Help setting up subwoofer with Denon 1612

[prabu]

I've recently bought a Denon 1612 receiver and Boston Acoustics XS 5.1 speaker system.
After spending few hours, I was able to get the 5 speakers working with the receiver.

I didn't have the subwoofer cable so was unable to test the subwoofer. Few hours back, I bought Cambridge Audio 300 Series 1Ph/1Ph Digital Cable from Richer Sounds.

Cambridge Audio DIG300 1M | Coaxial Digital Interconnect | Richer Sounds

I don't hear any sound coming from the subwoofer, I did try setting the subwoofer mode to LFE+Main but no luck.
Also in the Speaker Setup > Channel Level > Test Tone Start
I don't hear any test sound from the subwoofer though all other speakers are working fine and can also hear test sound from them.

I am not sure whether I have connected the right cable though the guy from RicherSounds confirmed that it should work fine.

Can anyone advice if I am missing anything?

 

[baijuxavior]

Try the autosetup again and this time select speaker system as 5.1

 

[prabu]

I tried the Audyssey auto setup few times now, each time I do select the speaker as 5.1 but still the Auto setup doesn't recognise the sub, it plays the test sound on all 5 speakers but not on the sub.

I am not sure whether I am missing something simple here.

 

[baijuxavior]

Try a normal RCA cable (AV cable) for subwoofer. This way we can check whether the cable subwoofer cable is faulty or not. If still there is no sound then reset the microprocessor. It is described in the manual. Are you sure that subwoofer power is ON?

 

[aakashr]

you have a great system.........XS 5.1 is an excellent speaker system and will go well with Denon. Run Audyssey and it will really set everything right. I am sure there might be something you are missing hence the sub is not working. For Audyssey follow the below guide exactly as it says :

BATPIG'S DENON-TO-ENGLISH DICTIONARY

 

[prabu]

Thanks aakashsr and baijuxavior.
There are only two inputs in the sub - one for the power and one for the connection from receiver.
Also in the receiver I have connected the cable where it indicates SUBWOOFER on top and PRE-OUT on the bottom.

Regarding turning the sub woofer on, I see the green light, so I assume it is turned on. It turns red after some time and in the manual it is mentioned as MUTE mode which means it is not receiving any signal from amp.

Regarding the cable, I've ordered another one through ebay to test
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/190703776695?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649

The one I got from RicherSounds is a pricey one and the guy promised that it should work with my setup, so I'm quite confused.

I'm planning to restore the Denon to factory settings by following these steps.
http://www.ehow.com/how_7435226_reset-denon-receiver-factory-defaults.html

 

[aakashr]

there might also be a volume control on the sub..........which should be midway, maybe its turned all the way down.

 

[baijuxavior]

Don't you have any spare video cables? The ones like you connect dvd player to TV? You can use one of the pins for subwoofer.

 

[aakashr]

as baiju suggested, use a spare RCA cable before ordering a new one.

 

[prabu]

I did go through Boston manual and they asked me to set the volume in the middle, which I've done.

I've not done anything with the polarity and I've set the frequency to 120Hz.

Regarding spare cable, I have a PS3 which is connected to TV through HDMI. I haven't yet set up the PS3 with AVR, as I was thinking to get the sub sorted before hooking up anything else.

 

[prabu]

Will this be any good?

10m Triple Phono - 3 RCA Cable AV Audio Video Lead GOLD | eBay

I did spot a few of these at Poundland, so I can quickly get one of these, run home and test if this works.

I am quite eager to get this working and that will give me some peace of mind.

If I get the above one, should I be connecting the same colour at both the ends(subwoofer and AVR) to see if it works?

 

[baijuxavior]

Get any cheap cable (~Rs.30/-) and you can test the subwoofer. Before ordering a new cable, did you reset the avr?

To test the sub, connect one end of the rca cable to the subwoofer input and touch the pin on the other end of the cable using wet finger. You should hear a thud sound from the sub. Do it using your existing cable.

 

[prabu]

Please forgive my ignorance.

Gave a try with a simple Poundland cable which seems to work well. Was so happy hearing the sound from subwoofer.

I didn't know that such a simple cable would do the trick.
Coz I was in a hurry yesterday, I bought this piece

Cambridge Audio DIG300 1M | Coaxial Digital Interconnect | Richer Sounds

which was 20 - Rs.1700

May I know if I was informed incorrectly as I believed that the cable should do the job or was it a faulty cable?

Now that my sub is working, I'll return the pricey cable and get my money back.

May I know whether I can stick with the cheap cable or should I order a decent one from ebay ?

 

[baijuxavior]

The cheap cable is enough for subwoofer duty. You could also use coaxial cables for sub. I'm using a 6 feet belkin coaxial cable priced appx. 500/-