Marantz SR7007 AV Receiver Owner's Thread - Page 13

In my final calibration last nite, I set the sub input to 8 AM, "auto on" was set to "on", phase set to "0", direct was on, and the cable is in the LFE input where it's always been. Afterward, I came out with a reading of "-11" for the sub, which is one point lower than the previous reading. This 8-point calibration was the best one yet as far as overall sound quality is concerned. I played my Mormon Choir BD, which has some organ playing, and my David Foster BD, which has some really good audio and both discs sounded excellent with deep, firm bass (not bloated). I'm not sure at this point if I should turn down the sub volume any more based on what I heard tonight. I'm going to play a movie or two tonight to see how they sound. To check that "Multi Channel Audio" descriptor, I looked at the "fine print" in the display and sure enough, it was HDMI digital. Apparently one has to manually switch to the multi-channel analog input, although this is not really explained in the manual other than to say it appears this has to be selected in the "input mode" setting. Did you say that this bypasses all of the Audessey settings? One more thing: is there any information regarding firmware updates for this receiver? I didn't see any mention of this in the book and has Marantz issued some updates already? How to check?

That's up to you, and depends on how much of a obsessive/compulsive perfectionist you are. My personal opinion is that providing a higher signal from the receiver ensures that you won't miss low volume bass, which might happen if the signal isn't loud enough to turn on the subwoofer. Both Audyssey and bass management are done by digitally processing the signal. There are no Analog-to-Digital converters on the multichannel analog inputs, so the receiver can't apply Audyssey to them and can't do any bass management. I.e. the bass management has to be done in the disc player. Some people have good enough speakers and have had high quality treatments done to their listening rooms so that Audyssey doesn't actually do much. In that kind of an environment, direct, unprocessed analog connections can sound very good, indeed. The procedure is described on page 142 of the manual. There was a firmware update just recently for many Denon and Marantz receivers. (The two brands share most of their digital electronics.) Unfortunately, many people have reported network problems when trying to do an update. Some people have reported that the update tends to be more reliable if you select "Update Start" instead of "Check for Update". Wired network connections also tend to be much more reliable than wireless.

Selden: Thanks for the info. I guess I missed page 142, but I've got a 25-ft cat 5 cable coming from Amazon, so I can "network" my Pioneer plasma in order to get its operating hours. I guess I can use that cable also to do a firmware upgrade on my receiver, but how will I know if I need one? I didn't see a "date of manufacture" sticker on the back of the unit, so I don't know how long it may have been sitting around in a warehouse. How did you happen to find out about the firmware upgrade, and what problem does it resolve? Thanks. P.S. I'm still evaluating bass.

Hi newbie here both to the discussion board and to home/theater in general. I hope this question isn't too stupid and I hope this is the right spot for it. I apologize in advance if I'm off the mark.

Anyway, my basic question is this. I currently have a Pioneer vsx-1019ah-k receiver and I'm thinking about upgrading to the Marantz SR 7007. So, I was wondering if you all thought there will be a notable improvement in audio and video quality?

I've done a lot of research on receivers and for my price point (less than $2000) the SR 7007 seems the best. The other day I went to a home theater store and listened to it and of course it sounded great. But it was hooked up to terrific equipment. I wonder how it would sound in my house hooked up to my equipment.

It seems to me that the obvious advantage the SR 7007 has over the Pioneer is power. Not only is the 7007 more powerful but there's also the option to hook it to an external amp for even more power. This option doesn't exist for the Pioneer 1019.

On the other hand, I'm seriously thinking about upgrading my speakers and buying the Tekton Lore which seem to be remarkably efficient speakers. So maybe the Pioneer is powerful enough?

For what it's worth, here is what I currently have for my home theater set up:

TV: Panasonic VIERA TC-P50G25
Speakers: Left and Right are B&W 601 s2 (these are book shelf speakers) and the center is B&W LCR 60 S3
Receiver: Pioneer vsx-1019ah-k
Sub: Polk PSW 505
BD player: LF BD 570

I'm probably about 70/30 in my home theater to music usage.

Right now I'm currently running three speakers but once I buy the Tekton Lore's I'll move the B&Ws to the rear. So, my receiver will be running a 5.1 setup.

I'd appreciate any advice or insights you all might have. I'd like to upgrade my home theater system and am finally in a position to spend some money and do that. However, I want to be smart about what I buy and not buy stuff I don't need. As I said, I'm pretty new to all this with a lot of interest but not much experience. Thanks so much.

Do you guys have dynamic eq set to on or off?

