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Audacy room correction. Corrected?


has anyone tried using the auto room correction feature on their receiver with out board amps attached?

I saw another thread recently about someone who bought an Audacy audio room correction/equalizer component as their gear did not have that facility built into their receiver. The person was quite impressed with the benefits once all the position testing and correction process was completed.

My Onkyo TX SR 805 has this auto room correction feature on board.

However, when I called to ask Onkyo about using the Audacy room correction feature in my own application, were I to use outboard amps, the tech (s) I spoke with said

"The Audacy (Audessey) feature does not work with auxilliary amps. Only when the 805 is connected directly to the speakers."

Hearing this info from a couple of Onkyo techs early on in my ownership, and prior to adding those amps, I dismissed the use of that benefit entirely, and never tried to use it.

So I was curious and emailed Audacy after perusing their website for more info on one of their room corection devices for myself. I told them of my situation, gear, and the info Onkyo tech support had provided me and was surprised to see them reply with this info:

“The Audessy feature on your 805 will work with or without outboard amps being connected to it. They also apologized for the misinformation.

Really? Whoa!?

Lovely. My problem now is having mislaid my micI can’t even find out for myself. lol

Audacy also said the mic supplied with the recievers was specific to the room correction system, therefore obtaining a better aftermarket mic would not perform as well. Their process is calibrated to the supplied mic. Further, they said the mic wire itself could be extended up to 25ft. Past that overall length they could not assure the results would be predictable.

Hmmm.

Do Other owners of Onkyo, Marantz, etc., receivers with this Audacy benefit built in, also hear such misinfomation about their Audacy supplied units not being capable of room correction in conjunction with out board amps too?

Has anyone tried to use the feature while amps were connected to their receiver?

Neither have I seen mention of this in any reviews on such featured receivers.

Now, if I can just find my mic!

Thanks. Hope this helps.
blindjim

Showing 7 responses by kr4

kr4's avatar
kr4
3,649 posts
 
I appreciate the reply, Jim. Let me know if there's anything else I can help with.

Kal
kr4's avatar
kr4
3,649 posts
 
Srwooten-

Those are only the highlights of the recommendations in the guide. It was based on the comments and experiences of many users and vetted by the CTO of Audyssey. It is worth a read for anyone using Audyssey.

Kal
kr4's avatar
kr4
3,649 posts
 
Move the chair? Something that must be apparent to you now is that Audyssey is not a panacea. It has less to do with a good setup in an acoustically decent room but it also accomplishes more with a good setup in an acoustically decent room.

Your move.

Kal
kr4's avatar
kr4
3,649 posts
 
Yeah. Here's the irony. Despite all this, most users just play "point-and-shoot" and accept the initial results because it is better than what they had before. In other words, it depends on how critical you are of the sound and, if you are picky (like me), you encumber the burden of doing it the right way. Believe me, it is worth it.

As for headphones, look for a receiver with "Dolby Headphone." I hate all headphones/earphones, btw.

Kal
kr4's avatar
kr4
3,649 posts
 
1. It is Audyssey, not Audacy.
2. It works in the preamp/processor portion of the AVR and does not care whether you use the built-in amps, external amps or some combination of the two.
3. Just make sure that you do the measurements and setup with the amp arrangement you will listen to. If you change that, you need to re-measure.
4. Since the operation of Audyssey with, or without external amps, is the same for AVRs and preamprocessors, all reviews of its operation are relevant.
5. What is important is that you read about the specific version of Audyssey that you have. 2EQ, MultEQ, MultEQ XT and AudysseyPro are distinctively different. For a start, here are my relevant comments:
http://www.stereophile.com/musicintheround/306mitr/
http://www.stereophile.com/musicintheround/108mitr/
6. If you need help/guidance in setup, there is a nice setup guide linked in the first post of the "official" Audyssey thread on AVSForum.
7. Find your mic and do it.

Kal
kr4's avatar
kr4
3,649 posts
 
I am surprised. Now, do not take this personally but, imho, most people who feel this way have either done the Audyssey setup poorly (I messed up my first time and from time to time even though I have done it many times) or are simply adapted to the anomalies that Audyssey is correcting. Take a look at the AVS guide to see what the issues are and see that it is not "point and shoot" despite what is implied in the user's manuals.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=14456895#post14456895

Kal
kr4's avatar
kr4
3,649 posts
 
First, I apologize for assuming otherwise as I did not take your handle literally. I will try to write more carefully.

A preamp/processor is, virtually, an A/V receiver without amps and, therefore, a device which works only with external amps. This is similar to the operation you propose.

I do appreciate your dissatisfaction with factory telephone service reps but many of us have learned to take their comments with a grain of salt. Most are reading from scripts and do not really know anything technical.

My suggestion that you "find the mic and do it" was meant to encourage you to run Audyssey because I believe it will make a huge improvement in virtually any system or room. My post was serious but,unfortunately, was not written with a full understanding of your situation. Consulting those links will be tedious but the actual procedure is described in detail. It includes specific guidelines for mic placement which is critical. If you were a neighbor, I would volunteer to help as I have done it many times with several different types of equipment. This makes me fairly adept at it but it also makes me respect the difficulties.

Here are some important points:
1. The mic should be on a mic stand or tripod so that there are no large objects (walls, cushions, human bodies, etc.) close to it.
2. It must be pointed straight up to the ceiling and sit at the same height as your ears and/or your tweeters.
3. The first mic position must be at your listening seat and the others should be at least 2 feet away but never wider than the positions of your main left and right speakers.
4. None of the mic positions should be within 2 feet of a wall or other large reflective surface.

There's lots more in the guide posted at AVSforum.

Kal
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