Auto Calibration - EQ Systems

[anamorphic96]

Hello All,

Looking to put together a second system and would like to know which companies are offering the best calibration/EQ systems. Specifically which offer the best subwoofer EQ control. The Velodyne SMS would be cool but I'm more curious about what is already built into the current stuff on the market. Haven't been keeping up on this lately and would like some input.

My budget for the receiver is 800. Do no suggest anything above this price. I'm a little leery of Onkyo due to some QC and overheating issues. But will listen to peoples input anyway.

Video capabilities are not all that important. Just good EQ control. I already have and SPL meter and RTA.

Thanks for the help everyone.

 

[brulaha]

Hello All,

Looking to put together a second system and would like to know which companies are offering the best calibration/EQ systems. Specifically which offer the best subwoofer EQ control. The Velodyne SMS would be cool but I'm more curious about what is already built into the current stuff on the market.

Are you talking about subwoofer EQ systems in receivers? If so, nothing is going to compare to the Velo SMS. EQ'ing lower frequencies is much harder than the upper end of the spectrum. Anything in a receiver is going to be for EQ'ing the entire frequency spectrum.

I have had good results with Audyssey, which can be found on both Onkyo's and Denon's. There is also a review on audioholics of the Denon 2308 that mentions how well the EQ performed. But bear in mind, none of these EQ's is a replacement for the SMS. I think the YPAO from Yamaha and the MCACC from Pioneer are not as good as Audyssey. From the reviews I've read, they are not as accurate and don't seem to yield as good of results.

If you really want an EQ system on the cheap, your best bet is to buy a behringer feedback destroyer and take measurements of your system. These can be had in the 100 - 200 price range and you could still buy a budget receiver in the 500 - 600 range. I'm not sure if the computer software you will need will cost extra. You may also need to budget for a mic.

 

[Exit]

I bought a BFD parametric equalizer last year over the internet and it was about $110. You might want to set up your system first and measure the in-room frequency response before you buy one to see it you really need it. Its use is for the bass frequencies in the subwoofer crossover region and below. It is not intuitive how to set it up, but there are helpful guides and forums on the internet. Most frequency response graphing spreadsheets (in Excel) are for use with the Radio Shack (RS) analog sound pressure level meter (SPL) which you will probably have to order special (I did). The frequency response graph spreadsheets have corrections for the analog RS SPL meter inaccuracies, not the digital meter. Therefore get the analog version even though they perform the same functions. I think the RS SPL meter was about $45. You also will need a source of test tones at the frequencies identified on these spreadsheets. You can buy a test disk or downloaded from the internet (my tone generator had a 30 day free trial period). Once you generate your test tones to your computer, you should not have to use the software again. You can generate a CD with just the test tones you need.

 

[anamorphic96]

I already have an RTA and SPL meter. But was under the impression the newer receivers offered better control of the sub EQ. I'm already aware of the Behringer but was hoping the newer receivers would be able to take care of this to some extent. I guess not.

 

[Exit]

You might have to wait for an input from those who have the latest receivers to see if they do bass parametric equalization automatically now.

 

[jcPanny]

Av123 Rdes

AV123 had an RDES EQ product. You might be able to get one used for about $200-250. In conjuction with the RTA software it should work just as good as the Vello unit at EQing your sub. Use RTA to optomize your sub placement before you worry about EQ.

I think that one of the limitations of the receiver EQ features is the quality of the microphone, similar to the inaccuracies on the RS meter at low frequencies.

 

[anamorphic96]

Well after doing a fair amount of research I have come the conclusion that Audyssey seems to be the better calibration system in receivers today. It even offers an EQ section for subs. The more expensive Audyssey enabled receivers seem to offer up seven bands of EQ and a 3 band sub EQ. The Harman EZSet/EQ system seems to be the worst. Not being able to make user adjustments to the EQ is a big problem with me. The other systems seem to be OK in that they offer manual adjustments but seem to offer very inconsistent results compared to the Audyssey systems. This is just an observation from reading endless threads.

So when everything was said and done I ended up with a Onkyo TX-SR605 for 399 which seems to be a fair price for a closeout model. It doesn't have the upper end MultiEQxt version but this 2eq version seems very respectable for the price point. 5 bands of EQ on the mains and 3 on the sub should help things out a good bit.

I read about alot of issues with this receiver but it seems this has been corrected with the firmware update that was released. The only downside seems to be the video portion is not the greatest when upconvertin analog signals and sending them through the HDMI output. But I will probably only use it as a pass through. So no problem there.

The heat issues reported seem to be from people not giving it proper ventilation. (Stacking Componets) It does run warm compared to some of the other brands out there. But with proper ventilation mine never really gets all that hot. With about 4 inches above mine I should be OK. From my understanding Onkyo receivers have always run warmer than other brands. Most of the problems with the 605 seem to be with the early runs of this model. I could be mistaken however.

Thanks for the input. If anyone has anything else to add, please chime in.