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Calibrating Onkyo TX-SR605 with Polk RM and Velodyne Sub

post #1 of 4
1/1/13 at 1:21pm
Thread Starter 
Hey Folks,

Another yawn inspiring setup question from a novice. I'll try to be as concise as possible. Thanks in advance for your insight and assistance.

Here is my current Speaker Setup:

Fronts/Center - Polk RM201 x 3
Surrounds - Polk RM101s x 2
Subwoofer - Velodyne CT120
Reciever - Onkyo TX-SR605

I've Run Audyssey II but the whole shebang just sounds off. The fronts and center are set to full band and the sub is just overpowering unless i turn it down to near 0. Here's what i'd like to know:

On Receiver:

- Fronts and Center Crossover? 40-200Hz
- Surrounds Crossover: 40-200
- LFE Crossover: 80-120


On Sub:

- LPF Crossover: 40-120
- HPF Crossover: 80 or 120
- Direct or In Sub Crossover?
- Phase Control: 0 or 180


I've got the distances setup correctly and i'm pretty sure i have the sub location in the best spot available. Just need some help tweaking these puppies.

Thanks again in advance and please let me know if you need more info from me about my setup, listening habits, additional equipment or specs on the above.

Thank you!
Edited by phorts - 1/1/13 at 1:33pm
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post #2 of 4
1/2/13 at 8:19am
Looks like that Onkyo only offers Audyssey 2EQ, so you'll more then likely have to do a bit of tuning yourself. That's not terribly uncommon -- no version of room correction, regardless of who makes it, is perfect -- but 2EQ might require a little more effort to perfect the setup.

Quote:
Originally Posted by phorts View Post

I've Run Audyssey II but the whole shebang just sounds off. The fronts and center are set to full band and the sub is just overpowering unless i turn it down to near 0.

First off, set all the speakers to Small. With tiny 3.5" midranges there's simply no way they should be set to Large (which I assume is what you mean by saying "full band"). Then make sure the trim levels -- the setting for each individual speaker in your receivers configuration -- are at 0dB. That will give you a good starting point, and will allow you to tweak to preference.

Quote:
Originally Posted by phorts View Post

On Receiver:
- Fronts and Center Crossover? 40-200Hz
- Surrounds Crossover: 40-200
- LFE Crossover: 80-120

Fronts, center and surround should all be set to 100Hz, since the -3dB point for your speakers in 95Hz. If by "LFE Crossover" you're referring to the .1 channel then set it for 120Hz. That way the subwoofer will handle all of the LFE channel, which I believe is 5Hz-120Hz (a true LFE Crossover is distinct from the crossover used for the other speakers, so they can often be set independently).

Quote:
Originally Posted by phorts View Post

On Sub:
- LPF Crossover: 40-120
- HPF Crossover: 80 or 120
- Direct or In Sub Crossover?
- Phase Control: 0 or 180

Set the LPF and HPF for 120 and the Phase to 0 if the sub is in front of you, 180 if it's behind you. For the "Direct or In Sub Crossover" setting I'm going to make an assumption that Direct means the sub is assuming the crossover is being handled by the receiver. If so, that's the setting you want.

Quote:
Originally Posted by phorts View Post

I've got the distances setup correctly

Did you do that manually or using Audyssey? In other words, if you took a tape measure are the distances really accurate? The reason I ask is because this last trick won't work properly if the distances aren't correct.

When integrating speakers and a subwoofer -- especially a sub/satellite combination -- there can be an issue with phase at the crossover point (using my suggestion above as an example, that would be 100Hz). One of the ways to compensate for it is to add 2 or 3 feet to the distance of the sub. For example, if it's really 12 feet from you then setting it at 14-15 feet will often smooth out the phase issue whereby it's no longer audible. In my own setup I generally add about 2 feet.
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post #3 of 4
1/3/13 at 7:52am
Thread Starter 
Jim, thanks again for your detailed insight and assistance. I am going to make those changes tonight and I can bet that it's going to improve things drastically. I just had some small comments on your suggestions, just to make sure we are on the same page:

1. Regarding "Full Band", this is what you get when you select the lowest Hz in the crossover for Center, Fronts and Surrounds. So, it goes from Full Band -> 200Hz. Next setting after Full Band is 40Hz, then up in 20Hz increments from there. I dont see a place to edit the individual "Trim Levels" so im assuming they're set to 0db which i would imagine is the default. I'll look closer into this as well

2. The reciever does say LFE Crossover, but i understand your point and will set it to 120Hz (I believe it's at 80 now). I think the 5 speakers are set to 120Hz and is probably why i'm losing alot of audio in between 80-120. Im betting this is the majority of my problem.

3. The sub actually sits next to my couch on the left (See crude MS Paint drawing of my living room layout below). This is the only spot i can place it other than to my right as the left and right of the entertainment stand are entrances (one to outside and one to kitchen). The sub is front firing and is pointing TOWARD the entertainment stand. This is probably not ideal, i realize that, but should i set it to 180 as it's not firing AT me?
4. The speaker distances were set manually based on actual distance from my head (using a tape measure). If i remember correctly, the audyssy was pretty close, but not too close. As you can see, the SUb is only a few feet away, but for some reason Audyssey set it to 15'. I'll try setting it to the actual distance + 2' and see if that yields a better result.


I'll report back with my results. Thanks again for your help Jim.


Edited by phorts - 1/3/13 at 10:13am
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post #4 of 4
1/3/13 at 11:34am
Quote:
Originally Posted by phorts View Post

1. Regarding "Full Band", this is what you get when you select the lowest Hz in the crossover for Center, Fronts and Surrounds. So, it goes from Full Band -> 200Hz. Next setting after Full Band is 40Hz, then up in 20Hz increments from there. I dont see a place to edit the individual "Trim Levels" so im assuming they're set to 0db which i would imagine is the default. I'll look closer into this as well

Trim is basically a fancy way of designating output level, and is expressed in dB. For example, if the centers output is set for +2dB then that's essentially saying you adjusted the trim +2dB. It's completely different then the crossover setting, which is designated in Hz. There has to be some place to adjust the trim manually, because that's integral in getting a HT configured properly. I wouldn't really assume they're all set at 0dB; Audyssey can definitely set those levels for something other then 0dB.

Quote:
Originally Posted by phorts View Post

The sub is front firing and is pointing TOWARD the entertainment stand. This is probably not ideal, i realize that, but should i set it to 180 as it's not firing AT me?

Oriented like that I would try 180 degrees. That's not an absolute given it's location -- so you should try the setting both ways and see which sounds best to your ears -- but 180 is where I would start.

Quote:
Originally Posted by phorts View Post

As you can see, the SUb is only a few feet away, but for some reason Audyssey set it to 15'.

Where was the mic when you ran Audyssey?
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