** OFFICIAL ** Denon AVR-3310CI/990 Owner's Thread - Page 9

Just out of curiousity- did you happen to do anything that may have caused your ethernet cable to become disconnected on either end? I have actually done this before by accident when resetting my router.

If this is not the issue, have you tried power cycling your modem down? Unplug it for a minute or two, then reconnected and reset your router.

(Not sure if you have done this or not- certainly worth a try)

Hey ACRTed-

Have you also had an issue when in NET/USB mode that when you are listening to something or selecting one of your favorites your screen just goes blank for a second or two, and then it goes entirely blank?

I have had this happen at leat 10 times since the latest firmware update. I basically have to wait a minute or two, then hit the Net/USB button on the remote- sometimes I am able to connect again and resume what I was doing, and other times it comes back on but it is frozen (remote won't work, etc).

I went ahead and completely shut off everything including routers, modem, and all power to the AVR. Then I restarted everything. I even change the ethernet cord and the port into the router. (the cord work and the port worked fine for anything else). One additional think I noticed was that the choice on the menu, indicates DHCP ON. It is locked into position and cannot be changed. Also, when checking the Network Connection, nothing responds good or bad. This tends to make me believe it's the firmware and not the ethernet port in the AVR. Anyone know how to revert back to the original firmware with no updates? The system reboot did not help.

What about UpNP? Do have this enabled or disabled?

For the third time, I tried to install the latest firmware update. My receiver hangs at 01 minute and will not progress. Today, I let it try to finish the update for 4+ hours with no luck.

I saw that an owner of a 4310 had the exact same problem with his/her unit hanging at 01 minute.

It seems that Denon is pretty incompetent when it comes to firmware updates, or I simply have a bad receiver.

The very first firmware update that I installed was problematic but eventually installed successfully.

After this, I think that I made a huge mistake in purchasing a Denon and will probably go back to Onkyo units in the future.

Has anyone else had a problem with the latest firmware update?

Greg

Have you tried a unit reset (I know this sucks)?

I have definitely had issues with the lastest firmare update- this morning I also noticed that there is yet another update- I'm really thinking twice about actually going through with it.

I had a very similar issue with my first 3310 (I'm on my 2nd one now). You might want to consider returing the one you have and trying another one. When they work, they kick ass. The first one I had basically locked up & gave me a "Please wait, connecting message" indefinitely...

Of course what really pi**ed me off was I took the first one back to Magnolia, and the guy behind the counter acted like I didn't know what I was doing, and he said I was the first one that had any issues with the 3310- funny that alot of other people are having issues...

I have had this receiver for 2 weeks. Love it, but i sure wont be hooking it up to the internet, or doing an firmware updates. Never needed one on a receiver before, anyway. Course this is also the first time i spent this kind of money on a receiver! Lots of stuff to learn. All part of the fun.

I'd return it then- if you have no intentions of utilizing networking/web then you are killing a mosquito with an atom bomb.

You might want to consider the Pioneer Elite VSX-23xth- it doesn't offer networking but does allow usb connectivity, etc. It's a great receiver- I was actually considering this receiver but opted for one that offered networking & I thought Pioneer's GUI for the SC series was nowhere near as good as the Denon's.

Sorry to hear about the firmware update problems.

For what it's worth I did the firmware update yesterday 7:30 AM East Coast US. It took about 12 minutes and finished without a problem. I'm running with a wired connection and the default network configuration.

I was installing this upgrade on top of the one that was available 30 days ago.

mr_sonus - I just checked to see if I had the same problems as you have with the Internet Radio, and so far, at least, my 3310 is ok there. No problems connecting, changing, etc. Also, for whatever reason, I did not get any notices today about another firmware update being available.

I wonder if your update is one made available to correct the bad one from a couple of days ago...maybe the reason I didn't get any notices today is because I waited a couple of days after being notified there was another update out there, and maybe it was a different version than what you downloaded???

Ted

mr_sonus,

Yes, I did try the unit reset (i.e., holding the up and down buttons while turning on the main power button). This allows me to at least use the unit--after setting everything up again.

The sad thing is that the problems seem to be happening to people with Denon units other than just the 3310. So, this is not a 3310 specific problem.

