950 and blu-ray sound connection

I am looking to buy a blu-ray player with 7.1 analog outs and was wondering about audio connections with the 950. I have my Pioneer DV-47Ai connected to the 950 with a coaxial connection for audio and I am using amplifiers for my 7.1 setup for sound. Can I just connect the blu-ray player to the 950 via coaxial connections and leave everything else the way it is? And, will that allow the new audio formats to be used? I am a major amateur when it comes to these things (thought the 950 has and is an amazing piece of equipment and I was proud to get everything set up and have it work ) and would appreciate any help people can give me to make sure I don't buy something that may not be compatible with my setup. thanks.

The coaxial audio connection will carry only the core DD and DTS tracks - it will not allow access to the new audio formats. To get those, you will need to have a player with onboard decoding and a multichannel analog output. Since the Model 950's multichannel analog input is 5.1, you have a few extra options. For example, Panasonic's BD50 is being replaced by the BD55 (in part because the BD50 has a 5.1 analog out instead of 7.1) and might be available for a nice price in the coming weeks as BD55's start to ship.

Oh, there's a link in my sig to an HDMI FAQ. You may or may not find it of use when delving into the world of Blu-ray and HDMI...

Thanks for the info. The BD55 was one of the players I was looking at so does that mean I would use the player to decode the new formats? Could you explain how that would be set up with the 950 and the connections that are available. If it can work with the 950 I'm ready to buy that player tommorrow.

ed

When connecting with the 5.1 or 7.1 out of a blu-ray player to the 5.1 in of the 950, do you need to setup the speaker distance in the blu-ray and the 950? Does the 950 process the delay in by-pass mode?

Do speaker distances and trims in the player. The 950 can provide analog bass management for the 5.1 input, but that's all.

Okay, so the moment of truth has arrived. Received my Sony S550 bluray player today and I am still confused as how to hook up audio. The Sony has 8 multichannel outputs. I have the 8 audio channel output jacks on my 950 connected to my amplifiers for my speakers. So how do I connect the Sony to the 950 and get to use the new audio formats or can that not be done. Do I just have to continue to use the coaxial connection and just wait for the 997 to take advantage of the new formats? Do I just connect the Sony to the 950 via 5.1 input jacks and will that pass the new formats through? I am pretty perplexed and will not be able to check this unit out unless someone thousands of times smarter than I helps out. thanks for helping once again.
ed

The S550 needs to be connected to the 950 via multichannel analog (from the S550's analog outputs to the 950's 6CH input).

I appreciate the help and will be setting it up tonight. one other question. Should the bass management switch be on or off. this is the first time I've ever used the multichannel inputs and so I'm not sure how to set it. thanks again.
ed

I would set it to "on" and make sure the S550's audio settings have all speakers set to "large" and the sub "on".

So of course the set-up has a glitch. no sound I connected my 550 as instructed, analog out to the analog in on the 950. all 550 speakers are at large and sub is on. set audio according to posted S550 guides from other users:
setting: output priority multi channel analog
audio (hdmi): 2ch pcm
BD audio setting: direct
Audio ATT: off
dolby digital: downmix pcm
48khz/96khz pcm: 96khz/24 bit
audio DRC: wide range
downmix: dolby surround
950 input set to DVD, analog but no sound. but when I connect the 550 via coaxial to the 950 I have sound. So not sure if it's the 950 connections or the 550 that is the problem. I hope someone can figure this out and help me out. thanks so much.

I think the issue is the settings in the S550. I had to track down the S550 manual, and I must say that those Sony boys are doing some weird stuff. Here's what I'd start out trying:

Audio Output Priority: Multichannel Analog
Speaker Settings: Front, Center, and Surround "Large", Surround Back "None" (950 only has a 5.1 analog input), and Subwoofer "Yes". Distance and Levels can be tweaked later.
Audio (HDMI): Auto (I'd prefer "off")
BD Audio Setting: Mix (otherwise secondary audio won't ever work)
Audio ATT: Off
Dolby Digital: Dolby Digital (why the default is "downmix PCM" I have no idea)
DTS: DTS (again, the downmix default makes me feel like I'm back in 1998 and DD/DTS decoders were actually rare)
48kHz/96kHz PCM: 48kHz/16bit is probably fine
Audio DRC: either Auto or Wide Range
Downmix: Dolby Surround is fine as a default, but we really don't want the player to be decoding multichannel and creating a downmix stereo signal so the hope is that this setting will be ignored.

Keep in mind that to use the 6CH input on the 950, you need to hit the "6CH" button on the remote - the DVD analog input is tied to the DVD input's stereo analog connection. The coaxial input can be associated with the DVD input normally, and you can use that for CD's, DVD's, and any Blu-ray discs you run across that don't have multichannel PCM, TrueHD, or DTS-HD tracks (there are some around - Planet Earth is an immediate example, but there are others).

