Setting Up Your Home Theater 101 - Page 6

There are different schools of thought on this, but the usual recommendation (e.g. THX) is for surrounds to be two feet or higher above the listener, while the mains should be at ear level.

Not at all. For many, an ideal system would use identical speakers all around. That's especially true for multichannel music, which is mastered with that assumption. It's just not practical for most people for cost or room decor reasons.

Of course, for movies some prefer (and THX recommends) dipole surrounds, which are not ideal as mains. In any case, most home theaters can get excellent effects with lesser surround speakers, dipole or not, but that doesn't make them preferable, only a workable solution.

Hi all,
I watched "UP" the other night on Blu-Ray. Before watching the movie I ran the "Opimizer" included on the Blu-Ray disk using Sound Pressure Meter mounted on a tripod.

First thing I noticed was the channel levels were totally different than the settings I typically use for DTS or DD. Basically I had to re-adjust all channel levels (settings) in my 5.1 setup when playing this DTS-HD disk. This is a pain in the ass as now when I go back to regular DTS or DD program material I have to return all channel levels to previous settings.

Have others experienced this conditon? I have this problem on another system in another room when watching Network Television as programs change from DD to Dolby Pro-Logic or other sound processing. If left alone (not re-adjust) center channel level goes up or down, surrounds are too loud or the music (L/R) is blowing you away.

The only solution I can see is to buy new receivers with audio presets and slot them (A,B,C) for each processing type (DTS-HD, DTS, DD, Pro-Logic).

Any suggestions? Your experiences?

Sincerely,
Leg One

Hi All,
I got a reply (disappointed) from Yamaha regarding audio presets. They said "Regretfully, Yamaha doesn't offer this type of feature at this time..."

Sincerely,
Martin

Can someone please answer a question for me? I own a Vizio 55inch TV Model#VF550XVT1A. I have my PS3, XBOX360 & Cable box all connected to it using HDMI cables. On the back on my tv, there is an optical out port which I have running to my Denon receiver Model#AVR3310CI using an optical cable. Now heres my question am I getting a true 5.1 Dolby Digital signal out of my receiver? Someone on a different forum told me "very few TVs pass DD 5.1 from an external component and none pass DTS". Is this true & is my setup getting the 5.1 Dolby Digital sound?
Thanks for the help in advance. Tony

Yes, that is true. Most likely your TV will not pass DD5.1 and it definitely will not pass DTS5.1. Your receiver has plenty of HDMI inputs and does HDMI switching so you should connect the HDMI cables of all those devices to the receiver and connect another HDMI cable from the receiver to the TV to pass the video to the TV. Even if your TV could pass DD5.1 it won't pass the higher resolution audio codecs that are available on Blu-Ray discs via optical.

Hi. I have no idea where to post this question - maybe you can help me or direct me to the right forum.

I have the pioneer elite 151 and I need better sound. I bought logitech G51 thinking that I can hook them up to my Plasma but they seem to be made for computers. Does that mean that I can't use them for the TV? Would I want to hook them up to my Elite or get something else?

If I can use them with my 151, how do I hook them up?

Thank you.

You need something different if you want good sound, the ability to control the volume via remote, and ability to listen to other sources.

Start with a AVR. THEN, you need some real speakers, not computer speakers. Logitech sound great for mp3's or gaming, but fail when it comes to high quality sound. This thread isn't the best option to ask questions, but should allow you to find answers to your questions.

Forget the Logitech Speakers. You have the best 60" flat panel out there, and that's a huge start to achieving the best Home Theater experience. Now it's time to work on the audio side of the A/V equation. You need a decent A/V Receiver and Speakers to match. I prefer the new Pioneer Elite Receivers that also have some interconnectivity to your Pioneer Elite 151 display. There's an entire Forum on Amps & Receivers, and I suggest you start by going on there and asking for some owner/user opinions as there is a wealth of information for you. You'll probably get some recommendations on Speakers, but there is also another entire Forum on that topic as well. Good luck.

Thanx, I just rewired everything & tested my TRUE Dolby Digital HD sound using my PS3. Sounds great now.

I am not sure where to post this, or if there is already information available. I did some searches in different parts of AVS and did not find what I was seeking.

I am interested in comparisons of stand-alone electronic room correction / room equalization devices such as the Audyssey Sound Equalizer.

Does anyone know if there is a thread for this? Has this been discussed in an existing thread? Is this forum the appropriate place to start a new thread on this topic?