I may have to send the unit to Denon for service

Greg

Just set up my 3310 this weekend, I am having a few problems, wanted to see if anyone else has experienced and/or had a solution:

1) Connect my directv HD DVR box to the 3310CI with HDMI, picture is fine, I get stereo sound, but will not play dolby digital in 5.1. It will only play dolby digital in 2.1. Directv box is set to output 5.1 and have played 5.1 sources over optical cable in the past (with old receiver)

2) Connect my Samsung BD-p3600 to 3310CI with HDMI, picture is fine, no sound comes out. I setup BD-p3600 to output PCM (which is "preferred" for HDMI receiver hookup, per the manual). Same as directv bob, I have got 5.1 out of BD-p3600 over the optical cable on old receiver.

I was wondering about the cables, there are stock cables that come with direct tv boxes. My other thought was that my tv is old, and I only have DVI input, so my cable has a dvi to HDMI converter on the end. But, I had the directv box and Samsung Blu-ray hooked up to HDMI switch box before, and I never had any problems.

Any thoughts from the group would be appreciated.

kwenk

my money is on a HDMI handshake failure caused by the HDMI/DVI connection. I have read reports on other threads about the same thing happening (no audio when connected to an DVI display via HDMI/DVI).

Batpig,

Thanks for the insight. Do you think I would get 7.1 sound from Blu-ray if I used coax out from blu-ray into 3310CI?

Otherwise, there's a positive and negative to this:

Positive: New TV (really want one of those led backlit LCD TVs, Sony XBR8)

Negative: Having to convince the wife that it is now "needed"! eek

Thanks again,

kwenk

Hi All,
Long time user of cheap amps. First time to mix it with the good guys!
I have set up my 3310 ( I turned down the salesman's offer of a 4308 for AU$600 extra because of the Faroudja chip). The Anchor Bay one does a very good job from my testing so far.
I'd like to know if it's possible to view the amps volume on the TV when you are using the built in HD tuner on the TV?
I'm outputting the TV's audio to the amp via an optical feed, so I can't see how what I want can be done.
Great thread and site guys. Glad to be on-board.
Cheers
Golfur66

@ kewnk - coaxial (digital) audio can only carry 5.1 channels of regular DD or DTS. Assuming your TV also has component inputs you may want to switch to component video for now (you can still use HDMI for lossless audio from the Blu-Ray player) or look into an aftermarket HDMI>component converter like HDFury. Both of these will avoid HDCP issues with the DVI display. Another option is to insert an HDMI switch with HDMI/DVI adapter in between the AVR and the TV, some people have (counterintuitively!) had success eliminating handshake problems by throwing an HDMI switch in the middle, it may be worth an experiment to see if that helps.

@ Golfur - no, if you are using the internal tuner of the TV the AVR is not involved in the video at all so there is no way it can send processed video (e.g. with volume overlay) out to the TV. This is only possible with video routed through the receiver.

I just bought a Denon AVR-3310CI and thought I would share my experiences with everyone.

My impetus to buy was the release of the PS3 Slim and it's bitstream capabilities. I knew for a long time that I wanted an HDMI-capable receiver, and was willing to live without bitstream mode from my original PS3. After hearing that the slim has bitstreaming of lossless audio, I felt is was time to move the original PS3 to the basement and buy a Slim. I then convinced myself that it was time to take the plunge and get that HDMI receiver I always wanted. [ok -- I admit it -- I like to see the True HD and DTS MA lamps light up. Spare me the lecture on how PCM is just as good. I know. Just call me petty.]

I first bought an Onkyo NS-TX807. After setting it up, it sounded good and did everything I wanted it to do. Then the problems started. It began emitting distortion through my speakers and my TV, and then shut down the audio output completely. I think it overheated despite being in a pretty well-ventilated shelving unit. After letting it cool down for about an hour, I tried again. This time it worked, but it started pushing a "thump" to my subwoofer every the PS3 changed audio modes. I was obviously not going to live with this, so I decided to return the Onkyo and get a Denon.

I was going to buy a 2310, but realized that I probably would not buy another receiver for a while. I have plans to build a dedicated theater in the next five years, and I figured this new receiver was going to move into the theater when it's built. So...I bit the bullet and bought the 3310. It's more future-proof.

