Denon AVR X3700H initial setup advice

[Tony Cardenas]

Hi everyone,

This is a newbie question and I was hoping someone with experience with Denon could fill in some knowlege gaps I have on the initial programming setup. The X3700H is running as a 5.1.4 Atmos configuration. Front/Center/Left and Surround Left/Surround Right are connected via the pre-out to an Outlaw 5000x. Height 1 and Height 2 are set for Atmos height (top) and are being powered by the Denon. I have all the speakers set to "small."

I dug through the manual but I guess the internal amps in the Denon are still "on" even though I'm using an external amp for the 5? I think the only way I could totally turn off the Denon's internal amplifiers is if I ran all speakers externally powered? If I have that wrong please let me know. Not sure if it would make much of difference but I was hoping to dial things in as best as I could.

I Initially set up the speakers and pre-amp settings. Then I generally didn't do much with the Denon setup other than walk through the main configurations, ran Audyssey (8 different positions for the microphone) and let the Denon do all the room corrections and setup.

I know I'm probably missing things that might improve things and I'd appreciate any feedback.

Also - Its also on my wired home network and I pulled down the latest update last week.

Thanks!
Tony C.

 

[PENG]

Hi everyone,

This is a newbie question and I was hoping someone with experience with Denon could fill in some knowlege gaps I have on the initial programming setup. The X3700H is running as a 5.1.4 Atmos configuration. Front/Center/Left and Surround Left/Surround Right are connected via the pre-out to an Outlaw 5000x. Height 1 and Height 2 are set for Atmos height (top) and are being powered by the Denon. I have all the speakers set to "small."

I dug through the manual but I guess the internal amps in the Denon are still "on" even though I'm using an external amp for the 5? I think the only way I could totally turn off the Denon's internal amplifiers is if I ran all speakers externally powered? If I have that wrong please let me know. Not sure if it would make much of difference but I was hoping to dial things in as best as I could.

I Initially set up the speakers and pre-amp settings. Then I generally didn't do much with the Denon setup other than walk through the main configurations, ran Audyssey (8 different positions for the microphone) and let the Denon do all the room corrections and setup.

I know I'm probably missing things that might improve things and I'd appreciate any feedback.

Also - Its also on my wired home network and I pulled down the latest update last week.

Thanks!
Tony C.

If you are using external amplifiers only you can use the preamp mode to disconnect the internal amps. If you are using some of the internal amps, then you can only disconnect the front left and front right channel amps via the amp assign feature. I know one member here (forgot who) said he had some trouble disconnecting the front left and right internal amps using the amp assign feature, but I remember a member over at ASR said he had no trouble doing it if you did it in a certain way that is a little different than that for the 2016 through 2019 models. Basically you have to select the 11 channel floor layout in the amp assign menu in order to select FL and FR to "Pre out". After that, in the speaker menu you can set whichever speakers that you don't have to "none", and the FL/FR will still remain disconnected.

If you want to do it and run into trouble, post back and I'll see if I can find that procedure posted on ASR for you.
In your case though, I am quite sure whether you disconnect the FL/FR internal amps or not would not make a difference between the 3700's pre out's distortion only start to degrade when it exceeds about 1.5 V, but even at 2 V, distortions would be much higher but still less than 0.05%.

 

[VMPS-TIII]

Hi everyone,

This is a newbie question and I was hoping someone with experience with Denon could fill in some knowlege gaps I have on the initial programming setup. The X3700H is running as a 5.1.4 Atmos configuration. Front/Center/Left and Surround Left/Surround Right are connected via the pre-out to an Outlaw 5000x. Height 1 and Height 2 are set for Atmos height (top) and are being powered by the Denon. I have all the speakers set to "small."

I dug through the manual but I guess the internal amps in the Denon are still "on" even though I'm using an external amp for the 5? I think the only way I could totally turn off the Denon's internal amplifiers is if I ran all speakers externally powered? If I have that wrong please let me know. Not sure if it would make much of difference but I was hoping to dial things in as best as I could.

I Initially set up the speakers and pre-amp settings. Then I generally didn't do much with the Denon setup other than walk through the main configurations, ran Audyssey (8 different positions for the microphone) and let the Denon do all the room corrections and setup.

I know I'm probably missing things that might improve things and I'd appreciate any feedback.

Also - Its also on my wired home network and I pulled down the latest update last week.

Thanks!
Tony C.

The 3700 is just like the 4700. You have it exactly right.

1. If you select pre-amp mode in Denon 3700 amp assign only the external amps will power speakers.

2. You can select 11.1 in amp assign and then choose to have Fronts on pre-outs. This will disconnect fronts from internal amps but all other internal amps remain on.

3. You can use the 3700 without either setting above and still have a nice sound.

It would be nice if you could turn off the amps individually but that's a feature reserved for the flagship $4,000 Denon 8500H. At almost $3,000 less the Denon 3700 offers a reasonable compromise.

