Anthem D2/D2v/AVM50/AVM50v/ARC1 tweaking guide - Page 1236

What are you looking for beyond just BD video performance. Are you into net streaming of audio/video files? Then get the 93. Do you cate for excellent analog audio? Then get the 95 ($999), which has the exact video performance and other features as the 93, with the exception of a specialized analgo audio with extra stereo outputs via XLR and RCA outputs.

Do you care for excellent and responsive customer support? Prompt FW releases to add features and fix bugs? Do you want a player that has virtually won praises and accolades friom all major and minor audio/video establishments? The pluses for the 93/95 are simply too many to list ... My 95 works superb with my D2v...

It would be of benefit if:

-If you have (or plan to get) a 3D display, since you can run hdmi1 from the oppo93 to display and hdmi2 from the oppo to D2 for audio.
-If you want to stream movies
-if you want to play movies or music off a computer
-if you play SACD's or DVD-A music
-if you want to buy from a company that stands behind its product with exceptional customer and tech service

I hope I don't sound like too much of a fanboy, but there's a reason many of the contributors on this thread use an Oppo. Well worth the price IMHO.

Tom

Actually I only intend to play Blu-ray discs in this HT system. No 3D. I don't care for the quality and service of Netflix streaming. I subsribe to them for discs only. I don't intend on streaming music either. I just wanted to know if the Oppo-93will give me better video quality than a sub-$150 BD player when used with the D2. I do desire good build quality from the BD player though.

There are plenty of inexpensive Blu-ray players that deliver an accurate image from Blu-ray discs that cost less than the Oppo. Build quality is reflective of their price, but if image from BD discs is all you care about, you can find the same performance as the Oppo for a lot less money. Typically I recommend the Panasonic players to those looking for just solid Blu-ray playback without the bells and whistles and at low prices.

Yes Kris. That's exactly right. Image quality is my only concern, and also something that wont rattle and fall apart within a year. Any particular models of the Panasonic that you recommend?

If thats all you want it for then, like Kris said, Panasonic is fine. Sony is also good. Ther may be others as well. There isn't much needed to get 1080p to 1080p with BR.
If you have dvd's also, the D2 will handle converting 480i to 1080p extremely well. The D2 has an excellent video section, as you'll find out soon.
I don't know what components you are replacing with the anthem, but chances are you will notice an improvement in audio quality also. But I'm a D2 fanboy, too.


Tom

I'm replacing a lower tier Onkyo TX-NR606 and cheap satellites. Definitely will notice an improvement

Never had the space at my old house. The basement in the home I just purchased happens to have a perfectly rectangular room ideal for sound. Just need to do some budget acoustic treatments and run the ARC. I will also have a completely seperate 2-channel system in the room (Bryston BP-25DA pre, 4B-SST amp, and pair of Dynaudio Focus 220MKII's). I have over 600GB of FLAC files to keep me occupied incase I get sick of the screen.

Tom. I have a few hundred DVD's now that you mention it so that's cool that the improvement is there with the D2.

So I moved into a new house, and have set up a projector screen setup with a new JVC projector. We are running a Key Digital cat6 balun about 75 feet, and I am having no problems with 1080p24, 1080i60, or 1080p50. (not that I use 1080p50 but I thought I would try it out.) With 1080p60 I get the green speckles. We tried swapping out HDMI cables to no avail. Also we tried plugging the 1080p60 sources (a Verizon Fios box and an Xbox 360 Kinect) directly into the balun and the speckles disappeared. This is making my installer think it is an Anthem issue. I tried reflashing the 2.11 firmware, without change. Is there anything else to try? Is this a bad HDMI board that will require sending the D2V back to Canada, or are there things Anthem support can do short of seeing the unit back at the factory?

Ask Anthem for the beta version 2.14d. That may help.
John

I have it and could try it, I am not using 3D however.

It does fix some hdmi issues so try it. 3D is not a requirement for that version.
John

How does the D2 perform with a cable box overall? Any switching issues?

Can someone please explaine to me what graph/targetcurve ARC (sub Cut off) showing to me?
Is it only the LFE ?
Is it LFE and sub(redirectet bas)?

I having a hard time to find out what Cut off is the right choise for my setup. Mains and surround x - over is 80hz.

For sub Cut off i have tryed 80hz and 120hz . When i set it to 80hz i some movies there i a loss of energi. If i set it to 120hz sometimes it seames to be to much bass - especialy when it is Dolby digital. But also in bd movies

75 feet is very long. You could try to move your D2 closer (for testing) to your projector and use a standard 6ft cable and also try your player directly into the projector. This should tell you right away if it is the cable, the D2, the projector or the player.

