Got my 5.1 system...

[Cyko]

Well, I got it yesterday at 7PM....and it sounds AWESOME! The bass is deeep and clean. The system itself is rated at 650w, and even at low volumes you can tell the thing has oomph. I did have to set the surround speakers at a slightly higher volume level then the rest (because I like that sound to be pronounced). I was wondering if there was any test pattern dvd's or sound clips I could use to REALLY fine tune the speaker levels to what they are supposed to be?

Anyways, so it takes me around 2 hours to set it up. I am ANAL about setting things up properly. I measured out the distances to EVERYTHING so that the rears are 8 ft away from the couch, the front and centers are all 8ft away from the couch, and the sub is 11ft away from the couch. Funny thing is, after I measured it all out and set it up my family room looked weird. So my duty for today is to re-arrange all the furniture until it looks right, lol. I'm not touching the couch, TV, speakers, or media racks, but I have to move 2 cabinets and my computer desk to god knows where in here. Wish me luck!

[Poacan]

What system did you purchase? Congrats btw.

[Cyko]

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-WWM0yW8ofAc/cgi-bin/ProdView.asp?g=37600&tab=essential_info&i=580HTS590S#Tab

Pretty simple, but I've heard it before and I think it sounds better than some $500+ systems out there. I'm just really curious as to whether there is or isn't some sort of test pattern thing out there that I can use to get them all to "movie theater" levels (you know, all sounding as they "should").

[CR2500]

LOL LOL LOL I must commend you for your effort in putting all the surround speakers equidistant to the seating location.

But, most of today's receivers have the li'l optimizer mic that requires 4 minutes of sitting down and listening to pink noise.

[Cyko]

LOL LOL LOL I must commend you for your effort in putting all the surround speakers equidistant to the seating location.

But, most of today's receivers have the li'l optimizer mic that requires 4 minutes of sitting down and listening to pink noise.

Yeah yeah, I did that too...that's why I said I'm anal about these things! Even with the levels adjusted I still want everything even! Lol! Funny thing is, I'm only this anal when it comes to sound or video related things (example: setting the TV the correct distance from the viewing position, correct height, etc).

[Cyko]

All to hell with it, I'm just going to borrow my uncles avia multi-channel set up disk and his SPL meter, set it to C-weighted, calibrate each speaker to within 1db to each other, then set the delay timings properly (1100 (ft/sec)*1(sec/10^3ms) = 1ms for every 1.1 ft the surround speaker is away from you). I was hoping to do it just by ear but I want to be sure its right.

Told you I was anal

[CR2500]

The world will never be perfect for you...

[Cyko]

The world will never be perfect for you...

Way to make a hasty generalization. On the contrary, I believe my life is pretty much perfect. Great job, great girlfriend, great friends. I just have a bunch of people in my family who are involved in the A/V industry so I picked up all their anal retentive habits regarding picture and sound.

[NYHecK]

I have the same Onkyo system. Very nice system

[DeathKnight]

Yeah, Onkyo makes pretty much the only worthwhile HTIB's. Good purchase

[Cyko]

I have the same Onkyo system. Very nice system

Man, I just played NBA 2k7 on my 360 and wow! It's a different game in surround sound! It's like I'm in the stands at a real game!

A quick question though, since you have the same system (though this goes for everyone out there), what movies show off the surround sound experience the best? I mean stuff that really demonstrates it (hear stuff going past you, behind you, from side to side, ya know)?

[DeathKnight]

The list is quite large. You can count on any big blockbuster action movie having great sound. Try Master and Commander on for size. You'll **** your pants with the cannon sequences. I just hope your subwoofer is up to the task

[Cyko]

The list is quite large. You can count on any big blockbuster action movie having great sound. Try Master and Commander on for size. You'll **** your pants with the cannon sequences. I just hope your subwoofer is up to the task

I tried van helsing on hd-dvd and it was kind of...meh. The matrix (original) sounded rather good with that slow motion shooting sequence. Saving private ryan made me and my g/f go and our neighbors go ...

