Anthem AV Owners Thread

[desray]

Today Peng came to my place check Rythmik E15hp . Woofer is working fine. But the muffled sound was cause by sub woofer placement and centre speaker produce a bit of low frequency. . After Peng suggest to 1 to 1 swap placement,  sound so much better.  He also guide me how to tune the subwoofer. And try to improve my environment as i have a lot of glass panel.

 

I also need to recalibrate anthem 1120..

 

Thank you Peng..

 

Where can i purchase miniDsp. I need to Tune 2 subwoofer for low frequency  and very low frequency

 

 

Glad to know that you are improving the sound every day as you go along. :)

 

[desray]

 

For those who know me will instantly know that I’m a big fan of what Audyssey does for the Home Theater market. Over the years, Audyssey has been a household name for most AV enthusiasts around the world. For those who had attended my Audyssey calibration sessions, you probably heard what I mentioned that apart from Audyssey MultEQ XT32 calibration software, 2 other calibration suite that I always want to get are the Dirac and the Anthem Room Correction (ARC). However both are easy to get as there are niche players that serves the HT geeks - meaning those who like the get down-and-dirty with their calibration in order to get the best home theater surround sound experience from your gears. Audyssey reigned the more ubiquitous consumer-grade AVR market for its ease of use.

I admitted that when Denon announced her latest flagship AV Amp, the almighty AVC-X8500H, I am tempted to jump on the upgrade bandwagon but only to hold back due to it hefty price tag. I took a hard look and made a comparison with my almost 3yrs old X7200WA flagship AVR from Denon and decided to wait till the price dropped to around $3K before I take the plunge. The longer I wait, the more I read up the hardware specs and its features and the more I am convinced that I don’t need to get another AVR with the “same” Audyssey MultEQ XT32 calibration suite incorporated. It just can’t get that excited anymore...I mean sure, more power and love for the better built quality, top-end hardware components, meaner raw power per channel amongst other things...but it is still Audyssey. I decided to give Hwee Seng a call to ask about the availability of the Anthem flagship MRX-1120 which cost around the same price as the Denon AVC-X8500H. The female sales rep told me ALL ANTHEM PRODUCTS currently out-of-stock in Singapore and I will have to make 50% deposit to do a pre-order with Anthem as they don’t do any stock-up. According to Hwee Seng, Anthem products did not sell well on our little red-dot. Next I asked about the MRX-720 and as I’m about expect the same answer from the lady sales rep - i.e. no stock but to my surprise, she told me that there was actually one “unclaimed” unit of MRX-720 in their warehouse now. Without any hesitation, I told her I’ll take it.

 

The key differences between the 720 and 1120 models lies in the latter’s built-in discrete power amplification to do a full 11.2 channels in order to do a full 7.1.4 setup without the need for external power amplification and both models sport the same power ratings (140w/ch) for their channels. Of course, the 1120 utilize higher grade hardware components in order to command a higher premium price tag! Fortunately 720 comes with pre-outs that supports 2 height channels (for Atmos and DTS:X speaker setup) and since I already have with me 2 power amps in my current HT setup, 720 seems like a good alternative for me. More importantly, I can save more than $1K+. With a little bit of luck and some “persuasion” and a friendly nudge to Hwee Seng, I got myself a good deal and the rest is history...And so my Anthem Room Correction (ARC) journey begins…

 

Unboxing

The following day, my MRX-720 arrived. I’m glad to see the DTS:X badge imprinted on the box to confirm that it already has DTS:X installed at the factory floor instead of a OTA update. [Note: For those unaware, when the MRX 520/720/1120 AVRs were first released back in the late 2015, DTS:X feature, like most AVRs released during that period, requires a OTA software update to get the DTS:X processing to work]

 

The remote controller

First impression when I saw the ARC toolkit, I was impressed that it actually came with a nice package containing a USB cable, a network cable, the ARC MC1 calibration mic and even a tripod with boom arm extension to house the mic, all neatly packed in a box of its own.

