Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Home Theater Dialogue is just too quiet

Finally had time to sit down and enjoy my home theatre (by the way, go front projection if at all possible), but I had a problem with the audio setup.

I tuned by ear using the pink noise to get all the channels outputting the same volume. During movies though, the dialog was just way too quiet. More notably on quite scenes. I would have to turn the volume up 5-10% to hear the dialog, but when an action scene would come on, it was WAY too loud.

I turned the center channel all the way up on my receiver. It helped some, but I am still not satisfied. Should I start turning down the other 4.1 channels? (they are all pretty close to "zero" on my receivers settings)

Here is the setup:
M22ti's
VP150
QS8's
Pioneer Elite VSX 43tx receiver.
Listening position is about 9 ft from the center, 10 ft from the fronts, 7 ft from the surrounds.

Any advice is appreciated!

(1) By all means, go get the RadioShack SPL meter and re-calibrate your system. Or, upgrade to auto-MCACC or YPAO. Even in the latter case, still go get the RS meter, though!

(2) As webbb previously suggested, double-check that all speakers are hooked up in phase.

(3) Double-check the channel distance/delay settings on the receiver.

Were you by chance watching The Matrix?

That movie has BY FAR the worst center channel dialog levels I have ever seen in a DVD. Ok, done with my quick vent

Actually, it was Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Rings.

And you guessed, tonight, in The Theatre Del Twopecker, Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers!

Maybe it was jsut that movie, we'll see.

Sushi:
I really dont care to spend $40 on an spl meter....I will probably have to end up doing so though. Its odd though, because the pink noise is VERY noticably louder on the center channel.

twopecker,

At least on my system, LOTR:FOTR has very clear dialogs. In fact, I would say it is one of the best in all aspects of the soundtrack quality.

I learned one simple thing from the SPL meter: My ears are damn inaccurate!

Just got back from radioshack...with an analog spl meter =)

Didnt figure it was worth an extra $15 for using it so infrequently and for something like this, so I skipped on the digital.

I verified that all the speaker distances were correct on the receiver and the polarity is correct on all speakers. I set everything up w/ the pink noise on the receiver. Is it worth the time to get my video essentials DVD out and set it up via that?

A couple more hours, and it will be time for the two towers!

...I hope it sounds $35 better!

In reply to:

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...I hope it sounds $35 better!

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LOL I surely hope so, too. Let us know, after the Two Towers.

Actually, the analog meter is the one most people seem to prefer. I myself like the digital one, but it is ONLY because of its peak-hold feature, which you don't need for doing usual calibrations.

So I tuned my system with the pink noise on the receiver, thought I was right on. I pulled out my Video Essentials DVD...I was way off. The rears were turned down WAY too low by this test DVD. I calibrated by the SPL meter, but after hearing it with the test tone, I turned it down a notch. It may have been correct, but too much there for my liking.

Also, the test DVD said to calibrate to 75dB. To get to this level, I had to turn the receiver to 35 on a 0 (loudest) to 90 (quietest) scale. That seems like an awfully high volume level to have to go to.

Once again, the two towers awaits!

The SPL helped me a lot. My ear were definitely off.
Another cheap method since your a computer enthusiast like me is get a laptop or a desktop with a mic into the same room as your listening area. Download any shareware music editor with music level meter (lots of tucows.com such as Cooledit2000) and play your pink noise and watch the level of the digital sound meter. That "could" possibly give you the same results as the SPL.

Sushi,

I have noticed the center channel seeming quiet on the 45TX but after reading this post and thinking back, I too realize it is only with certain films and not consistently.

Mark