"Official" Denon AVR 2809CI/989 Thread - Page 58

FYI

I only use my 2809 as a processor with my Marantz SR 12 acting as a power amp, and I use the SR 12 for music. This is one of the most muscial AV amps around and would be around the standard of a $2000 stereo only amp.

The GS range is NOT made in UK. They never were. You may be referring to the GR series.

I use the GS 10 and GS LCR in the front, and a PSB dipole in the rear and Mission M30i for the back.

No issue with tonal matching really in real usage. I also use a SVS PB 12 + and a Velodyne MiniVee together for HT.

I have some comments on this here:

http://www.avforums.com/forums/8371277-post65.html

Hi,
I have my HD Directv DVR coonected via HDMI to my 2309 connected by HDMI to a Sony 60A3000.

Problem is that Close Captioning from DirecTV is not displayed on the TV. Before I bought the 2309, I had video from the DTV receiver fed directly to the TV via component and had no problem with CC, but now that is goes through the 2309, it's not working.

What's wrong in my setup?

Please help

HDMI doesn't carry closed captioning. You need to turn on CC on the DVR.

Nothing is wrong on the Denon side, however, as Shape suggested, make sure that CC is turned ON in the HD DVR. On my HR20-100 remote, I just press the yellow button and change the CC setting from OFF to ON to get CC over HDMI.

Makes sense, TY!

Does anyone have their front speakers Bi-amped on the 2809? I see the options in the manual but fail to see how to wire it. I have the "Amp Assign mode" set to Front A Bi-Amp but can't tell a difference.

Page 68 of the manual.

I did not change any of my wiring. I have "Standard" front speakers with only 1 set of terminals. Would Bi-Amping work with these?

Also, I have only 1 main zone and it is a 5.1 setup.

I'm trying to get the most out of the 2809 and thought this might be an option...

Forum rules. You are not supposed to say that :-)

Well I was debating between 3808 and 2809 after reading all the debate in that 2809 vs 3808 thread. I ordered the 2809 yesterday. I just hope the SQ difference will be subtle that it is not worth the extra $400 (mainly for 2ch music). I will go to Magnolia and see if I can hear them both.

Nope. You would need speakers that had two sets of terminals, to split off the woofer from the tweeter. One terminal set would be connected to the FL and FR speaker jacks on the Denon and the other terminal set would be connected to the SBL and SBR speaker jacks on the Denon. The dual set of speaker terminals would be connected with a jumper which would have to be removed prior to turning connecting the source to them.

Hi all,

I just finished running audyssey, and hate what it did to my system. I would like to reset everything and just adjust everything back to the manual settings I had before. I assumed that I would follow the procedures for resetting the microprocessor, but haven't seen anything reset yet. I don't know that I've done this correctly. I know that I turn the unit off, but do I hold the Standard and DSP buttons together and then press Power, holding all three until the display flashes? If so, how long do I hold it? I have yet to see the display flash.

I for one am greatful for the code. I have been on the fence and pulled the trigger and purchased the 2809CI (because of the code).
For the record:I have been extremely pleased with my previous Denon purchases (AVR-5600 and AVR-4802) I just hope that I can tell a difference in the Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD, otherwise I may have revert back and reconnect the 4802.

Geez, dude, calm down. No need to reset the microprocessor, just turn Audyssey off in Parameters-3. Audyssey settings, select -Manual-(which will use your manually set EQ, which you would lose & have to reset if you do a reset of microprocessor)-see p 45 of your owners manual. You can also use the EQ button on the remote. You may have to do that once for each Surround Parameter/Source to establish your prefered EQ. Although you have not described what it is that you hate about it, chances are that something went wrong in setting up for, and/or executing, autosetup. If you would like to post some details we can try to help.

Sorry...didn't mean to sound panicked. Here's the deal...I received my new speakers last weekend. I went ahead and hooked up the fronts, center, and sub, but saved the rears for this weekend (wife out of town, so plenty of time to play). I had manually placed the settings last weekend, and all sounded good. Once I got the rears setup, I was able to get the house quiet and ran Audyssey this afternoon. Once I saved everything, I re-listened to some things (Bourne Identity, Band of Brothers...both using the DTS 5.1 tracks) and I noticed the dialogue is now difficult to hear. I have tried adjusting the settings, but cannot seem to get things back to the way they were before. The center channel's dialogue seems overpowered by all of the other sounds/music/etc. I thought I'd be better off starting over...thus the reset. I like to wipe the slate clean during times when I change too many settings. I am certainly open to suggestions.

Oh...I have the 2809 (obviously) and DefTechs (4 1000's, center 2000, and sub 1000). Don't know if this helps...let me know if you need more info. Thanks!

OK, this does sound like a setup issue. Let's start with info on your room, speakers, speaker placement and your audyssey results of distances and levels for each speaker.

Just Kidding.

