Upgrade suggestions

So
Finally i tweaked every setting i could find and unfortunately could not reach to a very concrete conclusion.
1)First i was asked to check tv settings...so hdmi audio format is bitstream (only other option available being PCM) then came audio format which was selected by default at dts neo 2:5 changed it to dolby digital( though not much to differentiate between the two)...
2) then came the centre level settings. Changed it to large with crossover being 100hz.
3) reduced the channel level to 0 for fronts and +3db for center.
Now comes the setting whivh actually mde the difference and i request you experts to put some light on this.
4) under the source tab there was an option input volume absorber as i had mentioned earlier ranging between -12db to +12db. I took the level all the way upto +12db.
Now when i play movies around -15db level, the dialogue is loud.
Also when selected netflix it showed DTS on my avr screen.

Now one thing to which we dont hve a solution yet is why my bluetooth performance is louder compared to netflix, amazon or youtube. I guess my tv is somehwhere to be blamed.. what should i do? How should i figure this out?

Plz note- i will quote what i read about input volume absorber on pioneer's site.
"Adjust the volume difference between the devices connected to the unit".

Do give your valuable suggestions :)

Good to know that progress was made. However, do not compare multi channel to bluetooth. Bluetooth is Stereo and will always sound louder than Multichannel. Even if you switch your TV settings to PCM stereo, it will sound louder than multi channel.

Input Level comes into effect when you have multiple Inputs connected to your receiver. Various sources will have varying Volume levels, just how you find a difference between Bluetooth and multichannel. So to level these out so that all sound Level, you use Input Level or whatever your receiver brand calls it.

Point Wise:
1. Thats correct. Bitstream is what it should be. Set this to the highest codec available. However, not to a virtualizer codec, like Neo, etc.
2. Set the speaker levels as per your Auto Setup program and not manually. Your fronts would be set to Large by default as there is no Sub. Set your Center to Small and set cross over to 80 or 100Hz as per your preference. You can increase its level by 2dB. Make sure you run the program for as many positions supported by your receiver and in complete silence. I do this usually at night around 3am, when even the dogs have gone to sleep. Switch off the fridge, put the analog clock in another room, etc. Avoid extreme mic positions, they should form a Grid around your primary seating position, with about 2 feet distance between all seating positions/Mic Positions. Mic positions are not literally your seating positions. Just cover the grid around your primary seating position.
3. Same as Pt 2
4. Setting it to +12 is fine, however, when you increase the volume, the sound quality will become very sketchy and hurt the ears. Experiment with +6 gain on the input. This is what my Airtel input is set to. Chromecast on the other hand is 0dB, HTPC at around 5dB.

Would suggest you get a Bluray disk of a movie which has a combination of action, vocals, etc. My personal favorites are Avatar, Life Of Pi, Mad Max, etc. If thats not an option, try to download multichannel trailers. Have a reference source which you can check in someone else's setup too. Audio / Video Format Trailers has some content you can use.

MaSh
 
Last edited:
So
Finally i tweaked every setting i could find and unfortunately could not reach to a very concrete conclusion.
1)First i was asked to check tv settings...so hdmi audio format is bitstream (only other option available being PCM) then came audio format which was selected by default at dts neo 2:5 changed it to dolby digital( though not much to differentiate between the two)...
2) then came the centre level settings. Changed it to large with crossover being 100hz.
3) reduced the channel level to 0 for fronts and +3db for center.
Now comes the setting whivh actually mde the difference and i request you experts to put some light on this.
4) under the source tab there was an option input volume absorber as i had mentioned earlier ranging between -12db to +12db. I took the level all the way upto +12db.
Now when i play movies around -15db level, the dialogue is loud.
Also when selected netflix it showed DTS on my avr screen.

Now one thing to which we dont hve a solution yet is why my bluetooth performance is louder compared to netflix, amazon or youtube. I guess my tv is somehwhere to be blamed.. what should i do? How should i figure this out?

Plz note- i will quote what i read about input volume absorber on pioneer's site.
"Adjust the volume difference between the devices connected to the unit".

Do give your valuable suggestions :)


Glad to know that there is some difference than before.....nothing further can be done.....as MASH explained Stereo will always be louder than multi channel.....nothing much can be done with TV or Netflix content....

If you get a blu ray player and hook it up....i am sure you will be able to see the difference......which is the actual difference....I use a Blu Ray player and play downloaded content...DD or DTS.....it works well....I dont own a single Blu Ray Disc!

