When selecting a X-over setting at the 40-60 Hz range aren't you assuming that it is a "large" speaker? Isn't having the option of choosing a large/small speaker and the high pass selection a bit redundant? When I initially set up my 950 I had my fronts and rears configured as large. The fronts I had set at the 40 mark and the rears at the 60. This worked quite well for DVD's but when watching non-digital cable TV the sound of PL and ProII was very thin. It lacked any sort of punch even with the bass on the TV turned way up. Only when I selected the Speaker settings as small did I get any satisfaction out of the cable broadcast. I guess what I'm asking is that when the 40 or 60 setting is used does the lower range get output through the sub? What is the difference between the Large 50 hz setting and the small 50 hz setting?

A "large" setting indicates to the 950 that your front speakers have a flat frequency response to 20 Hz and therefore do not require low pass augmentation. If you wish to utilize the 40hz (or any crossover point for that matter) you must set your speakers to "small".

-Scott

Thanks Scott!! I did not realize that the high pass is irrelevant when the speakers selection is set to large. One more quick question; is there any difference between channel calibration and Channel trim besides the fact that the calibration plays the test tones?
Regards
Greg

Nope, That's it!

-Scott

Is this true for the multi-channel 5.1 audio inputs as well? Specifically when I don't have a subwoofer (the sub is in the L/R mains). For example, if I set the analog bass mgmt switch on the rear panel to "on" will the subwoofer frequencies below 80hz still go to my front L/R mains since they are configured as "large"?

I'm afraid not. The 6-channel analog input is completely separate from the digital portions of the 950 -- including the digital bass management settings such as large/small speakers. The analog bass management switch redirects bass from the five full range channels and passes it to the sub instead.

Do you have the subs in your mains connected to the 950's sub output?

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gonk -- 950 Review | LFM-1 Review | Pre/Pro Comparison Chart | Saloon Links

Gonk,
No. I don't use the sub-out on the 950. Instead, I use speaker wire from the amp to the L/R speaker and let the speaker circuitry determine whether to send the signal to the tweeter, mid, or sub.

That arrangement will work fine for most anything you want to do (assuming you have the mains set to "large" and the sub set to "off" in the 950's setup), but if you are using a DVD-Audio or SACD player you are most likely losing the .1 channel from those discs. If your DVD-A/SACD player includes bass management for those discs, you can set the mains to "large" and the sub to "off" and you'll be fine, but many players (especially older ones) have no bass management for DVD-Audio and SACD. In that case, the .1 signal is being passed from the player to the 950 and then lost at the unused subwoofer output on the 950.

If you have true powered subs in the main speakers and are concerned about this problem, you might consider the possibility of adding interconnects from the sub output to the line level inputs on the subs' power amps. That would allow you to pass the .1 signal to the subs.

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gonk -- 950 Review | LFM-1 Review | Pre/Pro Comparison Chart | Saloon Links

Thanks Gonk. Yes, I can add a subwoofer cable (or I can buy the ICBM). However, this leads me to a couple of other questions....

1) If 6 channel analog input is not using the digital portion of the 950, am I also losing the distance settings? My front speakers are 14 ft away and my surrounds are 8ft. So, is 6 channel assuming they are all the same distance?

2) For the 2 channel bypass, does it also not use the digital portion of the 950? Specifically, am I losing anything by not having the sub out connected or does full frequency go to the front L/R? I have front L/R set to large and sub set to none.

Some quick answers:

1) I don't remember at the moment; I remember seeing something about the delays being handled in the analog domain (which would allow them to also apply to the 6 channel input), but I don't remember if it was official or speculation.

2) I actually just answered almost the exact same question a minute ago. Here's what I typed regarding bass management and stereo bypass mode (copied and pasted from this thread ):



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gonk -- 950 Review | LFM-1 Review | Pre/Pro Comparison Chart | Saloon Links