[dharder]

So, we landed on Thursday, veeery long trip with little sleep. And it was pouring down with rain when we got here...

The list of things I've done so far is really short compared to what everyone else seems to be able to get done in a couple of days, I only managed to see one recruitment agent yesterday, took the boys to school and pick them up from a friends house.

Most importantly, we managed to buy a TV today. Which brings me to my first 'and now that we're here' type question: neither my UK dvd nor video player will work on the fancy flat screen television we acquired. The DVD used a scart cable at home, but the TV here doesn't have a plug for that.

Is it just something simple I'm not seeing? I blindly assumed this should be working, was I wrong? Anyone have any ideas, please? The kids are getting desperate for their Scooby Doo DVDs...

Thanks for any input

Daniela

[Marie P]

Hi

Welcome to Auckland :raebanana Weather has been much better today for you.

Cant help you with you TV question ,I can barely use the system we have :roll

I am sure someone technical will be along soon.

Best wishes Marie x

[ellenmelon]

my partner said...you can, in dick smith etc get a plug that has a scart cable on one end, and the triple plug on the other (red,yellow, white) that goes into the back of the tv. does that make sense? its ad verbatim :D
(he said it was wierd that the tv player didnt have scart but there is a solution!)

[ellenmelon]

he said also to check that it doesnt have another kind of input you could get to connect the two, as the picture wont be awesome with RCA connectors (red/yellow/white plugs)...its fine but wont be as good as it could be.but for now, it'll do to keep the kids entertained id say :D :D

[IanW99]

Scart connectors are common on european audio/video systems but not common on NZ ones (apart from Sky).

You need to find out what connectors are available between the DVD and the TV and then get the appropriate cables.

Simplest solution would be to take the manuals for the TV and the DVD to a shop such as Dick Smith and ask them for advice as to the best cable option to use to connect them together.

As said by ellenmellon, there is likely to be several options available and you should try to use the one that provides the best signal quality.

General rule of thumb for which connectors to use in order of signal quality (top = best):-

HDMI
Progressive Scan
RGB
S-Video
Composite Video
RF

Note: Not all TVs and DVD players will support all the connector options listed above (you have to try to find a match between both devices)

If your DVD player only has Scart socket then you need to check what signals the Scart connector supports (should be in the manual) as Scart can supports one or more different signal types e.g. RGB, S-Video or Composite Video (not all DVD players support all options).

For example, if you find that the Scart supports S-Video and the TV also has an S-Video socket, then go to the shop and purchase a Scart to S-Video lead.

If you can't find a Scart to S-Video lead, you may instead be able to buy a Scart adapter instead which will plug into the scart socket on your DVD player and then allow you to connect a standard S-Video to S-Video lead from the adapter to the TV.

Ian

[Sam B]

Hey - welcome to NZ Daniela! Hope the weather is cheering up for you, we just had a lovely day here. Hope your first month goes well.

[IanW99]

...
General rule of thumb for which connectors to use in order of signal quality (top = best):-

HDMI
Progressive Scan (normally labelled Component)
RGB
S-Video (also sometimes labelled S-Vhs)
Composite Video
Digital Audio Out
Audio Out (L & R)
RF

Note: Not all TVs and DVD players will support all the connector options listed above (you have to try to find a match between both devices)
...


Added a bit more info that I forgot to mention. For RGB, S-Video and Composite they only handle the video (picture) portion of the signal. To also get sound you normally need to also connect the Audio Out leads as well, or if you prefer you can send the audio to your Hi-Fi or surround sound system.

So if you get a Scart lead or adapter they will also have the audio connectors or sockets included as well. For my example, if you get the Scart adapter for S-Video you would need an S-Video to S-Video lead and also a Phono to Phone lead (audio).

Ian

[dharder]

Thanks so much for the help (and good wishes :))

I'm happy to report that everything is working now! The DVD player was a question of which of the hundreds of red, yellow and white cables to plug in where, and for the VCR, I got the scart adaptor thingy.

Phew. Kids happy, me happy, and just in time for the next rainy day...

Daniela