Panasonic SA-HE200 Dolby Digital EX not working (1 Viewer)

I just bought a Panasonic SA-HE200. The DTS ES is phenomenal. However, when I play a Dolby Digital EX disc, the surround back speaker will not show up on the display and it sounds like the Surround back speaker is playing a combo of the rear surrounds rather than picking up a specific signal.
The first SA-HE200 did this, so I returned it and got a new one and the same thing is happening. It recognises DTS-ES but not DD EX? Can anyone help me find out why? Panasonics help desk does not know.
Am I doing something wrong, do I need to take an extra step that I may be missing???

HELP!!
Thank you!
Neil

I've got one at home too but I don't have a center-rear speaker so I've never really paid attention to this. From what I remember, if the title if flagged as being an EX title, the EX light on the front panel will come on and the center-rear speaker will be fired up automatically. If it's not specifically an EX title, you have to manually put the receiver in 'Enhanced Surround' mode (I might have the name of this wrong). In either case, any sounds that are equal volume and in-phase in both rear speakers should be extracted and re-routed to the center rear (same idea as a Pro-Logic center channel).
Maybe I'll play with this a bit on the weekend and see if I can offer any more help on this. I think there's a couple of 'spare' center channel speakers in the basement somewhere

Great, I would really appreciate that. The SB lights up when I am watching a DTS ES disc (Blade II, Gladiator) but when I tried Terminator 2, Star Wars Ep1 and We Were Soldiers (all say they are encoded DD EX) I did not get the SB to light up on the panel. I get sound, but I cannot be sure that it is being specifically sent to the SB speaker or if it is just 'fooling' me, kind of like NEO DTS.

Thanks for any light you can shed on this!!

Neil

I have the Kenwood 6060 and have the same issue with DD EX discs. I believe that Atlantis is flagged and my back surround icon lights up on my receiver. It seems to be a disc "problem" and not a receiver problem. The sound comes through loud and clear in the back surround.

I m sorry I can offer up no help to the question in regards to the EX problem.

I am very curious aside from (this users current unsolved EX problem) if you guys LIKE your HE200's on the whole.

I will be leaving for the big city late this up-coming week for other things, and will finaly be able to make a stop to see and hear this dollar saver receiver.

They, (C-City) finaly got another shipment of 200's in. Not really where I care to go for a listening session,,,, but will at least get a hands on demo in their less than optimal listening room.
I do not know what they carrry in ~{top of the line brands}~ ??,,, talking tower speakers, but will be listening to as many brands as possible in 2-channel and of couse surround modes with what they have available to be hooked up.

I have silk tweets in my bedroom DD DTS system and will be looking into speakers for listen demos with tweets similar to the highend freq response sound in my current speakers. Mostly staying away from metal tweets if possible.

Currently I am running,
Wharfedale Emerald EM-MKIV-99, 95, towers, and 93 large bookies for centers front and rear. I also have the Emerald True Center and feel it's a very good/decent center but not up to the quailty of sound the other speakers produce. This even though it uses the same tweet and 2-smaller woofer drivers. It's a well built center speaking to the cabinet/crossover/drivers, and with some eq-ing can sound excellent when running with the other Emeralds during DD DTS. It may get totaly retired once the system is hooked back up as soon as we finish the bedroom remodel. Not sure quite yet as we could experiment with some artifical 7.1 options.....

So anything you may have to say good or bad toward the 200 I am all ears. Anything you might suggest that I may (want to investagate further) in the HE-200 while demo-ing in 2-channel or Surround would be apreciated.....??

Oh, anyone driving 4 or 6-ohm loads on all channels???

Thanks guys
Geoff

Check the DVD case. Does it say DD EX 5.1 or 6.1? I've only seen EX material in 5.1, never 6.1.

On my receiver(Kenwood 6070) when I listen to a movie in DD EX the back surround speaker doesn't light up. I do have a 6.1 setup and since DD EX doesn't contain a discrete 6th channel like DTS ES I don't think that the back surround will light up. When I listen to DTS ES the back surround light does come on, since it contains a discrete 6th channel. Even though the light doesn't come on while listening to DD EX if you have your receiver setup to playback DD EX it should work OK. I may be wrong, I'm still new to DD EX and DTS ES. I've only had a 6.1 setup for about 3 weeks now. So if I'm wrong please correct me.

Kevinkall is correct.

Only disks that are flagged DD-EX will likely light up the receiver's surround back light. Not many are flagged (Atlantis is one) as there was compatibility problems when the flags were set.

Thus, most DD EX disks are not flagged, so no light will come on.

Note that DD-EX is a matrix mode. It takes the 5.1 signal and generates the surround rear channel by processing the left and right surround data into the rear channel (In phase info - goes to the centre rear - like ProLogic.) You can apply the EX processing to ANY 5.1 source, though the effectiveness may vary (As did the effectiveness of Prologic.) Those that state they have been mastered with DD-EX in mind should work better in 6.1 than in standard 5.1, but again this may not be the case.

Your receiver is working correctly. Either set it for 6.1 or 5.1 when listening to DD soundtracks - whichever you prefer.

Three new Panasonic receivers
Digital amps--as Lucy would say--are really "in" this year .
LJ