Many people have all of their equipment permanently connected to the network and enable the firmware update notice in the receiver. Because of the glitches that people often experience in the update procedure, others only update the firmware when they run into a problem that is known to be fixed in one of the updates. "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." The manufacturing date is encoded in the first few digits of the serial number.
The Marantz SR7007 is essentially identical to the Denon AVR 3313ci.
JDSmoothie maintains a list of the firmware updates for most of the Denon xx13 models in post #6 of the thread http://www.avsforum.com/t/1409431/the-official-denon-avr-xx13-model-owners-thread-faq

The most recent one mentioned there seems to be the fix for the change Pandora made late last year. I've seen reports of another firmware update in just the past couple of weeks, though. I subscribe to many of the Denon and Marantz threads on AVS, so I'm not sure where I saw it mentioned. JD wrote that he'll be updating the firmware list as soon as he's able to find out the details.

OK, Thanks. I'll check that link. Selden, you've really been helpful so far. I've been in this hobby for over 20 years and, frankly, these new receivers "confuse the crap out of me." And, I'm sure I'm not alone. As they say, "technology marches on," but not always in a good way.

My sr-7007 says "no network connection" when I try to use internet radio, pandora, flickr, etc, or try to check for a firmware update. It's weird because there IS a network connection--I say that because I can use the Marantz remote app and Airplay from my iphone 5 to control the 7007, plus the 7007 picks up an IP and Mac address from the router, plus the connection delivers internet to my laptop. If there truly were "no network connection" none of this would be possible, right? I know I can't use Airplay or the Marantz app once I unplug the ethernet cable.

My *guess* is that there's some compatability issue between the 7007 and my router (or the 7007 is faulty). I'm using an integrated cable modem + router from Comcast / Xfinity (model: Arris tg862). I've tried multiple ethernet cables--cat5e and cat6. And I've tried moving the ethernet cable into different jacks but it doesn't make a difference. I'm using the router to power the interwebs on my Panasonic ST50 TV and that ethernet connection works just fine. I did notice that p.27 the 7007 manual says "This unit is not compatible with PPPoE. A PPPoE compatible router is required if you have a contract for a type of line set by PPPoE." By my telecom friend had a look and said my setup is not PPPoE. He suggested the problem is the 7007 and suggested I call Marantz.

Any other ideas? Thanks!
Edited by maren8 - 2/17/13 at 6:35pm

Hello, for some reason my Pioneer Elite DV-45-x wont play SACD through my Marantz? DVD/CD work fine. Is there a special setting I need to use on the Marantz to hear SACD's? Thanks

See page 31 of the player's manual:
In other words, connect the multi-channel analog outputs of the player to the multichannel analog inputs of the receiver. Then select those inputs by using the receiver's Input Selection menu.

For two-channel SACDs, you could use the stereo outputs on the player and an appropriate stereo input on the receiver (CD, for example).

thanks. Yes by changing the setting on the DVD from muti-ch area to CD area the disc play,but not through all speakers(just F L/R and sub). Is there a way to have the sound come out of all speakers? I hve the dvd audio hooked up co-axel digital.

To get the receiver to expand a two-channel soundtrack so it uses more speakers, you can turn on either Dolby ProLogic or DTS Neo in the "Listening Mode" menu. See pages 76-79 in the SR7007's Owners Manual. When using ProLogic's or Neo:6 Music modes, you also can adjust the balance among the speakers somewhat. See pages 113 and 163 in the manual.

thanks when making these adjustment, should i readjust the DVD play back to MULTI CH area from CD area ?

If you have some multi-channel SACD discs (ones that aren't just stereo), then also using the multichannel audio connections would be appropriate. Connect the DVD player's 5.1 analog outputs to the front right, front left, center, right side surround, left side surround and LFE connectors of the receiver's "7.1CH IN" multi-channel analog inputs. Do not connect anything to the receiver's right and left rear surround inputs. See page 128 of the receiver's manual for how to turn on its 7.1CH IN multichannel analog inputs. Make sure the 5.1ch Audio Out setting in the player is set to "Connected"

For playing DVDs, the audio would be coming over the digital connection, so connect the video and digital audio cables to the DVD inputs on the receiver. Make sure the player's "digital audio out" is set to "connected" and that you have set all of the AV Receiver settings to "Compatible".

You then can use the receiver + DVD player as if you have two different players -- one for DVDs and one for CDs (including SACDs).
Edited by Selden Ball - 2/19/13 at 2:59pm

If anyone was wondering, the issue was related to having a combined modem + router. Marantz tech support suggested I try a router that is not integrated with the modem and it worked (I was not their first customer to experience this issue, I was told). Comcast switched out the equipment at no charge when I visited their retail store.

Great! Thanks for reporting back with the resolution.

