Help with options to improve Home Theater experience

KevCMe

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Hey everyone!

I have recently moved and as a result some of the components and placement are no longer ideal for my home theater.

The most concerning problem I have, is that my rear speakers are overpowering the dialog of the center and front speakers.

I am getting the ambient sound/ music through the rear speakers and not dialog, so I believe that the channeling is correct.

I know that they are not placed ideally, as they are pretty much at ear level and only about 4' to the side (and not behind) the seating.

Unfortunately I am limited to the size of the room... I could mount them higher, but the seating is already against the wall, so they can't go further back.

I was hoping to be able to adjust the output of the rear speakers to compensate, but it seems my receiver is outdated and I am unable to do this.

I am willing to upgrade the receiver, but would like reassurance that I will be able to make those modifications with a new setup... and am also open to other suggestions.

In summary my gear and setup is as follows:

TV - LG OLED D65 BX PUA (this is fairly new; maybe two years old. I opted to sacrifice my projector/screen with the reduced room size).
AVR - Yamaha RX-V667 (not sure how old, but I understand that I am missing out on some technological advances and compatibilities with the TV)
Speakers - L & R - Paradigm Monitor 7 series. Quite Old.
Speakers - C - Paradigm CC170. Quite Old.
Rear - L & R - Fluance SXBP2. They are the newest component.
Subwoofer - David 301 D-Box. Probably the oldest component.

Placement is as follows:
TV and seating is about 10' apart. Center speaker is below the TV, and Front are about 5' to either side.
As mentioned, rear speakers are at seating and about 4' to either side.

With respect to budget, I am looking at the Denon AVR-X1700H as a potential upgrade... This is about $900 here... If there is another suggestion, or if that money is better diverted to speakers or another solution, I am open to that as well...

Any ideas or suggestions to help validate (or not) my choices and options would be greatly appreciated...

Thanks
 
I was hoping to be able to adjust the output of the rear speakers to compensate, but it seems my receiver is outdated and I am unable to do this.

From the RX-V667 operations manual. Go to SETUP-SPEAKERS-MANUAL SETUP-LEVELS.

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You able to adjust the levels manually for all of the output channels.

AVR - Yamaha RX-V667 (not sure how old, but I understand that I am missing out on some technological advances and compatibilities with the TV)

It supports lossless formats and DD+, HDMI is 1080p. So, it's not that old. :)

What features do you want that it is missing?
 
Thank you for your reply!

Regarding the setup options, I am unable to get the On Screen setup function to work.

AVR - HDMI OUT connected to LGTV - HDMI IN.

Have tried using both ARC and non-ARC input.

Have switched viewing inputs to ensure it matches... I get a blank off-white screen, and when pressing the On Screen button on the remote, I see a flicker of pixels as it seems to try, but fails, to process.

Other functions on the remote seem to work.

I had assumed that there was an incompatibility between the devices, but if it's a quick easy fix, that would be fantastic.

My limited understanding is that the TV is 4k, and that the AVR has limited 4k support. I'm not sure if that is what is interfering with the On Screen issue.

Regarding desired features, the 4k compatibility would be the eventual desire, though for the moment if I can correct the audio issues with the existing AVR, I could wait on the upgrade.
 
I can't help with that technical fault sorry. But I can promise that "rx-v667 on screen not working" in Google brings up a lot of hits. Many of them from AVF. Good luck. 🙂
 
Thank you. Not so many relevant hits, and I haven't found anything conclusive yet; another source of incompatibility seems to be that the TV input are HDMI HDCP 2.2, whereas research suggest that the AVR is not... not sure if that would have an impact on the OSD issue. Anyway, I will keep looking.
The reviews I find for the RX667 are dated 2010, so I guess the simplest follow up question to pose at large would be: would an upgrade in AVR likely resolve the issue, as presumably potential compatibility issues would not be existent?
 
you can start by getting that seating off the walls. this in itself will make a big difference. for the audio experience. and it allows you to get the speakers behind you a bit which is a better experience than just to to the sides. now that Dolby stipulates 110-120 degrees rather than the old way of 90-110 degrees. that is for 5.1.
I hope you seriously consider this and try it out rather than neglect and make false claims like cant move seating etc etc. the discussion will end and there and you will be unable to solve your complaint/issues.

you not able to see the av receiver on the television using the settings button? don't hit the on screen button. the cog button for setting

may i suggest 6-8 feet distance from the television.

calibrate the system afterwards.
Tape measure for speaker distance.
then you use a SPL meter for speaker levels and make them all 75dB. set master volume to 0 Or 75 depending on the scale used.

it does help to have a newer 4k HDR receiver to be fully compatible with all your devices and needs.
it adds dolby atmos and DTS X support however this requires ceiling speakers for that. and not sure you prepared to go there.

i trust this helpful!
 
