[broseph]

Well there is an official Onkyo 790 thread, why not one for us Yammy fans?


I am satisfied with this product thusfar, but I would be open to any suggestions on how others have optimized the system or some things that have made dramatic improvements.


Also, there may be some other folks that are thinking about this system that might find a thread like this resourceful.


So are any comments on this system yeah or nay that would be appropriate to an "official thread"?

 

[broseph]

I started this thread in another forum on this site and found it quite useful. Maybe there are some others out there that have increased the enjoyment level of this system.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=784918

 

[Fragster]

It might be cos the S790 is a better system overall than the 370 and with rebates, etc, u can get it for less than the cost of the 370. Plus out of the box performace, the S790 performs far better to a point where novice users are utterly satisfied with the powered sub it comes with.


I was considering the 370 but after taking my own DVD (Star Wars) to BB and CC, I felt the S790 was a better performer than the 370.


Sorry if this came out like a 'hate' response ;-)


Ray

 

[broseph]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Fragster /forum/post/0


It might be cos the S790 is a better system overall than the 370 and with rebates, etc, u can get it for less than the cost of the 370. Plus out of the box performace, the S790 performs far better to a point where novice users are utterly satisfied with the powered sub it comes with.


I was considering the 370 but after taking my own DVD (Star Wars) to BB and CC, I felt the S790 was a better performer than the 370.


Sorry if this came out like a 'hate' response ;-)


Ray

Ouch baby! Very Ouch!

This is more for those that after careful consideration purchased the 370 instead of the S790. It does happen. Part of my reason for going with the 370 had to do with some work related gift cards I received for BB. But the other portion had to do with not being able to convince SWMBO that 7.1 was a good idea, especially with surround and back speakers of the S790's girth and bulk. So I went with the best 5.1 in my price range. In addition I found CC's bait and switch price flopping to be annoying in the least and borderline criminal at worst. I literally hit the back button in my browser and the wonderful price I was ready to buy at disappeared. Even after talking to their online support, they were unaccomidating. The ONK receiver has a few advantages over the Yammy, but not enough for my peace of mind. And I feel the 370 has plenty of room for me to grow into personally.


I know there are others that have made the same decision as me for whatever reasons and that's who this thread is targeting. Maybe they will represent and share with the rest of the class.


P.S. - Don't be hatin'!

 

[snuba]

i have it. bought it for many of the same reasons as above. i liked the features and performance of the yamaha at their price. also heard some things about clarity of onkyo speakers that worried me a bit, although that was a minor factor. after owning it for a few months, i love the system. not sure about settings or 'optimization' because each environment is different but i'll let you know if you need to know something specific. oh, and at the time, the 790 couldn't be had for cheaper than what i got the 370 for. btw, bestbuy has it for 299 this week.

 

[Fragster]



Quote:
Originally Posted by snuba /forum/post/0


btw, bestbuy has it for 299 this week.

The website shows $399...is it in the BB flyer?


Thanks Ray

 

[snuba]



Quote:
Originally Posted by Fragster /forum/post/0


The website shows $399...is it in the BB flyer?


Thanks Ray

yes. 299 through jan. 20 only. fantastic deal. be hard pressed to find or build comparable system for price. and as others will surely make known, because of the component-grade receiver, you can always upgrade system in the future if you'd like.

 

[wokisan]



Quote:
Originally Posted by snuba /forum/post/0


yes. 299 through jan. 20 only. fantastic deal. be hard pressed to find or build comparable system for price. and as others will surely make known, because of the component-grade receiver, you can always upgrade system in the future if you'd like.

I upgraded from an older Panasonic 5.1 system to the Yamaha (got the Best Buy deal this week). So far I am very pleased with its performance but I haven't had time to get it completely setup yet. Once I get my 360 back from Microsoft I am really interested to see how much difference the upgrade makes both for playing games and for HD-DVDs.

 

[Davird_Jr]

I posted this in one of the other 370 threads. I did not see the official thread first.

Quote:

Originally Posted by jackbnimble

Did you run the test tones? Did all the speakers respond?


You may have the unit in stereo mode instead of surround.


The user manual is pretty good. I'd start at the beginning and go through the basics again.


Good Luck - Jack.



"I seem to have the same problem with mine. Also I cannot seem to activat pro logic II for movie or music either. The manual is not very clear on this. I picked mine up last Saturday for 299 at BB. The receiver seems nice, but no S-video. Sweet sounding, much better than the Kenwood system it replaces and at half the price!! "


This question was about the L & R icons on the front panel display, but C, SL & SR not lighting (they show clearly in the manual). Any one here have an answer?

 

[snuba]

are the icons just not working or are the center and surround speakers not working too?

just asking because those would be two very different problems.

regarding your prologic issue, when watching movies (dvds?), if the dvd is output in dolby/dts 5.1, then prologic won't be activated because it is not necessary.

 

[Davird_Jr]

Snuba,

I believe it could be that the lights only light if there is an input signal for that channel. This is not explained clearly in the manual, but I am getting sound from all five speakers using pro logic and the source is two channel PCM from a Sat receiver. I cannot however figure out how to get PLII to work.