Hitting the aud button and 6ch on the remote did the trick. it sounds amazing (deeper and richer sound) and display on unit shows TrueHD playing. I didn't change any of the settings I got from the S550 thread over at AVS
forum. People have been thrashing them out over there and this seems to be the recommended set though I may try your suggestions since I am never quite sure if I am getting the maximum performance out of my equipment. my new question is do I tweak the speaker settings on the 950 or in the 550 as far as distance and levels. but boy it sure sounds great right now. thanks for your quick help, gonk.
ed

The 950's distance and trim settings don't apply to the 6CH input. You should probably take a moment to adjust the distance and trim settings on the S550. The distance can match your Model 950 settings, but you may want to use the S550's internal test tones to set the trims on the S550.

gonk,
just wanted to say thanks for all your help in getting the S550 set up with the 950. I've made all the adjustments you suggested and everything is working and sounding great. you are a great resource for Outlaw.
ed

Glad to hear that you've got it working well.

[ignore...]

Gonk, I haven't requested help in a long time, but having just purchased the Pan BD55 I am having minor problem. I am using the Direct 6CH analog inputs on my VINTAGE 950. While I am geting the fuller richer sound from Blue-ray audio (5.1), I'm not getting the .1. The outlaw LFM1 is quiet as a mouse. All internal/external settings i.e. sub on, Bass management switch on 950 engaged (up position), switching back to Dolby before pressing 6CH direct button on my slowly dying 950 remote, (thank you Harmony One) etc. has been done in spades. Also note, when my Denon 2910 was connected to the 6CH input I never received subwoofer output from DVD Audio or SACD. I would give anything to know that I made a mistake somewhere and that my 950 sub output on the Direct 6CH is not bad. I am checking for a bad cable as soon as I complete this. However, we both know that something as simple as a bad cable just doesn't exist. HELP!

Bad cables do exist, but there are some other possibilities as well. If you've got a calibration disc with some audio test tones (Digital Video Essentials, for example), I'd be curious to know what happens when you play the LFE channel test tone with 6CH input engaged. I'd also make sure the player is set up properly (subwoofer needs to be enabled in the player).

Gonk, thanks for the reply. I was trying for humor. The cable is not the culprit. Interesting find: In 6CH Direct, the 950 when calibrating the speakers, has no sound from main, center and surrounds, however the sub does register on the RS sound meter. While I await the availability of the 997, I sure would like to solve this one. I remembered to change to the Dolby input/format before re-engaging the 6CH Direct. ???

Gonk, when I use the Sound & Vision Home Theater DVD setup in 6CH direct I get nothing on the sub. In any other surround formats, the sub works fine. Is there something that would cause this internally through the 950? I know you mentioned the sub must be turned on. It is. Does the Bass Management have to be in the up position thus summing the freq and sending to sub. I should be able to send full freq. to speakers if they can handle load. ???

As I recall the 950's analog input, the subwoofer always gets a combination of the LFE signal and the summed low-passed signals from all other channels. The rear panel switch only controls whether or not a high-pass crossover is engaged for the full-range channels. (Thus when the switch is "off" you have a potential for "double bass" because the sub still gets audio below 80Hz from the full range speakers.)

There are a couple possible explanations for the sub channel not getting anything. One is a hardware defect. Another is a bad cable between player and 950. Another (and the one that I'd focus on most closely as it offers the greatest opportunity to fix things readily if it is the culprit) is the player setup. Make sure the sub is on and all of the speakers are set to "large", then try that S&V DVD's test tones again. Another good test would be to move some cables around: hook the player's right channel output to the sub input on the 950 and see what the sub does when you play a test tone through the right channel. Also, the 950's test tones aren't going to be useful in diagnosing this, as they are created in a completely separate part of the processor.

Thanks for the reply. I will try the right channel connect to the sub input as all other solutions have been attempted. I suspect a hardware problem.

gonk

your pm box is full

I cleaned it up a bit. Been meaning to for a week or so, but work's been crazy since I came back from vacation after the first of the year.

So Master Fire, did you ever get this to work? I actually completely forgot that I could buy a BD player with analog outs and continue to use my trusty 950 a while longer since there's nothing wrong with it (almost six years and still going!). Naturally, I'm curious as to the success and/or frustrations others are experiencing when they go this route.

I have the Panasonic Blu Ray DMP 55 tethered to my 950 analog connections. The sound is wonderful and extends the useful life of my 950. I love it!

Raider would you list the internal settings on your DMP 55. While the 5 channels output fine, the .1 (sub) does not, and therefore I'm trying one last effort before I call it channel failure/malfunction on the 6ch direct sub out. Thanks.

I have the Panasonic set to large speakers with 0 DB.The main thing is to turn off the HDMI audio or you will get reduced sound from the analog connection.