Reason for my interest is not all the new PrePros have built-in RC. If I were to buy one of those, then I would also want to add a stand-alone RC unit and am interested in how the stand-alone systems compare.

Thanks
Bruce

Did you try "Official" Audyssey thread. ( 1 2 3 4 ... Last Page) - soundlovr under the AMPS, Receivers and Processors?

What to do with my Center Speaker

I just got a 50inch Plasma (Sammy PN50C430) and now I don't know what to do with my center channel. I used to have it on top of my enormous tubeTV but that is no longer an option with the plasma. For now I have it behind the TV angled downwards so it fires sound through the gap between the stand and the TV.
Have it calibrated through my Pioneer VSX-1019 and it sounds alright, but I was wondering if there are other options (other than mounting the TV on the wall) or if it is common for guys to hide the center behind their tvs....

Basically, the problem I'm loking to solve is the following. I have a home theater system (Philips HTS 9800W) that only has 1 coaxial digital input. I have a PS3 and an HD digital cablebox receiver that both have optical digital outputs. So I'm looking for a device that can carry both HD video and audio (or at least 5.1 surround sound) to and from:

1. HDTV (3 HDMI inputs, and 1 HDMI output)
2. PS3 (1 HDMI output and 1 optical digital output)
3. HD digital cablebox receiver (1 HDMI output and 1 optical digital output)
4. Home theater system (1 HDMI output and 1 coaxial digital input)

So, I'm looking for a way to hook up the PS3 and HD digibox (which each have an optical digital output) to the home theater system, which only has 1 coaxial digital input. I think an HDMI switcher with audio switcher containing both optical and coaxial inputs and outputs (like the product above has) will do the trick.

I've tried a coaxial to optical converter and then running it through an optical switcher, but the sound cuts off for a second or two quite frequently, on both the HD digibox and PS3.


Help please!!!

Thanks!

Sorry, here's the product:

CLUX-41AT - 4-in 1-out HDMI v1.3 with Digital Audio Switcher

Kudos to the OP!....wow I've learned so much from this thread alone after searching forums. If he's still around,congrats Dr very well done and compiled information

Awesome thread for a first time HT builder. I hate the 3 post rule to post your first links.

Does anyone have info or a link for setting up a home theater with "theater pass-through". I am looking for the best way to integrate a preamp and amp into a home theater set-up with an avr.

BTW, this entry is dead from the first post:

"Subwoofers: Optimum Number and Locations by Todd Welti"

Edit:

This one is dead too:

"THX 7.1 Speaker Layout"

Anyone have suggestions for how best to consider using 8 ohm speakers? Any mid level or lower tuner recommendations? They came with a HTIB set that went down, but I am stuck with the speakers and the systems I have looked at too often need 6 ohm. Thoughts?

just got bdp-23fd. I chose it for audio performance,it does great job with cd's.I also love blu-ray. what is best way to hook it up to non-hdmi vsx-56txi & panasonic 1080p plasma?

There is a lot of information here, and I appreciate that...but sifting through it to find an answer to a particular question can be tedious at times. So at the risk of asking an already answered question: is there an easy way to discern the placement of acoustical treatments? For example, is there a program (like erw?) that I can plug in my room dimensions, hook up an SPL meter, and it tells me to place an acoustical panel here, here, and here?

If the system you are looking at can handle 6ohm speakers, then it will handle 8ohm speakers just fine.

I am having problems with the monster XP cable, into the MONSTER CABLE QUICK LOCK< banana plugs. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thank You,
David

The links above are dead but I believe I found the documents here:
http://www.infinitysystems.com/home/...nf-rooms_1.pdf
http://www.infinitysystems.com/home/...nf-rooms_2.pdf
http://www.infinitysystems.com/home/...nf-rooms_3.pdf

pfp -- Thanks for the URL's that you posted. Great Readings.

DPS

Look at the Master Handbook of Acoustics -- at $3.95 delivered to your door and such a great deal and a great read.

http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/Sear...stics&x=29&y=7

Enjoy the READ...

DPS

Last night I calibrated my speakers to 74 dbs on my RS analog meter. Today I bought the RS digital meter because I wanted to see if it would give me similar readings. It didnt. It said that my speakers were at 79 dbs, not 74.

Which one is more accurate?

My goodness, what an awesome collection of links! Thanks for putting it together!

I made the below post it's own thread, please do not respond here but in that thread.
Here it is:
7.1 set-up of dipole surrounds (ADP-390) phase question