 

[Tony Cardenas]

If you are using external amplifiers only you can use the preamp mode to disconnect the internal amps. If you are using some of the internal amps, then you can only disconnect the front left and front right channel amps via the amp assign feature. I know one member here (forgot who) said he had some trouble disconnecting the front left and right internal amps using the amp assign feature, but I remember a member over at ASR said he had no trouble doing it if you did it in a certain way that is a little different than that for the 2016 through 2019 models. Basically you have to select the 11 channel floor layout in the amp assign menu in order to select FL and FR to "Pre out". After that, in the speaker menu you can set whichever speakers that you don't have to "none", and the FL/FR will still remain disconnected.

If you want to do it and run into trouble, post back and I'll see if I can find that procedure posted on ASR for you.
In your case though, I am quite sure whether you disconnect the FL/FR internal amps or not would not make a difference between the 3700's pre out's distortion only start to degrade when it exceeds about 1.5 V, but even at 2 V, distortions would be much higher but still less than 0.05%.

Thanks Peng - appreciate the info. I'll check out the 11.1 pre-amp setting. I didn't even realize that was an option but might be worth doing if its available.

 

[Tony Cardenas]

The 3700 is just like the 4700. You have it exactly right.

1. If you select pre-amp mode in Denon 3700 amp assign only the external amps will power speakers.

2. You can select 11.1 in amp assign and then choose to have Fronts on pre-outs. This will disconnect fronts from internal amps but all other internal amps remain on.

3. You can use the 3700 without either setting above and still have a nice sound.

It would be nice if you could turn off the amps individually but that's a feature reserved for the flagship $4,000 Denon 8500H. At almost $3,000 less the Denon 3700 offers a reasonable compromise.

Thanks VMPS - appreciate the info - always good to verify if I was on the right track or not. I will check out the 11.1 preamp setting and see if I can make it work.

Do either of you guys have any recommendations regarding crosssover settings? I let Audyssey do its thing and this is what it came up with:

• Front Left/Center (Polk 265 RT - in wall) 60Hz
• Center (Polk 265 RT - in wall) 40Hz
• Atmos front/rear and Surround Left/Right 60Hz

I'm hesitant to change anything as now I'm in waters beyond my knowledge level. Just wasn't sure if anyone had any thoughts/recommendations if this is a good crossover for the mains? I read that crossover should be pretty close to the manufacturer spec +/- 3dB Frequency Response (Polk's spec is rated as 45Hz)? I know the Ausyssey doing its calculations and room correction will be smarter than me but I can't help wondering (and trying to learn a bit in the process).

Thanks again!
Tony C.

 

[VMPS-TIII]

Thanks VMPS - appreciate the info - always good to verify if I was on the right track or not. I will check out the 11.1 preamp setting and see if I can make it work.

Do either of you guys have any recommendations regarding crosssover settings? I let Audyssey do its thing and this is what it came up with:

• Front Left/Center (Polk 265 RT - in wall) 60Hz
• Center (Polk 265 RT - in wall) 40Hz
• Atmos front/rear and Surround Left/Right 60Hz

I'm hesitant to change anything as now I'm in waters beyond my knowledge level. Just wasn't sure if anyone had any thoughts/recommendations if this is a good crossover for the mains? I read that crossover should be pretty close to the manufacturer spec +/- 3dB Frequency Response (Polk's spec is rated as 45Hz)? I know the Ausyssey doing its calculations and room correction will be smarter than me but I can't help wondering (and trying to learn a bit in the process).

Thanks again!
Tony C.

The bit of information I don't have is what subwoofer you are running?

I have all my non-subs running with an 80Hz crossover. No matter if they have 15" drivers like the VMPS towers or 6" surrounds. I find leaving the subs to do the task under 80Hz and the rest of the speakers above 80Hz gives me a tight bass rather than the muddy sound I had with having everything go as low as Audyssey said it could go.

This also allows your HT speakers to sing as they no longer have to handle the extreme low end.

If you want to dive deeper, you can use a UMIK and REW to display the Frequency response of your entire system or a single driver. It's a nice tool that will allow you to know where you might consider EQ changes with the Audyssey app.

 

[Tony Cardenas]

I'm running an (I know - its old - like 20ish years) Velodyne CHT-8. Physical settings on the sub are:

Low-Pass Crossover: Dial all the way to 40Hz (max is 120Hz)
Power: Set to Auto
Volume: I have it about 40% (I manually set it there during the Audyssey as it was providing the sub readings)
Phase: 0 (other optino is 180)
Internal X-Over: Direct

I was thinking the non-subs were set a little low - (between 40-60Hz). Do you think it would be advisable to manually adjust them up to 80Hz?

Thanks!!

