I had my new home theater system installed a couple of days ago. My A/V receiver is a Marantz SR5500, and the remote features buttons for eight audio settings: AUTO / DOLBY / DTS / CSX / EX/ES / VIRTUAL / MCH-ST / STEREO.
My question is: Should I choose just one setting for 5.1 surround, or does it depend on the content of the source to be played? Or in some cases is it simply a matter of preference? I've been using the DOLBY setting in most cases simply because it sounds the best. MCH-ST also sounds good, but isn't as loud as DOLBY, which means I have to increase the volume. I've read through the Surround Mode section of the Marantz manual, but I'm still somewhat confused by it all. I would very much appreciate hearing from someone who can help me understand how to properly choose my surround settings. Thank you.
Keep it on auto...this cuts down on any type of decisions you have to make
Really, though...the sound setting is totally up to your preference. Some will say turn "such and such" setting to the maximum and it will give very good sound! Who is to say you will like that setting?
The Auto detect feature on the other hand takes a lot of manual settings out of the equation. It is designed to detect the source signal coming from your dvd player and dvd's. From the flags in the source material it will activate the type of audio encoding programmed into the disc, such as; Dolby Digital, Dolby Digital ES - if the DVD is mastered in Dolby Digital only, then your receiver will detect that and apply the proper settings. DTS, DTS-EX - Some discs have this audio encoding and if youchose this setting in your dvd player the receiver will automatically activate the dts audio setting.
If the disc is encoded only in stereo, then the receiver will do the same.
All the other extra settings, such as the csx, virttual, etc. is just that, a user preference setting.
The best thing to do is leave in auto detect setting, unless you have other preferences in mind.
