Connections to PE50?

A

AMW

Guest
Hi:hiya:
I've been lurking around here a while and I'm finally receiving my first plasma tomorrow - a 37PE50 from H Preston (£799):) . Now I'm upgrading from an old 21" Samsung CRT so my connections are way out of date and I need a good bit of advice. The TV will be mostly used for Freeview and DVD. I also have a PS2 which is played occasionally and I occasionally record TV with a VCR but that is pretty rare. I don't have Sky or a DVD recorder.

Connections:

1. DVD - no brainer. I will connect by component. Good quality cable ordered.

2. TV - I see a lot of discussion about which SCART cable or component cable is better. What about the quality of the aerial cable from the wall? I appreciate that its length is small compared to the length of cable running from the antenna but surely quality of connections,etc. would have some effect? So I'm looking for advice on aerial cables - do they matter?:confused:

3. VCR - I know most of you guys have probably ditched these. I only record occasionally and its not worth the layout for a DVD recorder yet - maybe in a year or two when prices are lower. In order to be able to record from the built-in Freeview in the PE50 can I pass one SCART from the PE50 to the VCR' s input and then connect the VCR's output SCART to the PE50? Would this also mean that the terrestrial TV picure would be clearer because the signal is not being passed through a non-RGB VCR before reaching the TV?:confused:

4. PS2- Ive been running this for years on the CRT with a BLAZE connector. I think this allows you to output an RGB signal via SCART from the PS2 but switches the RGB off(?) when playing DVD because the colour goes wonky when the DVD from PS2 is fed through RGB. (I used the PS2 for years as a DVD player - bloody loud!). Anyway what is the quality of the PS2 like via RGB? Should I stick with the connector I have or upgrade to a better RGB cable? Or is component output from the PS2 much better? Does it justify a new lead and a component switchbox? Surely most games don' support progressive scan, so there's not much benefit over RGB?:confused:

Sorry for the long windedness. Go easy on me.
 
1. Yes

2. If freeview it should either work or not. If you get signal problems (dropouts etc) then it may be worth a try but any other change in the chain will make a hundred times more difference (e.g. new ariel)

3. a)There is a Scart input/output that you can use and then record freeview via the AV input on the VCR. You can set this up in the TVs menus I believe (i.e. tell it what to output to the VCR)
b) No difference, as its digital again it should either work or not.

4. Ditch the PS2, and buy an Xbox 360 :D
 
Thanks, Chedmaster.
So,just to clarify

2. Bog standard aerial cable will be fine:) .

3. Sticking the VCR between the antenna and the TV won't affect the picture at all. And if I want to record any Freeview channels from the tuner in the PE50 I can put a SCART from TV to video input SCART. Since the picture's not going to be the greatest on VCR I shouldn't break the bank for a SCART lead.

4. Oh dear. I'll give RGB SCART a go for PS2.


Is that OK, Ched master.
Thanks again.:)
 

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