Splitting component video --> composite and s-video

Factual Questions
1

I have had an HD cable box with built-in Digital Video Recorder (Scientific Atlanta 8000HD) for about a month, and was dismayed to find out when it was installed (replacing a non-DVR SA HD box) that it lacked composite and s-video outputs. In my home theater setup, I used the s-video output of the old box to provide a signal to my VCR and DVD recorder, and I sent the composite output to a TV in the kitchen, where I can’t see my regular big screen TV.

Does anyone know of a splitter/converter (ideally not too expensive) that will take the component output of the box, and provide all three of the following signals: Component (pass-through), s-video, and composite.

I spent a couple hours Googling last night and couldn’t find anything.

Thanks.

2

First off, you got your terms reversed. Composite video is the low-quality combined baseband video signal which requires only one conductor to deliver. Component video is the separate RGB which needs three conductors. There are filters that can split the composite video signal into S-video, and there may be devices to split a composite signal into component RGB, but frankly, I wouldn’t bother, because since the original signal was composite, you’ve already lost any benefit of using the S-vid or component.

3

That was my first impression too but upon further reading I do not think he has anything reversed. My take on it is he wants to play things recorded on the DVR on other TV sets in his house. The new HD-DVR he has only provides component outputs which will do fine for his main TV but no help for the others. Hence his need for a “compoennt passthrough” (to maintian quality on the good TV) while also providing an s-video or composite signal to other sets.

For my part I have never seen what he is asking for (kinda backwards from what you usually see) but my missing something like this is hardly definitive on whether it exists.

4

Ah. I think you’re right, so never mind what I wrote. I’ve never seen one of those either, but I’ll do some looking around.

5

What cable company are you with? I’ve got Cox and just got an 8300HD cable box/DVR and it has component video output. In fact I don’t think I can even get HD resolution from the S-video output which intended for archiving to an NTSC device.

6

Read the OP again. He is not complaining about the component output. He wants to also have S-Video and composite output which the new receiver does not provide.

Commasense, have you checked with your cable company to see if they have a different HD/DVR box which does have s-video and component outputs?

7

Sorry for the confusion. The OP is an edited version of a post I wrote for a Yahoo forum dedicated to this particular cable box (there are forums for everything!), and details I didn’t need to specify there should have been made explicit here.

Whack-a-Mole is right. The only output of the box is component. Its predecessor in my system had all three: component, s-video, and composite, and I used all three.

It’s not just for playing back DVR recordings to other TVs. Since the box is both cable converter and DVR, I want to be able to record programs from the digital channels on my VRC and/or DVD recorder, both in real time and with their timers. (I’ve split the incoming cable so I can record the analog channels at the low end of the “dial.”)

The component output of the cable box goes into my A-V receiver, and thence to the TV. Each input on the receiver can take component and composite and s-video signals, and there are corresponding outputs of each signal type. But the receiver doesn’t convert between the signal tyoes, i.e. change component to s-video. If there’s no s-video in, there’s no s-video out.

Previously, I used the s-video output of the (old) cable box to feed the s-video inputs of the VCR and DVD recorder.

If I had a separate converter that took in the component signal and output (at least) one of each of the three types, I could re-create my old set up, and life would be perfect.

(Unnecessary detail department: the box does offer a work-around of sorts to part of the problem. It has a set of “Record to VCR” outputs–composite and audio–that allow you to playback a DVR recording and copy it to VCR. But in normal use, these jacks are dead. This is obviously a cumbersome solution: record a program and when it’s all done, find the time to play it back and record it. And it’s no help for the remote TV situation.)

Fat Bald Guy: I’ve asked the other forum if there is such a box. If there is, I may try to pester the cable company for it. But I didn’t think it practical to try and explain to Comcast customer service what I want.

8

Are you sure you have an 8000HD? According to its [url=“http://www.scientificatlanta.com/explorerclub/getting_started/4001025B.pdf”]manual[/url, it has S-video and composite outputs.

9

That’s what I hoped, too, when I hooked it up, but the s-video jack is only active in the VCR Archive mode, like the composite video jack on the right side.

But thanks for reminding me that there’s also a DVI output from the box. Does anyone know if there are any adapters/converters that convert DVI to component and s-video and composite?

10

There is a soltion to your problem, but it looks like it’s going to be expensive. Take a look at this and see if it’s versatile enough. The “call for price” is call for a :eek: