I have the Infinity TSS-450 and the Harmon Kardon AVR-140. I have found that on some programs (Eagles-Hell Freezes Over, Allison Krauss and Union Station) the bass is perfect and does not overwhelm. However many programs are just too bass heavy. I have calibrated the system with a Radio Shack meter. What can be done when some things sound fine and other don't. I have the x over at 100 and the subwoofer midway up the dial.
You can start by using your remote control to set the bass levels where they sound best for any one piece of music. That's what "on-the-fly" control is all about.
You can also go through your settings again to make certain they are set to satisfy your system and room. Try different settings for your speaker's crossover to the sub. In my opinion 100Hz is too high for most systems.
I would adjust the system to sound good rather than look good on a meter. Meters are valuable in two circumstances in my opinion. The first is when you set up a THX system which runs from source to outputs at specific THX determined levels. Along with levels, speaker and listener placement are also decreed by THX standards. Spending more dollars for a true THX system allows for more control of the system and the environment in which it exists than an entry level HT system. In this case a meter serves a good purpose.
The second instance for using a meter is a HT system which complies to no preconceived set up. If your left front speaker is ten feet above the floor in a bookcase while you right front speaker is two feet below ear level on a coffee table, you will have difficulties matching levels unless you can hear beyond the effects of speaker placement. Further matching to a center speaker above the TV and set into a cabinet will make the system almost impossible for most beginners to set up properly. In this case, a meter serves to get you to a starting point.
Keep in kind there are few standards in home audio gear which apply to maintaing levels throughout a typical entry level system. There are even fewer standards which apply to the sources you play. Switching between video and audio sources often brings level changes. Switching between Pro Logic, DD/DTS and then stereo sources brings even further complications to setting levels with confidence and decent results.
If the system doesn't sound right after you've put the meter away, you need to make some changes to correct the problem. Read your owner's manuals again to make certain you understand how to use the equipment you own. If you cannot discern between the tonal balance of the test signal and the SPL of the test signal, use the meter to get you to a starting point. Then set the system to sound good on the widest variety of source material. As I said, there are few standards which apply to level in consumer audio/video or recorded material. Change only one setting at any one time. Levels and crossover points are tied together but you can't change both at once and expect to know which change made what sound. If you lower the Xo point, you will probably put less energy into the sub. Conversely, lowering the level will affect the Xo point to some degree. You will have to learn to listen for the specific change you made while also hearing how that change will affect the whole system. Changing speakers from "Large" to "Small" will affect the bass response of the system. Make certain you are only setting the subwoofer Xo at one point. If you set the Xo at the receiver or DVD player, do not set the Xo at the subwoofer. The subwoofer's crossover should be at it's highest frequency position, if you set Xo at the electronics. The same holds true with level set other than you must decide upon a generic level set at the sub and then adjust the electronics to accomodate that setting.
Whenever bass response is the problem postioning the sub and speakers will often make the most obvious change in sound quality. There is no one right way to set speaker/subwoofer placement. Put "speaker placement" and "sub placement" into a search engine and read about a few methods for getting the best sound from your equipment. Not infrequently, changing your listening position makes an improvement in bass repsonse.
Most of all, keep in mind you have the ability to alter settings to make the system sound good. While others may disagree, I find setting levels with a meter largely a waste of time and money when dealing with a less than top dollar system. Most entry level systems don't have the facilites to really make use of the information the meter provides and most people place too much emphasis on what the meter tells them rather than what sounds good. Keep in mind the RS meter is a $39 piece of gear with various inaccuracies built into it. Unless you understand how to overcome these problems, you might as well keep the meter in the box it came in. Unless you listen for the correct settings, you might as well unplug the system and just stare at the meter. The meter is, at best, a starting point and not and end game.
Finally, don't get hung up on numbers. Get the system to sound good after you put the meter away. It should sound decent on the widest range of material which will have no common standards. Do not be afraid to alter levels once you've reached a decision. The system must sound good and, if it doesn't, don't hestitate to change the system to make it sound better.
I don't know how to fix it. My den has hardwood and has an area rug. The walls are hardwood and to further complicate things...we have windows in bad places. My tv is actually in a corner with 2 front sattelites mounted on the celing and a center on top of the tv...2 rear mount on the ceiling behind me. To fix it...I would need to change the configuration of the tv and I have no other options.
Does the avr-140 allow you to calibrate the level of the sub? On my avr-325, there is not test tone for the sub. I usedan AVIA Home Theater calibration DVD to do that with an SPL meter, and was surprised at how low I had to dial the sub in (below the 1/6 volume mark). But then it sounded great on any material when crossed over at 80 Hz.
