AVR-3806 / Kef 3000 / Squeezebox 3 / VAOI VGN-AR21S

[AlexPG]

Day 2 of owning an AVR-3806 A/V receiver and Kef 3000 speakers, and I'm facing teething problems. This is the first time Ive owned anything like this, but like any kid with a new toy I just want to jump right in and start using the thing. I'm sure I'll get very familiar with the manual over the next few days but right now I'm wondering if anyone has anything similar hooked up to a Squeezebox3 (sb3) that can give me some pointers. I've tried connecting the sb3 with analogue and optical and the optical sound is much better than that from the analogue one (flat/quiet) is that to be expected? I had the analogue going in to the CD in connectors. Also, does anyone have any advise on how to compromise with speaker placement considering this setup needs to work for tv and music? Ive placed the front speakers either side of the tv (as shown in manual), but listening to music like this it sounds kinda narrow - that could very well be down to the way Ive set it up though? I'm running flac through the sb3.

Also, have tried connecting my VAOI VGN-AR21S laptop upto the AVR-3806 via HDMI to play Blu ray. I cant seem to get a signal though.

Cheers
Alex

[Boxinghris]

Originally Posted by AlexPG

Day 2 of owning an AVR-3806 A/V receiver and Kef 3000 speakers, and I'm facing teething problems. This is the first time Ive owned anything like this, but like any kid with a new toy I just want to jump right in and start using the thing. I'm sure I'll get very familiar with the manual over the next few days but right now I'm wondering if anyone has anything similar hooked up to a Squeezebox3 (sb3) that can give me some pointers. I've tried connecting the sb3 with analogue and optical and the optical sound is much better than that from the analogue one (flat/quiet) is that to be expected? I had the analogue going in to the CD in connectors. Also, does anyone have any advise on how to compromise with speaker placement considering this setup needs to work for tv and music? Ive placed the front speakers either side of the tv (as shown in manual), but listening to music like this it sounds kinda narrow - that could very well be down to the way Ive set it up though? I'm running flac through the sb3.

Also, have tried connecting my VAOI VGN-AR21S laptop upto the AVR-3806 via HDMI to play Blu ray. I cant seem to get a signal though.

Cheers
Alex

I've just this last week acquired a Denon AVR-3806 and to be honest the instruction manual and user interface are abysmal, but the sound has been a pleasant surprise so I can live with the head-scratching every time I need to use another feature.

As a general rule though, using a source's stereo analogue outputs into a receiver/amp should give decent sound - especially when the Denon has a pure-direct option - so if the digital input is giving sound which is far better I'd say something isn't set up correctly, maybe the receiver's converting the analogue input to digital or summat; we'll both be pulling our hair out these coming weeks methinks.

What i can say with confidence however is that you should place your speakers as far apart as possible without having them pushed into the room's corner's where the bass may be a little boomy. Aim to have the distance between your speakers around the same distance you are from them, so the three of you make an equilateral triangle.

[Cable Monkey]

The digital to analogue conversion is better on the amp than on the squeezebox. Putting an analogue signal in via the CD inputs and turning off any processing can yield very good results so I would call into question the quality of the squeezebox analogue output. Speaker placement is about experimenting and the above suggestions are an excellent start assuming your layout allows this.

[AlexPG]

Thanks all. I suspect the poorish analogue quality is down to me not turning off the processing / playing with settings - I'll look tonight and experiment with speaker placement. In a non sadistic way, I'm glad someone else is struggling with the manual (thought it was me.)

Next challenge is try to get the laptop to push Blu ray thru the receiver and into my TV. From a quick look around the problem could possibly be to do with the order of connecting equipment (HDCP handshakes - http://usa.denon.com/2082.asp), or this from the CNET review:

"The receiver will pass composite, S-Video, and component-video sources, such as your VCR or DVD player, through the HDMI output, but it won't improve the source's resolution. In other words, it won't upconvert your VCR's 480i resolution to an HDTV-friendly 720p or 1080i signal or even a DVD-worthy 480p. In theory, you might still need only one HDMI cable to connect your receiver to your TV. In practice, however, many HDTVs and HD monitors can't accept a 480i signal via their HDMI input, so some users will still need a two-connection solution (HDMI plus component, S-Video, or composite). Moreover, the onscreen display is also limited to 480i over HDMI. If you don't have HDMI, rest easy; the receiver can upconvert and downconvert analog video sources over the composite, S-Video, and component jacks."

... which is gonna take some thinking about.

Cheers
Alex