Hello again. Another question on the SR7007: On the "i/p scaler" settings, if I were to set this for the " Analog and HDMI" mode (analog for laserdisc and HDMI for an older DVD player) would this mode allow BluRay to pass thru with no processing, since it's already 1080p or not? And is it best to leave the Resolution setting at "Auto?" thanks.

This setting is unique to each source, so you can set it to OFF for the BDP if desired. The Resolution "AUTO" setting is generally best unless some issue is noted that requires setting a specific resolution.

So you mean it's best to set the ip scaler to on. And everything else to auto?

OK, I'll try that. Should I be concerned at this point, since my receiver is new, regarding firmware updates? Selden indicated that you maintain a list of updates for various models, but he thought the only one he knew about for the SR7007, as I recall, was something having to do with Pandora. thanks!

Not sure what there is to be concerned about?

According to Marantz tech support, there have been four Firmware upgrades issued for the SR7007, most of these having to do with streaming services such as Pandora and Spotify, and not having to do with any operational issues with the receiver itself. I'm still having trouble in trying to find a way to link the i/p scaler function with a particular HDMI input, which I have my DVD player connected to, and with analog video inputs. Some of the choices are "greyed out" in the set-up menu for this function. Maybe I'm doing something wrong? Thanks!

Why do you have both HDMI and analog video inputs from the same source? Is the analog video input component (r/g/b) or composite (yellow) and is it either "assigned" (component only) to or plugged in to (composite) to the same source name used for the HDMI input? With both the HDMI and analog video inputs assigned to the same source name, you'll want to set the "i/p Scaler" setting (p. 122 OM) to "Analog & HDMI", otherwise if separate, then "HDMI" for the HDMI input source name and "Analog" for the analog input source name.

Thanks Selden,
the SACD im trying to play through my 5.1 set up is 'dark side of the moon" its a hybrid SACD. Are you saying that I have my DVD hook up into my AVR incorrectly? I'm using component cables(red,blue,green) foe video and a optical coax for audio. BTW i have a Marantz SR7005,. sorry for posting on the wrong thread.

Hybrid SACDs have both an SACD layer and a CD layer. You have to choose which one to play. The CD layer can provide only a stereo output. Multichannel audio is available only when playing the SACD layer. Both digital audio and analog audio are available when the CD layer is playing, but only analog audio is available when the SACD layer is playing.

The problem is that Sony's licensing does not allow unencrypted high-resolution SACD audio to be transmitted over digital audio connections. They want to prevent bit-perfect copying of their high-resolution audio products. HDMI is OK if it's encrypted (which is usually is). While down-converting SACD to 44.1/16 PCM seems to be acceptable, most non-HDMI SACD-capable players, especially the older ones like yours, simply disable the digital output entirely and only provide analog audio when they're playing SACD discs.

You might want to consider getting a modern Sony Blu-ray player. Most of them are capable of playing SACD over HDMI. Their BDP S590 (about to be replaced by the S5100) usually is discounted to less than $100 now. Using an HDMI connection allows you to enable Audyssey room equalization in your receiver. The improvement to the sound provided by Audyssey usually is quite noticeable when compared to the sound provided by a direct multi-channel analog connection. Audyssey can't be applied to the multichannel analog input since that input doesn't get re-digitized by the receiver.

Of course, there are SACD-capable disc players with HDMI available from other companies, too, but they're usually substantially more expensive.

I hope this clarifies things a little.

Thx Selden, I was afraid the Pioneer needed to be replaced if i wanted to listen to SACD(which i don't have to many)

You can still listen to them and enjoy their music. Just because you can't take advantage of all of the features of your receiver is no reason to stop!

I have my LD player connected via 2 of the 7007's composite inputs: one on the DVD input and one on the Media Player input, renamed, of course. This is so I can use an outboard AC3RF decoder for Dolby Digital laserdiscs on one of the inputs and standard PCM sound on the other input. And then, my DVD player is connected via HDMI to the Game input, again renamed. Also, I have a component connection assigned from my BD player to Aux 1 input and this was assigned to the analog multi-channel in connections so I can use my Oppo's analog outputs if I want to. Sounds confusing doesn't it, but I hope it explains my set-up. Also, I was trying to set up the i/p scaler using the "Analog & HDMI" mode, so it would scale not only the analog video inputs, but also the Game input for my older, but HDMI-capable DVD player. When I try to do this, however, some of the menu options are grayed out for some reason. Any suggestions? Thanks!

Well, I figured this out. It seems that the input one is trying to set up in the menu must be selected on the receiver. I don't think that the manual tells you to do that. Anyway, I got this problem taken care of...finally.

Is it possible to have different setting saved for different inputs ? Eg flat audyssey for music normal for movies