"Official" Audyssey thread (FAQ in post #1) - Page 1096

The two lines do operate at different signal levels, but that might be accounted for elsewhere in the circuits. Sill, I would rerun setup.

What audio comes out of the front highs? Is it the same as the fronts or the surrounds?

No, it's not the same.

http://www.audyssey.com/technology/dsx.html

Next problem. I posted on the last page about getting a "Speaker Matching Error" when Audyssey went ot the second position. I physically swapped my Fl and FR speakers to see if this would move the error and pinpoint the problem to my FL speaker or perhaps reveal a wiring problem.

Upon swapping the speakers, Audyssey successfully ran without errors. But when it was done, it had calibrated the FR speaker 10-12 dB higher than all the other speakers. (FR at ~69 dB, the rest at 57-59 dB). I ran the whole Audyssey routine twice and got identical results. Is this likely still a speaker/wiring problem, or something else?

Bp I am trying to change my front speakers after running auto set up which made the large. is it possibly to correct the Xover on my sub which was 60 Hz and make my fronts small without messing up Audyssey or is there a way to re-run Auto and make them small to begin with?

not batpig, but if you change your speakers to small, whatever crossover you select for them will be the crossover to the sub.

Are you saying the crossover on your sub itself is set to 60 Hz? If so, I think the unanimous recommendation would be to either bypass or set it as high as possible and rerun Audyssey.

Audyssey ignores all settings when it's doing its runs so there is no way to (and no need to) force the speakers to be small before you run Audyssey. Your receiver (not Audyssey) decides at what level to call speakers large, and Audyssey recommends invoking crossovers (ie change to small) after running if your AVR sets speakers to Large.

Oh, and "read the Audyssey setup guide." It answers these questions and many others.

I have recently heard a Denon 4311 with the full 11.2 setup in a good demo.

HOLY $H!T was it amazing, the effect and spaciousness was unparalleled to anything I've experienced since the TaCT system I demoed at HE2002.

The DSX heights gave new life to orchestral tracks that added a warm and strong presence I hear time and time again when my girlfriend performs her viola in her college symphony.

The wides did for movies what I've longed for so much and that take on some of the wider effects and bridges the pesky gap from the front side surround pans. Not only that but also relieved the soundtrack from just the towers and to tackle more effects and really branch out.

In a perfect way this system really brings to life the sound track of movies all across.

My ideal setup would be 9.2 or 11.2 encoded movies placing a majority of music and some dialog in the immediate front L/R + heights while utilizing the L/R Wides as surround effect channels along with sides and surround backs.

In the mean time I look forward to being to utilize my Onkyo's DSX and the wides or heights depending on which satisfies me for the independent music or movie source I am playing..

Can I use a componet video cable to VGA D-Sub to connect to a Dell PC Monitor just to run Audyssey? Would I get at least the setup menu? I own a Onkyo 885 Pre/Pro.

Attached is a before-and-after graph of my Audyssey Pro calibration on the Denon 4311. Red is Audyssey off and Green is Audyssey on. This is only with 1/12th smoothing so you can really see what is going on (most graphs use 1/3 smoothing). This is without my Behringer BFD in the mix.

I think the graph speaks for itself.

Hey guy's,

I read somewhere that the Auddessey mic is better (more accurate) than a SPL meter.

I do the Auddessey setup and then trim via SPL.
I use a Radio Shack SPL.

Should I just let the Auddessey mic do the job instead?

Ta

Dono

Yes. It is not just the mic (which may or may not be better by itself) but that the AVR has a calibration file for the mic and that the gated sweeps are a better signal than you can use with an SPLM.

Great results, Kevin.

Did you by any chance run XT32 consumerversion on the same setup?

I'm about to replace my 10+year old 5.1 Technics DX930 receiver. I'm seriously thinking of Denon 3310 (last years model) or this years 3311. I have BIC DV62 front and center speakers, and Optimus Pro 7 rear speakers, Sony 12" subwoofer.

The newer 3311 looks like it will cost about $230 more, but it will have MultEq XT, which seems to be the major advantage of the newer 3311 over the 3310.

The room is about 20 feet wide and 15 feet deep, 8 1/2 foot ceilings. It's open to the kitchen on the right, full brick fireplace on the left, carpet on the floor. Rear wall is mostly window, with curtains covering.

Just curious of your thoughts on if listener will appreciate the MultEq XT, in the newer Denon 3311 (for $230 more), over just MultEq in the older 3310?

Thanks in advance,

Jeff

You are referring to MultEQ XT vs XT32 I assume.

I haven't made a DIRECT comparison with the same component (not possible), but in my theater XT32 sounds much better. Smoother, sweeter, less strain. Not saying XT is poor, but XT32 is that little bit sweeter.

