Denon AVR-X4800H AVR Review

[techsamurai]

In the old days, the LFE (0.1 on most MCH tracks) found on most codecs needed to be boosted by 10dB by the downstream receiver (I see no reason why it would be different w/Dolby Atmos, etc.). The calibration done by most AVRs are done properly to provide enough headroom for transient LFE peaks and to protect your subwoofer.

This is another reason why I don't recommend double bass. The boost provided to LFE in the subwoofer would be out of sync with the ones going to the mains. This may not be an issue for most music that lack the 0.1 in their tracks. However, most movie tracks would sound "weird" and probably what you were experiencing recently.

A proper calibration of a subwoofer should be with an RTA (Real Time Analyzer) so don't be shocked by the SPL and gains from Audyssey as it SHOULD NOT be apples to apples with the rest of your speakers!

yeah, I was pushing subs by 10db on the 8002 especially since I was almost never playing reference levels.

 

[techsamurai]

Trust Audyssey and the Mic, as long as you follow instructions to the letter when you run the auto setup. SPL meters, whether you use the Radio Shack one or the Phone apps are often inaccurate and not suitable for use with subwoofers. SVS, or Denon will tell you that.

By the way, I would recommend you read the articles related to the following site, it is well written and easy to understand:

Configuring Audyssey – The Right Way

Find out how to get the best out of you Audyssey receiver in this article by configuring Audyssey the Right Way!

simplehomecinema.com

Audyssey Curve Editor Excel Tool

Please note that the tool is currently in BETA and will stay in BETA until March 2022. Overview The Simple Home Cinema Audyssey Curve Editor Excel Tool (ACET) is provided as complimentary with Secr…

simplehomecinema.com

I highly recommend anyone to us Ratbuddsey with the $20 app, Ratbuddsey is free, but apparently the above linked curve editor, for a few dollars also works, and should be easier to use because it is excel based, assuming everyone knows how to use Excel lol..

well, I only did 6 positions instead of 8 because the final 2 positions are really outside the room almost into a hallway and it would skew results.

I used a tripod instead of my cushions - I'll take pics and compare the curves to see if the cushions differ from the tripods but it's also 3 vs 6 positions.

It's funny how close Audyssey XT32 is to Mult-eq from 15 years ago.

Getting the app next. And after that Ratbuddsey. I wish I had more than 2 presets and could rename them.

 

[peng]

Just for information, if you bought an Integra 8.4, you would have a separate SW output for both zone 2 and zone 3.

Thanks, that's a flagship class avr.

 

[peng]

well, I only did 6 positions instead of 8 because the final 2 positions are really outside the room almost into a hallway and it would skew results.

I used a tripod instead of my cushions - I'll take pics and compare the curves to see if the cushions differ from the tripods but it's also 3 vs 6 positions.

It's funny how close Audyssey XT32 is to Mult-eq from 15 years ago.

Getting the app next. And after that Ratbuddsey. I wish I had more than 2 presets and could rename them.

6 positions is good.

 

[SCG]

They say more is better, but I spent a whole afternoon Audyssey measuring between 3-8 positions (in addition to moving subs around that day) and REW showed much better FR measurements in my 2 main listening seats with 3 positions than with 8.

And the 3 measurements were L, C, R seating positions and the 8 were those same 3 positions plus the extra 5 all in between them (meaning nothing outside of them to cause outlier measurements). Then remeasured again with 3 positions and got the same results with REW so I use 3.

Came across this by accident when I only measured 3 positions (have 13 speakers) to get the system up and running quickly and when I went back later that afternoon to measure 8 position that's when I found it to be no better.

 

[peng]

Getting the app next. And after that Ratbuddsey. I wish I had more than 2 presets and could rename them.

I think most people will just run autosetup and then sit back and enjoy the movies. You seem to want to play and customize, that why I suggest Ratbuddyssey.

 

[phn]

Proac's awesome! Never heard them but owners seem to love them.

About the sub, I measured its level with a test tone and its 10db lower at least. It plays it at 75db before the sweeps, then sweeps at ~50db in the calibration. I have to call them to see what the issue is. I also have the SVS3000 Micro.

Are the test tone levels incorrect for the sub? That's another possibility. Did you measure your sub levels after calibration?

The strangest part was that it set the sub's level to -3.5db, lower than all other speakers. I would have expected it to bump it up.

Thanks, I've had the speakers since 90's, they still seem to be going strong. Micro 3000 is a sweet match to them, in particular as I have a relatively small listening room.

No, I haven't measured sub levels separately after Audyssey setup, if that's what you asked. Initially, I had to set it to -20dB from the -10dB default per the Audyssey subwoofer level test in the very beginning.

After having set the sub in said -20 level, Audyssey further set it back -1.5 dB which I then after some listening for a week or so brought back up to 0dB.

All speaker levels are relative to your room and each other, so as long as none of them reaches the +/-12dB level all should be good. Audyssey does not set levels beyond 12dB so that should be an alarm sign that somethings not right.

My current levels are FL +4, FR +5, Center 0, SL -1, SR -0.5, and SW at said 0 having initially been -1.5.

