Anthem D2/D2v/AVM50/AVM50v/ARC1 tweaking guide - Page 508

1) Mic position #1 should be on the center axis from your screen at the distance of your primary listening position. Subsequent mic positions should alternate to either side of center. Like this:

#4 -- #2 -- #1 -- #3 -- #5

Each position should be at least 24 inches apart from all the other positions.

2) ARC is much more sensitive to the mic height than to its horizontal position so long as the guidance in (1) above is followed. I would think you would be fine if the mic was in front of your ear position at a given location by as much as the length of the chair seat itself for example. ARC is picking up room modes which are audio response characteristics in the room that have pretty significant size. The vertical positioning is critical because many speakers don't have particular good vertical spread in the mid-range and treble.

3) Step away from the mic by a few feet at least. Try not to stand between any speaker and the mic. A wireless mouse makes it easier to start the Measurement without being right next to the computer (which will usually be set up between the screen and the mic positions). You don't need to leave the room.

4) If you look in Setup / Speaker Configuration you'll see that you can set up a separate Music configuration from the normal Cinema (or Movie) configuration. If you do that, then for each source definition (Setup / Source Setup) you must select whether the Movie or Music configuration will be used for bass management -- really for all the various aspects of speaker management, including bass steering. This is for manual setup.

When you run ARC the ARC application asks you to specify which speakers will be used and gives you the option of setting a separate Music configuration. The ARC Upload then replaces your current Setup / Speaker Configuration with what you tell ARC to use (along with details ARC calculates such as appropriate cross overs). But if you set up a separate Movie and Music configuration you still have to decide on your own which one should be used for each Source definition. By default, all sources will use the Movie configuration.

5) Whether you need to re-Measure depends on what has changed in the new ARC version. In some cases all you will need to do is re-Calculate and re-Upload starting from your most recent set of Measurements. In general, however, if Anthem doesn't specify that you can just re-Calculate and re-Upload you should plan on having to do a fresh set of Measurements.
--Bob

After some more listening to ARC V1.2.5 I believe it sounds *EVEN BETTER* in the bass than my prior, ARC V1.2.2 setup.

I don't know if this is due to the particulars of how I did this new Measurement or if the bug fix in ARC V1.2.5 actually improves ARC processing even in cases where the bug is not so bad as to be heard as a "bass earthquake".

I think it would be good to hear from others upgrading from ARC V1.2.2 to ARC V1.2.5 to see if there is something significant going on here that might make it even more important for V1.2.2 users to upgrade and re-Measure.
--Bob

1,Centerline is position1 or your sweet spot. This is where the ARC will determine the GAIN for each speaker relative to this position. From this position, mic placement 2 and 3 should be no less than 24 inches from the centerline.Therefore if you measure position 2 on the left of the centerline, the next position will be on the right alternately. For position 4 and 5, just follow the same procedure with symetry in mind.

2, It's not cleat where it should be, but some suggest a foot from the back of the seat. I place a piece of towel where my head is so as to control near field reflections. I experiement from 6 inch to 1 ft.

3 No, just be far enough that the direct sound coming from the active speaker. Nothing should be in between the mic and the speaker being measured.

4.This should be automatic with the NEWER version of ARC. It verifies the upload process and updates the Bass management accordingly.

5. Yes and no. It really depends on the instructions that accompanies each update.

Now that many are using the ARC.. what do most of you think about the auto Crossover points?


or..

Do most of you agree to set the Crossover to 80hz(the way movies were mixed I beleive) for all speakers, then re-calculate with those?

Thanx much to all..

I find the cross over values selected by ARC work exceedingly well in my setup.

Keep in mind that the effective cross over is a combination of both the actual filter settings themselves and also the action of the room correction parameters.

It looks to me like ARC favors an overlap of cross overs which means the audio will generally be hot in the transition region. This means that most of the work of the room correction stuff can be done by reducing peaks instead of having to boost dips (which is harder).
--Bob

In my case, I have experimented with 80 hertz as my crossover point for movies and 90 high pass and 70 low pass for music. Its because I want my main speakers not to have freq. that are better reproduced by the subs. My crossover points are at 40 main 40 center, 65 rear and surrounds via ARC

I have never tried tweaking the crossover points but I do agree with Bob. ARC does for me an astonishing work.
Yesterday I saw Batman Begins, and in one scene there is this rumble of very low bass sound wave coming from far on the screen towards me. I just ducked. It was so overwhelming, so believable. G** they did a good job!