JH - Acoustics problems are constant. They do not come and go with the choice of recording. While particular frequencies excite various room problems according to the dimensions of your room, those problem frequencies are always the same in any given room. Bass which sounds good on one piece of material and not another seldoms indicates room problems unless the character of the bass frequencies changes drastically with each recording. While your room and set up do not indicate great potential as is, your description of the room doesn't indicate excessive bass problems either. Excessive, muddy bass is almost always related to room dimensions and speaker/sub placement. In your case, speaker position appears fixed, but not the subwoofer placement. If your listening position is flexible, I would begin by repositioning what I could since that costs nothing other than time. Considering the overall cost of your speaker/sub system, you are not going to achieve deep, taut bass response on some recordings. Your effort should be to smooth out the boominess created by the placement and the typically "whompy" nature of small sat/sub combinations. To some extent ed is correct when he says most sat/sub combination packages are less than perfect. But they are often matched to work with each other as well as can be expected and changing subs can only make matters worse. I wouldn't suggest you replace the sub at this time, but try to get the best from what you own. Your hardwood floors and lack of soft surfaces would suggest problems in the higher frequencies, but not the bass response. Light bass is more typical in your arrangement due to an abundance of midrange and high frequency reflections. Where is the subwoofer located in this room?
Peter, John already said he leveled the channels with a SPL meter. His problem is that he hasnt employed any bass trapping or room treatment to correct the many acoustic issues that exist in every untreated sound room.
I realize Jan is the self proclaimed board audio expert, but his response missed the mark. What he is neglecting to account for his how various frequencies react when combined during a song or scene in a movie. That is why room effects might be more unbearable on some tracks than on others. That is why "Hell Freezes Over" might sound OK to John, but certain loud segments in a movie like LOTR might be completely out of control.
That is the room talking Most of the people who post on this forum probably wont be able expand on my comments, because virtually none of them have taken the necessary steps themselves to treat their own soundrooms.
Ok...here is where I will get abused. I have the sub woofer hidden behind a tv armoire with the front firing side pointed out the side where there is an open space between the wall and cabinet. I never thought of it as a problem because the dvds I use to test the system sound fine. LOTR sounds muddy but most music discs (Clapton, Eagles) sound fine. The bass on Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith sound ok too except in some parts that rattle. Spiderman 2 has no problems...clear dialogue, music, and reaction to bass during action scenes. I have always assumed the problem was less about the placement of the sub which I admit isn't correct but the levels that I have the crossover and sub at.
You'll definitely want to experiment with your sub placement. Only through experimentation will you find the best spot for it. Needless to say, you'll probably soon discover the best spot isnt jammed between a cabinet and wall. LOL
Rush - I will never deny the benefits of acoustic treatments when dealing with a serious audio system. They are the most often neglected piece of equipment that everyone should own. However, without bashing JH too much, think about what you are suggesting. He spent about $300 dollars for his entire speaker set up to mate with a low end HK receiver. The front and rear speakers are mounted against the ceiling. While acoustic treatments would be a definite help to the mid and high frequencies in his hard surfaced room, they are not what is going to solve his bass problems with his current placement issues. Nor is he likely to spend more on a single bass trap than he did on his entire speaker system. And, if there is a Mrs. JH, I doubt he is going to place a couple of 16" traps in each corner and a few along the side walls. So, by way of more information coming to light, I stick with my two posts. Move the sub to get better sound and don't hesitate to adjust the levels for proper balance when needed.
JH, you have a decent system for the money spent. It is not a THX system and there are no real standards for the level of components you own. Don't get caught into a trap of thinking the meter is the final arbitter of level sets. It has to sound good. Do read about subwoofer placement and do make some changes to where the sub resides.
Last night I grabbed about 5 dvds that I felt showed representative bass and adjusted my system. I put in the Avia disc and reduced the knob on the back of the sub by about 1/8. I used the meter to get it up to a bit more than what the other speakers were calibrated at. It seemed to me that this still allowed for natural sounding bass on the concert dvds and didn't blow me out of my seat during Star Wars and LOTR. It still doesn't sound exactly like I would wish but considering the low end equipement that I have and the logistics and placement of my system - I think it is as good as I could hope for. I get the same feeling that I get when I am in a room and my wife (Mrs JH) says something and I say "what?"...there just seems to be pockets where the dialogue is unclear...but when I increase the center channel it sound unatural.
Most of the people who post on this forum probably wont be able expand on my comments, because virtually none of them have taken the necessary steps themselves to treat their own soundrooms.