I have a question regarding video processing with the 950 or any pre/pro for that matter. Let me preface by saying that I am relatively new to the Home Theater arena, and trying to learn before I buy.

Presuming that a TV has an adequate number of input connections with updated technology, why not simply connect the video of the DVD and satellite receiver/cable box to the TV? Thus, bypassing the pre/pros ability or lack thereof to process the video signal. After all isn't that the main function of the pre/pro, to process the signal prior to amplification?

That is the best connection, running straight to the tv, the less connections the better.

Another important function of a pre/pro is to potentially handle all, or most of, your A/V switching. It might thus be more convenient to route all of your source material through the 950.

As far as signal degradation goes: while I agree that less is better when it comes to the number and length of cabling, I can't say that I have ever noticed any signal difference / degradation either way - EXCEPT when my 950's component video circuits were malfunctionning. A new video board cured that problem.

Jeff Mackwood

Going directly from source to TV is the simplest approach as far as signal path is concerned, and it is still a very reasonable approach to use. At one time, there was some concern about using the component video switching in many less expensive pre/pros and receivers because of the signal bandwidth required for progressive scan and HD signals, but video switching has matured and as Jeff points out it should generally be safe to use these days.

The flip side is that of simplifying the user interface. By using a pre/pro's video switching, you can potentially leave the TV set to the same input for all video sources, allowing you (or your family members) to select the desired source only one time (at the pre/pro) rather than selecting the source at the pre/pro for audio and at the TV for video. This side of the argument has led to some design features that offer the potential for re-introducing the dangers of signal degradation if not handled properly, such as unconversion of composite and s-video signals to component video.

In the specific case of the 950, the video switching is quite good: I've seen no degradation on component switching from DVD players to an HDTV, and I happily used the s-video switching with all of my video sources for a couple of years (when my TV's best input was s-video and I had three s-video sources), also without degradation. Upconversion to component is not included, allowing the component switching to be as simple as possible, and while composite/s-video conversion is included for the sake of convenience (such as being able to use an s-video monitor out to a TV with a mix of composite sources like a standard VHS VCR and s-video sources like DVD and digital cable/satellite), Outlaw includes a disclaimer in the manual noting that it is not the optimal approach to take (although in the scenario above, the only source that would be compromised would be the VCR, which is the weak link anyway).

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gonk -- 950 Review | LFM-1 Review | Pre/Pro Comparison Chart | Saloon Links

Thank you everyone for you input. I appreciate you sharing your knowledge.