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Usman_Denver Unregistered guest | Hi all! My first post here. I am buying a Toshiba 61A61 61" RPTV and Onkyo S770 HTIB, plus Pioneer 578A-S SACD/DVD-A universal player. After doing an obscene amount of online research, it seems that the AVIA Calibration DVD is the best way to set up my new system. However, I am spending waaaaaay too much on all this, more than my poor grad student self really should. So I'm wondering whether buying the AVIA is the right choice, since I'll only be using it once. Could any of you please consider lending or renting yours to me? I live in Denver, CO, and can pick it up if you are in the area, or will pay for shipping if you are not. Please let me know. I would be eternally grateful! And I am a very responsible guy. Will care for it like my own. Thanks much! |
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Silver Member Username: Paul_ohstbucksPost Number: 971 Registered: Jan-05 | I think you're making a mountain out of a molehill. I think you'll be better served by setting your channel levels by ear, to levels your ears and personal taste dictates.(not based on what a SPL meter says is correct) For example, lets look at sub configuration.... I prefer to run my sub a little 'hot', while my father prefers to set his lower than the so-called benchmark. Which is right?? Calibration is more about preference than it is anything else, and there is no 'correct' or perfect setting. My perfectly calibrated system might sound a little off to you, but I have it exactly the way I like it, so thats a good thing since I'm the one that gets to enjoy it's output on a daily basis. Blending the fronts is easy, and the surround/back & sub levels should be done by personal taste. ahhh....I can just hear the techies cringing. |
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Silver Member Username: DmwileyPost Number: 695 Registered: Feb-05 | Just another perspective. Paul and I disagree on this topic. I think a properly calibrated system brings more accuracy and realism to the HT experience. If that were not the case, why do certain DVDs include a THX set up chapter? Now I agree with Paul that soundtrack mixes do vary, but unlike he has maintained in other threads, I do not generally see the need to constantly readjust speaker volume levels if I am seated in the "sweet" spot. Usually, the original mix, when played over a properly calibrated system is just fine. I think you should start with calibration such that the speakers output more or less equal volume levels received at the primary listening area. This is your reference point. You can then adjust from there. You might be able to do this with your raw hearing, but a sound pressure level meter is usually more accurate. AVIA disc is good. I personally prefer Digital Video Essentials. |
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Usman_Denver Unregistered guest | Hmm...I know what you both mean. But I would have to side with Dale on this. If one does not have a perspective on what a well-calibrated system should sound like (read:me) then there is simply no point of reference. I can recognize quality pitch when I hear it, as I play piano by the ear, but I simply wouldn't know what to compare the HT sound with. So I would have to trust a calibration system to provide me with that reference point. But I see where you're coming from, Paul. In fact, I do have a related question about video calibration. Some AVIA-related threads I saw mentioned that regular TV broadcasts acquire a red hue post-calibration. Seems to make sense as their quality is nowhere near that of a component video-connected DVD player. What is your take on that? Any personal experience? Also, my request is still out there! Someone? |
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Silver Member Username: Paul_ohstbucksPost Number: 976 Registered: Jan-05 | Dale and I are both right, because there is no 'right' way to calibrate your system. For example, if Im watching "House" on HDfox in 7.1 surround, I'll set my SVS-Sub up to 50%gain to give the episode low segments the perfect amount of 'feel' since the sat/LFE signals are typically a little weaker than those of DVDS. If Im watching a DVD like "Terminator3", I'll set the gain down to around 35% on the SVS to keep from blowing the back wall off its footing. I also turn my center channel up or down depending on the time of day. If I'm wathching a movie late on a weeknight, I might run the center 4-5dbs higher than I would when nobody was sleeping. Make sense?? |
