I finished setting up the 950 the other night. I was surprised how easy it was to get everything plugged in. I am using it to power two zones eliminating three boxes in the process. ...that was the main purpose for getting it. I took my Yamaha DSP-A3090 and tuner and another old Yammie receiver out of my rack.

The main question I have has to do with levels. I was using both yammies as processors sending the signal to a pair of monoblocks for zone two and 5-channel amp for zone one. Why is the signal so much quieter on the 950? I have to turn the 950 up to -15 to get a good loud sound out of it for movies and listen to my Audiotron (MP3 over ethernet) at -20to -25. I'm not used to having to turn my processors up this high to get moderately loud sound.

I don't want people to think I'm complaining too much. I have NO reason to turn it up past 0. -15 is fine for most movies and I still can turn it up to 0 if the mood arises.

I am just curious why this is the case? Why, with nothing else changed, does the source signal strength seem to have decreased by putting the 950 in the mix?

Second question has to do with the remote and zone two. Is there an easy way to set up a second remote for downstairs and control the multi-zone volume, source and mute? At this point, I feel the only option is to hook up a small LCD TV downstairs so I can see the OSD so I can see what I'm doing.

Regarding hiss, I have a slight hiss. After the superbowl, I will probably send mine back to get this fixed. Other than that, I am loving this unit. I agree with what others have posted about this unit. It isn't perfect, but for the money, I have no serious complaints.

Bill

If you ordered your 950 on or after December 17th, you have the new revision.

If you do not have the new revision, the new one will give you almost double the acoustic volume for the same position on the volume control.

If you do have the new one, I suggest that you calibrate the system using the internal tone of the 950, and a RadioShack analog sound level meter. Doing this will yield levels that match the level the movie was mixed at, when the main volume is at "00".

Thank you. I'll check to see what the manufacture date was when I get home. Based on the volume levels and the hiss (slight but noticeable), I suspect I have an older model.

Rather than the manufacture date, check the date it was shipped to you (maybe the confirmation e-mail) to see if it was on or after December 17 -- if so, it is the new revision.

My previous pre/pro was an Outlaw 1050 receiver, and the 1050's volume control is linear and so unrelated to dB at all, so my past experience isn't really typical. With my 950 calibrated to 75dB at 00 volume, I listen to DVD's at around -15 to -8. TV watching (digital cable) is probably around -20. CD's are similar.

The remote and zone two, unfortunately, are not extremely easy to use. I use mine with a wireless speaker that typically only gets used outside, so I have to go to the living room to make changes anyway, but I haven't heard of anyone coming up with an easy solution to controlling zone 2 where the 950 wasn't visible.

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

When I ran the wires for my zone two, I put in an s-video cable as well. Hopefully I'll be able to use that in the long run. For now, I'm just leaving the zone two on. Then I just turn on the audiotron when I want sound to come out.

is 75dB at "00" the reference we are looking to set it at? If so, I need to re-do everything.

I currently run my receivers testtone(00), and seeing as the mains and center all came close to 87dB, i set the surounds and sub to that as well.

Which brings me to another question...

Why was my left set at +6, tested at 87dB with testone...and to achieve the same level with the right main, I had to raise it's level to +8? I do have a window slightly behind it with a curtain..and seeing as they are deftechs(bipolar)...I was hoping that was the reason behind the difference.

Is this normal? I know all speakers are slightly different, I was just wondering if anyone else comes across this at times.

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Play it LoUd!!

Room effects can be a lot larger than the 2db you are seeing between your left and right speakers. Ideally, your room and speakers should be absolutely symmetrical, with no reflecting surfaces near the speakers. You seem OK with just 2db difference.

75db is what you want with the 950s internal test tone, with the main volume at "00".

Thank you my friend

Talk about quick responses..thats why I love this place. Fast and knowledgable people!

And unfortunately I dont have a choice right now. Id love to get that speaker away from the window, but I'd lose out overall.




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Play it LoUd!!