[KAT5] Matrix Switcher

[Peter Bull <yahoogroups@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I've finally managed to persaude SWMBO to let me have a projector - this is
a moot point because we can't afford one right now because we're having
work done on the house.  However, in order to conform to SWMBO guidelines
all cabling must be invisible.  Because we're knocking the living room
about at the moment anyway this might not be so bad because I'm allowed to
get any cabling chased into the walls as long as it gets done now.  But
this means I've got to get the cabling in now.  I'm trying to cable as
flexibly as possible but I've tied myself in knots trying to decide what to
put in where.

This is what I have right now:

* Lounge:
*         TV
*         DVD Player
* Node 0 (Garage):
* Cat5 Patch Panel
* TiVo
* Sky
* DVD/VCR Combo
* RF Distribution to all Rooms.
* Cat5 to all Rooms

To which I want to add a projector, which of course is on the
opposite side of the lounge to the TV.  I also want to use the Yamaha YSP1
vitual surround speaker which will sit a meter or 2 from the TV when the
projector is on.  This just takes straight audio inputs (analogue and
digital) and does its own amplification.
I was thinking of moving my Sky box to below the TV, but this would
hamper the RF distribution to the rest of the house.  Same with the
TiVo.  I currently have a RGBS Kat5 pair which at the moment are just
relaying IR from the lounge to Node 0.  I was thinking in terms of laying
DVI, Component, S-Video and Composite from the TV to the projector.  But
the more I think about it the less flexible it seems.  I'd really like to
able to watch all my sources via the projector (although mainly DVD's) but
all these cable types just seem to lock my position of the sources.  For
example, I don't know where my PC might go in the future so that makes it
hard to know where to lay a DVI cable.
Then it suddenly dawned on me that if I had Cat5 laid on to the
projector site (on a wall near the ceiling) I could potentially patch
anything into the projector with the right sort of Kat5 pair.  So I could
patch through a DVD from under the TV back to Node 0 and then back into the
projector.  Can I use my RGBS Kat5 pair for component video?  I would also
have the problem of how to get audio from Node 0 to the YSP1 - I could use
a Kat5 pair for Stereo or Pro-Logic (you can tell from the YSP-1 that I'm
not obsessive about cinema sound anyway) but how would I get multi-channel
audio over Cat5?
It also struck me that although right now I might have to do a bit
of patching if I wanted to change sources, that using Cat5 to the projector
would be the ultimate choice as and when the Matrix Switcher appears.  If I
understand correctly this would allow me to have multiple sources
simultaneously going to one or more outputs, all controlled by IR.  Have I
got the gist of the switcher right?
I also want to allow for future developments (Sky+, HDTV, Computer).
Will Cat5/Kat5 satisfy my short- and long-terms requiremnts?  Any
hints, tips will be gratefully received.
Thanks,
Peter.




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