Hey guys, I could use a little help understanding some settings with the 990 and my Denon 3910.

I have the 3910 connected to 990 via digital coax and 5.1 analog inputs for use w/ SACD/DVDA.
The settings I have now are: (not sure if they are right as the Denon manual is not much help)
Audio Channel: Multi Channel
Digital Output: Normal vice PCM
LPCM 44.1khz/48khz-OFF
Source Direct- OFF
Bass Enhancer- OFF
Compression- OFF
SACD Filter 100khz vice 50khz
Spkr size: Small
Crossover: 80khz
Sub: Yes
Channel level: 0db
Delay time: 000ms

This is what I need help understanding: I want to use just the 990 for bass management and overall setup.

1. In the 3910, how does the speaker settings for small and large along with the crossover settings effect the 990? Are those settings only for the 5.1 input or does it also effect the digital inputs?

2. How does the channel level and delay time in the 3910 effect the 990?

Any advice is appreciated.

Dan

The speaker settings only apply to the 5.1 output; the digital output (which you have properly set to "normal") is passed directly from the disc to the output for the 990 to play with. With the 990 downstream of the 3910's 5.1 output, I'd recommend setting all speakers to large, the subwoofer to on, and leaving all channel levels and delay times "zero" on the 3910. That way, the 990 is the only unit that applies settings of these types.

Gonk, thanks for the info but it brings up another question.
If I understand you correctly, then the 3910's speaker and crossover setting only effect the 5.1 outputs and not the digital outs.
So if I were set the speaker settings to large, sub on in the 3910 as you recommended, wouldnt that have an effect when playing SACD/DVDA? Or does the 990 BM also apply to the 5.1 analog inputs. (I don't have the new firmware loaded yet if that makes a difference)

Thanks for the help.

You are correct - the 3910's speaker and crossover settings only affect the 5.1 analog output. You are also correct that the 990 applies bass management to the 7.1 Direct input.

Thanks again. Clears up alot. Still would like to know what's the difference then between the SACD Filter set at 100Khz and the regular crossover set at 80khz.

If the regular crossover is for the 5.1 outputs then why is there a seperate SACD filter?

Hopefully the last question.
Thanks

The SACD filter threw me for a minute, in part because there's a typo on page 28 of the manual. The filter is unrelated to the bass management crossover. Instead, it is a low-pass filter that can be set to either 50KHz or 100KHz (page 28 lists the default as 50Hz rather than 50kHz, which is what threw me off until I looked at page 42). The bass management crossover defaults to the THX standard of 80Hz (not 80kHz). The upper limit of human hearing is 20,000Hz (or 20kHz), but SACD supports much higher frequencies. The 3910 provides a low-pass filter that throws away everything above 50,000Hz as a courtesy (since most electronics aren't designed to bother with frequencies that high), and it provides an optional low-pass filter setting of 100,000Hz in case you don't want that courtesy for some reason. I'd leave the SACD filter at the default value of 50kHz.

Wow Gonk, glad you are around here for help. I really appreciate it!
Your response did help me understand some things but makes me have another question.
If the SACD filter is for 50,000hz/100,000hz and the human hear can only hear up to 20,000hz, then what the heck is that filter for?
It doesnt make any sense to me. (BTW,I'm not the most knowledgeable person in this area if you can't tell)

Thanks

The SACD format's design allows for audio data from 1 Hz to 100,000 Hz. DVD-Audio tops out at 48,000 Hz. Most electronics are designed with the <20,000 Hz range of human hearing, although there are some "super-tweeters" on the market that are capable of reproducing audio up as high as 40,000 Hz. Denon's giving folks the option of discarding the audio data that's beyond even the reach of those rarely-used drivers, leaving you with something comparable to DVD-Audio as far as frequency response. And since some purists may want to get the full, un-altered frequency response from SACD, they give you the option of disabling it and letting the full 1 to 100,000Hz through.

Thanks again gonk. You have been alot of help! I am sure I will be back with more questions later when I get ready to do the firmware update.