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Gold Member Username: Jan_b_vigneDallas, TX Post Number: 3806 Registered: May-04 | See my remarks on this thread: https://www.ecoustics.com/electronics/forum/home-theater/125684.html You probably are making too much of this. Did you read the correct color to paint your room and the temperature and intensity of the light to have behind the RPTV? Most broadcasts do require different calibration from DVD if you're that picky that you have everything else set up perfectly. Otherwise you may not notice if the room color adversely affects your TV's color balance. A small amount of light leaking in from a window throws the standards away. Are you going to have a dedicated room that has the windows blacked out? In my experience, unless you've done a dedicated THX HT with all the ISF trimmings, worrying about the small stuff is not seeing the forest for the trees. This is supposed to be enjoyable. If your budget is that tight, get a THX calibration from a THX DVD and use it as the basic set up for everything. Depending on the source you are using, the set up for Dolby Digital and DTS is not exactly the same for SACD and DVD-A because the speaker positions for audio and video are different. If you are playing a Chesky or Telarc SACD, they don't use center or LFE and replace them with Height channels. So are you going to move your speakers around for each source as you play it? If so, get the calibration disc and use it constantly. If not, why sweat the small stuff that doesn't matter because you aren't set up properly in the first place? |
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Bronze Member Username: Thx_3417Bournemouth, Dorset United Kingdom Post Number: 41 Registered: May-05 | Terminator 3 listen towards the end where the voice coming off screen is panned to left and left centre "can somebody hear me? This is Montanan civil defence" then is paned to the centre position "somebody please come in" etc now unless you are using mismatched loudspeakers in you home cinema like the centre channel which is a common problem due too poor frequency response and range too. Does the dialogue at narration level playback on yours sound warm sound or is it too toppey sounding on most films as I have noticed on my friend's home cinemas, makes my skin crawl it doses ekk... On my home cinema set-up dialogue sound effects and music on the centre are pro sounding with an ACTIVE X-over. At an average SPL of 85dbc with some passages at 90dbc, and though I'm using JBL control 5 three for the three screen channels and using an ACTIVE X-over two-way for the centre channel as giving a whole lot of DME power at frequency response and range over the whole room at centre position within the room it's nice and naturally warm sounding and with an EQ in-line for the LF and the HF which is crossed over at 500Hz balancing it was fun, and at most a little difficult but only a little now I what a few more ACTIVE X-over units as passive ones suck major let down, also some compressor limiters too as I can do some neat tricks with them. Though I did run into some small problems that where solved quickly, the crossover been set at 500Hz was to much for the HF due to not being a HF horn compression type, I had this other JBL loudspeaker called the MR centre, and used it for the crossover for the HF from 500Hz upwards and placed on top of the control 5 at horizontal position, if you think it will stick out like a sore thumb forget it its been balanced and EQ so you can't tell where the crossover is unless you turn the HF amp off or the LF amp. Plus I had to do a lot of major EQ to the left and right has the mains where on the toppy side, easy, like I said more active X-over units, power to the people... Demonstration alignment and calibration frequencies and some frequency band level and phase checking as well, indispensable |
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Silver Member Username: Joe_cOakwood, Ga Post Number: 308 Registered: Mar-05 | wierd one this one.^ |
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Bronze Member Username: Thx_3417Bournemouth, Dorset United Kingdom Post Number: 46 Registered: May-05 | Hi there Joseph, Well it not your avenge home cinema set-up many techniques have gone it to it, my background as a projectionist, and a basic music and technology course at collage, but its all straight forward ins and outs and what you can put in-between it. Ashley |
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Usman_Denver Unregistered guest | Jan, I hear you. And I did read your post in the other thread. I agree. A <$500 HTS is definitely not the best-sounding in the world and there are inherent imperfections in even the best-sampled audio. I just want my system to sound the best it can; the most "well-rounded" tuning to handle various audio inputs. I continuously tweak the subwoofer even on my desktop 5.1 surround (fed by Creative Extigy 24-kbit) when I watch movies on the PC, so that is sure to continue with HTS. I guess I will wait until I set up the TV and HTS before worrying about fine-tuning. Thanks guys! |