The living room video system in all its latest gory...

And no, that still isn't a typo in the heading... [last updated: 15 August 2010]

The audio side of the system is shown here.

Blue arrows show hdmi (digital video and digital audio) signals. The multi-channel Audiolab 8000AP pre-amplifier (in addition to five stereo analogue inputs, plus a "5.1" set, and seven digital audio inputs) has two hdmi inputs,¹ from which it strips incoming high-resolution digital audio for processing,² while passing along the digital video — unprocessed — direct to its single hdmi output. (My NPR digital radio source is the original Humax hi-def satellite receiver tuned permanently to just that transponder on a non-Sky European satellite, hence its appearance on the "video" side of the system.)

The (hacked/dongled) multi-region, multi-zone Oppo Blu-ray player incorporates a later variant of the sophisticated VRS upscaling technology I'd been using since 2006 in my original (primarily analogue) video scaler. This magic squeezes maximum video quality out of standard definition DVDs by skilful upscaling to 1080p. (Even 1080p/24 if the DVD has been correctly mastered.) The Freeview and Freesat PVRs, although both capable of doing their own de-interlacing and upscaling, are both dealt with by the same VRS chipset in the DVDO Edge scaler. I almost never watch Freeview TV, however, as its quality (if that's the right word) strikes me as poor when compared with the higher bit rate³ transmissions via Freesat. But then Technology Towers is in a bit of a dip when it comes to terrestrial reception from the Rowridge transmitter on the Isle of Wight.

My chum Henry (the DVDO Edge supplier) is no fan of hdmi, and has forthright opinions around the question of Edge versus Oppo Blu-ray for handling DVDs:

Naturally, the DVDO technical wizard from the Edge camp has a (slightly) divergent view. But he agrees with the basic principle: minimise video processing in too many components but do it right. With the DVDO Edge I regain full aspect ratio and picture tweaking control. The main ground is covered here (by Oppo) and here (by DVDO).

Footnotes

¹  My first micro-controlled audio/video switchbox — built to my design in 1985 by my late (alas, in two senses of the word — he delivered the unit at the end of May 1988, and he went and died in the mid-1990s) friend Colin — had four fully-buffered composite video inputs, an independent video recording bus, eight analogue stereo audio inputs of around 90dB S/N ratio, and two independent stereo audio recording buses. S-Video (Y-C) and RGB video had hardly reached the UK back then. (With the honourable exception of early Philips LaserDisc players.) I recently (June 2010) discovered a letter (dated 28^th May 1988) that's relevant.
²  It decodes Dolby Digital and DTS 5.1 formats, but relies on incoming uncompressed decoded LPCM multi-channel audio data to handle the fancier surround sound formats that now exist. (Decoding of these formats occurs in the Blu-ray player.) However, in July 2010, I decided to revert to simple stereo — hence the Rotel power amplifier. (I may yet add back in a mono amplifier to drive the centre [dialogue] speaker, but I'm in no hurry to do so.) The Oppo outputs a perfectly acceptable hdmi stereo down-mix from any surround material, and can also deal comfortably with the LPCM 2-channel material that some DVDs and Blu-rays offer. (Test results linked from here.)
³  I expect Freeview terrestrial digital quality only to get even worse when the idiots in charge succeed in putting their five high-def national channels on that limited bandwidth platform. Unless we all equip ourselves with full spectrum high-gain aerials.