Thank you for the info. I wasn't really sure if it was the AVR that wasn't giving me the cleanest sound or something else. Room size is 14x20 so I don't think I have to many speakers but I will look more into positioning. Are you aware of a good piece of software that can help me. I used the on board setup from my AVR but it really didn't help determine if I needed to adjust the direction of the ceiling speakers or surrounds for that matter.
Thanks again for the info.
Because your AVR only has a mono measurement microphone, it can't tell where the speakers are in the room. All it knows is the time delay between it sending a signal to the speaker, and the sound reaching the mic.
The only 2 processors I know of that have the ability to tell you if you placed the speakers properly would be the Trinnov Altitude series, and the new Sony receivers that were linked above.
Adjusting the placement and direction of your speakers is something you need to do manually. The speakers should
ideally be pointed directly at the main listening position, and the placement is governed by angles, as we can easily correct for distance (it's just a time delay). I linked some stuff below.
Some resources for you to look at are:
https://www.dolby.com/about/support/guide/speaker-setup-guides/7.1.4-overhead-speaker-setup-guide/
This is a guide to positioning your speakers. Getting this right will allow the receiver to properly place the atmos effects and for you to get a better sound field.
If you get a measurement mic, like this one:
https://www.minidsp.com/products/acoustic-measurement/umik-1 you will be able to use it in conjunction with software like Room EQ Wizzard (
https://www.roomeqwizard.com/) to verify your system performance. However, keep in mind that getting sound from a PC to a multi-channel av receiver can be weird, so it may take some effort to get it to work.
Lastly, earlier I recommended getting some better subwoofers (like the SVS PB-2000) and properly positioning them. Subwoofer placement can be a bit crazy, but this video:
seems to be pretty good.
Although I have not watched all his videos, you may want to check him out as he seems to know what he is doing.
And lastly, if you are having clarity issues with the system, make sure to set all your speakers to "small" in the receiver, and set the crossovers somewhere around 60-80hz. The "large" setting will not high pass the signal going to the speakers, which in turn can lead to them trying to play deep bass, which they just aren't made to do. Using the "small" setting will send the deep bass to your subwoofers, which, if you optimize them correctly, will lead to better sound.
But, with all that being said: What is you issue with the current set up? I don't really see anything that is "completely horrible" about your equipment, so I must ask, what makes you want to change stuff?