You suspect one of your speakers is broken. It sounds weird to you and you need to figure out what is wrong. This has you thinking. Can you use the room correction program on your AV receiver to test what is broken in your speaker? It’s not as if it isn’t making noise. It just doesn’t sound right. Can this work? How would you do it? Let’s discuss! There are Honestly Easier Ways Before we begin, we will point you toward our article on how to diagnose your potentially broken speaker. If your speaker sounds so different from your other speakers that you are noticing it, something is wrong. Use ou ..read more

You’ve upgraded your AV receiver. Maybe it is because you want the latest gaming features, or maybe it is because you plan on upgrading your speaker system. You’ve noticed something. Your old AV receiver used to show Atmos even though you only have a 5.1 system. This new one? It doesn’t. What changed? Let’s discuss! 5.1 is not Atmos Before we begin, we need to establish that a 5.1 system is not Atmos. Your AV receiver should never have displayed that it was giving you Atmos with a 5.1 system. As a quick reminder, Atmos requires that you have the ability to reproduce sounds that were meant to c ..read more

When you got your AV receiver and it was showing the volume in negative numbers, you were confused. Then you learned about “reference level” and you felt better. But now you’re concerned. You never have your AV receiver at 0dB. Never. Is something wrong? Have you messed up your configuration or settings? Let’s discuss! 0dB is Loud! 0dB or reference level is very loud. When you go to an IMAX theater, they are usually calibrated to reference level. Many traditional theaters actually keep the volume lower than reference. There are a lot of reasons for this (the time of the showing, the audience ..read more

Everyone is complaining about inflation and prices. It makes sense that if you are going to cut back it would first happen with your hobbies. You would love a full Atmos system, but the cost of all those speakers and a full-featured AV receiver quickly adds up. Not to mention that there are a lot of rooms that simply don’t need that many speakers. Pioneer introduces the VSX-835 and VSX-535 budget AV receivers to meet your needs if not your ultimate wants. Let’s take a closer look! VSX-535VSX-835Pioneer VSX-835 and VSX-535 Prices and Main Features Let’s start with the most pertinent information ..read more

A question I am seeing more lately is about adding an EQ to an AV receiver. Back in the ’90s, every AV stack or mini-stereo had a multi-band EQ that allowed you to dial in the sound to your liking. However, as room correction became the de facto standard for adding EQ to your system, the standalone EQ went the way of the dodo. However, what if you have an old-school receiver without all the fancy room correction goodies? Is there an easy solution to add an EQ to your AV receiver aside from looking at vintage ones? Let’s discuss. What Is An EQ And Why Do I Want One? Keeping this as simple as I ..read more

There are tons of articles and advice out there about what to do when your AV receivers goes into protection mode. We’ve even written a few. But you’ve got a weird problem. Your AV receiver seems fine most of the time. Come movie night, however, when you’re cranking your system, your receiver shuts down. Sure, you know this is probably protection mode, but why? Why does your AV receiver shut off only during loud scenes? What can you do about it? Let’s discuss! It’s Not Your Subwoofer Your first thought is that it is probably your subwoofer(s). Your subs are going crazy during loud scenes, so s ..read more

Many people think that “audiophile” systems and home theaters are incompatible. You can have one or the other. That’s simply not the case. Just like there are no speakers or subwoofers that are better for music over movies, any audiophile system can be transformed into a home theater system. How? Let’s discuss! Why People Think Audiophile Systems Are Different The main reason that people think audiophile systems can’t be transformed into a home theater is because of the focus on stereo. Audiophile systems often have two massive speakers and little else. Subwoofers? Not in an audiophile system ..read more

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