No XT32, my understanding is as I stated, MultEq XT in the newer Denon 3311 and MultEq in last years 3310.

Thanks,

Jeff

I just checked the Audyssey website, and it appears you are correct. That is very strange. Why would a 2010 upper tier receiver only have MultEQ?

I will investigate furter, but if that is the case, DEFINETLY go for the MultEQ XT!

Edit: Well, both Denon and Audyssey websites agree. In that case go XT!

Look here for a comparison of the different MultEQ versions

So you think it's worth the extra money for the XT in the newer 3311, that I should be able to hear a difference with XT, versus the older 3310 ?

Definetly. There is alot more resolution in the satellite channels and more measurement points available.

Jeff, the 3311 can be had from authorized etailers for less than 850, see this post on the 3311 thread. The 3310 was an anomaly, overpriced and under-featured in terms of SQ for the 2809 which it replaced. The 3311 is unquestionably the better value, despite its lower MSRP. MultEQXT is audibly superior. Happy hunting.

Thanks for the reply, I do have a quote from one authorized retailer for 3311, even a bit less than that. But they are unfortunately out of stock right now.

That said, even the good price on the 3311 is still some $230 or more higher than what last year's 3310 can be found for. So, it comes down to whether the audio superiority is $230 or $250 better for the room and speakers I described about 7 posts above. Gosh, this is fun.

He gave you sound (triple entendre!) advice.

I lived with the XT32 consumer version for a few weeks. While it does an admirable job, I was able to get a little flatter response on the sub and smoother transition to the mains using the Behringer BFD (a parametric EQ) and the Room EQ Wizard software.

I think I've got some measurements saved from just the consumer XT32. If I find them, I'll post them for a comparison.

However, I was never able to do better with the BFD than what I'm measuring now after the Audyssey Pro calibration, and it is a noticeable improvement when listening to both music and movies (I will admit to cranking up the sub's a few Dbs when watching movies, but the bass remains smooth, tight, and musical.

Ha' det godt.

Oh, OK, so you've already found great pricing on both. Yeah, that's a tough question. If those BIC DV62 are the amazingly-good-for-the-price but nonetheless inexpensive bookshelf speakers described here, then it does raise a doubt as to best bang for your HT buck. As a general guideline, one generally looks to match the speakers MSRP @1.5-2X the MSRP of the AVR. So you might well head over to the Denon 3310 or 11 thread and ask for AVR model recommendations, batpig & jdsmoothie are experts in this. Depending on features you are interested in, you might even opt for MultEQ in a 1910, and get very similar SQ to the 3310 in your system for even more savings. Then savings can later be put towards later upgrades starting with the speakers. In any case I predict you will be very pleased with the SQ of any of the Denon models under discussion.

Gary J made a funny.

Actually, I've tried looking up and down the Denon line.

At Amazon at least, the 1910, 2310, and 3310 are all within $50 of each other. Probably because the 3310 is so heavily discounted there.

So, it looked like a no brainer to get the 3310. But there are advantages of the newer 3311. but then, I started wondering if my room (solid brick fireplace on left side, lots of glass on back, and open to kitchen on the right side) and speakers might benefit from the extra cost 3311 with MultEq XT.

Thanks for the info

I have a large cathedral ceiling family room with lots of uncovered windows. Yeah, it's "lively". I did A/B tests of the Denon AVR789 (MultEQ) vs 988 (MultEQXT) with my Polk Rt800i towers (MSRP $1200/pr) and heard significant improvements with XT. The caveat is that the 988 had several areas of better build quality (better DAC's, AL-24, etc) over the 789 in addition to the XT, which is not so much in your case of 3310/11. What I'm trying to get across is that for a critical listener with "good" speakers, the benefit would more likely be there to justify the cost. In your case, I would say the limiting factor is your current speakers.

If I may ask, I'm wondering how does the whole pro kit hook up and take measurements. My equipment is directly below the room in the basement so I have to run mic extension cable just to take regular sweeps.

What is all involved with hooking up the cables to the preamp...?
I assume a laptop is also involved...?

Any help on this would be very helpful so I know how to approach this.
Thanks

You need to hook up the mic in the room to the mic preamp and then the output of the mic preamp needs to get to the input of the AVR. You also have to connect your laptop to the AVR via the supplied USB to Serial cable (Denon) or via Ethernet (Integra).

Thanks Chris....

How about the Marantz AV7005.... Audyssey XT (Ethernet or Serial)

Also

How does the mic hook up to the preamp and then preamp to AVR... (what type of cables?)

Marantz is Serial. Mic connections are mini-XLR cables (included) and there is an RCA adaptor (included) to connect the mic to the AVR aux in.