Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Home Theater Balancing the Centre Channel

Hi,
I've balanced all the speakers with the AVIA test disk and the SPL meter but find that I am adjusting the sound all the time during DVD playback. For instance we are watching LOTR ExtEd at present and during dialogue my wife wants the Vol higher but during the action scenes she wants it turned down. It just seems that the dialogue passages are “relatively” quite in comparison.

I've just turned the Centre up +3DB (to+4.5 from +1.5) on the Yami to see how this goes (the Fronts are +5.5) for the next disk (and when I get around to it I’ll recheck with the SPL meter). Any other thoughts / idea (or am I hearing things?)

Thanks
Nathan

How did the fronts end up at 5.5 db each?

Usually, they are left at 0 as a "reference point" at the main db level. Adjust the center and surrounds, and sub accordingly.

Try putting your fronts at 0, then your center at +1 db. Nudge it up a little if you feel the need. Having the center up a couple Db's from the mains will help with the quiet scenes, but won't really make the action scenes as loud, that is what you want.

Nathan, often center channels are placement sensitive. Do you have the speaker in an entertainment center? If so, try pulling out so it's flush with the edge, or even past it a bit.

Besides that, some movies are just mixed poorly--meaning the dialogue will sound kinda bad regardless of speaker issues.

Also, try to get the speaker pointed at you. What center are you using?

Beyond the other advice, I'll simply add that a fair number of people (myself included) have their center channel bumped up a few dBs to improve dialog intelligibility....

Also Nathan, what you are experiencing, regarding the dialog being a bit on the quiet side while the action scenes are a bit too loud is not unusual, particularly for those of us who aren't striving for window rattling volume.

One thing you can try, when watching DVDs or anything with a Dolby Digital or DTS signal, is going into your Yammi's menu and adjusting the dynamic range of the the audio. Doing so makes the loud passages not so loud, and the quiet passages not so quiet.

I'm not sure what Yamaha calls this adjustment (on the 2600, they call it the "Dynamic Range" setting - page 84 in the manual). Some manufacturers call it "Night Mode," or something like that. If your Yammi has the "Dynamic Range" setting, setting it to the minimum may help.

Also, if you prefer the center channel bumped up a little bit to help clarify the dialog, that's fine. Calibrated settings are not chiseled in stone. Whatever works for you is the right setting.

As mentioned, position of the center channel, can be critical. If at all possible, aim it directly at your ear level, and try to place it in such a way as to eliminate any reflections from surrounding horizontal or vertical surfaces. I have my center channel extending beyond the edge of the shelf on which it is placed by about an inch, or so.

It all comes down to personal preference.

Some places will tell you to calibrate your speakers to the main "0db" as reference (85db). I personally leave mains at 0 and adjust everything else. That way, I can easily say "oh, well since I'm closer to my mains now, my surrounds should be a couple db's higher." Easier to calibrate, I think. Once you start messing with the front channel levels so they aren't 0 anymore, then you have to start doing math in your head while watching a movie "lets see, I want the center channel a couple db's higher...so this minus this is this and therefore it is the right level!" Sometimes you can forget what level the mains were set, etc.

Also, setting the mains at 0 to me makes it seem everything must be adjusted around them, so you at least have one setting that remains constant as the reference. For instance, if you decided to drop your mains level a little bit, then your sub is really no longer calibrated to them, so that has to be re calibrated, and so forth with your surrounds and center. Just my opinion. Just seems more "messy" to me.

In the end, if you can run through a test CD and everything turns out alright, it doesn't matter what everything is set at.

Hay,

I think it depends on the AVR your using. My friend has an older Pioneer and does it just like you said by placing the left main at 0dB and adjusting the main volume until he reaches 75dB. Then he cycles through the rest of the speakers and adjusts those.

I don't believe I'm able to calibrate in this same way with my Denon as the test tones are locked at a certain volume level. I can either run the built in setup with microphone, or use an SPL meter and cycle through each speaker and manually set them to 75dB's or whatever. Sometimes I do both. I have found the built in setup does a very good job.

You are correct though, as many people follow your method if possible. This is explained on many reputable AV websites.

Not to beat this to death, but I thought balancing/calibrating the speakers was having to do with your room acoustics and the effect on the speakers. So your 2 fronts are going to provide different levels, especially depending on placement/walls/furniture. Thus using the spl meter and setting all speakers to be equal to the original starting point/speaker.

Both my receivers had the option to increase volume while test tones were playing. I used the auto set up on the 4600 but went back and changed settings using the SPL meter and S&V disc.

I've mentioned before that while calibrating at 75db the test tones or pink noise? were very loud, louder than I would play a movie at. So I just want to make sure I'm on track with how I'm doing it.

Thanks