AS-P4000 auto-0n question

[dsirl]

I recently purchased an Athena AS-P4000. The sound is great but I am having a weird issue with the auto-on/anto-off. If the sub is in auto-on and the receiver is off (Onkyo TX-SR602), the sub is in "stand-by". When I switch the receiver on, the sub does not come on. Then, I can manually switch the sub on (by putting the toggle switch to "on") and back to auto-on and it stays active for the duration of play. If I then turn off the receiver, the sub goes back to stand by shortly. If I again turn on the reciever the sub will not come on. At first I thought this was a defect in the switch but now I am thinking it might be some weird thing between the sub and receiver. I am wondering if the receiver doesn't "see" the sub because it is essentially off and does not send signal which, in turn, will not fire up the sub. Any one else have this problem?

 

[j_garcia]

The sub should come on when it gets signal. Just turning on the receiver (if nothing is playing) does nothing for the sub. There is no reason to physically turn it on, just start playing music or a movie. The sub has no idea if the receiver is on or not, and likewise, the receiver has no idea a sub is connected.

 

[dsirl]

Yes, this is how the sub would operate if operating correctly. However, when I turn on the receiver (and play a CD or whatever) the sub does NOT come on. At which point, I HAVE to turn on the sub manually. I didn't mention that above but, yes, I am playing something. I actually think the sub operates on a simple RC circuit (or maybe a 555 timer) so it does know if signal is present (it should see voltage).

 

[j_garcia]

That wasn't clear (I was going to ask that actually), and that is a different story. That may have to do with your settings and/or connections then.

Bear with me, gotta go through the possibilities:

First: do you have the sub set to "on" or "yes" in the receiver's setup menu?

Are any/all of your speakers set to small?

What do you have your crossover set to in the receiver?

What are you using as a source or does it do this for all sources? (DVD, CD, SAT, etc...) How are they connected? Digital or analog?

Have you calibrated the system? One thing you might look at are the settings for the sub's level - what do you have the receiver's sub level setting vs what is set on the sub's gain? Try turning up the receiver's level until the sub "sees" the incoming signal. This is usually a problem when a sub does not get sufficient input voltage to turn on. If the sub has a R&L input, you can also use a Y splitter to increase the input voltage the sub "sees".

*edit Did you run the auto setup function? If you did, you might take a look at the settings made by the receiver and/or run it again. The sub's gain and the subsequent setting the receiver sets are interactive. Setting the sub's gain too high will result in the receiver sometimes dropping the level or setting it further away than it actually is in it's setup to get the level right, so look at your setup and see what it did. If either of those are the case, adjust the sub's gain (volume) and run the calibration again.

 

[dsirl]

Ok, let me see.

The subwoofer is set to "Yes" but my only other option is "no". My surrounds are set to small, my receiver crossover is set at 80Hz and the sub low pass is set just north of 100Hz. I pinned the sub level on the receiver and still nothing.

I am not sure what voltage the Line output from my receiver is. I might try to find a multi meter and check it out. It is odd that it has enough voltage to maintain the auto-on but not trigger it. Maybe I will be sending it back.

Oh, it happens with all sources.


Wait! It just came on with a healthy dose of Rage Against the Machine. You were right; it must be somethig with the settings.

 

[mike c]

maybe the subwoofer level is set too low on the receiver (should be 0db and up)