Video Asylum

Posted by David Aiken (A) on August 26, 2007 at 00:35:24

In Reply to: RE: Past experience with direct DVD - Amp connection posted by author@escapeclause.net on August 25, 2007 at 16:13:37

I didn't realise the Arcam had a digital input. Definitely go optical then if you wish instead of using the direct analog input.

Where I tracked things down in the manual was at page 66 in the section entitled "Downmix (DVD Video/DVD-VR mode only). That refers to the Downmix option in the Audio Setup and states that the "Normal" setting provides a 2 channel downmix. The "Digital Out" setting is discussed below that (needs to be set to "on").

Following that is a section on setting the digital output setting. If your Arcam does not have Dolby/DTS decoding, you need to set this to D-PCM. That allows the player to decode the soundtrack to PCM format, the same kind of signal present on a CD, and then the Arcam's DAC can do the digital to analog conversion. If the Arcam can decode Dolby and/or DTS bitstreams, set the digital output to Dolby Digital and the DTS option to On.

I just noticed that at page 65, there's also an "Audio (HDMI) setting" which you need to set. Set it to PCM if the TV does not have a Dolby decoder and to Auto if it does. It does the same thing for audio via HDMI as the digital output setting does for the optical out.

The stuff about the remote and the virtual surround options was at pages 42-43.

The above settings will apply whether or not you just take the digital audio signal from the player via HDMI and then pass it to the amp via the TV, or if you run HDMI to the TV and an optical i/c to the Arcam. If you run the optical to the Arcam, you obviously shouldn't need the analog i/cs between the TV and the Arcam.

If you eventually go with a surround setup, you will need to change the Downmix setting at that time.

I can't remember the link for the manual, I didn't take a note. I just went to Sony's website and tracked down the manual from there in the support area.

If you've got the connections right, and it's hard to get the connections wrong—there's a lot less options than there are on my player which offers HDMI, coax and optical digital, 2 ch analog, and separate 5.1 ch analog outputs)—then it has to be the settings. If you have the Downmix setting set to "Normal", you should be getting a stereo downmix and that should split the centre channel info from the soundtrack between both L & R speakers. The only other thing to watch is the virtual surround options which usually don't work too well so leave that turned off.

The final thing, as I said earlier, is always select the stereo soundtrack on the disc if one is offered. That always, in my experience, gives better results than a downmix by the player or a receiver if you're using one.


David Aiken