I'll check out master and commander next...but isn't that supposed to be a slow ass movie? I was kind of looking for something a little faster paced

[CR2500]

Shouldn't you be more anal that it doesn't support DD+/DTS-HD?

[Cyko]

Shouldn't you be more anal that it doesn't support DD+/DTS-HD?

Couldn't give a **** less. It supports what I need it 2. When I can here a huge...and I mean mind blowingly huge...difference between formats then I'll upgrade. As of right now its doing its job as intended.

[DeathKnight]

Try Gladiator, the Xmen movies, Bad Boys II Superbit, Black Hawk Down Superbit, The Hulk, all the Fast and the Furious movies (they may not be great movies, but their audio is always top notch), Star Wars Episodes 1-3, etc.

[Poacan]

I've seen several review sites that use Jurassic Park as a DVD test piece.

[DeathKnight]

Its audio is pretty good, but not the best.

[Cyko]

Totally forgot the star wars films...doh! I have all those movies (except the fast and furious, lol) and never thought of any of'em. Thanks for the suggestions deathknight! +rep for you!

[Matrix0507]

LOL LOL LOL I must commend you for your effort in putting all the surround speakers equidistant to the seating location.

But, most of today's receivers have the li'l optimizer mic that requires 4 minutes of sitting down and listening to pink noise.

THATS WHAT THAT LITTLE ****ER IS FOR??!!? Here I am with it sitting in storage thinking..."when am I ever going to need a microphone for my home theater setup " haha, now I can go back and use it to set up my auto-config Plus rep for you,...minus rep for my stupidity.

[Matrix0507]

Man, I just played NBA 2k7 on my 360 and wow! It's a different game in surround sound! It's like I'm in the stands at a real game!

A quick question though, since you have the same system (though this goes for everyone out there), what movies show off the surround sound experience the best? I mean stuff that really demonstrates it (hear stuff going past you, behind you, from side to side, ya know)?

Dude, you need only look as far as The Descent. The sound is top notch. I can't imagine a better movie for surround sound. Think about it, the cave with all its echoes and dripping and then the action.. Never before have I experienced home surround sound like this before. I christened my newest standalone High Def A/V Onkyo Reciever with this beauty and it totally made it shine Hell, I'm going to have to watch it again just for the sound very very soon...

[Matrix0507]

The list is quite large. You can count on any big blockbuster action movie having great sound. Try Master and Commander on for size. You'll **** your pants with the cannon sequences. I just hope your subwoofer is up to the task

That was the last movie I watched on my setup and I can confirm this...Problem is I can't really watch it as loud as i want to for very long before my 'rents come in to let me know what they think of the movie from downstairs

[Cyko]

Dude, you need only look as far as The Descent. The sound is top notch. I can't imagine a better movie for surround sound. Think about it, the cave with all its echoes and dripping and then the action.. Never before have I experienced home surround sound like this before. I christened my newest standalone High Def A/V Onkyo Reciever with this beauty and it totally made it shine Hell, I'm going to have to watch it again just for the sound very very soon...

Grrraaaaaawwwllll My g/f was telling me to get that last night when we rented movies and I just went "*pshhh*, looks stupid". Now I want to get it, dammit!

[Matrix0507]

Grrraaaaaawwwllll My g/f was telling me to get that last night when we rented movies and I just went "*pshhh*, looks stupid". Now I want to get it, dammit!

As far as I'm concerned it is one of the very few recent movies that actually remembers how a horror film is made! Once they had the suspence and ambiance established they imbued it with more than enough gore and goo to make any true horror fan happy. The sound, my god the sound is fantastic. Watch it on your new system and report back to us. Thats an order

On a side note, some of the scariest, most unsettling, and tense parts weren't even the antagonists but rather the extreme clostrophobic environment the movie was set in. My hat off to the director/ all female cast. I give the movie as a whole way up.