After going through the Audyssey set-up, I first tried one of my favorite CDs. I was blown away with how much better this Denon sounds. I have had a lot of different receivers from a lot of different manufacturers. This one, by far, has the most accurate, smooth, and balanced sound reproduction. It sounds even better than my high-end (albeit 7-year old) Onkyo which is mated to superior speakers (makes me want to move the better speakers upstairs!). The other nice thing about CD playback is that the receiver automatically senses the source material and sets the correct playback mode. When playing a CD, it chose stereo mode. When I switched to a DVD, it chose the correct codec for the disc being played. The Onkyo did not do this.

After trying a CD, I popped in "The Fifth Element" to experience True HD. This blew me away. Not only was the sound quality better overall, the surround channels were much more alive. I was totally enveloped in sound, which was a very cool feeling. I can't wait for movie night this week, not to mention the Glee premiere tomorrow night on Fox.

I then switched over to the tuner and experimented with HD radio. For those who have no experience with HD radio, it's CD-quality sound with additional information such as the artist and song title. This was a welcome surprise. I didn't realize how many HD radio channels were available in my area. The Denon picked up about a half dozen while using the supplied antenna.

Finally, the wife acceptance factor is pretty high on this one. My wife will really enjoy the Dynamic Volume, because she can't stand the large swings in sound during movie playback. We usually have to watch movies with closed captioning turned on because inevitably the dialog is too quiet in relation to the overall soundtrack. Dynamic Volume should fix this problem. Also, the remote is pretty straightforward. Denon placed most of the common features on the front of the remote, with big, easy to find buttons. The more arcane commands are hidden behind a panel on the back of the remote.

In all, I'm really pleased. The sound reproduction is fantastic, the features are great, and it's pretty future-proof (at least until HDMI 1.4 comes out!). It cost a little more than I wanted to spend, but I think it will last me a long time.

I got my 3310 last week and have it set up, and have been tweaking it. I'm pretty happy with it for the most part. (2 firmware updates as well, no issues).

Few questions though:

Is there a way to configure the network to a static IP through the web browser? Or a way to access the web browser through the friendly name? Using the remote to enter all that info looks tiresome, and I have enough (~6) devices on my network in my DHCP table everytime stuff gets powered on and off, 'guessing' is annoying.

Is there a way to reassign the quick selects? (or can you just pointlessly rename them?)

Also I was playing with the video conversion. I have my 20+ yr. old NES hooked up and was playing Kid Icarus and noticed it looked a bit grainy, I plugged the composite into a different input on my TV and noticed it looked better I thought. So I started trying different conversion modes instead of auto (which was 1080p) the 480p/576p seemed to look better, but then I started playing with more functions on my TV to adjust the sharpness and various other color functions. Until eventually I couldn't really tell the difference between the 1080 and the 480, and I plugged the NES directly back into the TV and it seemed to look worse this time. I still having played with any other image adjustments on the 3310 itself other than the up conversion setting, is this worth doing? Or is this just an artifact of not that great graphics and the NES actually outputting at 256p instead of 480/525i (because that is what the input is described as)? Its nothing noticably horrible but some of the graphics look very grainy and almost blurry instead of more naturally smooth.

I haven't played with the other inputs too much for comparison yet. Just generally asking what's the best way to go about configuring all the different video tweaks.

don't know about the IP address stuff as I don't have a networked receiver. But one great resource is the 3808CI thread, it is MUCH MUCH longer than this one (since that receiver has been out a couple of years and is widely owned) and the networking should be mostly the same; pretty much every networking question you could think of has been discussed there.

on your other question, I assume you are seeing artifacts of the old, nonstandard video game signal. If you look in the manual (pg10) and read about video conversion, there is the standard note (which is also in all Denon manuals) that: "When a non-standard video signal from a game machine or some other source is input, the video conversion function might not operate".

I just think the video conversion is designed to work with standard video signal formats (e.g. 480i/p, 720p, etc). I'm not sure if Kid Icarus (what a great game!!) was on their mind when they implemented it

Some 3310 questions.

1. I was told that HD radio is CD quality in sound. That it sounds much better than FM, XM radio is this true?

2. The 3310 does not have Audyssey DSX. Is this something that is really needed and what does Audyssey DSX do. I know the newer Onkyo's have it but not HD radio.

