I saw Jack's post on the calibration of a home stereo set up, but is there any difference in setting up for music, or is that in the province of the receiver? Thanks, Guy

Guy, the object of calibration is to be balance the volume levels of all speakers. Since the mains, center, and surrounds are different speakers, at varying distances from the listening area, the settings you make in the receiver compensate for these differences. Once calibrated that balance works for both HT and music.

And, remember. Those settings are not etched in stone. Many of us bump the subwoofer from 2 to 5 dB for movies, and back it off for music. Likewise, many of us bump the center channel a few dB to increase dialog intelligibility with movies. The calibrated settings are a starting point, and may serve you well. But, don't be afraid to experiment a little to see if you prefer a few dB one way or the other .

I think that you have given a good overview of the setup procedure. Nothing is set in stone. Set it up by the "book" to begin with and then, if you like, try a few things to see what you like.

I purchased a really useful DVD last week! Its called "The Ultimate DVD Surround Sampler and 5.1 set-up disk". It is made by Chesky Records (Chesky.Com). I don't have rear speakers yet, saving up for them. So, I haven't gone through the entire set up process yet. There is a rattle test that surprised me! If anything is going to rattle in your HT room or wherever IT WILL FIND IT! WOW! It seems like it will be easy to use when I actually sit down and calibrate.

Like the other guys said, nothing is set in stone. Feel free to tweek away. Its important to get the reference point first.

This DVD can also be found at AudioAdvisor.Com

Oh, if you have a SACD capable player (I don't have one yet)try "Dr. Chesky & His Band of Maniacs - Dr. Chesky's Musical 5.1 Surround Show"! It looks really interesting it might be really fun! Found at Chesky.com as well.

Mike

Though I know nothing about the Chesky disc, I've seen a few positive comments about it, and would suspect it would do the job just fine.

The main thing is to get started and then adjust if you want to experiment or don't like the sound.

Thanks all,am going to give it a go with the Radio shack SPL. Guy

Let us know how your calibration session went.