Also since most of us have provided our views and solutions around this.....for keeps sake....read the AVR operating manual ..instructions manual slowly fully step by step...in excitement most of us end up missing a crucial step which overall affects the actual performance delivery .....
 
Good to know that progress was made. However, do not compare multi channel to bluetooth. Bluetooth is Stereo and will always sound louder than Multichannel. Even if you switch your TV settings to PCM stereo, it will sound louder than multi channel.

Input Level comes into effect when you have multiple Inputs connected to your receiver. Various sources will have varying Volume levels, just how you find a difference between Bluetooth and multichannel. So to level these out so that all sound Level, you use Input Level or whatever your receiver brand calls it.

Point Wise:
1. Thats correct. Bitstream is what it should be. Set this to the highest codec available. However, not to a virtualizer codec, like Neo, etc.
2. Set the speaker levels as per your Auto Setup program and not manually. Your fronts would be set to Large by default as there is no Sub. Set your Center to Small and set cross over to 80 or 100Hz as per your preference. You can increase its level by 2dB. Make sure you run the program for as many positions supported by your receiver and in complete silence. I do this usually at night around 3am, when even the dogs have gone to sleep. Switch off the fridge, put the analog clock in another room, etc. Avoid extreme mic positions, they should form a Grid around your primary seating position, with about 2 feet distance between all seating positions/Mic Positions. Mic positions are not literally your seating positions. Just cover the grid around your primary seating position.
3. Same as Pt 2
4. Setting it to +12 is fine, however, when you increase the volume, the sound quality will become very sketchy and hurt the ears. Experiment with +6 gain on the input. This is what my Airtel input is set to. Chromecast on the other hand is 0dB, HTPC at around 5dB.

Would suggest you get a Bluray disk of a movie which has a combination of action, vocals, etc. My personal favorites are Avatar, Life Of Pi, Mad Max, etc. If thats not an option, try to download multichannel trailers. Have a reference source which you can check in someone else's setup too. Audio / Video Format Trailers has some content you can use.

MaSh

Thanks alot Mash :)
You have been really supportive throughout :)
Well that about wraps up.. ill change my input level to 6 today and see how the sound improves and if BT is louder then be it... glad that i could understand the input volumes.. ill keep bt at 0 and change Tv to +6. Also i am planning to ask my friend to bring his ps4 over just to check dvd performance. I am sure the dvd will produce a very good sound.
Again thank you so much :) appreciate your support.
 
Glad to know that there is some difference than before.....nothing further can be done.....as MASH explained Stereo will always be louder than multi channel.....nothing much can be done with TV or Netflix content....

If you get a blu ray player and hook it up....i am sure you will be able to see the difference......which is the actual difference....I use a Blu Ray player and play downloaded content...DD or DTS.....it works well....I dont own a single Blu Ray Disc!

Also since most of us have provided our views and solutions around this.....for keeps sake....read the AVR operating manual ..instructions manual slowly fully step by step...in excitement most of us end up missing a crucial step which overall affects the actual performance delivery .....

Sir
So should i get a sony blu ray player.? Coz pioneer one is too costly. I guess brand here wont make much of a difference. Correct me if am wrong.
Ill go through the manual also, and will update here if i get any interesting info.
Just wanted to ask you how a blu ray player will impact the performance? Like if i get one and play downloded content like movies through usb then that would produce better sound let alone a blue ray disk. Yesterday i connected my laptop through hdmi and played the content the sound was right about the same, rather inferior i would say( maybe due to bad quality hdmi dont know) ... if blu ray player can help me get a better output overall then i should invest in one right away!
 
Hi

Pioneer Blu Ray players are good....you missed one being sold in the forum....Oppo 103D....I too am on the lookout for a good one...I currently use a Pioneer BD 450....

The Pioneer BDP 180 is available...check online for the best price......I play DD or DTS content which is downloaded through an external HDD....no issues with surround sound or center....

Sony / LG / Panasonic players are good...the basic models are cheaper and the good models are expensive....

I am sure a lot of FMs have put their comments and expertise on this thread alone by making time and possibly other threads....you can contribute to their reputation by clicking on the "Like" button....this will build up credibility and respect in the forum. It will also steer others who need help to reach out accordingly......
 
Hi

Pioneer Blu Ray players are good....you missed one being sold in the forum....Oppo 103D....I too am on the lookout for a good one...I currently use a Pioneer BD 450....

The Pioneer BDP 180 is available...check online for the best price......I play DD or DTS content which is downloaded through an external HDD....no issues with surround sound or center....

Sony / LG / Panasonic players are good...the basic models are cheaper and the good models are expensive....

