Page 1 of Creative Infra Package

I need a dvd drive for my PC, and wouldn`t mind one for my TV also, but can`t afford the both!! I`m tempted to `kill 2 birds with one stone` and buy the Creative DVD, dxr3 decoder and infra-red and connect it to my TV. Problem being is that my pC and my TV are approx 15 feet apart (and wifey won`t even consider changing the room round, so forget that idea!). Anyone know if this `problem` is a BIG or small one?

lewjosh

PS I can get the creative infra red package for £130 delivered from buy.com. Anyone know anywhere cheaper?

Apart from using a long cable ;-) Argos do a radio frequency video/remote sender kit for around £90 that broadcasts very good quality picture and sound. But that`s almost as much as a cheap dvd player and bare drive for the pc :-[

SteveC

Thanks for that, Steve. A long cable, you say. Would a cable approx 15 feet long have much of an impact on picture quality? And where would you get such a cable?

Thanks in advance.

lewjosh

Hi there,

I`ve got the creative package and I`m quite happy with it. I had a similar problem with the lenght of cable. You have to be careful though. The S-video connector on the decoder card has a 7 pin socket not the standard 4 pin on most regular s-video cables so you can`t go out and buy any longer cable.

I order a longer cable form this place over the internet http://store.yahoo.com/videoware/index.html

They sell long creative compatible s-video cales for around £16. I haven`t had any problems with delivery. My oder came with in two weeks.

Hope it helps

Dave

Thanks for the info, Dave! Much appreciated. However, as a complete thickie on TV matters, could you explain something about the connections needed? My JVC TV has 2 scart sockets, one is used to connect the VCR, the other is vacant. Could this be used to connect the Creative DVD to the TV? Am I just being stupid here? Many thanks in advance.

lewjosh

I had a 3 way phono cable (audio Left, Audio right, Video I mean) around 10ft long connecting a VHS to a projector and that was OK, but of course video is not as good as dvd to start with. I got it from Sevenoaks in Plymouth, but any Hi-Fi shop should have it.

Does the dxr card have phono output? I would guess that the phono would be better that an s-video cable because each core on a decent long phono lead is heavily shielded. Typically, s-video leads would not have such good (if any) shielding and would be more prone to interference. This would be more of a problem on long leads that can act as an arial for mains hum etc.

To connect to a Scart socket, you`ll need another adapter. Also check that the Scart input on your TV can be set to s-video, else you`ll get a B&W picture.