When you tried this in Setup / Speaker Calibration, did you have the test tones actually turned on (test mode Manual in the first line instead of OFF)? I had the test tones on when I got this loud buzz. And have you already done an ARC V1.2.5 Upload? I've not had this buzz happen prior to doing a V1.2.5 Upload.

I too hear the much quieter, single, dull thump when moving in or out of either of the two subwoofer lines, but I only hear that if the test tones are OFF as otherwise the test tone itself is loud enough to conceal it. The thump has been happening for quite a while, so it's not related to ARC V1.2.5, in fact I don't think it's related to ARC at all.
--Bob

How did the experiment turn out? Could you hear a difference? Which was better?
--Bob

AVM ARC USERS: Remember to re-install V1.33!

Since we are getting some new ARC Upgrade for AVM-40/AVM-50 readers at this point, I want to mention again one detail that might easily be overlooked by your dealer:

After the dual DSP hardware change is made in your AVM unit (dealer installable) you must then do a V1.33 firmware install -- EVEN IF YOU ALREADY HAVE V1.33 INSTALLED!

The new V1.33 install is necessary for the firmware to see and activate the second DSP.

-------------------------------------------------

And if your dealer has received ARC upgrades for more than one customer, make sure he hands you the upgrade kit that matches the serial number of your Anthem. The licensing & calibration files included in each upgrade kit are keyed to a specific serial number and will only work on that one Anthem unit.

And if your dealer has opened the ARC upgrade box out of curiosity or whatever, make sure he hasn't mixed up the calibrated microphone with the one from another kit. The microphone also has a serial number. The ARC install CD has a label on it that identifies the Anthem processor serial number and the microphone serial number that need to be paired together for everything to work correctly.
--Bob

Hey Bob!

I posted earlier but thought I would just add to your comments that I do feel there is definite improvement in 1.2.5, especially in the bass response.
I initially reloaded my 1.2.2 measurements with 1.2.5 and thought is was good but after a re-measurement with 1.2.5 I feel it is better.
Of course it could be just "delusional with happiness" on my part but so be it!
That coupled with the new MOFI "Dead Can Dance" SACD remasters that have been playing non-stop all weekend!

/\\/\\

That's good to hear. One of the reasons I did this re-Measurement was to capture any variation now that my new subwoofer amp has had a chance to break in. So that too may be part of it.

The V1.2.5 charts don't show any differences in the bass that would explain what I'm hearing, but of course the frequency response curves won't show everything.

I'm still not sure it is V1.2.5 itself that has made for the improvement, but I'm quite certain now that what I'm hearing with this latest V1.2.5 setup is better in the bass and low mid-range than what I had with my prior V1.2.2 setup. I haven't detected any change in higher frequencies yet.
--Bob

I watched Ratatouille after I'd gotten ARC set up, and near the beginning, there is lightning and thunder. Both my wife and I JUMPED when the thunder happened! Unbelievable fidelity.

I see a possible side-thread: "Most dramatic moments when listening to ARC'd system."

Bangs are fun, but in my case it was when there was a knock at the door to my listening room (behind and to the left) and I got up to open it before realizing it was actually sound from the movie I was listening to.

After realizing that, it also dawned on me that the knock sound effect was precisely positioned in the surround sound field, just where it should have been for that scene of the movie, and had perfect "room ambience" for the size of the room in that scene.

Cool!

On the whole I've been equally impressed with LFE integration (bangs and such) and improvements in the surround "sound field". But the additional clarity and transparency of music ARC has brought to the setup is the thing that really knocks my socks off. I REALLY like what it has done for percussion instruments.
--Bob

Thanx all for the input about the crossovers...

Just one question.. If the arc makes the crossover for the sub high (over 80hz), does anyone find that the sub is more directional??


Without the ARC, and just doing the crossover the old fashion way, the sub was more directonal when crossover was over 80hz..


