Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Advice from Axiom Owners Questions about setup/calibration

ok, so basically as I have explained in other threads how I am completely new to the world of home theater. I will be purchasing my axiom HT system soon (epic 60/500 5.1) and have no clue what to do in regards to setup and calibration of my speakers. I believe my receiver will be somewhat of an entry level yamaha (rx-v661) but looks to have a sufficient amount features for my needs.

I have heard people talking about nifty little meters from radio shack, pink noise tests, crawling around with a mirror for sub placement ect... and all of this seems very foreign to me.

I guess I just need someone to offer advice and/or point me in the direction of some good tutorials on everything from speaker placement to calibration and anything inbetween. I thought all would have to do is connect my speakers with some wire and enjoy... didn't realize how many factors can impact the sound quality. Any advice would be appreciated.

thanks again!

T, among the features on your 661 is an automatic calibration system that works very well. A sound level meter, such as the one from RS, is nice to have to check how loud that you're listening, but there's no good reason to believe that using it to manually calibrate the levels of your speakers would be more accurate(or even as accurate)than what the 661 does automatically. Use that and enjoy your music. You can try some of that "foreign" stuff later if you want to, but it isn't necessary at least to start. This doesn't have to be any more complicated than you want.

First off you can use your RX-V661 to help calibrate your system, it has the YPAO automatic calibration system. If that sounds good that may be all you need to do. Your receivers manual should explain the whole calibration process for the YPAO.
For more good information go to the articles section on the top of this board and it can answer most your questions.

Wow John you even type fast.

Michael, I was pondering that very complex reply for at least a half-hour.

If you're not happy with with what the 661's automatic calibration comes up with, or if you'd simply like to learn a bit more about that "foreign stuff," perhaps these will help.

AN INTRODUCTION TO TEST & CALIBRATION DVDS aka "Why the hell do I need one of these things?" (To learn about DVE and AVIA, scroll down far enough to read "THE DIFFERENT DISCS AND THEIR ATTRIBUTES")

Essential Accessories: The Radio Shack Sound Pressure Level Meter

A Quick Overview of Home Theater Calibration

Calibrating Your Home Theater System

How To Set Up a Subwoofer (or Subwoofers) for Home Theater

Subwoofer Setup Guide by Bossobass (Very comprehensive, but very long)

Common Subwoofer Set-Up Errors by Edward J M