"Official" Audyssey thread (FAQ in post #1) - Page 987

The recent entries in this thread are of great interest to me. I just replaced my old SW with a new Rythmik F12SE and as a result, I reran Audyssey on my Denon 4310.

In summary, at 0dB, the overall volume levels are CONSIDERABLY lower, in real world use (BD/CD/etc.) than they were prior to this. I do not have an SPL meter handy,I loaned it out and it was not returned But... make no mistake - the overall volume level is much lower than immediately before performing this calibration. Even my wife noticed it, when we reran WOTW and Iron Man reference scenes.

The SW is kicking it up very well, but the mains/center/surrounds are annoyingly low in volume at 0dB.

I did run the SW cal portion of Auto, before calibrations and dialed the SW to 75dB.

My values are:

FL -4.0
FR -4.5
C -6.0
SW -0.5
SAL -6.5
SAR -5.5

Distance
FL 11.5'
FR 11.1'
C 10.4'
SW 10.4'
SAL 8.2'
SAR 7.3'
(these appear just about perfect)

Xover
Front 40Hz (I bumped to 60)
Center 90Hz
SAL/SAR 100Hz

I am *not* a newbie at this, I've owned several Denon AVR's with MEQ/XT and I have performed many Audyssey runs. I am fluent with the Audyssey use guide (outstanding document, BTW).

That's what is extremely puzzling to me. I am very confident that my measurement technique was correct. Mic placement was in just about the exact same 8 places as in all prior calibrations. Room was dead quiet (2AM).

What am I missing? I suppose I could get my SPL meter back and adjust the trims manually to 75dB - but, that's not the point.

All advice/help appreciated.

I did only take 3 measurements (1,2 and 3 exactly (except back at ear distance) as in your diagram). So I need to take at least 8 (or all 12) for it to be accurate? This could be my problem because I was only concerned with each head seating position (I have 3 recliners).

Also are 1,2 and 3 at ear position or forward? The diagram show the mic in the center of the chair while my ears would be back a 1' or 2' (when reclined) from the indicated position.

Is Dynamic Volume turned on? If so, it is most likely reducing the volume during loud scenes as that is what it is designed to do (for late night viewing). If you don't want that, then make sure you have MultEQ and Dynamic EQ on, but Dynamic Volume off.

Yes, you need to take all the measurements that your system allows. MultEQ XT allows 8 and you should take all 8. To do more than 8 you need to have MultEQ Pro software and a MultEQ Pro enabled device. All measurements should be at ear height. Try to recline the seats so that there is no flat surface close to the mic.

Chris,

DV is "off" - never use it. But, I thought that as you approached reference level, as with DEQ, the effect of DV diminishes - to nothing at reference?

Any other thoughts? Thanks for taking a look!

Hmm.. Are the trim values comparable to past values? Hard to nail this down without knowing the actual SPL.

Actually, yes they are... they are +/- 1dB of what was stored previously.

I'm guessing overall SPL is down around 5-6dB, but couldn't verify that 100%

Hello. I have an Onkyo 876. My SW (cheapo) recommends setting the LFE Level for dolby in my AVR to -10db. Should I do this before/after running Audyssey or even at all since I am running the Audyssey setup program for my AVR? I do not believe my SW manufacturer (Sony) even contemplated the use of Audyssey in my SW setup!

Thanks,
Bob.

Hi Bob,
You should do that after as all internal AVR settings are ignored when you run Audyssey.

Thanks Chris. Appreciate your assistance.
Bob

Hi Chris,

Thanks for your and other members assistance. Seems at the moment there is no way for the dream to come true. Will do as Sound suggested: enjoy what we have.

You need to get your SPL meter back. There is no substitute for real measurements when trying to fix a problem like this.

I just got a new external amp and decided to re-run Audyssey.

Sometimes the first measurement is reporting a Front L phase problem, and sometimes a Front R. One time it reported a Front L/R.

I am 100% positive the wiring is correct. I checked it about 5 times.

Any idea what could cause this? I would think if something was mis-wired in the amp, the problem wouldn't flip-flop between L and R.

I knew I read the two feet separation somewhere and here at least one occurrence of it is.

Jeff

Read your manual. Read the Audyssey set up guide. Both clearly state that once you check wiring, you can ignore the warning. Lots of things can cause it. Some speakers are intentionally wired out of phase to get the correct balance on-zxis, reflections can cause it . . . .

I retrieved my trusty meter. Glad I checked for a battery before heading home I had to stop and buy one

So, running the test tones shows levels at 70dB (avg). A good 5dB down from reference. I cranked them up so they all read 75 and now BD's sound like they did before - volume wise.

Weird.

I decided to rerun Audyssey. I reset defaults and cleared out the adjustments, that I made. Then I fired up the setup.

New values are:

FL -4.5
FR -4.0
C -5.5
SW -0.5
SAL -7.5
SAR -7.0

(pretty close to the last run)

Everything else was nominally the same.

After this run, everything seems fine. Volume levels for BD are good. Test tones measured with meter are all at 75dB.

Very strange. Very strange indeed. I have no ideas?!?!?!?!

