Re: Bad sound from Center on all DVDs
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Joined: Oct 2003
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I don't own one so I can't say for sure, but the fact that the 3803 is saying 'Dolby Digital' is probably a good sign.
Does the 3803 have any sort of graphical display of the speakers? On my Pioneer Elite, for instance, on the front panel it has a speaker diagram. It lights up according to the type of source it's receiving. So a 5.1 source lights up all 5 speakers and the sub. A 2.0 source just lights up the 2 mains, etc. Something like that would at least prove to you that the DVD player was outputting the data correctly.
Double check that you haven't got the 3803 set to some strange processing mode (like 'Hall' or 'Jazz'). Though I'm sure that's pretty unlikely.
I still say that you need to figure out how to make your 3803 generate test tones and do some detective-work that way. That way you can actually hear what it is producing. If the white noise sounds strange, quieter, or just plain different on that center channel, then the problem has to be in the 3803 or the speaker. You could ignore the DVD player as a source of the problem. You've got to narrow down the potential sources of trouble.
You could also try swapping the VP100 with an M60. See if you can move the 'dead' channel. If the 'silence' moves, then it's a problem with the speaker. In that case, I'm sure Axiom will be happy to assist you. If it doesn't move, and the center stays quiet even with an M60, then it's a problem with the 3803 or the wiring.
If all of the speakers sound fine & equal when testing, then I bet that the problem lies in some setting somewhere on the DVD player or the 3803.
Edit: Interesting you bring up Master & Commander. Which audio track are you listening to? The Dolby Digital 5.1 or the DTS track? Try them both, see if you get a difference in sound quality. This would also be a good test to make sure that the DVD player is set to output correctly, as the 3803 should read 'Dolby Digital' vs. 'DTS' as you switch.
Last edited by PeterChenoweth; 06/30/08 09:50 PM. Reason: I like to type.
M80v2 | VP150v2 | QS8v2 SVS Pci+ 20-39 Emotiva UMC-1 & LPA-1 M22ti + T-Amp, in the Office
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Re: Bad sound from Center on all DVDs
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Joined: May 2002
Posts: 10,654
shareholder in the making
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shareholder in the making
Joined: May 2002
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Bobby, from your latest post it appears that maybe the specific DVDs that you had tried are the problem. As Alan and others have pointed out, the center channel level does vary quite a bit on various movies. The latest one you tried and found the center channel to be okay indicates that the DVDs are the problem and that the player is fine, regardless of whether it's "cheap".
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Enjoy the music, not the equipment.
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Re: Bad sound from Center on all DVDs
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Joined: Jun 2008
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Edit: Interesting you bring up Master & Commander. Which audio track are you listening to? The Dolby Digital 5.1 or the DTS track? Try them both, see if you get a difference in sound quality. This would also be a good test to make sure that the DVD player is set to output correctly, as the 3803 should read 'Dolby Digital' vs. 'DTS' as you switch.
I'm using a 3808 but they are probably close. I'm not sure how to change to DTS from Dolby Digital. It seems that when the avr recognizes a Dolby Digital signal I don't have the choice of changing it
"Real Gun Control Is Hitting What You Aim At" - can't remember
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Re: Bad sound from Center on all DVDs
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Joined: Oct 2003
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Maybe somebody else with more experience will know more than I on this, but try going to either "option", "language", or "setup" on the actual master and commander title menu. There you might be able to change the output from dolby digital to dts.
2 = M60,4 = QS8's,1 = VP150,1 = EP350,1 = EP500 HK247 Optoma HD70,110" DIY screen Xbox360 & PS3
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Re: Bad sound from Center on all DVDs
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Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 1,056
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It depends how the individual DVD is mastered. Some let you switch between audio tracks on the fly, some don't. I seem to recall M&C being one that requires you to go back to the main menu to switch audio tracks.
So, in the main menu, check out audio options. Select DTS and see what lights come on on the receiver and also what speakers light up.
My suspicion all along is that the digital settings on the DVD player are whack. If you want the receiver to decode the digital signal (which you do), then go to your set-up menu on the DVD player. Go to digital audio or audio or whatever sounds like a likely candidate. The settings for both Dolby Digital and DTS should be set to bitstream - not PCM. This should set the player's outputs properly.
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Re: Bad sound from Center on all DVDs
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Joined: Jun 2008
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It depends how the individual DVD is mastered. Some let you switch between audio tracks on the fly, some don't. I seem to recall M&C being one that requires you to go back to the main menu to switch audio tracks.
So, in the main menu, check out audio options. Select DTS and see what lights come on on the receiver and also what speakers light up.
My suspicion all along is that the digital settings on the DVD player are whack. If you want the receiver to decode the digital signal (which you do), then go to your set-up menu on the DVD player. Go to digital audio or audio or whatever sounds like a likely candidate. The settings for both Dolby Digital and DTS should be set to bitstream - not PCM. This should set the player's outputs properly. I've checked all that, everything is indeed set to bitstream.
"Real Gun Control Is Hitting What You Aim At" - can't remember
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Re: Bad sound from Center on all DVDs
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Joined: Mar 2004
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Then, without a Denon myself. I am stumped.
Maybe I missed it, but have you checked that the Panny is set to output to a 5.1 setup? Maybe it is downmixing everything to 2 channel. One way to check is to look at the speaker set up in your player and make sure the picture shows 5.1 speakers, with each set to small.
And can you confirm whether the lights come on when you change from a cd playing from the DVD player (2 speakers should light up), a dolby digital DVD (6 speaker lights should come on, along with the DD symbol) and a DTS track (again 6 speakers should light up, but the DTS symbol should show).
That should eliminate source set-up issues.
Once that is eliminated and the above suggested speaker switcheroo is tried, then the problem can be isolated to the DENON (or not), which will make it easier to diagnose.
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Re: Bad sound from Center on all DVDs
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Joined: Apr 2007
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try pressing the 'standard' button on the remote... if you have a'simulation' surround enabled it can make things sound funny.
but it does sound like the problem is with the source so maybe there is nothing odd going on after all
-David
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Re: Bad sound from Center on all DVDs
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Joined: Jun 2008
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Then, without a Denon myself. I am stumped.
Maybe I missed it, but have you checked that the Panny is set to output to a 5.1 setup? Maybe it is downmixing everything to 2 channel. One way to check is to look at the speaker set up in your player and make sure the picture shows 5.1 speakers, with each set to small.
And can you confirm whether the lights come on when you change from a cd playing from the DVD player (2 speakers should light up), a dolby digital DVD (6 speaker lights should come on, along with the DD symbol) and a DTS track (again 6 speakers should light up, but the DTS symbol should show).
That should eliminate source set-up issues.
Once that is eliminated and the above suggested speaker switcheroo is tried, then the problem can be isolated to the DENON (or not), which will make it easier to diagnose. When in Dolby mode there are 6 lights on Denon display, 5 for the speakers and 1 for the sub and I've come to the conclusion that the Panosonic DVD display that says 3/2.1 is their version of saying 5.1. I think the problem I'm having sometimes is actual DVD related because after inserting several more over the last day or so it seems tthat there can be a big difference from DVD to DVD.
"Real Gun Control Is Hitting What You Aim At" - can't remember
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Re: Bad sound from Center on all DVDs
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Joined: Jul 2006
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Founder, Axiom Upgrade Club shareholder in the making
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Founder, Axiom Upgrade Club shareholder in the making
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From brief searching, it does seem like both Panasonic and Sony use 3/2.1 to denote 5.1 audio at times, though your mentions of 1/2.1 and 2/2.1 were confusing to me.
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