Need some advice on set-up (1 Viewer)

[Saul Schwartz]

Here is my HT Set-up
Panasonic 47WX49 47" Widescreen HDTV
Panasonic RP56 Progressive Scan DVD Player
Yamaha 5540 Receiver
Yamaha NS-6390 Bookshelf
Yamaha NS-C3290 Center Channel
I started with the YHT-300 HTiB and upgraded from there..so I still have the Sub and Rear satellites from that package.
Everything is Good but not Great. I feel its missing something but I can't put my finger on it. I guess I need some advice on anything to replace maybe..or ways I could tweak my setup easily. I haven't been doing this too long (about a year) so my ear isn't "trained" as well as some of the members here Can anyone help me?

 

[Saul Schwartz]

Also I'd like to add I am planning on upgrading to a different receiver someday..(maybe soon) as I'd like more than one optical input. I also need component video switching. Any advice with that would also be appreciated.

 

[Jack Briggs]

Saul, can you be a little more specific? What seems to be "missing"? Is the sound a bit thin? Or is it a video issue you're concerned about? Thanks. JB

 

[Saul Schwartz]

The bass is probably what is the worst, it seems too "punchy" and doesnt do well with low bass. I feel i could get a better picture out of this tv (with DVD's) but i'm not sure how. I've adjusted settings on the tv, but its not perfect yet.

 

[Jack Briggs]

Well, Saul, it sometimes takes a little time to dial a system in. And that Panasonic is one fine RPTV. Do you have one of the commonly available calibration discs (VE, AVIA)? If not, order one ASAP and get to work adjusting the audio and video. Hint: If you've been watching direct-view TVs all this time, an RPTV will take some getting used to.

Keep us posted, and keep asking questions.

 

[Saul Schwartz]

This guy right here?
Avia

 

[Wayne A. Pflughaupt]

Yup, that’s the one.

Rather than replace the receivers, I recommend getting some good speakers all around, including the sub. Yamaha has excellent electronics, but they are not renowned for their speakers. Speakers are best had from a dedicated speaker company, not from make-everything mega-companies like Yamaha, Pioneer, Sony, etc.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

 

[Bob McElfresh]

Hi Saul.
My guess is that your sub is the weak spot in your system. But before we get into spending money, lets make sure your speakers are setup as good as possible.
CENTER - The center speaker is on top of the TV. Make some feet for it to get it up off the TV cabinent. Use pink-rubber erasers, rubber door wedges or even paper-back books. A half-inflated wheelbarrow innertube works fine as well. The rubber-door wedges also give you a downward tilt to better focus on your listening position.
Pull the center forward so it over-hangs the face of the TV by about 1/4 inch.
Go get a pen-style laser-pen, or one of those $20 laser-levels from Radio Shack. If you get the pen, tape the button down and roll it on a flat table. Watch the spot of light. If it makes circles - get a different pen.
Use the laser-pen on the speaker cabinents to see where the speakers are pointing.
LEFT/RIGHT speakers - These should be pulled into the room 2-3 feet away from reflecting surfaces. Ideally, the height of the tweeters should match the height of the tweeter of the center.
You should angle the speakers inwards a bit (toe-in). How much depends upon your speakers and your room. You just have to try all 3 options and decide what works best for your situation. Find a good chapter on a DVD with lots of front-effects and put it into an A-B loop. Chapter 15 of Star Trek-Insurrection is one of my favorites.
Use the laser pen on the sides of your speakers to see where the speakers are pointing. There are 3 typical amounts of toe-in:
OPTION A: So the L/R speakers intersect 1-2 feet in front of the primary listening position. This is the classical music alignment.
OPTION B: So the L/R speakers intersect exactly on the primary listening position.
OPTION C: So the L/R speakers intersect 1-2 feet behind the primary listening position.
REAR SPEAKERS: You want to put these back behind your seating area. If the rears are too close, try pointing them at each other, or even upwards/backwards to reflect off of a wall. You are NOT trying to hide the location of the speakers (like in the ProLogic days), but simply to make sure people to the L/R are not wearing one speaker like an ear-muff. Use the laser-pen to make sure the angles are symetric.
RECEIVER: Go to the setup menu on your receiver and make sure all your speakers are set to SMALL and subwoofer to YES.
CALIBRATION: Go to Radio Shack and buy the $40 analog SPL meter/sound meter. Use Avia or the test-tones on your receiver to adjust the sound levels at your primary listening position to 75 db. This will compensate for differnet distances/reflections/speaker types.
NOTE: You are using 75 db to level adjust, but you DO NOT listen to movies at this volume. This is usually too loud. But you need a loud-enough volume to use when adjusting and 75 db is the correct volume to use for .. several reasons.
Now your speakers are all adjusted/calibrated. Lets work on the sub.
SUBWOOFER: Most subwoofers work best in the front-corner behind the equipment. This is usually the corner with the 2 longest possible walls to reflect from. (You get a LOT of reflected sound from a sub. With speakers you get direct sound).
Now the Yamaha receiver DOES NOT have subwoofer test-tones. You are now going to need Avia/Video Essential in the DVD player. Set the main volume control to the 75 db point you used above, and adjust the subwoofer level to give you 80 db (if you are using Avia) or 85 db (if you are using Video Essentials).
Your receiver allows you to adjust the LFE level, and your sub has a volume/intensity knob. Put the receiver LFE level way down, turn the subwoofer volume knob up to about 90% and then use the receiver LFE level to reach the 80-85 db level.
This gets you to a adjusted starting point. (Yes, this is the BASIC adjustment.) There IS more you can do with that sub, but you should look in the "Speakers and Subwoofer" fourm for this specific topic.
Hope this helps.

 

[mike_frontier]

Saul,
Bob hit the spot.
Also you mention about the sub being to punchy. Do you have a knob to control the hertz on the amp of the subwoofer?
If so you might want to turn it down to like 120hertz. That should help out. Also on your Yammy receiver make sure the sub bass is not all the way turned up. I usually keep my sub at about middle or -1 or -2.
Good luck.
I just settled for Yami speakers and love'em for the price I paid. Extremely happy with them.
I own these Yamis so far:
Mains: NS-7390
Center: NS-C3290