Possibly, possibly not.
My Dish dvr works fine using hdmi. Others here have had problems with some cable boxes using hdmi.
If you do have problems with switching using hdmi you can use component for video and coax or optical for audio. More cables, but more stable. Component/coax combo will handle 1080i and DD 5.1, which is usually the maximum quality that cable offers. The D2 will upscale to 1080p from component in to hdmi out with no problem.
You can also ask Anthem tech for the password to their beta downloads on their password protected website. There are beta firmwares for the D2, and many, including myself, have had much more stable switching using 1.47f firmware. Many are happy using 1.33. Both are stable firmwares, but 1.47f has made my hdmi switching quicker and more stable. YMMV.

Tom

EDIT--Let us know which cable box/provider you are using. If anyone here has had experience with that box they may be able to offer more accurate info.

Thanks Tom. I plan on using a Comcast HD Box.

Component works BEST with all DVR boxes.

TiVo works great with my D2 as does Sony DVRs.

^ Comcast uses several different vintages of hardware for their boxes, so it depends a bit on your luck of the draw when they hand you a box. But I use HDMI for video from my Comcast HD/DVR into my D2v, and there are no problems. I would expect the situation with the D2 to be similar. (Some of the older Comcast HD hardware has known bugs -- i.e., the image they put out on the HDMI cable is just plain wrong, not even considering handshaking stuff. Use Component video from such boxes, i.e., if you spot a problem like that. Or go badger your Comcast office to give you a less broken model of box.)

I use "native" resolution from the Comcast box, which means the HDMI re-handshakes as the program content changes for 480i, 720p, and 1080i stations. This gets you the best looking video. But if HDMI handshakes bother you, you can tell the Comcast to always put out 1080i (and thus do the upscaling itself).

Or you can use Component video from the Comcast box and avoid HDMI altogether.

I use Optical Digital audio from the Comcast box simply because Comcast likes to do a 2-step HDMI handshake where they first do video and then do video plus audio. This means the audio doesn't start up until a couple seconds after the video. Using Optical for audio (which gets you exactly the same quality of audio given the type of programming Comcast puts on the cable), you typically end up with audio starting before the new video locks in, which I like better.
--Bob

I have a Verizon FIOS DVR Cable Box, and I am using HDMI from the Cable Box to my D2, and I don't have any switching problems at all. Picture and sound are fantastic.

Why don't you post your 3 sets of charts?

1) The charts and Targets showing what ARC picked for you (no modifications at all for ANY values in Targets).

2) The charts and Targets showing your modified 80Hz configuration.

3) The charts and Targets showing your modified 120Hz configuration.

It sounds like you are forcing ARC into doing its best to try to do something your speakers can not do. That's why (1) is important to see as well.

The Sub Calculated curve shows the expected sub response for different frequencies (regardless of source). For LFE, the content goes up to about 120Hz and so the sub response up to that is important. For STEERED bass, if you are not steering high frequency bass to the sub, then its response up there is irrelevant. What's important is the Sub response from the crossover frequency of you OTHER speakers and below.

Now you also have to deal with the fact that some source content is just not mixed all that well. For example, they may have built in an artificial bass emphasis thinking that many listeners wouldn't have good bass response. So you have to decide what your standard is here when validating the ARC results. It can't possibly make ALL content sound good. Crappy recordings are still going to sound bad. In fact they may sound worse as the mistakes in recording or application of compression or whatever become MORE noticeable.
--Bob

I had a few issues with my Moxi DVR but as said before, i set the DVR to output al content at 1080i for minimal problems and optical for audio. OTA, you could also try Component into the D2v and then HDMI out to your TV.

The video quality is identical, imo, as i couldn't tell the difference between the converted and un-converted video. This speaks very well to the D2's(v) Video ADC's. You get a pristine picture either way with no audio dropouts.

okay Bob.
this is what ARC come up whit.
the dips i have in the 100hz region, is my settings. i have a very small rum (3 x 4.5meters) and it is heavely treaded. But small rooms have issues.
so i can not relocate my subs and mains - there ar behind at screenwall.
i think thise settings arc come up whit sound to laidback and soft.

and this is my modefied 80hz Sub cut off

and last , my 120hz sub cut off.

my speakers are M&K mp 2510 aktive as front ( same as s150 pasive) - surrounds are M&K s150t.
and sub is two M&K mx350MK II - there are known for there good respons over 50hz.

