Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Home Theater Denon 3803 - speaker level calibration, Avia, etc.

Unless the receiver's built in tones are inaccurate.

If the receivers built in tone measures 80db how could it be inaccurate compared to 80db with the avia? I understand that the two different sources might be different volumes, but if the are the same relative to themselves what difference does it make? Example: you weigh youself everyday at home and it is 150lbs. At the Dr. office it is 155 lbs every time. One of the scales is off, but it dosen't make any difference as long as you pick which scale is your reference. Does this make any sense?
gthomas

Thanks John. Don't know how I missed that.

If the receiver cannot reliably generate an 80 db tone, is what I mean. Oh. I see your point. Hrm. OK, on to someone smarter.

Here's another one. My H/K doesn't generate test tones for the sub. Does the Denon?

Yes, the Denon 3803 generates SW tones. And to continue this discussion, let's see if anyone is still paying attention to this thread. I've been trying to do some calibration with my brand new out of the box Denon 3803 and I've noticed a couple of things. With the speaker levels all set to 0 db, doing the calibration with the receiver tones is very straightforward, leaving the front left at 0 db reference and adjusting the others using the receiver controls. If I put in the Avia DVD and just listen to the test tones, the fronts and center are pretty equal, but the surrounds are BLASTING. If I reset the receiver levels to zero and use the Avia, I'm finding I have to turn down the surrounds to -12 db (maxed) and they're still noticibly louder than the others. I've got all the receiver setup parameters correct (all speakers=small, delay distances, etc.) so I'm not sure what's going on. But I also haven't even had the time to just sit and watch a movie all the way through, so I don't even know yet what is good or bad. All I know is that I'm tired of hearing 85 db static.

Wow, this is really getting more complex than it needs to be.

85 db is what Avia suggests because that level pretty much cancels out any ambient noise that might adversely affect the settings. The level you choose is not the issue - the point is that the speakers are all set at the same level.

Set the left front at 0, then calibrate the rest by tweaking the individual speaker adjustments.

Just for giggles, sit down and try it once rather than sit here and wring your hands. It really is pretty easy. If you aren't comfortable with or convinced that Avia is the answer, then use the receiver test tones. How far off can it be, really?

Hi,

Sorry, I had to abandon this thread to deal with emails. But it's the relative level of each channel that matters. You can choose an overall volume level that's comfortable and delivers sufficient SPL to activate the SPL meter and override any ambient noise (like a waste-disposal dumpster truck passing by my street-level apt.).

It's hard for me to believe that there is a software error on the AVia disc (in terms of differences in the pink-noise levels for different channels (worse things have happened!) but I suppose it's conceivable. The same software with modifications was used for the Sound&Vision Tune-Up DVD and David Ranada prepared it. He's such a stickler for accuracy that I'm certain he would have spotted errors long ago if they existed.

As to the test-tone generator in A/V receivers, there shouldn't be any variation. The circuit is simply moving a mono pink-noise signal from channel to channel. Any gain differences present between the on-board amplifiers (and there might be some) could be compensated for in your final adjustments.

Regards,

I have just skimmed through the replies here, so I'm not sure if this has been addressed yet, but the easiet way to adjust the individual channel levels on the 3803 is to set the remote in "amp" mode, then press the circular enter button (in the middle of the 4 arrows). It will then give you a one line OSD showing first, the level of the front Left speaker. You can then use the left arrow on the remote to lower the channel volume down to -12db or the right arrow to raise the volume up to +12db. Once you get the first level set, push the enter button and you will move on to the next speaker, and so on. Once you play with it it is self explanatory. The only 3 buttons to be concerned with are the enter button and the left and right arrows. Once you are done, within a few seconds the display will disappear just like the master volume display.

Keep in mind that there will be no test tones associated with the adjustments doing it this way, it will just adjust whatever is currently playing. I use it mostly to tweak the center and sub levels when watching different programs.

First do the calibration with the test tones and make note of your reference levles and go from there. I hope this helps and I am not explaining what you guys already know. Thanks