 

[Tony Cardenas]

Also - I am using a "Y" splitter to connect to both the L/R Inputs on the sub. I read somewhere that might be advisable but would appreciate if you have any advice if that was nonsense or not.

 

[Gmoney]

@Tony Cardenas, hows the Sound quality of 2.1 music? You're liking your 3700H?

 

[VMPS-TIII]

I'm not sure that 8" sub is going to offer the power you want. I would suggest the HSU VTF-3 MK5 HP or a dual set shown here:

Bundles

The best value for price home theater systems and subwoofers on the market guaranteed

www.hsuresearch.com

If you had the HSU, I would say set everything at 80Hz. But with the 8" I would probably leave the fronts where they are currently and set everything else to 80HZ xo.

If you get the HSU subs prepare for your 4K movies to ROCK your listening area to a whole new level from what you are use to now. I just watched LUCY yesterday and the whole room was rocking... lol

 

[Tony Cardenas]

I'm not sure that 8" sub is going to offer the power you want. I would suggest the HSU VTF-3 MK5 HP or a dual set shown here:

Bundles

The best value for price home theater systems and subwoofers on the market guaranteed

www.hsuresearch.com

If you had the HSU, I would say set everything at 80Hz. But with the 8" I would probably leave the fronts where they are currently and set everything else to 80HZ xo.

If you get the HSU subs prepare for your 4K movies to ROCK your listening area to a whole new level from what you are use to now. I just watched LUCY yesterday and the whole room was rocking... lol

Awesome - thanks for that info! One of the things I'm learning is dual subs is the way to go. Ideally I'd replace the Velodyne and go dual with something along the lines of your suggestion (once budget allows). Thanks again - the feedback is extremely helpful.

Haven't seen Lucy yet - but will also add that to the list.

 

[Tony Cardenas]

@Tony Cardenas, hows the Sound quality of 2.1 music? You're liking your 3700H?

Hey Gmoney - It sounds really good. Again - for my ears. I was listening to a pretty killer jazz track the other night and man the bass sounded 'punchy' and the drumming hi-hat and snare were really crisp. The track was "The Philadelphia Experiment - Call for All Demons"

I generally love the entire album - but that song just has a certain kick and punch that sounds fantastic with the volume up a bit.

 

[VMPS-TIII]

Awesome - thanks for that info! One of the things I'm learning is dual subs is the way to go. Ideally I'd replace the Velodyne and go dual with something along the lines of your suggestion (once budget allows). Thanks again - the feedback is extremely helpful.

Haven't seen Lucy yet - but will also add that to the list.

Dual HSU is really nice. But coming from an 8" to a 15" HSU you will notice a world of difference "even with a single sub".

 

[Tony Cardenas]

Hey Gmoney - It sounds really good. Again - for my ears. I was listening to a pretty killer jazz track the other night and man the bass sounded 'punchy' and the drumming hi-hat and snare were really crisp. The track was "The Philadelphia Experiment - Call for All Demons"

I generally love the entire album - but that song just has a certain kick and punch that sounds fantastic with the volume up a bit.

Its like the bass player adds just the right amount of pulse to the song - then comes in full steam towards the end.

 

[Tony Cardenas]

Dual HSU is really nice. But coming from an 8" to a 15" HSU you will notice a world of difference "even with a single sub".

Nice - I'll for sure add a new sub as my next budget-allowable item. The placement isn't great probably either (I have it mounted to on the right side of the room - a foot off the wall - facing the listening area). Its the best I can do with the 'wife' constraints in the living room. But then again - in the future - I could sneak that 2nd sub on the other side as well. The compromises we all make I suppose

 

[VMPS-TIII]

The HSU is a beautiful, satin finish. You could even use it as an end table. lol

 

[Tony Cardenas]

That might help my situation lol. "Honey - its furniture! - Isn't it beautiful?" (as I proceed to crank the volume even more)

 

[Gmoney]

Hey Gmoney - It sounds really good. Again - for my ears. I was listening to a pretty killer jazz track the other night and man the bass sounded 'punchy' and the drumming hi-hat and snare were really crisp. The track was "The Philadelphia Experiment - Call for All Demons"

I generally love the entire album - but that song just has a certain kick and punch that sounds fantastic with the volume up a bit.

Sweet! that's a nice AVR you have there, offers a lot for a mid level AVR.

 

[Tony Cardenas]

Sweet! that's a nice AVR you have there, offers a lot for a mid level AVR.

Thanks - that was my hope with the purchase. I didn't/don't have the budget to step up and the 3700 seemed to give the most bang for the buck and future proof the setup for hopefully a few years.

 

[PENG]

Thanks Peng - appreciate the info. I'll check out the 11.1 pre-amp setting. I didn't even realize that was an option but might be worth doing if its available.

Found the screenshot/instructions for you:

Denon AVR-X4700 AVR Review (Updated) | Page 66 | Audio Science Review (ASR) Forum