DavS-880 - TV sound through speakers?

Em23

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Just got my first AV/DVD system - set up the Sony Davs880 - looks and sounds great but I can't source the TV sound through the surround sound speakers - using phono cables from TV into Video 1 (tried Video 2 also) - instructions are not helpful! :(

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Also, does anyone else find the rear speakers to be quiet? I have tried boosting their sound in the setup menu but still fairly quiet - it's a big room but the sound seems much louder from the TV-top speaker.

I have a Sony KD28DX40 digital TV linked up to the 880 and I am very happy with my new toys!! It's like having your own cinema!!

Thanks for any help
 
You will need to hook your TV audio out to DAV-S880 Video 1 audio in. Then set the DAV unit with 'Function' to Video 1 mode.

To route sound to rear surround speakers you will have to use the 'Sound field' button and set it to 'normal surround'.
 
Thanks Rancho - I thought I'd tried that actually but I will persevere this evening!

Will try "Sound field" as well, since I don't really hear much from the rear speakers. I thought it was because 2 Channel was on, but I have tried changing it to Dolby Pr Logic - is auto decode the best setting to leave the system on??

Thanks once again for your tips
 
Well sort of at least. In my opinion the system seriously lacks in Music (Stereo) mode. No 4/5 channel pass through to rear speakers. No bass and treble adjustments possible. Normal stereo TV with Pro Logic will produce chirping sounds from my rear speakers. If the TV show is Solby Surround this does not occur.

I might get a replacement for the DAV-S880. I thought initially it would be as good as its predecessor S800 which received loads of good reviews but I'm not convinced of the system anymore.
 
I was seriously thinking about getting the 880, but it seems more and more people are unhappy with it.

What are the alternatives, seperates or one-box?

needs:
multi-region
NTSC prog scan
Component output
Dolby Pro-logic II
Dolby Digital & DTS
Looks as good as the 880
Room size 3.4mx4.7m
Connecting to Panny 42" plasma

if I am looking at alternatives then maybe time to consider
PAL Prog Scan also.

I was getting the 880 for £660 (inc multiregion and delivery) I don't mind spending a couple of hundred above this to get something that I will be happy with.

Help:confused: :confused:
 
Are there many unhappy people out there??

I think they are still pretty hard to come by due to a list of back orders as a result of the software problem.

I have yet to tweak with the sound from the rear speakers and TV but I will say that I imagine the DAVS-550 is pretty quiet if the 880 has a more powerful amp, as I have it on 2/3 full volume when watching a DVD! I'm not deaf!

I don't know of any other problems at the moment - I'm sure there are small irritations with every system but I have to say that aesthetically it is in my opinion the best system and the inclusion of MP3 playability (as well as VCD/SACD etc) makes it a great all-rounder

Do others agree or am I being obtuse?!?
 
I have the DAV-S550, I find the volume is more than sufficient
although it is running in a TINY Hong Kong apartment and I can
just about reach all the speakers with my foot. I keep
the volume pretty low (10 on a scale of 40) in order to keep
peace with the neighbors. The movie surround sound is
awfully good to my ears (DD, DTS and ProLogic (from VCDs)).

On the other hand, I find the music quality really poor - to the
extent that having purchased ONE SACD in order to try SACD
I can't imagine ever buying another. [This being my only machine
which is SACD capable.] It's not so hot with CD's either. Maybe
this is the reason you would buy the 880.

I was bitten by the subtitles/firmware bug and while Sony did
send someone out to replace the CPU(?) board their reluctance
to admit the problem in my case and many others has me
seriously questioning my old belief that buying Sony is a safe bet.

The messages in this forum convinced Sony to repair my machine
many thanks for that.

I'm truly surprised such an expensive machine has only two
video search speeds, my old Panasonic all-in-one (SA-PM08)
which was MUCH cheaper had a huge number of search speeds
and features. Of course, it had poor DD sound and no DTS.

It is a good looking machine, but I'm unsure whether I'll buy
on What HiFi's recommendation again - how could they have
missed the subtitles bug and why don't they step up to convince
Sony to repair the affected machines? Am I the only one who
didn't know luminous remote means 'glow in the dark' not 'has a
light inside'? Maybe it's my (ahem) American English.

--Sam
Hong Kong
 
:mad: I spent some time trying to get the TV sound to come through the speakers - I have tried Video 1 and 2 and it doesn't come through aautomatically on selecting those options

I have adjusted settings through the AMP menu and adjusted Soundfield - it does seem that with many DVD's the system defaults to 2 Channel playing through the front 3 speakers only -
is there any way to avoid this?

I am also confused by the many settings - I have a large room and all I want is to get the best surround sound at ALL times!!:confused:

I must say I haven't found CD's to be poor quality at all - it is as good as any stereo in my opinion

I hope someone can help!!
 
Next time you experience 2 channel sound from a DVD use the
DVD info button (can't remember the exact name - but it's NOT
the one that brings up the DVD menu) and select the audio icon -
it may be a 2 channel DVD or 2.1 (meaning 2 channel with subwoofer).

After playing a number of DVDs I was surprised at how many
don't have surround sound - but checking the soundtrack display
it seems, in fact, the machine is correctly playing the channels
available on the DVD. Odd how I never noticed this on my other
gear...

Maybe you can select ProLogic for these disks and get sound from
all the speakers. I've only tried that on stereo VCDs (very
common in greater China) and the results are decent. You may
be asking if you can set this as a default - I don't see that option
but it might be in a future firmware release.

Amusing, some of the DVDs (legitimate, bought at HMV)
we get here in Hong Kong say Dolby Digital on the cover, and
they are - just not 5.1 you might expect, they're 2.1 ! There
are a LOT of bad DVD transfers done by Asian firms - Mei Ah
Laser is one I'm staying away from.

As for your lack of volume problem - unless you have a HUGE
space or speaker wiring problem I would suspect a bad unit.
As I wrote previously, I have the 550 with smaller speakers
and a smaller amp and I can hardly turn the volume up halfway
I keep it more like 1/4 (10-12 on a scale of 40). [But I'm in a very
small space.]

Keep in mind it may take Sony some time to repair your unit as
it seems parts are in short supply - or at least they are here in
Asia.

--Sam
 
Thanks Renotech for your helpful reply

As this was my first DVD Home Cinema system I expected them all to have startling sound but now I realise why some of the latest releases are so hyped - poor films but awesome sound features!! No wonder so much is made of films being re-released as Special Editions etc. - the sound is often the weakest element of the production!

I have been experimenting with the various settings to try and get a surround sound output but end up sometimes having it on Cinema Sys.Ex A/B/C just for that purpose - like you say though,, it would probably be better to set it on ProLogic to simulate surround sound so I'll try that

Haven't found the DVD info setting so I will look for it tonight!

As for the volume, I probab ly just need my ears cleaning!!

Good to see that this forum caters for all tastes and levels of understanding - I am sure my questions seem naiive and foolish to some of the more experienced and technical amongst you but a big thank you for the advice and assistance - it is a great support which is often sadly lacking from the inexperienced and uninterested sales staff of many stores

Thanks again

Em23
 

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