Suggestion for settings of Pioneer Reciever 921/1021 (Dialogues too low)

[thebanik]

First of all my setup,

Pioneer VSX-1021
Quad Lite (5.1 Setup)

This is a new setup and as such all the settings are done, but the issue I am facing is that I have a kid at home, so most of the time I need to run the volume pretty low (TBH not too low). And the problem I am facing is that Dialogues are not clear and if I make the volume such that the Dialogues are clear then during action sequences the volume gets too loud (It seems to be a issue of Treble being too high instead of the bass, since I have turned down the volume of sub-woofer pretty low)

My Settings for the speakers are something like this :
FR : - 2.5 db
FL : -2.5 db
C : - 2.5 db
SR : - 4.5 db
SL : - 4.5 db
SW : -6.0 db

Distance is what the auto MCACC calculated. Rest of the settings like EQ etc are also what the auto MCACC calculated.

 

[NetFreak]

What is the source of movies? Specifically are you playing movies from Blu Ray?

If source is Blu Ray or a DTA/AC3 DVD, you can boost center channel to increase volume of dialogues.

 

[thebanik]

What is the source of movies? Specifically are you playing movies from Blu Ray?

If source is Blu Ray or a DTA/AC3 DVD, you can boost center channel to increase volume of dialogues.

Except for the db level is there any other way to boost individual speakers volume????

Source is Ripped Blu-Ray movies (15-20 GB) played through HTPC through HDMI

 

[Flash]

Except for the db level is there any other way to boost individual speakers volume????

Source is Ripped Blu-Ray movies (15-20 GB) played through HTPC through HDMI

db level would be the easiest thing to do on the fly.

push the db levels on the Center to 0 or +1 that should give you better dialogue delivery

However a lot depends on your source and Rips as well.

 

[NetFreak]

Except for the db level is there any other way to boost individual speakers volume????

For individual speakers, increasing DB is the way. But it works only if source is proper 5.1 and is sending dialogues primarily to center channel.

Other wise you can use an equalizer that

1. boosts mid frequencies
2. reduce bass and treble.

Source is Ripped Blu-Ray movies (15-20 GB) played through HTPC through HDMI

Does your HTPC pass 5.1 / 7.1 over HDMI? This is a frequent problem with HTPC setups.

By default, HTPC would mix it down to stereo and that screws up dialogues.

Can you post s screen-shot of sound device setup? Examples are:

5.1 surround sound does not work - Microsoft Answers

 

[venkatcr]

Pioneer's MCACC works very well. Do the following:

1. Keep the frequency graph straight. By default, the dips quite a lot at the end.

2. Once that is done, set the centre channel to something like 4 to 5 dB. That is the best you can do.

Beyond this, it may make sense to just get a pair of headphone with a long cable to watch movies without disturbing anyone.

Cheers

 

[thebanik]

db level would be the easiest thing to do on the fly.

push the db levels on the Center to 0 or +1 that should give you better dialogue delivery

However a lot depends on your source and Rips as well.

Okies will increase the db level for center even further. Though as you can see from the settings I posted its already +2 when compared to Surrounds and more from the SW.

For individual speakers, increasing DB is the way. But it works only if source is proper 5.1 and is sending dialogues primarily to center channel.

Other wise you can use an equalizer that

1. boosts mid frequencies
2. reduce bass and treble.



Does your HTPC pass 5.1 / 7.1 over HDMI? This is a frequent problem with HTPC setups.

By default, HTPC would mix it down to stereo and that screws up dialogues.

Can you post s screen-shot of sound device setup? Examples are:

5.1 surround sound does not work - Microsoft Answers

Yes definitely my HTPC is sending 5.1, Its also being shown in the Reciever OSD.

Though I saw the EQ settings but not sure what would be right way to go about it. Will read up a bit, thanks for the suggestion.

Pioneer's MCACC works very well. Do the following:

1. Keep the frequency graph straight. By default, the dips quite a lot at the end.

2. Once that is done, set the centre channel to something like 4 to 5 dB. That is the best you can do.

Beyond this, it may make sense to just get a pair of headphone with a long cable to watch movies without disturbing anyone.

Cheers

1) Ok thanks, yes it dips quite a bit and TBH I might have dipped it a bit more thinking that straight might mean more treble,

2) Will increase the centre channel even further. Thanks,