Connecting DVD to sky, TV and video for non techie please !

[sueclarinet59]

Hi folks,
I've had a search through the forums and can't find exactly what I'm looking for so thought I'd post on this thread for "newbies" 'cso I sure am one in the DVD and related world !
I've just bought my first DVD player - I can connect it to the TV no problem or the sky box or the video but I can't seem to be able to link them all together !
I've had a go but can't work out the sequence of linking them together sucessfully so I can watch and record (on my vidoe) TV or sky and be able to press the "on" button on the DVD player and watch a film.


Can anyone tell me how to do this please ?
I'm not technical - I know what a scart lead is but not much more....
Do hope you can advise me.

Thanks
Sue

[Richard_G]

To be able to connect them so that the scart autoswitching works, you need at least two scart sockets on your TV and video.

Connect scart from DVD to scart 1 on TV. Connect scart from Sky box to scart 1 on video, connect scart 2 on video to scart 2 on TV. As long as the scart leads you use are thick 21 way ones (and not the skinny 9 way ones that get supplied with some equipment), the autoswitching should work so that the TV displays whatever you have selected last.

Connect Tv aerial lead to RF in on Sky box (if it has one, some do, some don't), RF out on Sky box to RF in on video, RF out on video to RF in (aerial) on TV.

This will also allow you to record from Sky and normal analogue TV. There is no point in connecting things so you can record from DVD as all commercial DVDs have copy protection so it won't work anyway.

Good luck.

[sueclarinet59]

Thanks Richard - I'll certainly try to connect as you suggest.
Just one additional query ................ what does "RF" stand for ????
Oh and ..........how do I connect in sky and video if my sky doesn't have "RF" as you say it may not ????
I know I'll be able to tell by looking at it but just to firther complicate things I've another one to set up at work ( I work in a day centre) which may not have an "RF" on it.
As you can tell I wasn't joking when I said that I was an absolute novice !!!!!
Thanks agaiin
Sue

[Richard_G]

RF stands for Radio Frequency, but it is nothing more complicated than the TV aerial cable. Some Sky boxes loop the 'RF' or aerial cable in and out, some don't. Those that do can be used on a TV that doesn't have scart connectors (you have to tune a spare channel on the TV to the Sky box). If yours doesn't, then ignore the first bit and put the RF (aerial) cable straight into the video and then out of that into the TV.

[Mrdogno8]

Personally I'd (in fact I have) connected Scart 1 on Sky (actually labelled TV) to Scart 1 on TV; Scart on DVD to Scart 2 on TV (or SKy if no 2nd scart on TV); Scart 1 on vid rec to Scart 2 on Sky. TV shows whatever's turned on last.

[teegee420]

Oh no, I've gone cross-eyed.
Sorry, couldn't resist...don't mind me....

[icecoolnick]

hi this is a similar question..but with a dvd writer

i have a sky digi box with 2 scarts and a rf out
a d-vhs with 2 scart outs
a panasonic hebs 100 aka dvd writer (dont know technical stuff)

i want to be able to interlink them all so i can;
plays vids,dvds and watch sky

and

record from dvhs -> dvd -r
record from sky -> dvd -r
record from tv -> dvd -r

whats the procedure for that

thanks..!

[Hardcoreruss]

Personally I'd (in fact I have) connected Scart 1 on Sky (actually labelled TV) to Scart 1 on TV; Scart on DVD to Scart 2 on TV (or SKy if no 2nd scart on TV); Scart 1 on vid rec to Scart 2 on Sky. TV shows whatever's turned on last.

I have mine setup exactly the same way.

[sueclarinet59]

Thanks guys !

[Richard_G]

i have a sky digi box with 2 scarts and a rf out
a d-vhs with 2 scart outs
a panasonic hebs 100 aka dvd writer (dont know technical stuff)

i want to be able to interlink them all so i can;
plays vids,dvds and watch sky

and

record from dvhs -> dvd -r
record from sky -> dvd -r
record from tv -> dvd -r

The only way you'll be able to record to DVD-R on both sources would be to daisychain all units. This assumes that the DVD writer has two scarts as well. Go scart on sky to scart 1 on vhs, scart 2 on vhs to scart 1 on DVD-R, scart 2 on DVD-R to scart on TV. The RF (aerial) cable can go into the sky box if you want but it isn't necessary. If it does, go RF into sky, RF out of sky to RF in on vhs, RF out on vhs to RF in on TV.

This way you can record on DVD-R or VHS from sky via scart, record on DVD-R from VHS via scart and record on DVD-R normal TV programmes via RF aerial.

This should work, but some vhs machines (some Panasonic models particularly) do not passthrough scart to scart when they are switched on so whenever the machine is powered up, it will output what it's tuner is receiving irrespective of what is on the other scart input. If this is the case, it will get very complicated!

[icecoolnick]

thanks alot..

i do have a panasonic dvhs so ill check it out in the morning and tell u what happens..thanks anyway..

i have no clue how you rememeber all this stuff,but its a good thing u do to help people like me ignorant to all of this

regards,

Nick

[Richard_G]

i have no clue how you rememeber all this stuff,but its a good thing u do to help people like me ignorant to all of this

Because I'm dealing with it for 7 hours a day, 5 days a week.