Thank you. Not so many relevant hits, and I haven't found anything conclusive yet; another source of incompatibility seems to be that the TV input are HDMI HDCP 2.2, whereas research suggest that the AVR is not... not sure if that would have an impact on the OSD issue. Anyway, I will keep looking.
The reviews I find for the RX667 are dated 2010, so I guess the simplest follow up question to pose at large would be: would an upgrade in AVR likely resolve the issue, as presumably potential compatibility issues would not be existent?

I don't believe the OSD issue is because of the older HDMI technologies, it sounds more like a fault. I assume you have tried a reset. Also, when you go into setup it should show you details on the front screen of the AVR, if it isn't then the fault is worse than we thought.

If you have the money for the x1700, then I'd say go for it, you are correct all the HDMI connections will then be compatible and you should be able to set everything up correctly.

There are better models of AVR that offer more features and better room correction systems but, in my opinion, the x1700 is adequately matching the rest of your system. If you believe you will be doing room, system, speaker or subwoofer upgrades in the near future then you may want to consider buying a more generously featured model. If you're happy with how your system is, then the x1700 is a great buy - and leaves more budget for a potential (for example) subwoofer upgrade :)
 
OSD - if the TV has a Composite (usually a Yellow RCA) or Component (Usually a Red/Green/Blue RCA*) Input, or Input adapter, you can try using the Composite or Component Output of the AVR to see the OSD.

*If using Component you can use just the Green RCA to see a Black and White menu!

Front panel - if the OSD is not working via HDMI you can also use the front panel of the AVR to make the setup adjustments and lower the level of the Surround speakers.

Joe
 
I hope you seriously consider this and try it out rather than neglect and make false claims like cant move seating
Thank you; you've provided some interesting information that I wasn't aware of. "false claims"... Well... Ok, you're right.. "can't" move the seating was inaccurate of me; I could, but am hoping for a compromised solution as the room is not dedicated to Home Theater, and having the couch sitting in the middle of this small area is not desirable. And with respect to this AVR, there is no "cog button"... my understanding is that this configuration is done through the OSD.

I assume you have tried a reset. Also, when you go into setup it should show you details on the front screen of the AVR
Yes, reset had no impact. When I hit the 'On Screen' button on the remote, "view ON SCREEN" displays on the AVR panel... from there, I am unable to make changes, either through the remote or directly on the AVR. I have tried to 'blindly' follow the menu program from the manual, thinking that maybe I can change something even if I can't see it, but that doesn't seem to be possible either.

OSD - if the TV has a Composite
Thank you... Unfortunately this TV does not have either RCA input. For this AVR, I have not been successful in accessing the setup menu from the AVR itself.


Thank you all for your time and input... at this point, I do think I will move forward with an AVR upgrade. At least I will know that the TV and the AVR are compatible with each other, and my understanding is that both will be able to accommodate the addition of a 4k Blu Ray player in the near future. I don't really have the room to expand to additional speakers, but replacing with improvements is a possibility... Replacing the rear speakers with ceiling-mounted could be possible... but other than adding a little distance to the listener, I'm not sure that the placement could be much different, and therefore I would still be in the position of needing to adjust their output? But I will check it out. Whether a fault or compatibility, presumably the OSD issue would then be non-issue and I would be able to adjust speaker levels to my less-than-ideal room configuration.

Thanks again.
 
Assuming you get the x1700 or equivalent then it will use a microphone to set the levels for you automatically so it's even better 🙂
 
You press the options button.
I didn't take note of the receivers model remote was different to one's I have.
Do you see the receiver on the Television at all?

What do you use the giant waste of space between the seating and television for?
In my house. Nothing but a coffee table and access to and from the seating.
If it's nothing move the seating even if it's 1 meter.
What is more important here? Improving your audio experience. Addressing your complaint?

Do not and i repeat do not change those speakers to the ceiling. Keep them as they are. You can add ceiling speakers for Dolby atmos instead for a greater experience!
And make it a 5.1.2

Best of luck! And hope you understand no changes means no fixing your complaint.
 
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@KevCMe - plug the setup Mic into the AVR Front panel socket (you may be able to stick in a headphone jack if you don't have the Mic handy), that should bring up loudspeaker configuration options on the AVR Front Panel.

Joe
 
if you have an older tv maybe you can try connecting it temporarily to see if you can see OSD on it and do what you need to do like that and then remove it
 
Assuming you get the x1700 or equivalent then it will use a microphone to set the levels for you automatically so it's even better 🙂
Something of note - Whilst all of the AVRs with a mic will help you set levels/distances the Denon AVRs below X3XXX series (and equivalent Marantz) only have the inferior Audyssey XT rather than XT32. This does very little to the bass frequencies which are the most important to adjust. I made this mistake and wished I had gone for the higher model.

The newest series X3800,X4800 etc have the ability to have Dirac Live room correction, which is supposedly even more superior to XT32 (I haven't tested it myself) but at extra cost.
 

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