Hi, have a Pioneer 5.1 receiver and a DVD player that also plays CDs. When you connect the player to the receiver digitally, you have to specify what's being connected - DVD, CD, etc.

Does this mean I have to run a digital coax from the player to the receiver and then specify that port is for DVD and then run an optical cable from the same DVD player to the receiver and then indicate that CD will come over that digital port?

What am I missing?

Thanks much.

I use my DVD player as well for CD playback. I have the digital optical going to the receiver for surround sound 5.1 (HT - DVD playback). I'm sure that your receiver will also have a CD input like mine. What I did was run the analog audio output (L/R) from the DVD player to the receiver's CD input (L/R). When I play CD's through the DVD player I select CD as the source. I use my sub as well since I'm still looking to upgrade from my satellites.

you can let all digital data go through either coax or fiber optic (the latter being better), and specify it on your receiver as DVD and regardless of what kind of disc you put in your dvd player, it will play. HOWEVER, this means your receiver is converting the 1's and 0's into analog.

If you run the L/R cables, then your DVD player is converting it.

Try both and see what you like. Usually a DVD players' CD audio section isn't very good, which is why most people let their receiver do the conversion.

try both (if you have the wires for it) and see which one you prefer.

I have an outlaw 1050 reciever but I imagine the priniple is the same. I just switched from separate dvd and cd sources so I was set up for both. Now I'm using sony dvd/cd changer. The labeling of dvd or cd doesn't mean anything. It is a name attached to a mode in the receiver that lets you choose an input for that mode. If you are using the same source for both dvd and cd modes it will play your cd or dvd whether your reciever says either one. However on the dvd mode I have the reciever set for 5.1 speaker output. In the cd mode I have the receiver set for stereo output. This way i can go from 5 channel for movies and two channel for music at the push of a button. Because I went from two sources dvd and cd I had the dvd hooked up to the receiver via the coax input and the cd via an optical input. When I went down to one source I plugged both the coax and optical inputs into the newdvd/cd player. This is entirely redundant, but I can switch between the inputs on the receiver. I thought it would be interesting to see if I could hear any difference between optical and coax. In minimal listening comparisons I can't. I also have the left and right channnels from the dvd/cd hooked up to the analog inputs on the receiver. This allows stereo listening using the DACs in the sony dvd/cd player rrather than the DACs in the receiver. Both dacs are quite good I believe and I can't hear a difference that way either. I hope this clarifies your setup process.

BY "specify", are you refering to the little markings on the back of the receiver for which connector is which? The receiver doesn't really care if it's getting data from a CD or a DVD on that input. It's marked for convenience sake so that if you have both a CD player and a DVD player on your receiver, you can easily choose between them.

Just run one cable from the DVD player into the DVD in and realize that it's referencing the player, not the media.

One advantage to using both the CD & DVD inputs from your DVD player is the source defaults. I listen to CD's 99% of the time in 'Direct' mode. I listen to DVD's in DD or DTS. My Denon 3802 remembers this settings by the source selected.

Hence, I use both the CD & DVD inputs on my receiver from the DVD player.