I hope I will like the 2809. Bus just to kill my curiosity I am going to
listen to both 2809 and 3808 at Magolia so that I dont have any buyer's remorse :-)

Well, my room is a real challenge: about 20' long, 15' wide, and height is mixed (back wall to ~ 7ft out is 11' high, remainder is cathedral style--very high and flat ceiling). There are windows throughout the right side of the room. Room is also prewired for 5.1, so positioning is fixed. I went with the Denon 2809 hoping the auto calibration will find a good solution.

Here's what Audyssey found:

Speaker Config: All small plus Sub

Distance: FL: 9.9, Center: 8.2, FR: 10.0, SW: 10.2, SL: 10.8, SR: 10.4
Channel Level: FL: -5.5, Center: -8.5, FR: -6.0, SW: -12.0, SL: -8.0, SR: -6.5

Crossover: Front=80, Center=80, Surrounds=100

Again, FL & FR= DefTech PM1000's, Center= DefTech ProCenter 2000, Surrounds= PM1000's

Ok, we have a big problem with the sub. You'll have to turn the volume down on the sub itself and rerun Audyssey. Have you read the Audyssey setup guide?

Wow, Paladin, that is a lot like my room! My HT is in a 16'X22' room w/ high vaulted ceiling, lots of bare windows, very lively, bright & echoey. My room is in sore need of acoustic tx, as is yours in all likelihood, and that would doubtless help matters a lot. I am sitting about 10' back (as it appears you are). My surrounds are prewired, in-wall. I have the fronts toed in (they are towers so tweeters are at seated ear height) and the center is angled up slightly, as it is below the monitor, so all tweeters "fire" to a point not far from my head and that is the point I use for setup 1st position. So let's talk more about mic placement during setup. I recently ranted on about this in the 3808 thread, please excuse the wordiness:


"...I'm no expert by any stretch, but here is my advice (IMHO), based on what I've gleaned from the Audyssey thread and running a few Audyssey trials in various configurations with various Denons in my HT living room. Basically you want to do your Audyssey measurements with the furniture, curtains, speakers, etc., all in normal viewing/listening positions. You want to use a tripod so the mic can be properly positioned, firmly and steadily held straight up free of unwanted acoustic reflections. As to placing the mic for the crucial first reading, it should be close to the spot in your room where imaginary lines projected from the tweeters of the 2 fronts and the center speaker all intersect (let's call it "stereo center"). That may or may not not be exactly where your ears are in your primary listening position, but allows Audyssey to establish a good "average" reading for the room, even if it is slightly forward or to the side of your primary listening position. Audyssey will then take into account the next 5 (or for XT, 7) measurements to further refine the processing/filters. A major point is that if where your ears are for any position (and especially that first position) has problem (excessive) acoustic reflections you should not measure right there. For ex., if your head is too close to a wall (less than 2') you should move the mic out from the wall. Or if your recliner's back comes up too high, move the mic up a little to a better spot free of excess reflections which would bias the calculations. Another major point is that you should not measure in any spot that is too far off-axis (not within the direct soundfield of the speakers). So, after multiple trials I've found that in my large, "lively" room, the best results were from using a tight pattern of mic positions around my "stereo center",which is about a foot forward and slightly to the right of my main listening position. I do not measure right where my ears will be because of my high-backed Human Touch Perfect Chair Zero-gravity recliner (Oh yeah, that's comfy). I also skip the other seating positions entirely, especially because a few of the seating spots on the couch are too far to the side (slightly out of the soundfield)... "

and as you mentioned, you need a quiet house.

Thanks for the feedback. Here's what I did for each of these sections:


I definitely read the guide and Batpig's guide as well. I used the 8 point test, and followed the diagram in the FAQ thread for positions 1-6. For positions 7&8, I moved the mic back from the center room cross field to the two main listening positions (which as you guessed, happen to be in the rear of the room). I just felt like I needed a couple of actual listening points in the mix. That could have messed it up, but I also just found another possible issue. I looked at my sub crossover, and for some reason it was no longer dialed to the max (~150). My understanding is that I should dial the sub's crossover as high as it will go in order for the 2809 to control what it sends to the sub. I also understood that you should start with the volume control in the center position (at 12:00 for mine). All of that was good during the test, except for the crossover dial. Don't know what impact that had.


Yeah, they do sound very similar. The room was originally open all the way through. The original owner installed a built-in entertainment center/bookcase in the front of the room, prewired the room for 5.1, and then built a loft above the rear of the room...thus, the differing ceiling heights.

I will give the setup another shot, but it may be a while before I can get a quiet house again. For now, if I want to restore to the factory defaults, is there an easy way to do this? I don't want the wife coming home tomorrow evening and questioning why the major expense isn't able to let her hear the dialogue

For my sub, SVS SB-12 plus, I only needed to set the volume between 1/4 and 1/3 in order to get it to +/- 3 dB. This is what the sub manual suggested, not the audyssey guide and it worked out just fine. I'm still waiting for the replacement unit. The never ending waiting continues....