 

Nice touch! Anthem clearly wanted to save on cost as the carton that houses the AVR looked like a cheap cardboard put together last minute as long as it serves its utility - i.e. to transport the AVR safely from factory to home, it will suffice. The user operating manual comes as a surprise, unlike the traditional black/white printing featured in just about every Denon and Marantz products, Anthem on the other hand decides to make it into a book/magazine replete with color images and clear wordings. It is actually an exact replica derived from the PDF format except it is in a book style. 2 booklets, one in English and the other in French.

 

The main highlight of the show is the MRX-720. It is almost as heavy as my Denon X7200WA AVR. First impression when I saw the MRX-720, I’ll admit I am not impressed with its non-descript facade and that “fappy” hinge that houses a HDMI (MHL compliant) and the USB input for firmware update).

 

Another quick glance at the rear connection ports also failed to lift my spirits...equally unimpressive to say the least. And worse of all, I saw the imprint, “Made in Vietnam” as opposed to my Denon X7200WA which is made in Japan. “Beauty is but skin deep”, clearly designing an appealing product is not Anthem’s strong suit but what it lacks in design more than make up for it performance - later to that.

 

[desray]

Streak of bad luck?!

While setting up the physical AVR was a breeze, it quickly turn into a classic “waiting game” for me for the rest of the day! The MC1 mic that comes with the package did not have a matching serial number in Anthem’s very own database. The issue with this “simple” yet frustratingly annoying thing is that the mic comes pre-calibrated by the engineers at their factory to ensure accurate readings during calibration, hence came the offset readings saved in a small script with its proprietary file format. With a mismatched serial number, I am unable to proceed with the calibration since I am prompted to supply the little mic calibration file to get things going. Call it a blessing in disguise and because of this little unfortunate hiccups, I am but forced to read up the entire operating manual in less than half an hour, to find out where and how to get in touch with Anthem support back in Ottawa, Canada. Not a thing in the entire manual states about the need for a calibration mic file. With no choice, quickly google for other Anthem community based forum and managed to locate an email pointing me to the helpdesk. Quickly send out an email requesting for my calibration mic script. It was the longest and most unproductive day while I idling around, waiting for an email reply from the Anthem support team. While waiting, I began to worry that the “mismatched serial number” or worse, the MC1 mic that came with the package probably not going to work since each mic is “factory tuned” to its corresponding serial number and if my serial number is not found in the database, does that mean I have with me a “dud”?! The more I think of it, the more disappointed I get…

 

[Firmware Update: ONLY via USB update. No OTA support? That's a first!]

 

Finally after an agonizing 1 hour wait after and wasted 4 hours to search for help online, Anthem support finally replied and forward me my MC1 mic calibration file. I quickly responded by asking about my concern and the chap reassured me that it is the CORRECT file and I can proceed to upload it to my laptop/PC. Total time wasted - About 5 hours! Like I say, I took this “spare” time to read up the literature and understand the way ARC works and how to navigate around the ARC 2 software (only worked in Windows. For Mac OS users, you need to do a bootcamp to get Windows installed for it to work. There is another less accurate way to do it which is to use the iOS Anthem ARC app for calibration). By the time, I got everything up and running, I have to say it a very intuitive, easy to use yet so powerful software (the ARC 2) for pre and post calibration values to be reviewed as the user go along. For the very first time, you can include your very own “house-curve” to your subwoofer and play with the crossover settings between your speakers interacting with the subwoofer(s) is as easy as supplying the values and hit on the calculate and then upload the “new” targeted “curve” into the MRX-720.

 

3 Key differences between ARC and Audyssey MultEQ XT32

Before we talk about the differences, let me mentioned first point out that both calibration methods set out with the same objective - i.e. to optimize by way of EQ’ing your speakers and subwoofer interactions in “your” room setup. Apparently the approach they use is vastly different. Below are some key differences which I have uncovered along the way:

 

#1 - No distance measurement

You need to manually enter the distance (in ft or m) for each of your speakers in your setup. Fortunately, I have with me my last Audyssey distance readings which I can quickly deploy. For those who do not have these values in advance, you can use the old but gold standards - use a measuring tape or a laser pointer distance measuring device for more accuracy.

