Yamaha RX-V461 set up HELP!?! (1 Viewer)

Hi folks....quick question. My current 5:1 set up is as follows: Philips Flat Panel with HDMI cables running to/from my Sat Box and to my DVD player. I also have sound cables running from my Sat Box & DVD player to an old Sony STR DE598...this drives my speakers. Sounds okay. Just purchased the Yamaha RX-V461 and installed it...the automatic set up YAOP? feature is pretty cool....I am NOT connecting the TV directly to the Yamaha because there aren't any HDMI connectors on the receiver and frankly, I'd rather keep the signal running directly to/from the Sat Box and just have the Yamaha manage the sound. Problem: Only my front two speakers work!! Everything is set up correctly as far as connectors. THe YAOP systems checked the other speakers and they worked but when watching TV or a DVD, only the front two speakers are on and only the L and R letters are lighted on the front panel. HELP!!!!!

What kind of audio cables are running from the sat box and DVD to the receiver? Red/White analog, or digital? What mode is the receiver in?

From the Sat Box to the Yamaha is a digital opital audio cable and from the DVD to the Yamaha is a digital coax audio cable. I can get the DVDs to work okay now...all the speakers kick in. But when watching TV, I have to have the Yamaha in 5 Channel Stereo mode for all of the speakers to work. Is this normal?!?!? Thanks for your help John.

Is the sat box set up to output Dolby Digital?
If it is, was the optical input on the receiver, assigned to the DBS?

Ed, the Dish Network Sat box is set up for encoding of Dolby Digital/PCM. I've found that the best all-around sound occurs when I set it up for "5 Channel Stereo"....is this unusual?!? This is the same when DVDs are played or when the TV is played. Nothing else sounds as "rich", especially in the surround speakers.

The reason it seems to sound fuller is that 5 ch stereo takes info from the front two speakers and spreds it around to the center and surrounds so all 5 speakers have pretty much the same volume. 5.1 Dolby Digital uses mainly the front three channels and the surrounds are only used for ambience or "as needed". And very little programming from Dish is broadcast in DD except for HD programming, some ShowTime/HBO stuff and a few Pay Per View movies. The rest is stereo. Does Dolby ProLogic II or DTS Neo:6 work?

Thanks Gene,

Dolby ProLogic II and DTS Neo:6 work but again, the 5 channel stereo option "sounds" the best....from what you've said, it appears not to be true "surround sound" in this mode so I'll experiment with ProLogic 2 and DTS Neo:6....is one better than the other? Maybe I'll simply set up 5 Channel Stereo when watching TV since most channels are not HD and then set up my DVD input to a Dolby input?!? Thanks, John

Which DSP mode are you using? (Movie,Club,Hall,Stadium,etc.)
Maybe a different one will make a difference. My receiver doesn't have a 5 Channel Stereo option, but of the options I do have, 5.1 definitely sounds best, to me.

I can see where some would like that sound for SD tv watching, but not for dvds. I'm so spoiled by 5.1, I can't watch a dvd any other way, personally.
I have a friend that has that option on his Denon. Another friend of his prefers that 5 Channel Stereo, for listening to music, rather than Dolby Pro Logic. I like the Dolby Pro Logic, especially for tv. Some channels have very good Pro Logic sound. Can't really tell it's not 5.1, until you see the LED screen on the receiver.

If it's not showing all the speakers lit up, on front of receiver, it's saying you're not getting a 5.1 signal from your sources. That's why I said to make sure the sat box was set to output Dolby Digital. For dvds try this:
Go into the dvd player's setup menus, and make sure the audio output is set to "Bitstream", not PCM. May also have a separate option to turn "ON" DTS. I'm not familiar with Yamaha receivers.

On the receiver, it just shows two speakers lit up, when on a high def channel? Have you tried another optical cable? I could probably figure this out, if I was there in person, and had hands on troubleshooting time. You said the sat box was set to output right, but didn't say if the optical input on the receiver was assigned right. You do understand that you have to assign those inputs, right? The only one you shouldn't need to assign is the dvd input (if you use the factory set input (labeled for DVD). If an optical input is labeled for DVD, but you have to use a digital coax input instead, you'll need to assign the digital coax input to the dvd. I'm saying all this, because I don't know how much you know, about this stuff. If you're new to home theater, you may not know this stuff already. If you know it already, I'm sorry. I don't mean to make you sound like you don't know what you're doing.

5 ch stereo (and the other DSP modes) isn't very popular around here. Both ProLogicII and Neo:6 are thought to be a better choice. But of course, you are free to do as you wish. I prefer Neo:6 because PLII sounds a little muffled to me. On the other hand, PLII spreads the sound around a little better and has "Panoramic", "Dimension" and "Center Width" adjustments which can help even more. And even though you mentioned that you used the automatic setup function, I'd double check the speaker volume levels. Maybe the surrounds are set too low. Just a thought.

One more thing I just thought of:
On my JVC receiver, there's a setting called "Digital Auto". When set to this, my receiver automatically goes to Dolby Digital 5.1, when the signal is there.
A button on front of mine, sets this. If I push the button once, it says "Analog", which just gives me two channel. Push the button again, and it says "Digital Auto". Then 5.1 comes in, if the signal is there. It needs to be set on "Digital Auto", or whatever wording your Yamaha receiver uses. Your manual will tell you how to do this on your's.

Set to "Digital Auto", when you put a dvd in, it will automatically go to the Dolby Digital soundtrack. If there's a DTS soundtrack, you'll need to choose that manually, in the movie's "Audio Setup" or "Language" menu.

Thanks Gents,

Yes, I am very new to home theater audio so I appreciate all your input and advice. I've set my Yamaha to Digital Auto and things appear to work better. I'll play around with it some more to get the right DSP in place. Then it's off to program the Logitech remote!

John

I have the same exact problem and would like some help please...

Here is my "setup":

Equipment:
Panasonic TH 50-PX75U plasma
Comcast HD DVR
Panasonic HD A2 HD DVD Player
Yamaha RX-V461
Klipsch Quintet III
Klipsch Sub 10 Subwoofer

Connections:
HDMI from TV to HD DVR
HDMI from TV to HD DVD Player
Fiber Optic from TV to Receiver

All of my audio is run through my receiver using the DTV/Cable input and the Fiber Optic cable. I can't get anything that is 5.1 or DTS, or anything like that. Everything is in 2 channel...can go to 5 channel, but it just takes the signal and spreads it out to all 5 speakers.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
K