Paladin,
1. Reread my first post to you, you can always easily use your already tweaked manual EQ settings by setting EQ to manual!
2. As this is not a Denon issue, we should probably move the rest of this optimizing of Audyssey to the Audyssey thread where we will find lots of expertise and experience with difficult rooms.
3. Before rerunning Audyssey:
As I said, the sub is too loud. The -12 dB trim reading means it is maxing out Audyssey's ability to compensate the sub in relation to the other speakers and balance the system. Yes the crossover on the back of the sub should be dialed to max but the volume control on the back of the sub needs to be turned down. Try 10 oclock, run 1 position and recheck the readings. Per Chris @ Audyssey anything less than -11 is quite acceptable (mine is -7.5 and sounds fine) but some enthusiasts recommend getting closer to "0", say within +/-3dB as better.

As to mic placement, I still can't really picture the room or figure how far back your seats are from "stereo center" (="center room crossfield'?) and where the surrounds are in relation to the other speakers and the seats. Is the HT on the 15' or the 20' wall? What are the speaker distances and positions relative to your seats? Is the sub in a corner or near a wall? All that info might be helpful.

Is there any official site to help novice user of Denon AVR 2809 with calibrated settings?

Welcome bruin. Why yes, yes there is. Not quite sure exactly what you mean by "calibrated settings", but you've found a great source of info right here @ AVS on our "Official 2809 thread"! Sounds like you should go right over to batpig's site-it would be your (un)official "Denon for Dummies" primer:
//batpigworld.com/
That's about as helpful a resource as you'll find for Denons; it has a setup guide, recommended settings, FAQ & more. The link to the Audyssey Setup Guide (also essential reading for Denon setup)http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...5#post14456895 is there, too, and these links are also in the first post of the 1909 thread (which has a lot of useful info stickied there) http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showt...7#post14314027.
Read through as many posts on this and the 1909 thread as you can-most newbie questions get covered over and over. Also try the "search" feature at the top of this thread to help you find answers to specific questions.
Denon has "official" tech support available, contact info listed on the website usa.denon.com but to be honest I have not heard much useful mentioned on these threads that was sourced from them. As you may have already discovered, the "official" owner's manual can be quite confusing.

sounds like you are trying the reset using the "on/standby" button (the one with the light around it) as opposed to the hard power button (the little one next to the standby button).

but as others have suggested, give multEQ XT a chance to work right first. definitely tune that sub volume so you are closer to 0dB on the sub trim, keep that mic steady (not in your hand! on a tripod!) and the room quiet, make sure the first position is the "stereo center" position for distance/level measuring. Then, do the eight points in a tighter cluster around the stereo center position and avoid room boundaries, even if you actually sit there! It's less about measuring your literal seating positions than it is about capturing information about the acoustics of you room, and room boundaries / reflective surfaces can really confound the measurements.

This is easier to understand when, like me, someone's first experience with the AVS Forum is via their HDTV model's thread, where there is usually a discussion about the best "calibrated settings". Their next venture, is generally to upgrade their old stereo or add an AVR and surround system, so they of course turn to AVS forum. The term "Audyssey calibration" is learned and naturally they think of trying to learn the best "calibrated settings" for the AVR as well. Ironically, in both instances, HDTV and AVR, the lighting (HDTV) and physical room characterics (AVR) both tend to make settings very unique to each person. What one person likes to "see" or "hear" can also be very different from another person, requiring time spent to tweak to get it just right. However, as we've seen time and time again, most folks just want to "set it and forget it" and therefore are more apt to ask for what the best settings are from the beginning.

Thanks to all for the advice on the Audyssey settings. I agree that when I redo the auto setup, I will ask those Audyssey-related questions in that forum. However, my original question was about the 2809, and how to restore the factory settings so that I do not have to individually tweak all of the changes that Audyssey made during the last setup.

[quote]sounds like you are trying the reset using the "on/standby" button (the one with the light around it) as opposed to the hard power button (the little one next to the standby button).[quote]

Thanks Batpig. I was wondering if that might be the issue. So, I should put the unit into standby mode, turn the actual power button (hard switch) off. Then, I should hold the Standard and DSP buttons together and then press the power button again. I should hold all three in at that point until the display begins to flash?? This is the procedure I'm trying to figure out. It would restore my settings, and hopefully fix a "buggy" issue that started yesterday pm after the setup. The receiver wasn't consistently sending a signal to the sub, causing it to go into standby/off mode (sub's power light was off). It took a lot of fiddling to get the signal to kick the sub back on. Again, I think I'm better off by going back to square one, out-of-the-box settings and starting fresh.

Reset the Microprocessor: read p60 of your manual-oddly clear for Denonese.
But I am trying to tell you that you don't need to start all over....and reset will NOT restore anything you have done, only factory defaults.

Very perceptive of you, jd, that could be just what bruin had in mind, but then again, I didn't want to assume so. I agree completely with your point. I was bemused when I went to my Sammy LCD forum and read post after post exactly as you've described..."Can you please list all the calibrations the professional installer put on yours?", "Here are the settings I obtained using xyz calibration disc", etc.

Thanks for the reply!

Is it worth the effort to search out speakers that accommodate Bi-Amping?