 

Interestingly you can choose to input the distance before or after the calibration process has completed. This is a tell-tale sign indicating that distance (although we know affects the delay where sound from the various speakers and subwoofer reach the listener at the Main Listening Position or MLP) is not factor during the calibration process. The reason for that is due to the way MC1 mic works. If you compare the Audyssey calibration mic with the one used for ARC, you will immediately spot the difference in one using the normal copper wire used in most speaker cable while the other use a computer-grade USB cable to connect to your laptop/PC so as to send the readings to the ARC 2 software for computation. And it is because of the USB connection used by the MC1 mic that make distance prediction/calculation near impossible. Without going too “nerdy”, the USB-based MC1 mic when relaying data or signal in this case over to the laptop/PC will almost faced with “delay” and it is this “electronic delay” that ultimately affects the accuracy of the distance setting. Hence the decision is clear, omit the distance calculation and let user input it.

 

However I do foresee an issue in setting the subwoofer distance. For those who have had used Audyssey will know by now that the distance for subwoofer(s) always appeared to be greater in distance and this is to account for the electronic delay and the characteristics of a subwoofer being omni-directional and producing mono-aural frequency compared with speakers which have a more “directive” presence. How then are we going to input the distance value for 2 subwoofer(s)?

 

#2 - Absence of a 2nd subwoofer measurement

To make matters worse, there is NO dual subwoofer calibration field to calculate each subwoofer frequency response relative to the MLP. In fact, ARC engineers decided to put dual subwoofers into a “single” container and called it Subwoofer. This is different from Audyssey implementation where 2 subwoofer will receive an “individualized” treatment when calibration is being performed. Later I found out the reason in one of the audioholics write-up cum interview with the creator of ARC, Dr Peter Schuck where he mentioned that when measuring a low frequency response from more than one subwoofer makes little to no incentive to take in separate subwoofer(s) readings before the calibration commence. In his own words, he responded by saying, “ARC treats the subs as a mono group because once walls, a floor, and a ceiling are involved, there's no such thing as “stereo” bass, at least at subwoofer frequencies.”  The stereo bass here refers to dual subwoofer implementation. Having say that, it does not mean that one can forgo the subwoofer level readings (SPL reading to get to 75db) before the proper calibration measurement. In the ARC 2 software, one can choose the Quick Measure feature to quickly analyze 2 things. The optimum placement for your subwoofer(s) and the level readings to read 75db. The quick measure function provides the user with a real-time graphical curve representation as you move your subwoofer(s) to different locations or when you turn your phase knob. The idea is to get a relatively “close” downward sloping curve with no major dips in db within the typical 40 - 80 Hz frequency band where most of the bookshelf speakers likely to have a crossover frequency setting in those regions. That is where the 2nd subwoofer comes in to help with the “even-out” approach. Recall one of the biggest benefits of having dual subwoofer implementation is to smooth out the bass response in your listening environment with more headroom to spare but without the need to over stress or over work one of the subwoofers. So in theory, if you are unable to achieve good results in one location for the 1st subwoofer, the 2nd subwoofer placement when placed correctly will usually solve the nulls and the peaks in those region that the 1st subwoofer have. For more info in optimized placement of subwoofer(s), please google for more details. The general rule of thumb is to use same make and model subwoofers to ensure uniformity when it comes to readings.

 

[Fun fact: Something different from what I know, at least from my past Audyssey experience is the recommended SPL readings for the subwoofers. In ARC, they recommended 70-71 db SPL readings for each of the dual subwoofers and the value get successively lower when you added more than 2 subwoofers. The SPL readings from the subwoofers (regardless of the quantity) will read approximately 75db when all worked in concert]

 

For phase control, the effects to the frequency is almost negligible, so the best way to get your subwoofer(s) to work best with ARC is to move the “beast” itself. Good luck to those owning a ported subwoofer with huge enclosure!