Looking at the original results of my latest run, Center was originally -1.0dB, I must have brought it up a bit to have dialog a tad more clear. Must have been watching a Nolan move

 

[techsamurai]

Thanks, I've had the speakers since 90's, they still seem to be going strong. Micro 3000 is a sweet match to them, in particular as I have a relatively small listening room.

No, I haven't measured sub levels separately after Audyssey setup, if that's what you asked. Initially, I had to set it to -20dB from the -10dB default per the Audyssey subwoofer level test in the very beginning.

Looking at the original results of my latest run, Center was originally -1.0dB, I must have brought it up a bit to have dialog a tad more clear. Must have been watching a Nolan move

That is so funny - I had at -20db and it was ok with it for the 1st calibration. Then I heard the sub playing low so I bumped it to -10db and guess what? It forced me to put it to -20db!

My sub's level is -3.5 db- I'll bump it up eventually but Dynamic EQ makes that a bit tough.

My center is 0.0 and surprisingly all my channels are so close. I noticed Dynamic EQ is less clear for dialog. I had to bring up my center by a few db and I used the Option to do it which doesn't affect the speaker setup Levels I believe and are specific to that input. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[peng]

That is so funny - I had at -20db and it was ok with it for the 1st calibration. Then I heard the sub playing low so I bumped it to -10db and guess what? It forced me to put it to -20db!

My sub's level is -3.5 db- I'll bump it up eventually but Dynamic EQ makes that a bit tough.

My center is 0.0 and surprisingly all my channels are so close.

Sub at -3.5 is excellent, makes it easier for the sub out to stay lower, great for peaks without clipping.

 

[ivo.f.doma]

Thanks, that's a flagship class avr.

Yes, but not expensive. And even A1H doesn't have something like that...

 

[techsamurai]

Out of curiosity, what controls the agility of a receiver? Essentially, the ability to play hundreds of piano notes at the right cadence and sustain them for the perfect duration with the correct dynamics for each note (of course, the speaker will affect that but with the same speakers, it's the receiver that would control the rest).

 

[EWL5]

Out of curiosity, what controls the agility of a receiver? Essentially, the ability to play hundreds of piano notes at the right cadence and sustain them for the perfect duration with the correct dynamics for each note (of course, the speaker will affect that but with the same speakers, it's the receiver that would control the rest).

Additonal detail will come from amp power and any preference (like "warm" or "Marantz sound") will be the high frequency rolloff setting.

I prefer glass shattering to sound realistic so no high frequency rolloffs for me!

 

[evert]

What am I doing wrong, if I play an Atmos track the AVR (X4800H) displays Dolby Audio - DD + Neural:X. It seems I'm stuck between different upmixers? Have I done some setting wrong somewhere?

 

[techsamurai]

What am I doing wrong, if I play an Atmos track the AVR (X4800H) displays Dolby Audio - DD + Neural:X. It seems I'm stuck between different upmixers? Have I done some setting wrong somewhere?

Can't you use the music or movie button on the remote to see all the options?

 

[ban25]

What am I doing wrong, if I play an Atmos track the AVR (X4800H) displays Dolby Audio - DD + Neural:X. It seems I'm stuck between different upmixers? Have I done some setting wrong somewhere?

What's the source device that you're playing Atmos from? Is the source set to downmix to DD+ or decode to LPCM by chance? Which input is it on?

 

[evert]

It's a Shield, tested both through the TV via ARC and directly HDMI to the Media Player port on the AVR.

 

[ban25]

It's a Shield, tested both through the TV via ARC and directly HDMI to the Media Player port on the AVR.

You'll want eARC for TrueHD Atmos, so you may want to run through the AVR to be on the safe side. Check the output/format options on the Shield, there should be an option to bitstream Atmos. It may be set to decode to LPCM or such. I also use a Shield, but I don't have it in front of me at the moment to check.

 

[Jack B]

Duuh, what is a Shield?

 

[peng]

Duuh, what is a Shield?

He probably referred to a Nvidea device.

 

[peng]

Out of curiosity, what controls the agilihttps://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/do-damping-factor-slew-rate-and-the-like-have-possibly-any-influence-on-the-sound-of-an-amplifier.34392/#post-1200760ty of a receiver? Essentially, the ability to play hundreds of piano notes at the right cadence and sustain them for the perfect duration with the correct dynamics for each note (of course, the speaker will affect that but with the same speakers, it's the receiver that would control the rest).

I guess you may be thinking of slew rate, and/or damping factor. It is highly unlikely for either to be an issue for your avr. So, don't overthink it enough to start imagining thing lol..

Also, hundreds of notes or a single note would make no difference to an amplifier, except for voltage and current requirements. The amp will still see the multiple notes/tones as input voltage at one single value, one moment at a time anyway.

Do damping factor, slew rate and the like have possibly any influence on the "sound" of an amplifier?

I am aware that a state of the art amplifier should not have a specific sound, the mystical wire with a gain. Most important features to grant this are linear frequency response, low SINAD, IMD and crosstalk and a high SNR. But often the damping factor and the slew rate are discussed (mostly in...

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