Hi guys,

Well I got to the bottom of the issues I've been having with my NAD T-175 (with upgraded module cards) and it had a faulty Audio card so that was replaced. Also NAD released new firmware 1.28 and Audyssey also have released new Pro software 3.3 as I'm sure some of you already know, but I do have a question:

If I've calibrated using Audyssey XT on the NAD using the bypass cable for the EQ unit then calibrating the sub afterwards as normal, if I reset the NAD back to factory settings (it's recommended after any firmware update) is it ok to perform an Audyssey Pro calibration without having to do a XT one? I'm confidant that Audyssey Pro wont override the EQ units measurements but just wanted to ask that question to be 100% sure, as you cant use the bypass cable when performing the Pro cal like you can with XT. So Audyssey Pro should pickup the EQ unit and just bypass it and not apply any eq to the sub?

I've heard the puck mic is not as accurate as the new tower style mic. Have not heard anything about it being fault prone though.

The tower style mic is used by Onkyo from the xx6 series onwards.

In my case the seat back cannot be reclined, but they are the lower type so ear level is maybe 5" above the seat. I normally place the Audyssey mic right up against the seat with the tip about 5" above the seat.

Is this ok? Or should I move the mic forward a little so that it is not right up against the seat.

I think that what you are doing is fine.

I know it is just a warning. But nothing in my system has changed besides the external amp. Speakers are the same. Speakers are in the same positions. Room layout is the same. Only difference is the external amp. So, I found that add that I would all the sudden start getting phase warnings.

Thanks for the clarification. I'm glad for your input as I try to expand my knowledge base a bit.

Hi Simon,
Good to hear the issue was resolved. You are correct: running MultEQ Pro on the NAD will have no effect on the Sub EQ calibration. The two processors have no way of communicating.

Thank you for that. So even though the tone will come out of the sub during the cal it won't apply any EQ? Well I wont say the issues are resolved until I've performed the Pro cal and see what happens. I've had a buzzing sound coming from the rear right surround speaker whenever I engage Dynamic EQ and listen to a True-HD track. Only happens with that turned on, doesn't happen on DTS-HD Master audio. When I turn off Dynamic EQ the buzzing is completely gone so I'm really hoping version 3.3 of the Pro software has resolved this issue for me.

Can someone please help me out on a question regardng SW settings. I just installed my new Onkyo TX-SR 608 AVR and I ran Audyssey. I am getting booming through the SW. The Audyssey setup guide prepared by giomania suggest that the Low Pass Filter (LPF) should either be turned off completely or set to the highest frequency allowed.

My SW does not allow this feature to be disable, alternatively my choices are from 40-150 Hz. Not being so knowledgable in this area, is 40 Hz the highest or is 150 Hz the highest? Any help would be appreciated.

Also, once this change is made do I need to re-run Audyssey on the Onkyo?

Best Regards,
Larry

Hi Simon,

The buzzing has nothing to do with software. Furthermore, version 3.3 is for MultEQ Pro and has nothing to do with Dynamic EQ. There are no "fixes" or "updates" other than covering the new products that are coming out. So, it will make no difference for your product.

It is most likely due to a grounding issue. The reason you hear it louder with Dynamic EQ is that it raises the surround volume. Try turning off Dynamic EQ and then turn up the master volume. I'm pretty sure the buzzing will be there...

Hi Larry,
You should set the frequency knob on your sub to 150 Hz and leave it there always. After that, run Audyssey again. What level is Audyssey reporting for the sub?

Sorry but it's not there at any volume when Dynamic EQ is turned off. What I'm thinking is as I mentioned earlier the NAD had a faulty AM-200 audio card and that's been replaced and I haven't performed a Pro cal yet as I was waiting for NAD to release their new firmware being 1.28 which I only received 2 days ago.

So hopefully that's all it was and thank for clarifying that 3.3 doesn't offer any new to the table other than support for new models.

Hi everybody!

I have just got an Onkyo TX-SR876 and are now runningt Audyssey. I have an Velodyne CHT-10R sub and I am a little bit confused.

When I run the setup with my sub set on default (volume 35/100), Audyssey givs me a -15. Now I have lowered the volume and the value is -6.5dB, but the test signal is very low ( my guess is that I have to crank it up when watching movies)

The rest of the speakers are showing:
LF: -3.5
C: -4.0
RF: -3.5
LB -3.0
RB: -3.0

I´m confused and a newbie, but I thought the tolerance was +-3dB. How can I manage that with my speakers? And why is the sub so low?

Ok, I can admit that I have a 3+2 couch, the 3 is set at the back wall and the sub next to it with the 2 couch in front (L-shape) But still, any suggestions?

Hi...just my observation for anyone that is setting up Audyssey. It made a world of difference in the sound quality once I ran the setup w/ a "MIC" stand-the mic remained at one height for all measurments!! Before, I was only roughly locating the mic at the same heights (eye balling) and once I set the mic in a mic stand on a boom, it really made a difference in the sound-all the measurements seemed to come out balanced and even with all speakers. And, it was so much easier doing the measurements w/the stand.

Bob