I am sure a lot of FMs have put their comments and expertise on this thread alone by making time and possibly other threads....you can contribute to their reputation by clicking on the "Like" button....this will build up credibility and respect in the forum. It will also steer others who need help to reach out accordingly......

Done Sir

Last few questions.
1) my last question remain unanswered :- will attaching a blu ray player to my AVR and then playing content from my USB(attached to BRP) lets say a movie in DTS or DD produce good sound? i guess the audio signals in this case will be sent from blu ray player to my AVR. I hope this will be better as compared to lets say if i connect the pen drive directly to my TV. Correct me if i am wrong..

2) Also Sony BDP S1500 retails for around 7200/- . but dont know whether it supports all advance audio formats and hi res audio files. Pioneer BDP 180 offers 4k upscaling and all the bells and whistles of hi res audio but since 4K content is so limited i dont know whether it'll be worth investing money into this.

3) if i target getting one from out of india, is there some region thing i should be aware of. Will it play DVD's from our region without any hassles.
 
Done Sir

Last few questions.
1) my last question remain unanswered :- will attaching a blu ray player to my AVR and then playing content from my USB(attached to BRP) lets say a movie in DTS or DD produce good sound? i guess the audio signals in this case will be sent from blu ray player to my AVR. I hope this will be better as compared to lets say if i connect the pen drive directly to my TV. Correct me if i am wrong..

2) Also Sony BDP S1500 retails for around 7200/- . but dont know whether it supports all advance audio formats and hi res audio files. Pioneer BDP 180 offers 4k upscaling and all the bells and whistles of hi res audio but since 4K content is so limited i dont know whether it'll be worth investing money into this.

3) if i target getting one from out of india, is there some region thing i should be aware of. Will it play DVD's from our region without any hassles.

Most of the BDPs from outside play all DVDs. But it will region locked for BRs. US players will be region A. So player bought from US can play region A or All region blurays. Nowadays most of the blurays released in india are all regions. I am able to play in region A pioneer bdp-160
 
Last few questions.
1) my last question remain unanswered :- will attaching a blu ray player to my AVR and then playing content from my USB(attached to BRP) lets say a movie in DTS or DD produce good sound? i guess the audio signals in this case will be sent from blu ray player to my AVR. I hope this will be better as compared to lets say if i connect the pen drive directly to my TV. Correct me if i am wrong..

Yes.. Your understanding is correct..

2) Also Sony BDP S1500 retails for around 7200/- . but dont know whether it supports all advance audio formats and hi res audio files. Pioneer BDP 180 offers 4k upscaling and all the bells and whistles of hi res audio but since 4K content is so limited i dont know whether it'll be worth investing money into this.

3) if i target getting one from out of india, is there some region thing i should be aware of. Will it play DVD's from our region without any hassles.

If most your movies will be BR Rips on an external hard disk, then consider an Android TV box than a Blu Ray player for the same cost (or) even lesser..

Most Android TV Box come with Kodi media player installed, which would play any format.. Some come with play store, so you can download other applications like Vlc..

Here is an example of Android Tv box - https://www.amazon.in/Profitech-Com...id=1517473157&sr=8-15&keywords=Android+TV+Box
 
Done Sir

Last few questions.
1) my last question remain unanswered :- will attaching a blu ray player to my AVR and then playing content from my USB(attached to BRP) lets say a movie in DTS or DD produce good sound? i guess the audio signals in this case will be sent from blu ray player to my AVR. I hope this will be better as compared to lets say if i connect the pen drive directly to my TV. Correct me if i am wrong..

2) Also Sony BDP S1500 retails for around 7200/- . but dont know whether it supports all advance audio formats and hi res audio files. Pioneer BDP 180 offers 4k upscaling and all the bells and whistles of hi res audio but since 4K content is so limited i dont know whether it'll be worth investing money into this.

3) if i target getting one from out of india, is there some region thing i should be aware of. Will it play DVD's from our region without any hassles.


1) Yes.....it makes a difference......mine does.....I play all Rips.....DD or DTS

2) Read the specs of the Blu Ray players you are interested in....it will mention what video and audio formats are supported. HEVC 265 is the latest codec and requires a different hardware to run effectively....not all BR players support HEVC265....

3) Most players which are sold are region free....the downloaded content from the net is Region A.....so it works......

Bottom line, if you are not ever going to play a CD or DVD etc.....and would be only playing downloaded content, you are better off with a media player or android box......amazon sells a few known models....some on sale in For Sale by owner section......
 
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