That of course was the reason I went with the cat6 balun rather than HDMI. The wire goes out the side of the house, up and into a closet in the second story, and down into the ceiling where the projector is mounted. As I said, I would be willing to chalk it up to the balun except that running a 1080p60 source directly through the balun without the Anthem works with no problems.

p.las,
Well I'm not surprised you have weak bass in the all 80Hz configuration. The reason ARC has set the 140Hz crossover to begin with is the deep dip in LF and also in C, with a lesser problem in RF.

Those are really nasty.

In the all 80Hz configuration you are severely under-corrected in C and also in LF in just the critical frequencies for bass impact. ARC won't push more than 6dB boost to a speaker to protect the amp and the speaker itself if that energy is just being consumed by, say, a room cancellation null.

C in particular is a problem because in many mixes the Center channel carries the brunt of critical bass -- the bass that the mixer wants people to be able to hear even if they have no subwoofer and thus won't hear LFE.

And of course the sub can't help because you've rolled it off starting from below the problem area.

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

In your 120Hz configuration you are STILL severely under-corrected in C and LF, although slightly less because you've also lowered the Room Gain.

What you need to understand is that proper bass output means that BOTH the main speaker and the subwoofer have to do their job at a given frequency. Since C and LF can't meet their assigned Target output through those frequencies the resulting solution has a hole. I.e., the sub isn't filling in enough. If ARC boosted the sub output to fill in for those two, it would be incorrect both for LFE and also for the other speakers.

Now, you say that with some discs you feel you are getting too much bass in the 120Hz configuration. I suspect that might be due to you not being used to what LFE sounds like when a sub is set to reproduce the high end of LFE. I.e., you are hearing real LFE in those tracks that you had not heard before. You might not LIKE that mix, but it is "real". In the 80Hz configuration you lose the top end of LFE output so you don't hear it.

But it's still not right even with the sub back up at 120Hz, because LF and C in particular can't contribute what they are supposed to contribute when forced to use an 80Hz crossover.

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The bottom line here is that you really need to address the cause of those deep dips in Center and LF (and to a lesser extent in RF) either side of 100Hz.

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ETA: In the original 140/120Hz configuration that ARC chose, I would expect problems with dialog being directed from C to the Sub, but it should not sound laid back or soft unless your sub is underperforming. I.e., the sub is being asked to carry a lot of the burden here and if it is "loud but not accurate" for example (a rather common style of sub design), that could be problem in bass region attacks.

Another thing that would be *VITAL* to the configuration ARC chose is that you make sure your Sub is set correctly for Phase and Polarity. If you are getting cancellation between the Sub and the fronts for example because the Sub is out of Phase than the results will be a mess because the sub is carrying the load so high up in frequency. "Soft" would certainly be the result, and "laid back" might even apply.

If you only have one Sub, you can correct its Phase and Polarity without having to re-Measure for ARC.

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ETA 2: If you take a look at the 140/120Hz configuration you can see what ARC did. ARC realized that LF and C in particular could not be made to work through the dip region. It would take too much boost. But the Sub *COULD* be set to carry the entire load through there.

And so ARC set the high crossover for LF and C to ask them to do only what they were capable of doing given your room problem, and that meant the Sub would carry basically all of the bass for them. But ARC also had to push up the crossover for the other speakers as well to get a solution. I.e., it apparently couldn't BOTH blend bass for them and take over bass for LF and C. So it took over bass for EVERYTHING. This could be due to resource constraints or to the difficulty of doing room correction for the other speakers if they were allowed to reproduce bass themselves.
--Bob

p.las, the dip at 100Hz sets your mains to cross at higher higher frequencies which, i believe, sets the sub to cross higher to cover the low end defiencies of the mains. Since you can't move the mains or my speaker, have you tried to remove some of the roome treatments around the mains and see if it imroves the huge dip at 100hz?

I tried installing 2.14d and it failed twice. Going to try and reinstall 2.11 now

EDIT: now won't reinstall 2.11. Guess I am calling Anthem support tomorrow...

I thought that might happen since 2.14d seems to install ok. Reboot the computer, check the USB/serial adapter is secure. It should work. Reboot the Anthem by unplugging it. Leave off for 5 min.
John

i can not move the treatments. they are built in to the walls. i am just so unlucky that my primary seat have a null.
when i quick meassure, i can clearly see the dips. but if i move the mic one ore two feed to the left/right ore forward, the dips dessepear.
in the frontend off the room, i have 100mm arbsorbent. in the back of the room i got diffuseres. bastraps in the podie. And slam arbsorbent on the sidewalls. All hidden by panels.
from what i can see - the distance from seating to sidewalls and backwall is the same. but i only have 10feed to my screenwall, so i can not move the seats forward - damn