Question:
Dear Experts,
I have an older AVR (Denon 5700) and I want to keep it. I hook up my HD DVD to it via the multi-channel analog inputs and get terrific HD sound. My Toshiba HD-XA2 decodes the Dolby TrueHD soundtracks. I will be acquiring a Blu-ray player shortly and would like to enjoy the great HD sound also. But the problem is that there is only one set of multichannel analog inputs on the receiver. Does anyone make a multi channel analog switcher? I know there will be six more cables but I'm not ready to change out my receiver yet.
Thanks,
-Kevin K.
Hello, Kevin,
Many people are in the same boat: they want to enjoy the full audio capabilities of HD-DVD and Blu-ray Disc (namely the Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio soundtracks of select HD titles) but they don't want to upgrade their home theater receivers in order to do so.
If you've got a disc player with on-board decoding of DTS-HD and/or Dolby TrueHD then you can hook it up via 6 analog RCA cables to the multi-channel analog input on your receiver. But as you mention, most receivers only include a single multi-channel analog input.
There are some multi-channel analog audio switches that have been released but not too many are still manufactured. One slightly unorthodox approach is to use a component video switcher as an audio switcher instead. As long as it offers a clean signal path, it isn't that relevant whether the switch says "video" or "audio" on it, as long as it can switch from at least two inputs, each with 6 RCA connections.
However, since component video uses 3 RCA jacks, and analog stereo audio uses 2 jacks, most component video switchers are one RCA jack short of what you need. That is unless you find a switcher that also include digital audio inputs via coax RCA connections. Then you'd have 6 RCA jacks per channel, which is exactly what you need.
Here are a couple of links to switchers that would foot the bill, including one review of a component switcher used in eactly this capacity (from Secrets of Home Theater and Hifi):
By the way, you won't need just 6 more RCA cables to add a second device, you'll need 12. 6 cables to go from the new Blu-ray Disc player to the switcher, another 6 cables from there to the receiver.
Hope that helps,
-Chris
