Need Help on Sony SA-W2500!!!

[Karuto]

I am having a hell of a time here. I am trying to hook my new SA-W2500 Sony Subwoofer to my new Sony STR-DG720 receiver. I only have two speakers connected to the receiver at the moment, and they're working just fine. However, it looks like the manual wants me to just use the audio cable that come with the subwoofer to connect to the receiver's Subwoofer Audio Out hole. But the thing is, even if my Subwoofer has a green light where the Power light is, there's no sound coming from it. And I know it works, because when I hover the cable's plug near the receiver's Subwoofer Audio Out slot, it gives feedback.

Would someone mind helping me out? I really need to figure this out in the next couple of hours. Thanks!

 

[Adam]

Welcome to the forum!

I'm going to bet that you just need to set up the receiver to output a signal to the sub. I'll download your owner's manual and then post again with some specifics.

 

[Karuto]

Alright, thanks a lot! I tried to figure it out, but I am really new when it comes to home theater.

 

[Adam]

For reference, I'm using the manual from Sony that is located at the link here.

You could run the auto set-up again, but you can also do this manually. Settings for the speakers are discussed starting on page 47 of the manual.

• For starters, set "SW SPK" to "YES" so that the receiver knows that you have a subwoofer connected.
• Next, set the "FRT SPK" setting to "SMALL". This will tell the receiver to redirect low frequencies from the front speakers to the subwoofer. (I'm going to check if you can send bass to both the speakers and the sub - I just haven't seen that in the manual, yet.)

I'll check into the subwoofer, too, but if there is a dial on the sub for the crossover frequency, set that to the highest number possible. Also, you'll be setting the crossover frequency on the receiver, but we'll discuss that in just a few minutes.

 

[Adam]

I just read that the crossover on the sub itself is labeled "CUT OFF FREQ". For now, set that to 200 Hz.

 

[Karuto]

Frickin' A! You helped me get it to work! I just had to set the speakers to Small and it was all good! Thank you so very much! I was afraid I was going to have to send the subwoofer back or something. I really truly appreciate the help!

 

[Adam]

Ahhh, I now see a menu overview starting on page 38 of the receiver's manual.

There are plenty of things that you can tweak, but let's keep it simple for now until you get comfortable with all of it.

The crossover frequency on the receiver can be set from 40 Hz to 160 Hz. The best setting will depend on your sub and your speakers. 80 Hz is a good starting point. You can do some measurements to figure out the best blend, but it's also perfectly fine to do it by ear. Change that setting and see what you like the best - that's what matters, after all. In case you don't know what the crossover frequency is, it's this (if your speakers are set to "SMALL"): frequencies below that setting will be sent to the subwoofer, and frequencies above that setting will be sent to your speakers.

 

[Adam]

Frickin' A! You helped me get it to work! I just had to set the speakers to Small and it was all good! Thank you so very much! I was afraid I was going to have to send the subwoofer back or something. I really truly appreciate the help!

Fantastic! I'm very happy that it was something so easy to fix. Sending back a sub is not fun.

 

[Karuto]

EDIT: Nevermind. I turned off the Center speaker option, and the dialogue is perfect.

 

[Adam]

Questions for you:

• Do you just have the two front speakers and the sub hooked up?
• Do you know what surround mode you are using?

My guess is that you might have the receiver set up so that it thinks that you have a center speaker and (maybe) surround speakers hooked up, even though you only have the front speakers. If you are using a surround sound mode (like Dolby Digital, DTS, or Pro-Logic), and you have it set up to use the other speakers, then it will trying to send dialogue to a non-existent center channel. If you set the center and surround speakers to "NO", that might fix it. You should also be able to set the surround mode to "STEREO" (or similar) to fix it.

 

[Adam]

Uggg. "2CH" mode will not use the subwoofer. [STRIKE]Let me look into that a bit.[/STRIKE]

EDIT: I see that you fixed it, so I won't do that. I'll leave that note here for reference, though.

 

[Adam]

EDIT: Nevermind. I turned off the Center speaker option, and the dialogue is perfect.

Excellent. Glad that you fixed it.

 

[Karuto]

lol, I wish I could practice a little self-reliance, but I once again have trouble. I went out today to buy speaker cables from WalMart. I plugged them in (after my TV stand collapsed, of course), and when I go to do the Tone test, sound comes from all the speakers + the subwoofer. So, right now, I have a 5.1 setup, with the two new speakers set up behind and slightly above level with my body. Problem is, when I go to play a game or anything, there's absolutely no sound coming from it. I tried to turn up the sound, but no go. Once again, I would appreciate any help! Thanks a lot!

Unfortunately, I may also need help when the Center Speaker arrives Monday, but I will hope not!

 

[Adam]

Eh, self-reliance is overrated.

What surround sound mode is the receiver set to?

Also, do you know if the games are in surround sound?

 

[Karuto]

This is why I fail at Adventure games, huh? I got it to work. I had to go through the Level menu on the receiver and crank the surround speakers up. Thanks for being there for me though, Adam!

 

[Adam]

Again...excellent! I'm glad that you're learning about this stuff and getting it all set up.

Did you rerun the auto set-up after you installed the new speakers? I'm just curious. Thanks.

 

[Karuto]

I honestly don't know how to do that! Would you mind sharing?

 

[Adam]

I honestly don't know how to do that! Would you mind sharing?

Sure thing. The manual explains it starting on page 29. You hook up the microphone that came with the receiver, and then just follow the directions.

Those auto set-ups aren't perfect. They often set the front speakers to "LARGE", and you may want to reset them to "SMALL". One thing that they do seem to do well is set the volume level for the speakers.

Of course, if you've set the volume of the speakers and you are happy with them, then don't worry about it! Again, the most important thing is that you are happy with your own system.

 

[Karuto]

Okay, I did the auto-callibration, and it worked just fine, although it set my distance to 23 feet, which is pretty weird since I am sitting only about 5 feet or so away from all of them. Oh well!

Appreciate the help, Adam!

 

[Adam]

You're very welcome!

You should always feel free to reset those parameters if they aren't correct. Like I mentioned, those auto set-up routines aren't perfect.