Video Asylum

Posted by Dalancroft (A) on August 08, 2003 at 08:28:06

In Reply to: Setting my HT posted by GreatWhite on August 07, 2003 at 13:29:51:

It should walk you through the set up. I don't know about your receiver, but most A/V receivers on the market today will give you test tones and the ability to set levels of each surround sound speaker separately. It may pay to invest in a cheap sound meter as well.

150 Hz (NOT MHz, this is not UHF TV we're talking about) is too high a setting for your crossover. It should be more like 80. With your sub set to 100 Hz, there is a gap in frequency response between your mains and your subwoofer.

If the mains are set to "Large," however, there should be no filtering of the signal to the mains and thus you're actually getting TOO much bass where your mains and subwoofer overlap (do you happen to know the -3 decibel [db] point of your mains?).

For example, if your mains go down to, say, 60 Hz and you're running them full range, try setting your sub's crossover at 60-70 Hz (these adjustable crossovers are notoriously inaccurate so experiment and use your ears). Then, using your receiver's remote, determine how to set the level of your center channel to match your mains better. Most of the time, a 2-3-4 db "bump" of the center channel speaker will bring dialogue into sharper focus.

Good luck.