the answer. I guess I'd do the same but it gets annoying. Somewhere out there is the answer. I don't have much hope in Grundig replying to an unsupported item either. I appreciate that your helping even though you don't know the exact answer.

I've looked all through the manual. It has English and, by coincidence, Dutch translations. It's actually very basic. The TV itself was bought in Dubai, my friend is in oil, and shipped back to the UK. When I got it originally he forgot the manual. Before getting hold of him I tried to download one but the only place I could find were charging $10. Eventually he sent me it. He also sent a Circuit diagram. Can you read circuits? I think I've found, under "D-Amplifier" the "Digital In" and "Digital Out" sockets. I have a scanner somewhere so I could copy and upload it.

I don't have much of an income but I can save. All I know is one day I will have to get a new TV and the money put aside for a rainy day will go towards a new TV. I know about the kuros as I'm interested in technology although you've educated me a bit regarding how LCDs and plasmas work. I want to know what I'm buying and I want the best. But I look after things. This PC is 5 years old. But it does what I want. I don't buy things because they look nice. Although I will admit. "They do look nice"!

I was trying to find a cable for something last night and came across a cable with a RCA phono male on one end and a TV aerial Belling Lee male on the other end. In another box I found an adaptor with a Belling Lee female TO mono jack plug. Putting the 2 together I had a "phono to jack". I was very tempted to "just try it" but didn't. If I don't find a proper answer I'll stick with analog sound.

[Red_Breast]

Quick update for Mark/anybody else who might be interested.

After a lot of googling I found a site which at one time sold DACs. These DACs had a combo optical/coax digital input. They detected if it was optical or coax automatically.
Also I may have said in the description of my TV's "Digital In" port/socket that it's a light green but after looking again I'm not entirely sure what colour it is. Age has had some effect on it. But it looks exactly the same as the DAC's port for digital in. Don't know if it was standardised maybe.
So I've sent an email to the web site. Just asking for some help hopefully. It's mentioned you need a RCA to 3.5mm jack but not how many poles on the tip ring sleeve.
http://www.aoselectronics.com/flute.html
http://www.aoselectronics.com/piccolo.html

Also that circuit diagram.