 

Once you are satisfied with the placement of your subwoofer(s) and its corresponding curves. We can proceed to commence a full measurement for the entire speaker arrays. It is important to get the subwoofer placement right the first time round. But do not be dismayed if the curve didn’t get as flat as you want it to be. ARC will still help to do it at the electronic EQ level but it may not be always ideal. So don’t overlook the importance of this initial step.

[desray]

#3 - Minimum number of calibration positions (5 versus 3)

Another key difference is the number of minimum positions required before ARC “think” that it have all the necessary computational data it needs to come up with a  “EQ-solution” to solve your in-room response issues you faced in your listening environment. Audyssey requires a minimum of 3 to a maximum of 8 positions while ARC allows up to 10 different positions to have a much a more comprehensive representation of your actual in-room responses. If you have a bigger listening space, go for all 10 positions if you can.

 

[Note: Both shared the same concept that the 1st position is the most crucial and should always be right in the middle or closest to your prime listening position. Like Audyssey, the first readings will pretty much be the baseline for averaging of the coefficient in readings later on. If you screw up the 1st position, be prepared to re-do again]

 

Is ARC really more powerful than Audyssey?

Ironically speaking, Audyssey MultEQ XT32 implementation in a AVR is actually far more complex and requires more computational powers to make it work wonders. The built-in DSP chips that does all the surround sound format (e.g. Dolby Atmos, DTS-X) processing all take up valuable computational powers, leaving very little to almost no room for further modification of a “targeted” frequency. Audyssey preferred to make it as simple for user as possible while ARC’s approach is different. The latter give the “power” back to the user to allow the “geek” in you to surface! It is apparent that software based calibration toolkit is the ONLY way to do all sorts of customization to get that elusive midbass that Audyssey is unable to deliver “to a certain degree” without sacrificing performance.

 

As this is just a review, I will not tread deep into the jungles of calibration tweaks etc. But the key selling point of ARC is the well-implemented software combined with the hardware (MC1 calibrated mic). For the most accurate readings, Anthem’s ARC toolkit truly delivers a better calibration package when compared to Audyssey. But I applauded Audyssey for making calibration user friendly albeit the lack of refinement for pro users.

 

Once you get a hang of it, running the ARC 2 software is easy. In fact, it is so much fun and takes up less of my time when doing calibration despite the fact that ARC requires you to perform a minimum of 5 positions before it can compile the results. Compared to Audyssey, the time taken to perform the 3 minimum position readings roughly takes about the same time for ARC to finish its 5 positions! That is how fast a software based as opposed to a SoC based works! Deliver more in less time...Ask Apple about their yearly AX chips upgrades.

 

Vastly different calibration results

Now let’s take a look at what ARC does to my HT system. What a vast difference and frankly I got a shock when I saw those results. Literally all my speakers crossed the 100Hz regions (into the territory of a near satellite speakers) despite my KEF R100 is more than capable of producing discernible bass notes in the 80 Hz region.

 

It defies all logic and NEVER once did Audyssey ever give me such results hence you can imagine how perplexed I must have been when I first took sight of these crossover settings. Could it the MC1 mic is faulty or the offset readings in the mic calibration file is wrong?! Although it showed me vastly different results from what I have expected all these years with my Audyssey, the one tell-tale sign that I am heading in the right direction is Subwoofer High Pass Filter (HPF) registering a 26 Hz cut-off for my JL Audio E110 where the lowest frequency it can go is 25 Hz region and my E112’s lowest frequency is 22 Hz. What this mean is that the high frequency above the 26 Hz will be filtered and allow to pass through to the speakers to reproduce and anything below that will be routed as LFE (0.1) signal to the subwoofer to handle. The Low-Pass FIlter (LPF) for LFE remains as the de facto 120 Hz based on the industry standards.

