Yamaha 663 + B&W 6 series setup, need help!

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  • metallicaband
    Junior Member
    • Nov 2008
    • 12

    Yamaha 663 + B&W 6 series setup, need help!

    Hello all,

    I feel so stupid asking these questions NOW after owning the setup for 2+ years, but I gotta ask to see how badly I screwed things up (emig5m any input from you would be very helpful since you owned the 683s before and used 'em with your 663 receiver).

    1- About the impedance settings, I've never changed these settings on the 663 since I considered my speakers to be the normal 8Ω and didn't pay attention to how low they can actually get at the time I got 'em:
    683 3Ω MIN
    685 center 3.7Ω MIN
    DM601 S3 rears 3Ω MIN

    a)Did I damage anything for not changing the receiver's settings since the beginning? Everything seems fine to me, i.e I don't hear weird noises from the speakers, my VTF 3.3 handled anything below 80hz if that matters.
    b) Through the 663's advanced settings I can change the min Ω to 6, that will allow the fronts to be 4Ω min and center+rears 6Ω min according to Yamaha's manual, I'm using this mode now, any reason why I shouldn't?
    c) Could this be one of the reasons why my 663 went into protection mode often when I try to listen to really loud music?

    2) What's the preferred mode on the 663 to listen to music and watch movies/play games in general? I've been using straight mode since the beginning because it doesn't have any additional digital processing, thought that's how the guys who created the content wanted us to listen to it.

    a) Does the straight mode bypass EQ settings? Because I'm thinking about trying out the YPAO and maybe even lookup how to configure the EQ manually using my analog RS SPL.
    b) If you guys prefer other modes, please mention which and for what type of content.


    The reason why I'm thinking about all these stuff now is because I've moved to a different apartment recently and I have to recalibrate the entire system, so hopefully I'll get things right this time lol

    Any help would be really appreciated.
  • stuofsci02
    Super Senior Member
    • Nov 2009
    • 1241

    #2
    I would leave your AVR in 8 ohm mode, unless you find that 6 ohms sounds better. You will not damage anything using one mode or the other. The Yamaha has a built in protection circuit as you have discovered that prevents it from over current situations.

    In general speakers that have low impedance at certain frequencies will be tougher to drive since they will demand more current. This is why a lot of AVRs fall flat on their face when driving more difficult loads at higher volume.

    What an amp is rated at 8 ohms is of little consequence to me (I find it is like HP numbers for a car), as it tells little of its real world performance. I found that Yamaha recommends only for impedances of 6-16 ohms. Since all speakers dip using your 683s on it will still be fine, but it does tell the story that the reciever will not be stable at low impendances.

    You can always add an external amp and run it of the recievers pre-outputs. Then you could get an amp that won't break a sweat.. Something that is rated for 4 ohm operation is a must, and 2 ohm even better. I think Emig5 is or was running an Emotiva amp, and this is not a bad idea at all..
    Main System:
    B&W 801D
    Emotiva USP-1 Pre-Amp
    Chord SPM-650 Stereo Amp
    Oppo BDP-105
    Squeezebox Touch


    Second System:
    B&W CM7
    Emotiva UMC-1
    Emotiva UPA-2
    Oppo BDP-83SE
    Grant Fidelity DAC-09

    Comment

    • madmac
      Moderator Emeritus
      • Aug 2010
      • 3122

      #3
      Yamaha's have always been good at running low impedence speakers. I had a Yammie and ran 4ohm Bose 501's (Old 1976 Bose...they were good then...really!!) for years. I did however put the setting on the back to 6ohm and you should too. There is a good possibility it won't shut down on you if you try that.

      Yamaha is well known for their good DSP's and I would definitely give them a try, especially with concerts. I loved their 'concert hall' mode and the ability to modify the effect. It truly brought life to my concerts at the time.

      Your other questions I cannot answer because I don't know the unit but you can probably get your answers within the users manual.
      Dan Madden :T

      Comment

      • Gambolt
        Junior Member
        • Mar 2011
        • 1

        #4
        I run 683s with a 663 also and keep it set at 8 ohms, but I run an external M-60 amp to power the 683s since they seem to like power. I have never set the protection circuit yet on the amp. I was more worried about underpowering the speakers since they were rated at 25 to 200 watts when I bought them.

        Comment

        • emig5m
          Senior Member
          • Aug 2008
          • 646

          #5
          If you run the 663 into protection mode (even one time should tell you that you're on the edge) definitely get a separate power amp. I went Emotiva because I wanted a decent 5 channel amp in one box that was affordable for a brand new unit.

          Straight just keeps the original channels as is (so a 2-channel source would never be re-matrixed to 5 channel or 5 to 7.1 etc with the exception of bass management). YPAO or manual EQ is still used when in Straight mode. Pure Direct is the one that bypasses all signal processing. I mainly used Straight with YPAO "Flat". Rematrixing channels, or those simulated surround effects has never sounded natural to me. I would then manually adjust the sub crossover to what I felt blended the best (spent weeks on this alone, lol). On some poorer recordings I used the Compressed Music Enhancer - it helped liven them up.

          The nice thing with a good separate power amp is that loud no longer sounds as loud. You not only fix the protection mode problem, but also maintain that low volume clarity and smoothness. For example, there's times I can't even hear my own voice it's so loud but it doesn't sound that loud because the amp isn't straining/clipping/compressing anywhere near as much. The power supply in the XPA-5 is MASSIVE! :lol: I don't care if I'm just using a pair of 685's - I'll never go back to not using a separate power amp again! (which by the way, I've rocked out with the 685's in stereo with the XPA-5 and the 685's handled the amp perfectly! I think with the lower efficiency of the 685's that they benefit just as much from using a separate amp as the 683's do, just in a slightly different way...SPL demands vs current demands). I'm personally never going back to not using a separate power amp again regardless of the speakers used....bookshelf, or floorstander.

          Comment

          • metallicaband
            Junior Member
            • Nov 2008
            • 12

            #6
            Thanks a lot everyone for replying, that helped a lot =)

            Glad the Ohm settings aren't as vital as I thought they'd be, I'm going to try out the 6ohm mode and see if the performance gets any better, will switch back to 8ohm mode if I faced any issues.

            emig5m, I'll definitely get an Emotiva amp whenever possible (currently trying to focus on the room -thinking about getting racks, change some furniture..etc-), specially because I already e-mailed Emotiva and the shipping rates to where I live for such heavy power amps are VERY good compared to the usual US international shipping fees.

            As for the EQ settings, I've been using the "Front" settings from the beginning since I considered the 683 to be superior to the rest of the setup, but from what I've read flat seems to be a better choice with quality speakers, will try it out and hopefully it'll work well. As for manually adjusting the EQ through the GEQ, it seems like a tough task since there are several frequencies and I'm still not sure about how to properly adjust each with the SPL meter, gotta look that up. Seems like straight mode + Flat or manual EQ will be my final settings as well for most of my watching/listening needs.

            Thanks again guys.

            Comment

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