3. Not having Audyssey XT is this somewhat of a big disadvantage? (Room size is about 12 x 15 used mainly for movies and some music)

Thanks

Hi 3310Ci owners,
I posted in a separate thread concerning the problem I was having with my new 3310 but have received no replies so I thought I would sneak in here. Everything seems to work fine, but I am getting no sound. I'm not new at this and have done all the troubleshooting I can and still no sound. I've got the Oppo Bluray player into HDMI #1 and a DirecTv tuner into HDMI #3. I get the picture fine, but absolutely no sound. All my speaker connections are fine, and I hear small pops when changing inputs so I know the speakers are okay. Anyone else have this problem when they first got theirs? I've been thru all the settings on the receiver and sources and nothing works. Is this a bad unit? Thanks for any advice.

rmach,

Audyssey DSX essentially widens a sound field both vertically and horizontally by adding an additional 4 speakers in the front listening area. Horizontally, they are placed about 60 degrees from the main listening position (+/- 10 degrees). What DSX is doing is electronically producing signals that are difficult or impossible to achieve naturally (depending on room size and shape). This effectively widens the sound stage as to appear as though you are more in a movie theater like setting. However, only the Denon 4810 is capable of both horizontal and vertical placement at this time. The 4310, I believe, is only capable of the additional horizontal placement. I received a private demo from Chris at CEDIA just the other day, and liked what I heard.

XT is much more beneficial as only the XT label allows you to upgrade to Audyssey Pro. A significant leap over the standard Audyssey in-box solution.

Pride9,

I know this sounds stupid, but when I first installed my 3310CI I also thought at first there was no sound! After the initial panic subsided, I then realized that I had to turn the volume control *way* up to hear anything. I guess I was so used to the old stereo that would make sound as soon as the volume control was moved up from zero. The 3310 didn't make any sound until I had turned the volume up quite a bit.

Hopefully this isn't too dumb or insulting

Ted in Mesa AZ

Have you run AUTO SETUP yet for the AVR to detect your speakers present? Shouldn't really matter, but if you did, did you get the test tones during the setup? Have you changed any other default settings (eg. HMDI Audio Out from AMP to TV)?

Ted and jdsmoothie,

I have turned the volume all the way up, I can't get test tones, and I can't even get the radio to give me any hiss. I have not run the Auto Setup because I didn't have time but will play around some more this weekend. I bought it thru AVS so I know Jason will help me sort this out to my satisfaction. One other thing. When I first plugged it in I head a small crackle and it didn't seem like the power cord was seating correctly. I had a red blinking light, and when I powered it on, it gave a green blinking light for a few seconds and then back to red and wouldn't power on. I had to give a little bit of force to get the power cord to seat correctly. Maybe this was a sign there was something wrong from the start???? Thanks for your help.

Hi Pride9,

Can you hear anything on your TV? Make sure the setup option is set to use audio speakers, not the TV speakers. Does the unit power up now that you reseated the power cord? You won't hear test tones until you run the Auto setup. When changing sources I do not hear any little pops or clicks. Can you tune in an FM station? Even if you can't hear it, the panel display should show stereo, tuned, etc. Can you hear any audio through the headphone jack?

Hope this helps a bit....

Ted

Given you cannot get the test tones using Manual Setup and considering the difficulty you had with powering up the AVR, I'd send the AVR back to AVS and ask for a replacement.

Ted,

Look at my posting in this forum (#121 on page 5). I asked the same question and hopefully will answer your question. I sometimes have to increase my volume to 72 out of 100 to get loud enough sound to watch NFL football. Whoat volume do you use (absolute)?

Hi Icure,

It wasn't me who was having problems with no audio! But to answer your question I usually have the volume set to about 60 or so dB. This is with no volume at zero dB option enabled (as opposed to the default setting). I've been known to seriously annoy the fish in the aquarium by going up to nearly 80 and watching submarine movies with depth charges .

72 for NFL is too loud (for me)...but of course speakers will make a difference as well in how much power is needed...

Right now the 3310 is at 50 dB while playing mp3's from this computer via the ethernet cable and that is a bit loud but nice.

Ted

Ted

Well, batpig you were right, I hooked up a tv with an hdmi connection, and the soud worked, it recognized the digital signal, and the problems stopped. It was the hdmi-DVI conversion to a 7 year old tv that was the problem.

I guess I could have fixed it using your suggestion of component hook ups, but I opted for a much more expensive solution, bought the 55" Sony I have had my eye on.

Thanks again batpig, your advice was spot on.

kwenk