Question Complex issue on the redesign of home theatre

[marblecard]

Hi,

We're currently in the process of upgrading our home theatre setup. See below for our previous setup:

We had a projector which projected onto the LHS wall with 3 really small bose speakers above it (brown squares) and 2 bose speakers on the other side of the room, all connected through cables in the wall. This all linked to an AV receiver in the bottom-left corner (black box).

We have retired the projector and have bought the Sony X900H 75 inch tv which we are planning on placing on the RHS wall due to a change in the design/use of the room. We are replacing the speakers with a monitor audio SB4 sound bar below the tv, 8 Monitor Audio Radius 90s for height left/rights + surround left/rights as well as a subwoofer.

The issue is all the cabling for the previous speakers (which we plan on using for some of the new speakers to save money) and all the CAT5 cables are currently in the bottom left of the room, meaning the cables would have to go anti-clockwise round the room due to the door (30m cables).

See below new setup:

Questions:
1. I am worried about losing video quality from long HDMI cables so thought of maybe plugging the PS5 / Sky Q box directing into the TV instead of the AV box. Is this feasible and would this cause issues with the sound coming from a separate source (delayed audio)

2. We are planning on using optical cables from AV receiver to TV, would this reduce sound quality for the current setup (given the length of cables required and number of speakers) and would using ARC be better? I also saw that the X900H has eARC but have heard of people having issues, is that worth not exploring?

Would really appreciate any help as I am really struggling to wrap my head around the best solution, thanks!

 

[Joe Fernand]

ARC and eARC both require an HDMI cable from the TV to the AVR so your cable length issue is still an issue - you also need to ensure your AVR is ARC or eARC enabled.

Optical Digital audio from the TV to the AVR potentially limits your audio capabilities - though it is a reliable option and anything over 10m and you are likely looking at a Digital Audio over CAT Extender solution.

Source HDM (short cable) > 4K UHD TV then TV eARC > AVR eARC - is potentially going to deliver you the best audio and video.

Source HDMI (short cable) > AVR then AVR eARC > TV eARC - is also an option though some of the higher frame rate options the PS5 is cable of can be a challenge going via an AVR/over a long HDMI cable.

HDMI cable - if possible run conduit from the TV to the AVR or at least ensure any long HDMI cable you install now can be easily replaced as they can fail, get damaged or become obsolete.

Speaker cables - are relatively simple to extend if you have to.

HDMI cable - a RuiPro4K or 8K Hybrid Fiber HDMI cable would be my suggestion.

Joe

 

[marblecard]

ARC and eARC both require an HDMI cable from the TV to the AVR so your cable length issue is still an issue - you also need to ensure your AVR is ARC or eARC enabled.

Optical Digital audio from the TV to the AVR potentially limits your audio capabilities - though it is a reliable option and anything over 10m and you are likely looking at a Digital Audio over CAT Extender solution.

Source HDM (short cable) > 4K UHD TV then TV eARC > AVR eARC - is potentially going to deliver you the best audio and video.

Source HDMI (short cable) > AVR then AVR eARC > TV eARC - is also an option though some of the higher frame rate options the PS5 is cable of can be a challenge going via an AVR/over a long HDMI cable.

HDMI cable - if possible run conduit from the TV to the AVR or at least ensure any long HDMI cable you install now can be easily replaced as they can fail, get damaged or become obsolete.

Speaker cables - are relatively simple to extend if you have to.

HDMI cable - a RuiPro4K or 8K Hybrid Fiber HDMI cable would be my suggestion.

Joe

Thanks Joe!

Using the Denon avr-x2700h which I believe supports eARC

If we did Source HDMI (short cable) > 4K UHD TV then TV eARC > AVR eARC is there any chance of audio having lip sync issues?

For option 2: Would you need to run two HDMI cables, one for eARC and one for the video or would it be able to handle both one?
With one this seems to imply it would result in the cleanest cable management, with only one HDMI cable running from the TV to the AVR
I would hope if using an 8k fiber optic cable the frame rates / input lag wouldn't be too bad as it would travel at the speed of light.

With this in mind what would you recommend out of the two options?

Thanks so much for your help

 

[Joe Fernand]

ARC and eARC travel over the same cable which you would use to connect the AVR Video (with audio) Output to the TV - in ARC or eARC mode the data flow is 'reversed' and the TV sends audio back to the AVR.

Any device, 'active' HDMI cable, AVR, Switch, Splitter, Extender..., you sit between a gaming Console with the latest high bandwidth video formats is a potential 'delay' in the signal, which is unlikely to be an issue when viewing movies but will, for some, be an issue when gaming plus the very high bandwidth signals are a real test for any long cable (keep in mind the New Ultra High Speed cables top out at 3m!).

Fibre and Hybrid Fibre - you are correct that the signal passes over the fibre at the 'speed of light' it is the conversion from an electrical signal to an optical signal, and back again, in the HDMI hoods which takes time.

Which connectivity to use - will largely be dictated by your gaming habits

Joe