-I've always known about lan switches, but I have just discovered that there is such a thing as a digital a/v switch, which appears to have the same basic functionality while being about 80% less cost-wise than the $300 a/v receivers we can get in most electronics retail stores.
Can anyone tell me what the intrinsic differences are? Obviously, both let you swap from pc to blu ray sound to cable, etc., but is that all that standard a/v receivers do, or do they have amplifiers and such built in that make them worth spending 80% more on?
Here is an example of an a/v switch that I found, although since I just found them, I can't say if it's representative of a "good one" or not: http://www.amazon.com/StarTech-com-CPNT4鈥?/a>An AV Receiver is:
* An Amplifier. It takes line-level signals and adds WATTS of power to drive speakers
* A switcher
* Computer circuits to adjust levels, up-convert signals to output over HDMI, HDMI processing, etc.
* Receives AM/FM/HD Radio/Sat Radio, and even controls your iPod
* Equalization circuitry and microphone to calibrate the speakers to compensate for sitting at different distances and issues with room acoustics.
* Extra amps and outputs to feed sound to a second room
* etc.
It's a huge difference over a simple switch.
It is actually the center-hub of your home theater system and next to the TV - the most expensive part.
If you already have a good AV Receiver, but suddenly need to add in a PS3, XBox, Wii, or other devices and run out of input jacks, then you use a Switch to give you more inputs.
That switch ...is component.
Most modern AV Devices today use HDMI. The cables are cheaper with HDMI and tie the video and audio together into a single cable. Avoid that switch.
Get a good AV Receiver that will up-convert the component to HDMI so you run 1 cable to the TV, but can hook composite, svideo, component and HDMI into the receiver.
Look into the Onkyo TX-SR series of receivers that pack a lot of features into decent priced receivers.
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