Figured out Zone 2 operation on C 1

[starford]

Well, I finally figured out how the Zone 2 thing works on my C1. I reported earlier that operation of Zone 2 appears to be impossible from the front panel, because pushing the Zone button appears to do nothing but show the message "Zone Off", and in this I was wrong. The change I was missing was figuring out how to turn Zone 2 ON, a function not specifically described in the manual (I think).

The thing I was missing was that Parasound sets Zone 2 OFF by default (why? I don't know), so to do anything, you have to turn it on by choosing Zone (via either the front panel button labeled Zone or via the remote) and then pressing the power button. This seemed counter-intuitive to me, as I thought the on-off button always applied to the unit as a whole, not the mode currently selected.

Anyway, once I made this magic leap of logic, everything else associated with Zone 2 operation suddenly made sense. You now get a zone-specifc volume slider and source display at the bottom of the screen, and the other buttons (like Source and Surround) now work as you'd expect. Amazing.

[Chris D]

Great! Thanks, Starford. I will MOST definitely be using the Zone 2 features from the C1 to feed an all-home audio system while the main zone feeds the theater.




CHRIS
Luke: "Hey, I'm not such a bad pilot myself, you know"

[nicholtl]

just a quick question...since i don't think i'll ever be able to afford a 2nd audio system...but if you wanted to create a zone 2 for music in anther room or what not, would that require a whole new set of amps? Cause aren't there only so many balanaced inputs in the C1/C2? Does zone 2 just mean you are using the aux 8 and 9th channels somewhere else?

[Chris D]

Nicholt: You're right in saying that Zone 2 requires additional amplifiers. You are not using up any of the available main channels by utilizing Zone 2. (as opposed to a few other processors, where you must choose to either use the back channels for 7.1 OR use the two channels for a second zone) With the Parasound Halo C1/2, you can feed a signal to the full possible 7.5 channels AND output a completely different stereo audio signal to Zone 2 at the same time! This means a total of ***14*** channels being fed, if you want to look at it that way! I will be utilizing this feature, for example watching a full 7.1 movie in my theater, using the extra 4 channels for an additional subwoofer, effect speakers, and tactile transducers, while using Zone 2 to play music in my home audio system through the rest of the house for my wife.

Since the processor simply routes and processes audio and video signals (does the smart thinking) yes, the additional audio OUTPUTS of zone 2 will require additional amplifiers. (do the power working) It really has nothing to do with the various inputs on the C1/2.




CHRIS
Luke: "Hey, I'm not such a bad pilot myself, you know"

[Chris D]

Now that I've got things set up, I ran into the same things with my Zone 2. I've got Zone 2 audio output to an old Kenwood stereo receiver, using the monitor inputs there to treat the Kenwood just as a straight amplifier dedicated to zone 2. From the Kenwood it is then distributed to my all-home audio through pre-wiring. Zone 2 video is also distributed throughout the house. (this is great for a baby A/V monitor in addition to other things)

I've got zone 2 putting out the Avalanche/Red Wing game while I walk around the house right now, so I can follow the game in any room. Pretty cool!
It took me a while to figure out exactly how zone 2 worked. The C1 manual could have been a lot clearer on zone operations, I think. It mostly just talks about zone connections. But now, I love it. Zone 2 works just like a completely independant processor from the main zone. It's like getting two for one. You can even turn on (or leave on) zone 2 while the C1 itself is off or turned off.




CHRIS
Luke: "Hey, I'm not such a bad pilot myself, you know"

[MarkStega]

Chris,

My zone 2 experience is a bit different than yours. Zone 2 operation while Zone 1 is on is identical and works without a flaw. BUT, if I turn off Zone 1, "Zone 2 On" remains on the C2 front panel and whatever source was selected keeps playing. AND I can't change Zone 2 source nor volume at that point. If I turn Zone 2 off, I can't turn it back on independently. I wonder if this is a C1/C2 difference (or bug)? It is annoying not to have Z2 ability without Z1 on (which turns the A51 on, plays a different (usually undesired) source in the home theater, etc).




Mark Stega