Thanks for reading...

Just replaced a B&K Ref20 and have a few questions:

I am using a sub that only connects to the front left/right speakers and I have them set to "large". All other speakers are set to "small" and the sub to "none". Nothing is connected to the preamp's LFE out. Doing this, I am losing absolutely no bass info, right? Whether it's bypass, stereo, DTS, DD or some derived signal?

The rear center has choices between "music" and "cinema". I understand that I should pick the one I like but what is the actual difference between their decoding modes?

What is the exact issue with the surround not working until you switch to another source and back? It seems to take me a while to get it working. Is this something that can be avoided?

Thanks again for any help.

You will only lose info on material through the 5.1 analog input (DVD-Audio or SACD). You'll lose nothing on stereo inputs, digital inputs, or stereo inputs in stereo bypass mode.

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gonk -- Saloon Links | Pre/Pro Comparison Chart | 950 Review

Thanks for the reply...

I have a Pioneer DVD-563A and, in the DVD-Audio section, I told it that I had all large speakers and no subwoofer. Wouldn't that send any bass out of the other outputs to the 950 and not lose any?

Any ideas on the other two questions?

Thanks again.

I'm not sure how the Pioneer works -- many DVD-A players lacked any bass management on DVD-A discs (the settings provided only applied to decoding Dolby Digital and DTS soundtracks). If the Pioneer includes enough bass management to know to redirect the .1 to the mains, then you would lose nothing.

I couldn't tell you exactly what the difference is between music and cinema modes. There may be some good info floating around at Dolby's site , but it was hiding from me the other day.

I think the issue you are referring to is the tendency for the 5.1 analog input sticks in "stereo" mode if the input used immediately prior to switching is set to stereo. Switching through a surround-enabled input eliminates the issue. I personally never seem to run into it: using both the 950's remote and my MX-500, I always switched to the DVD input first (which I leave in surround mode) and then changed to the 6 channel input.

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gonk -- Saloon Links | Pre/Pro Comparison Chart | 950 Review

Regnad,

I’m no expert, and I own the 1050 not the 950, but my recent speaker configuration experience may be of some relevance to your post.

My modest speakers (Polk RM6600) were wired as yours, until about 6 weeks ago, when, I decided to try this alternative setup:

* Fronts wired directly to my receiver; set to small.
* Sub wired via LFE, with appropriate xover set on receiver.
* Surrounds and Center set to small.

My sub’s LFE input does not bypass its internal xover, so I turned it all the way up to get it out of the way of the receiver’s xover.
After a system calibration, I couldn’t believe I was listening to the same system (in fact, I don’t think I was ).
With the first setup, the front sats and center speaker did not sound “in tune" (not the right words, but don’t know how else to describe it). Compared to this new configuration, the front soundstage was almost nonexistent.
As far as I can figure, in the first setup, the receiver and sub xovers were interacting negatively. What still gets me is that I was simply following my speaker documentation with the initial setup. I think speaker manufactures assume most people not purchasing “audiophile” grade speakers won’t have a receiver with an adjustable crossover. In that scenario, this setup makes sense.
So the moral of the tale - why not give the LFE connection to the sub a try? What do you have to lose? Good luck if you decide to experiment, and let us know how it goes!

-chris

Thanks Gonk and Chris...

I did run a low level cable from the 950 to the sub and it does sound better for some things, particularly DVD-A and multi-SACD. I do now understand what "pressurizing" a room means! Still playing with adjustments.

A lot of the difference, I believe, is the changing of the crossover point (right now at 60hz) as well as the crossover slope (what is the slope in the 950?). The sub I am using is designed to fill in the very lowest bass and not remove any from the main speakers. Using the 950's crossover sends higher frequency bass to the sub as well as removing low bass from the mains, I think.

Overall, I like the change for surround. Am I correct in thinking that, when in regular music stereo mode, this split is also happening since the mains are set to small? It is a bit confusing since now the sub is getting both high and low level at the same time.

Finally, and I hope I'm not wearing out my welcome in this thread, I have some final issues that are troubling me...

There is a "stridency" or "edginess", particularly at higher volumes that is hard to take. It does vary with the recording but is evident with most sources. I do not remember having this with the B&K Ref 20 and hope I can figure it out. I even have the theatre comp on. Any ideas?

Equipment is:
Sony DVP9000ES DVD
Pioneer DV563 DVD
Outlaw 950 processor
Odyssey Stratos amp
Magneplanar 1.6QR mains
Magneplanar CC3 center
REL Strata III sub

Gonk, the music and cinema modes would seem to be a Cirrus thing rather than something that Dolby has a hand in...

I appreciate your reading and any help...