component placement (1 Viewer)

Hi all,
I have a closed cabinet, and am concerned about my components. I just picked up a wOnkyo TX-SR501 receiver. I havent hooked it up yet, but I've heard it runs hot. Im a little concerned on where in the cabinet I should put it. There are two levels, I'm not sure if it should go on top of the DVD player or on the bottom. I also have a DirectTV box. My first thought is to go from the bottom up, DVD player, receiver, then DTV box. Does this make sense? I realize I should have an open-air unit to minimize the potential heat that could cause damage, however im not in the position to upgrade at the moment.

Thanks for your great advice,
this place rocks!

Dusty

hi dusty -

without question, you should *not* put anything directly above the receiver. in other words, nothing should be stacked right on top.

does the onkyo have vents on top? (it probably does.) if so, you can just imagine what will happen when the heat tries to dissipitate (sp?) through the top. your other component will totally block it.

now, if you have some clearance, and there is another shelf, then it may be alright. personally, i don't like anything...regardless...above my receiver. it is always the upper-most component in my stack.

does your directv unit have any vents on top? if so, make sure it isn't blocked either. in any case, here's how i would stack your gear:

shelf 1 - receiver
shelf 2 - directv / dvd (bottom)

bottom line: don't block them vents!

I agree with Ted about vent blocking - this will kill your electronics.

My advice is to put the receiver on the LOWEST possible shelf. The heat that rises needs to see as much empty space above it as possible to vent to. (Heat will travel from hotter areas to cooler areas).

People mistakenly put the receiver on the top shelf of enclosed cabinents and this is like putting a blanket over it. It just traps all the heat and fills up the space and the receiver 'drowns'.

Read your manual about how much space above the receiver is recommended. Make sure you have this much space, or more.

When you run things loud, keep the cabinent doors open. Later, you can buy a cheap $15 fan to vent the cabinent.

As far as the other devices:

- Put the things you never touch above the receiver

- Put the things you always touch on the highest shelves

Good Luck.

Great advice guys, thanks much! I went with this config:
------top---------
DVD 1 (carousel)
DTV | DVD 2 (single)
------shelf-------
2.5" ventilation
Receiver
------base--------

Now I've run into another problem. I am currently using speakers from a Panasonic HTB kit, (cash is tight!) and it only came with a un-powered sub. My new Onyko receiver only has outputs for an active subwoofer. Is there any way to use my unpowered sub until I can afford a powered (active) sub?

Thanks again,
Dusty

I'm not sure 2.5 inches is enough.

As far as the sub - does it have 4 jacks for speaker-wires? 2 for input and 2 for output?

If so, you run speaker wire from your L/R outputs to the sub, then more wire from the sub to your L/R speakers. Then you tell your receiver that you have LARGE L/R speakers.

If not, do you have an older receiver? (You said your "New" Onkyo). Try this: Run the LFE output from your new receiver to the ... CD input on the old receiver. Then run speaker wire from the old receiver to the sub. (The old receiver is acting like the subwoofer amp).

Thanks Bob,
The sub was an old piece of junk from a panasonic home theater in a box. It only has 1 set of inputs. I went out and bought a JBL PB10 powered sub. I got it for $150 at BB, for an open box special. I guess I need to start upgrading, and its one less thing I will have to do later.

Now this is strange, I attached the Sub to the LFE output of my new receiver. Are powered subs really supposed to thump or what? When I do a test of my 5 channels, nothing noticible comes out of the new sub. I threw in Matrix Reloaded and I would think the sub would deliver much more than it does. Its barely noticible. I went through the setup on the receiver, and I think everything is set up correctly. Ive tried all the modes, and nothing is really making a difference. I adjusted the crossover on the sub to ~80Hz. the level is just below half way. LFE is selected. Any other suggestions? I was thinking of bringing it back to BB and making sure it not just me.

Thanks,
Dusty

Sometimes subs will thump.

Turn the intensity on the sub way up. Your receiver should also have a LFE or SUBWOOFER level, turn this up as well.

Your receiver should also let you define your speakers as LARGE or SMALL. The rules are this:

- Send the ".1" track to the sub
- Send all low-frequency sounds below 100 hz programed for a speaker to the sub if that speaker is defined as SMALL.

So define all 5 speakers as SMALL and test again.

Thanks Bob, I set the crossover of the speakers to 100Hz, and it does sound a bit better. The sub isn't overwhelming at all. I think I was expecting it to be a little more apparent. I would love to have someone who really knows what this stuff is supposed to sound like take a look at it.

Regards,
Dusty