Home Theater Forum and Systems banner

Another Newbie question: RS SPL meter enough for sub integration or do I need Behringer ECM8000?

2K views 5 replies 3 participants last post by  logicators 
#1 ·
Hi,

Audyssey seems to set my sub (JTR Cap S2) 6-10 dbs lower than the rest of the speakers (JTR Quintuple LCRs, Def Tech BPVX surrounds, Def Tech SM 450 Front Heights). Over the weekend I am planning to use REW to analyze and manually level match them (and also try pre-setting the sub to 75 db before running audyssey). The audyssey-chosen crossover point is 60 Hz for all speakers. I currentlly use the digital RS SPL meter

My question is: Can I reliably use the RS SPL meter with REW (and the correction file) to measure the sub's SPL and integrate it properly / level match it with the speakers, or do I need a better mic such as Behringer ECM8000?
 
#2 ·
Hi,

<<<<<<snip>>>>>>

My question is: Can I reliably use the RS SPL meter with REW (and the correction file) to measure the sub's SPL and integrate it properly / level match it with the speakers, or do I need a better mic such as Behringer ECM8000?
The RS SPL meter will work just fine for what you want to do ( level match ) .

In fact , you can also use it to EQ the subs ( even your speakers up to it's ( believable ) response limit of @ 3K ) .

:sn:
 
#3 ·
my experience with both..
the spl meter is only good for getting the number - unless you make yourself a calibration file compared to the calibrated ecm8000 for really ugly or dirty jobs.

the ecm8000 compared with and without calibration file also supports itself .. there is a clear difference.
no reason anybody should think there is only one single person in the whole land doing their pause to help know for certain there are decent microphones out there doing decent progress.
that little frame of view strips the popularity from the effort, purpose, & existance of calibration in|of itself.

**edit**

you know there is some serious void to speak of when the output amplifier of the digital spl meter hasnt been spoken about like a home theater receiver.
that is simple bullying spoked into the rim of the wheel turning through the magazine article pages.
 
#4 ·
Thanks for your responses. I played around with REW today and was able to improve the level matching situation between my sub and mains.

Audyssey was originally setting my S2 6-10 db lower than the mains and an avs forum member suggested manually setting the level to 75 db before running audyssey. I tried that today but Audyssey pushed the sub level even lower (to -7.5 instead of -2.5) and ended up at the same absolute level.

I then used the correction files with REW today and measured the frequency response. The test confirmed that Audyssey is indeed having problems with properly level matching between my mains (Quintuples) JTR and the JTR S2.

See the blue line in the attached FR graph. Note that this measurement represents the sub level after I bumped it up by 2.5 db (-5 db instead of the original -7.5). I also learned that I have a null which is causing a dip close to 110 Hz.

I played around with audyssey settings, sub levels, and many crossover settings. Finally, I managed to achieve a pretty decent FR by switching to audyssey flat, setting the sub level to -2.5 (5 db higher than the Audyssey-selected setting) and raising the crossover setting for mains to 120 Hz. The purple line represents my final configuration.



http://cdn.avsforum.com/c/c6/500x1000px-LL-c61d741e_rew_2_10_2012.jpeg
 
#5 ·
a real shot in the dark here proves to be painful from a person that see's the situation as atom split.
one half says the audyssey program is ment to record the room and flip it's recorded response to remove the room's pocket affection on itself.
the other half says the program assaults you by subjecting you to harassment about lifting the level of the subwoofer when it is all done as if some method of payment to get the most quality between you and audyssey working 'as a team' ..rather than some serious value put into the hardware for as little as what? $50 - $75 ??

painful to say without the other calibrated microphone and some valid measurements to view what you are getting from the care of the company.
because if there was ever some reason to say thanks, or call & email them about getting more quality because of conversation or a trade of information, nobody would know about it because there arent enough comparisons giving the data.

maybe our cups of pepsi and coke are dry?.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top