woofer level control: bass or control on woofer or channel level

[encode]

Hi

I have pioneer HTP 300 home theater system and this is my first home theater system.

It is working fine but I have a question regarding bass management.

There are 3 options
1. change bass level
2. change sub-woofer channel level
3. change the value by using regulator behind the sub-woofer

what is the difference between these?

Is there any optimized setting by adjusting all 3 ?

Thanks.

 

[afterlife2]

Did you run Intelligent speaker calibration mic? What are the name of the levels on the back of the sub? I can't find pics of it.
This is a recent sub by pioneer. A good start Is Volume/Gain 12 o' clock position, Freq Hz 150 and Phase 0 Then run the ISC mic and you should be good. Read this: http://hometheater.about.com/od/loudspeakerreviews/ig/Pioneer-Bookshelf-Spkr-System/Pioneer-SW-8-RearCntrl.htm

 

[encode]

Phase is at 0

but I had volume set to max on woofer.

I had setup receiver using auto speaker setup but later increased subwoofer level +3 and set X.over freq to 80Hz. Bass and treble is also at max(+6)

After reducing volume at back on the sub-woofer to 3/4th of max, it is sounding bit better.

I think volume control on woofer, SW channel level, bass should be changed in that order to test changes to sound setup.

 

[afterlife2]

Start between 9 o'clock to 12 o'clock position on the Sub volume and re-run the mic until you get 0. Try Treble 10+ and Bass +4 on the receiver. Sounds like you're almost there, just don't blowup/out the sub.

 

[encode]

I ran auto setup again with volume of woofer at 12'clock position.
Bass was bit better with this arrangement.

After auto setup, I have increased treble from 0 to +6( Treble and bass varies between -6 and +6 in steps of 2), decreased bass to -6 and SW level to +8 ( varies between -15 and +15 in steps of 1).

It is sounding much better than my previous arrangement. I watched an old blu-ray to test and there was no distortion in sound which I had noted previously. it was mostly from subwoofer when something was exploding in the movie. now it is gone.

re-run the mic until you get 0

What do you mean by this sentence? It is my First HTS so please forgive me for not getting it.

 

[afterlife2]

When you run the mic your level on the receiver should be at 0.0db Vol. for Bass. That's why I said try between 9-12 o'clock position on your sub Volume. Manually set your Treble at 10+ and Bass at 4+ and leave it there. Let me know If this makes sense to you.

 

[afterlife2]

Give these a read:
Basic Subwoofer Setup Guide NOT for Dummies | Audioholics

How to use your AV receiver's speaker calibration | How To - CNET

How to MultEQ | Audyssey

Home theater automatic speaker calibration dos and don'ts | The Audiophiliac - CNET News

How to set up a subwoofer | How To - CNET

How to set up a subwoofer - Weekend Project - CNET Reviews

 

[Cterrell16]

Thanks. These are very good. I ran the auto calibration with the receivers mic. It set my treble low on most of the channels. I had them all max to start because I think it sounded clearer. I know have my receiver volume -40 when I had it at -50. Bass does hit harder but I can't hear the words as clear in my opinion. Guess I will have to keep slowly adjusting.

 

[encode]

Sorry for replying so late.

I was very busy with some other stuff ( car broken down because of over heating, was searching for new car) but I read most of the stuff and watched the videos linked.

After trying many things now system is much better.

I also had problem with dialog levels some times, specially with the movies I ripped from dvds.I used handbrake for ripping. Don't know if handbrake does something to sound.

Now when I watch those movies I just lower the subwoofer level and it sounds great.

 

[afterlife2]

Glad it worked out for you guys.

 

[lsiberian]

Sorry for replying so late.

I was very busy with some other stuff ( car broken down because of over heating, was searching for new car) but I read most of the stuff and watched the videos linked.

After trying many things now system is much better.

I also had problem with dialog levels some times, specially with the movies I ripped from dvds.I used handbrake for ripping. Don't know if handbrake does something to sound.

Now when I watch those movies I just lower the subwoofer level and it sounds great.

This is a common issues I suggest raising the level on the center channel to compensate. It normally means your Left and Right Fronts need a wider angle. Compensation is certainly a good way to deal with it as most of us normally give the best placement aesthetics allow. Are you using Toe-in? If so you might try facing all 3 speakers dead ahead.

 

[encode]

After going through manual again [Pioneer VSX_S300] I have found following 4 setting which I think may affect how dialogues sound

.1 Center Width
2. Center Image
3. Dual

1. center width: manual says it is avilable only in 2channel sources and in PLII Music mode. It spreads the center channel between left and right. It varies from 0-7. default is 3

2. center image: only available for 2 channel source when playing in NEO:6 Cinema or NEO:6 Music mode. Adjust the center image to create a wider stereo effect with vocals. varies 0-10. default is 3.

3. Dual : Dual monaural: Specifies how dual mono encoded dolby digital soundtracks should be played. currently set to CH1 CH2.
default is CH1.

I'll try diff values this weekend to see if it can improve the sound.



PS: I have also purchased Velodyne Impact 12 yesterday. Hasn't arrived yet. It was on special. Usually it sells for $700 [Australia is expensive] but it was for $280. Not top of the range but much better than my pioneer sub-woofer on paper. lets see how it sounds.