Difficulty and Importance of HT setup

[gurm]

Hello,

From little that I have ready, setup of the sytem is an imortant task once you have made the purchase. (I am still searching). I have heard of anything from $20K system sounding like $1K sytem to total destruction of your system such as speakers due to improper settings.

- Is it that an ordinary person with some knowledge and ability to read and understand guides should still not setup their system?

- Or a high end system processors are so complicated not to ever be mucked around by their owners?

- Can you permanently damag your speakers so easily?

Of course an expert can always do the job best. I would get an expert to do the setup initially. But I plan to move in about 1 year time. Should one always rely on "expert" to setup their system? Thanks.

[Kal Rubinson]

You cannot destroy anything as long as you are in the room. Your ears will be a more conservative limiter. That said, follow the instructions in your processor's manual. If it does not have an auto setup routine with a microphone (or even if it does), get a sound level meter and a set up disc.

Kal

[gurm]

I tried to search for some sort of guide or primer on setup. Although I have not bought my system but it will probably be Rotel RSP-1068, B&W 804S, HTM3S, ASW825, and SCMS. Given this configuration, would setup be moderatly complex? Where does one get setup disc? Thanks.

[Burke Strickland]

For someone who has never set up a system before, while the task may appear daunting at first, reading the instructions (studying the diagrams showing which cable interconnects attach where) and following the guidance of one of the popular how to" set up disks should ease the task considerably.

The task is made just a bit more complicated by having a separate pre/pro and power amp (I assume you will be getting a power amp to go with the Rotel 1068 pre/pro -- couldn't be sure from the acronyms on the list) instead of an "all in one" receiver, but once set up, that sort of equipment usually yields more satisfying performance results.

Getting help from a person who has some experience with setting up a system would be a help, too. If you have a buddy in town who has set up a similar system before, it might be worth offering a couple of free beers -- or other beverage of choice if they don't drink beer -- to have them help out.

Some set up discs available online (or at some local stores, "local" being in Houston, Texas, where I found copies) include "AVIA" (Ovation Multimedia: Avia: Guide to Home Theater) and "Digital Video Essentials" (Digital Video Essentials: Optimize Your Home Entertainment System (NTSC Component)). For online purchase try Amazon (which reportedly has both in stock today), or do a Google search to find other vendors who might have "better" prices.

Both AVIA and Digital Video Essentials give step by step guidance / instructions on basic set up procedures and then go through a variety of fairly easy "calibration" exercises to get the best performance from your system. You really only need one or the other to get started. Both cover audio and video setup in separate chapters.

Of course, the "Catch 22" is that you must already have your system hooked together to be able to view (and listen) to these DVDs. So you may want to check out the first few chapters on someone else's system, or make a stab at set up using the instruction guides that come with your gear and then use the disc(s) to make any changes needed to get things set up properly.

Another disc with useful audio setup tests is Chesky "The Ultimate DVD Surround Sampler and 5.1 Set-Up Disc. However, it more or less assumes you already have things properly set up and does not go into a lot of preliminary set up guidance. On the other hand, it can help identify such glaring errors as having the front speakers connected where the surrounds should be, or the left and right channels reversed, and so forth. This disc also has some very well recorded music selections to check out the results of the "calibration" (adjustment) of your setup.

The setup tests for audio will be facilitated by use of a sound level meter, such as the inexpensive ones sold at Radio Shack. It is virtually impossible to properly set and balance sound levels "by ear" without the use of a meter.

Good luck,
Burke

[Kal Rubinson]

I tried to search for some sort of guide or primer on setup. Although I have not bought my system but it will probably be Rotel RSP-1068, B&W 804S, HTM3S, ASW825, and SCMS. Given this configuration, would setup be moderatly complex? Where does one get setup disc? Thanks.

What Burke has listed is certainly correct but the basic procedure is in the Rotel user manual and you should follow the procedure as printed. It is not overly complex and the instructions are explicit.

Beyond that basic procedure, you would be well advised to get a sound level meter since the ear can be easily mistaken in evaluating levels, especially if the speakers are not identical and/or the room is not acoustically balanced.

I would suggest using the setup discs only after a basic AVR setup which insures that the connections are appropriate.

[gurm]

Thank you the really useful information. All my speakers are going to be matching (B&W) except maybe the rear will be my existing KEFs. I will start reading up on the Rotel docs even before my purchase. My biggest worry was what the vendor told me about damaging the speakers. After reading Kal's notes, I am not too worried about it. Both vendors offer the setup services but one does not think too highly of the other (re: claim that their setup caused speaker damage!). I would purchase the sound meter and the setup disks. Although, I might get the vendor to do setup this time, but I also do not wish to stay in dark, but instead would like to be able to do setup myself also. Thanks again.

[gd]

Hmmmm...

Sounds like your vendors are taking unfair advantage of your inexperience.

Their claims of "speaker damage" don't ring true.

Don't give them any more of your money than is absolutely necessary... do the setup yourself... as stated above, it is not at all difficult and entirely safe to accomplish, particularly with the disc and meter.

And – it's fun!

Enjoy.