Thanx again..

That's an excellent question. In my case ARC sets the sub crossover at 120Hz. I worried about directionality because I had previously rejected a crossover above 110Hz when doing my manual setup using the Velodyne sub's built-in bass EQ system -- because it sounded too directional.

But whatever ARC is doing under the hood is working brilliantly in my setup. There is no directionality from the subwoofer -- even when it is pushing enough air that I can see the cloth moving. When you have combined sounds, higher frequencies that should be directional from a main speaker and lower frequencies happening at the same time (which are steered to the subwoofer), the only directionality is what should be there -- i.e., to that main speaker.
--Bob

What about the sewer scene as he goes under the water. I checked for leaks in the theatre after that one

Mine is at 120Hz and it is a Servo 15, 1500 W. It sounds more integrated than before and less noticeable not more For music it is now much better and I am using it where before I never used the sub.
John

Correct me if I am wrong but, usually, the LP setting for the sub relates to the LFE source only as the bandwidth for the signals from the other channels is determined by the crossover settings for those channels.

Thanx.. I have the Servo aswell, and was worried about this..


Do you find that if the crossover for any of the main 5/7 speakers are set lower than 80hz, they will working too hard on bass? Again, with ARC not on, and any speaker set to below 80hz, the woofers in those speakers seem to be working harder...


Maybe the ARC is not allowing this extra stress?


Thanx again..

My sub is placed behind and to one side of the central listening position. ARC has set its xover at 120Hz. And, YES, I do find it is more directional than I like - i.e. I can tell that the low sound effects are coming from it and not simply from every corner of the room as it should be.
-Ben

Which version of ARC and which version of D2 firmware are you using?
--Bob

I can't answer this one, in my case ARC has my LF/RF crossover at 80Hz and my Center and Surrounds at 90Hz.
--Bob

Yes, that's true, but in real sound tracks, stuff in the LFE usually happens at the same time as stuff is happening in the main channels. You want any directionality to be limited to the main channels. ARC manages to do that quite well in my setup even with the 120Hz sub crossover. Don't ask me how....


--Bob

Yeah. I know. ARC sets my Servo-15 to 100Hz and, although it is in the rear left of the room (not in the corner), it is remarkably unlocalizable.

D2 v1.33 and ARC 1.2.5. I should also mention that Fronts were set to 40Hz, Center 85Hz and Surrounds 45Hz.

Would you mind posting your ARC V1.2.5 charts from the Measurement where the 120Hz subwoofer crossover (chosen by ARC) made the sub too localizeable? Or if you've already posted them, just a link to that post? I'd like to see if there's anything odd in the charts that might explain why your case is different.

Also, double check that the Setup / Speaker Calibration levels uploaded by ARC all make sense, and haven't been altered since that upload. And while you are in there, double check that Room EQ is ON for the source you are using that produces too much localizeable output from the sub, i.e., that ARC's processing is actually turned on.
--Bob

ARC is setting my sub crossover at 120 hz, and my subs do NOT sound more directional to me. However, I have dual subs set up in the front of my room, and located them carefully in my initial setup. When I had one sub, no matter what my crossover setting, it was localizable to me.

I have 4 DIY subs accross the frontstage with a Biamp 34 band PEQ. When I do 5 mic measurements, my crossover is at 75 , when 7 positions are measured 120 is my sub frequency. I know that my 4 subs can push air much more efficiently than my 7 speakers therefore I adjusted the crossover points of all my speakers to 80. FR and LR are at 40 making them almost fullrange, even the center is at 45 and the surrounds at 65. I figured that having a high pass of 80 is better for my speakers as it will cut low frequency resonance from the woofers that would greatly help my midrange as well as speaker dynamics. Setting the crossovers are still determined by ARC at what freq. slopes to use (shallow or steep). The calculated response is after these settings anyway, therefore I would assume that the target or desired response would still be the same.

I think I like my adjusted settings better for my configuration. From the LF and RF graphs, I have a dip at 63 that are not fully remedied by the ARC. My front crossovers are at 40. Increasing the value to 80 made the calculated curve on track with the target curve for all of the speakers in the system.

I think the advance mode is great for further fine tuning ARC.