I just bought a spl meter and DVE tune up disc. Now what? How can I calibrate my lil AR 108S sub. I scan through the DVE disc. How can I adjust or tune up my lil sub. What is the best way to do it? As you can see I am a newbie of all newbies Help me... I want my sub to go as low as it can handle. Thanks in advance!
Lp,
Derek
Posted on
Start by using the test tones in your receiver to set your 5 speakers to the same level. If you are lucky your receivers will also produce a 6th tone for the sub. Remember to set the meter to its flat or "C" weighted setting. This will get you in the ballpark. It's best to do this close to where your ears would be. That's usually the back cushion of the couch, not in your lap where you can see the meter. Use the receiver's per-speaker level controls to set the speakers to exactly the same level.
At the receiver set your speakers to "Small" and set the sub output to "Sub-Only" - not "Both" or "Main+Sub". Now turn your sub's power off. play Tittle 10, Chapter 4. This is just for demonstration purposes. You shouldn't hear anything at first and the meter shouldn't move, at first. Then in the mid-bass your should start hearing something.
Now turn the sub on. Set the sub's cross-over to it's lowest frequency (probably 50Hz) and listen to the 15Hz-300Hz test again. This time you should hear nothing and slowly a lot of deep bass. Set the sub level control so that this bass is the same level as the rest of the speakers - you may have to restart the chapter a few times. You have just set the approximate sub level.
During the playback, the meter will be low, then rise for the deep bass, then drop, then rise back to that level again. This is because we have the sub cross-over frequency set too low at 50Hz and there is a gap where no speaker is producing those sounds. Play the chapter again and again while turning the the cross-over frequency up. Your goal is to prevent that 'dip' in the meter's response. You may notice that the sub will get VERY loud at some point. This is because no sub actually has a flat frequency response and most electronic crossovers actually 'pull' the overall level down as well as set a cross-over frequency. Turn the sub's level down a little until that peak is gone and go back and forth - settting the frequency and level. Rememebr you are trying to eliminate the drop in response while maintaining a flat response.
You are done. You may want to mark these settings with a pencil. Trust me, you're going to play with these controls.
If you have full sized speakers anywhere in your system, use your receivers speakers size control to set the corresponding speakers to large.
When you listen to the system. It may sound a little dry and lifeless. This is what your source material is sending you. Playing an action-packed DVD should reveil smooth, extended bass. Still most people find the correct sound to be a little boring. If you do, turn the sub up a little at the sub, set your sub out at the receiver to "Main+sub" OR just turn your bass up to your taste.
Hope this helps.
Lp
Posted on
Thanks Derek. I tried what you'd told me. The sound field seemed to be more fill. One thing though I can't get it to have a flat response. The meter keeps on jumping. Here is my setting on the sub. I have the volume knob to about 40% and my freq level is at about 90hz (given the 50hz to 150hz). What should most sub freq level be?? Another question I have is that my main speakers are floor stand. Are they consider full sized speakers??? If so, should I have my main speakers set to "large"??? I changed my mains to "large" and they seemed overpower the center. Should I raise the level on the center & surrounds? Sorry for the mess... I am kinda confuse. Thanks in advance.
This is good. Thank you, guys. Can you please give details of the "DVE tune up disc"?
Speakers that stand on the floor are almost always "large", Lp. DTS defines large speakers as ones giving full range, 20 Hz - 20 kHz, but very few would make it. A lower limit (-3 dB) of 50 Hz or less probably counts as "large" for all practical purposes.
BTW both Dolby and DTS say the sub should reach up to 120 Hz. However, I am doubful that many recordings go that high on the LFE channel, the sound is beginning to be directional up there. I am interest to try this out with a good test disc.
A single "frequency" control on a sub connected at line (LFE channel) level is probably a low-pass filter: it just cuts frequencies above that value. This is different from "crossover", where the frequencies above that value are sent somewhere else: that should be what the control does when the sub is connected at speaker level.
Would you agree, Derek?
There seems to be all sorts of confusion by manufactures and recording engineers, let alone by users, about what subs should do. In Dolby Digital I get LFE output even where the disc is 5.0 or 4.0. The effect with "all speakers large" and a 5.1 disc is booming bass, which I dislike. My system actually sounds better in DD with "small plus sub", even though I have large main speakers. This problem is not there with DTS.
Lp
Unregistered guest
Posted on
John, DVE = Digital Video Essentials (HT tune up disc). I did not have a chance to play around w/ my system, as you know, it's holiday season and my gf is working real good w/ shoppings. I will try to set my main to "large" to see how they sound. My main focus is to have my lil AR 108 sub to go as low as possible. Thanks for the inputs...
Help me... I want my sub to go as low as it can handle. Thanks in advance!