I am wondering if it is possible to use the 990's DVI switch "backwards". I want to switch one blueray player between a front projector and a flat panel TV. In other words use the DVI out as an input and DVI in's as outputs. Anyone tried this?

I haven't tried it or heard of anyone else doing it. I'm not sure what foibles might crop up with HDCP under these circumstances.

You might want to give it a try, but don't expect it to work. I bought a manual, press-button type switcher from Monoprice, for just this purpose, and it wouldn't work correctly. It ended up changing some of the colors, and the electronics just wouldn't play nice.

I love the idea of HDMI, but there's way too much background stuff going on i the handshake process to make even the most simple-seeming ideas work.

Scott

Thanks guys. I won't be trying an experiment, I kind of want to figure out what to do before buying some things. I haven't yet purchased the new TV part of the deal. I am still using an old analog set and feeding it via component 480i (only thing it can take) from the blueray. I am not sure I can use component any higher than 480i thanks to HDCP. The PJ now gets fed direct HDMI with no switch.

Ohhh... PS.. Got the blueray for netflix online, otherwise would still be using an older dvd player.

There are some HDMI splitters made specifically for this sort of application, but they can be quirky (HDCP doesn't like to play nice with such things).

Component video is unaffected by HDCP, since HDCP is a digital protocol for copy protection and component is an analog signal. Component video can handle 720p or 1080i, and as long as nobody starts turning on the ICT (image constraint token) Blu-ray discs can be output at those resolutions. You can't do 1080p, though, and you won't get higher than 480p with copy-protected DVD's. And eventually (around 2012), the BDA has said that new Blu-ray players will be required to start phasing out analog video output, but that doesn't yet need to enter into the equation.

For others that may ask this question, Well I tried using the DVI switch "backwards" with one component (blueray + pj) on each side. It worked fine. I am guessing it will work with two, but don't know for sure. But, I will try when we finally replace the old TV set.

Well -- it doesn't work anymore. Not sure if I had the cables confused or if it stopped. Whatever the case, it doesn't work now.

Does it still work frontways?

Ohh yes, it works fine using it the correct way.

Eric A -

You've probably already thought of this, but here's what I do for my similar set-up: I run the component video monitor output to my old analog TV and the DVI monitor out to my front projector. Then I define two video inputs (e.g. Video 1 and Video 2), one that uses the DVD component inputs and one that uses the one of the DVI inputs (both inputs coming from my BD player). When I want to watch the analog TV I select the former input, and when I want to watch the projector, I select the latter.

Actually, now that I'm re-reading your posts, it looks like you're planning to get a new digital-input flat-panel TV (?). In that case, my set-up won't work unless you're willing to feed component video to the new set. I'm planning to do this as soon as my old analog set dies, but since I use the smaller screen only for "unimportant" video, I think the component video should be fine. If I'm watching a movie or HBO series or anything else where I really want a good image, then I always go with the front projector.

That is what I am doing now Bruce. The big complication was that my blueray (BD370)autoselects resolution based on the HDMI projector even when the projector is powered off. So that caused my old 480i TV to get 1080i out the component feed anytime I had the HDMI projector connected to the blueray. I finally figured out a way around this problem. I hooked the HDMI projector to the outlaws DVI switch and when using the TV via component I have to make sure I switch DVI off of the HDMI projector. The outlaw seems to keep the DVI connection going when you select a component connections - so I just select a "fake" setup I labeled "DVI Off" then I select the real setup to view the blueray via component video. It works and is better then manually unplugging the HDMI everytime, and macros make it painless. Getting it all to work was a pain - hopefully someone else finds the idea usefull.