Sound settings HELP! (1 Viewer)

[Npick]

So I've just set up my new home theater system;
Onkyo TX-NR929 receiver
B&W 683 fronts
B&W HTM61 center
B&W 685 surrounds and rears

As expected it sounds amazing! But the receiver has way too many settings, DTS, Neo:x etc etc etc...
Can someone please give a beginners breakdown of the different modes and what they mean/what they do different.

If anyone has this receiver can you recommend the best settings to have each input on? Game, Bluray, cable, etc

Also is there an easy way to switch between surround sound and stereo mode without cycling through all other modes first?

Any advice or links in the right direction appriciated!!

Thanks,
Nick

 

[Jason Charlton]

Can someone please give a beginners breakdown of the different modes and what they mean/what they do different.

Here. Start on page 45.

If anyone has this receiver can you recommend the best settings to have each input on? Game, Bluray, cable, etc

Listening modes are a matter of personal preference. Some people prefer to leave them disabled and hear the audio exactly as it was recorded/produced without any additional processing, others prefer to customize each source differently. Give them all a try and decide for yourself which you prefer.

I personally, fall into the first group. I never use any "sound modes" like "concert hall", "orchestra", "studio", etc. I keep my Blu-ray player and cable input set to "Direct" so it plays the soundtracks of movies and TV shows as they are recorded. I think I have my cable input set to use Dolby ProLogic II on 2.0 input signals only, to provide a bit of ambience, but that's it.

If you entertain often and like to have music going, the "All Channel Stereo" mode can be a good way to make use of the surround speakers for parties - it splits the stereo signal among all the speakers. I don't recommend this for critical listening, but for parties, it can be useful.

Also is there an easy way to switch between surround sound and stereo mode without cycling through all other modes first?

Probably not (again, check your manual) but direct access to specific listening modes is not generally found on any receiver (especially when you get to receivers with a boatload of options - not enough room for all those buttons).

However, as I alluded to above, you generally don't "mess" with listening modes once you decide what you like. You can most definitely "set" certain inputs to default to certain listening modes, and you can usually specify, for each input, a different listening mode for each signal type (just as I use DPLII for 2.0 signals on my cable input, but Direct for everything else).

Read the manual and explore the menu options.

 

[schan1269]

In your OM, you have settings for each input...and each input has codec settings.So, you can default like this...setting itself in" ".Cable/Sat...DD..."direct" Cable/Sat...2.0..."DPL II"CD...2.0..."pure direct"So on, and so forth.Your AVR will only let you cycle through relevant to the source sound modes(hence, why there are no buttons).Like only letting you choose DTS modes for DTS...etc.Just wait till you add in height or width, if you think you have a bunch now...