 

[Davird_Jr]

I tried it with a DVD and all six speaker lights lit. The lights light based on the incoming signal and not how many speakers are active apparently. Still no luck with the PLII though.

 

[jarellan59]

i had the same problem with my Yamaha HT 370 . I just had L & R Leds on instead of all 5.1 LEDs and it was because I wasn't using Digital audio out ( Coax or Optical ) from my Directive receiver or my DVD player. I had connected those equipments throught Analog audio outs ( RCA cables)

 

[Davird_Jr]

What about Dolby Pro Logic II? Has anyone figured out how to engage it? I'm completely stumped on that one.


As a side note, I calibrated sound levels using internal test tones. Sub seemed a little too hot. Used Avia disc and sure enough sub was about 6 decibels too high. This system sounds almost as good in my bedroom as my Onkyo/Pardigm w twin 12" subs in my family room. Well not quite, but pretty good considering its about a tenth of the price!!!

 

[charliekboston]

I would be interested in how the plII works.

David you stated: "Used Avia disc and sure enough sub was about 6 decibels too high."

Did you adjust any settings?

Thanks from Roslindale Mass.

 

[Davird_Jr]

Charlie,

I had to make several adjustments. Keep in mind that this HTIB is set up in my bedroom and the speakers are probably not placed for optimum sound, but are where they can reasonably be located in the room. Also the display is not centered in the room. I used the basic setup to start and used the Yammy's own test tones and my spl meter. This was a bit difficult for me because I was used to my Onkyo 777 which is wonderful and extremely easy to set up. To be fair the Onkyo alone cost about 4 times what this system cost when I bought it 6 or 7 years ago. After using the basic set up I putin Bourne Identity and heard what sounded like a constant roar from the sub. It did not sound natural so I got out my Avia and used the test tones on the disc to figure out what I had. The speaker levels were all pretty much dead on, except for the center and front right which were a decibel too high. Then the sub tones showed that the sub was way too high. I had to turn the sub all the way down and it still was 4 decibels too high. So I turned all of the speakers up 4 decibels and left the sub all the way down and that evened it out. I left the crossover at the default 120 not really knowing if it should be changed. After this I put in The Matrix, one of my favorite sound movies. It pretty much rocked with reasonable but not room shaking bass. I did not really expect more from this smallish sub and was quite satisfied with the sound for a bedroom system. The system will moslty be used for watching TV in bed and listening to music to sleep by. Maybe an occasional movie, but most movie viewing is done in the family room with the Onkyo. The thing that is driving me crazy about the system right now is I can't turn on PL II. The manual explains it very briefly, but the actions from the manual aren't working for me.

 

[broseph]

I've had a similiar problem with this system. Some DVD's that say they are in DD 5.1 trip the Dolby Digital display on my system, at these times the sound is at it's best. Even with a stupid movie like American Dreamz, the sound was great, and X-Men III was unbelievable.


OTOH there are some movies that boast DD 5.1 or higher, (Star Wars episode 2, Batman Begins special edition,etc.) that do not trip the Dolby Digital display on my system but run through pro logic on the Movie/Spectacle setting. With all 5.1 icons showing active.


This is confusing and irritating. I read in another forum that not all movies that claim DD are DD 5.1. But I would expect all movies claiming DD 5.1 to be DD 5.1.


Has anyone run into this issue?


Why would it work some times and not others?


And I've yet to trip the Dolby Digital display when running through my Cable STB.


BTW both are connected with SPDIF connections of one sort or another.

 

[snuba]

on some dvds, default audio is 2.0. you need to enter the audio/setup menu and actually select dd/dts 5.1. i always check the menu anyway because i like to hear dts tracks but they aren't always available.


if you haven't ever gotten DD from your STB, something is wrong. on my stb (moto 6142), i had to go into the settings (in the iguide) and have it output dd correctly.


dave, did you figure out PLII yet? i don't remember exactly, but it i set it up by pressing the AMP and then SELECT, i think. then i had to choose between the different PLIIs for movies, music, or games. once that is set, whenver the AVR receives a PCM stream it will engage the PLII selcetion.

 

[charliekboston]

I am trying to get my motorola hd cable box remote to "learn" the remote codes for the receiver. the remote is a universal one. Does anyone know them, or had luck having a remote "learn" the codes?

 

[snuba]



Quote:
Originally Posted by charliekboston /forum/post/0


I am trying to get my motorola hd cable box remote to "learn" the remote codes for the receiver. the remote is a universal one. Does anyone know them, or had luck having a remote "learn" the codes?

i can use my moto 6412 remote to control the basic functions my AVR just by using the suggested codes. however, on/off was tricky because the yammy remote doesn't have a discrete on/off button, it uses two seperate buttons. so, you have to manually program two random buttons for on and off. i did that but using it is kind of a pain, so i don't use it that much. if anyone can tell me why yamaha doesn't just use one button for on/off, i'd like to know.