 

Clearly the way ARC sets out a clear path for more bass (LFE) to be routed to my JL Audio to reproduce instead of relying on a more traditional and somewhat conservation crossover value between the speakers and the subwoofers. But never did I expect such a high crossover settings (> 100 Hz) for all my speakers. This requires a very granular tweak to get the correct rollover order right in the High Pass Order and Audyssey simply have no room to do such refined adjustments. Based on ARC’s recommendation, the optimized rollover for a smoother bass response between the various speakers with the subwoofers will be in the region of 3rd Order (bandwidth) at 26 Hz. For a more powerful subwoofer which can go as low as 20 Hz without distortion, you can opt for for a “flat” order to extend the lower-end of the curve for that infrasonic low grunt oomph!

 

[Note: ARC will not recommend these adjustments to inexperienced user such as myself when taming the subwoofer with a “whip” that you can’t handle with certain level of proficiency in understanding how LFE works for your subwoofer. So it is best to stick to the optimized setting if you are not sure what you are doing lest bottoming your subwoofers]

[desray]

Anthem’s focus on Sound

If we look back at the inception of Anthem as a company, it is not hard to see where Anthem’s primary focus lies in her range of products rolled out to the home theater market - i.e. to focus chiefly on professional studio-grade audio calibration to get the best cinematic experience to your home environment. Paradigm (parent company) bought over an audiophile studio company known as Sonic Frontier) to form Anthem. Since Paradigm wanted to focus her R&D in audio, it omitted the video enhancement features found in most of today’s high-end consumer grade AVR, Pre/Pro and AV Amps.

 

If I recall the specs correctly, it utilize audiophile’s favourite son, the AKM-4458 DAC chip to accomplish it sonic feat. This literally means it can decode DSD file up to 24bit/192Khz using its built in DAC. This is what differentiate Anthem from the conventional AVR manufacturers like Denon & Marantz, Pioneer, Onkyo and Yamaha, The latter group wanted to provide consumers with a “All-in-One” package for the best bang for your bucks but focusing just enough to get the everything working as it should but never excel in any specific areas. There is literally no sight of any Video settings in the menu. The product brochure only mentioned that it is HDCP 2.2 compatible for playback of 4K DRM content and HDMI 2.0a to take full advantage of wider color gamut (WCG - BT2020) like HDR, HLG and DV and nothing else. What I have gathered from other sources is that the video processor built into the AVR is meant for the display of OSD (On-Screen Display) to show the menu overlay and other key information like, the Input Selection, file formats, surround sound formats and bitrate of the media files been played amongst other things. Denon and Marantz on other other hand provides a dedicated Video Processor of high quality for proper scaling of non 4K content like 1080p to make it more 4K like.

 

Unlike most conventional AVR choice over wireless music streaming protocol in the likes of AirPlay and Bluetooth. Anthem takes on a different path and opted for the DTS Play-Fi wireless music streaming service to ensure near audiophile grade music streaming experience via Wi-Fi for a more reliable throughput rate for bigger audio media.

 

 

In some of the more audio-centric review of the MRX-720, Anthem claimed that it is one of the few AVRs out there in the market that can downsample and re-sample a high bitrate audio file format for Play-Fi streaming without sacrificing too much clarity and details. Clearly I’m no audiophile but it is definitely very reassuring that playback of MP3, AAC and FLAC files can be played back at high quality.

 

Dolby Atmos/DTS:X and Auro 3D clips

I did not have much time to go through my demo archive but I intend to find some time to do more testing. But I did allocate about 45 mins yesterday evening to go through a bunch of familiar clips from Dolby Labs, DTS Inc and even Auro 3D to get hear for myself the difference that ARC make to my current system.

 

I put in the Dolby Atmos Demo clips featuring the jungles of Amazon, Horizon, Audiosphere, fallen leaf and Shattered baseball scenes and for the very first time, I am beginning to feel the “thump and the oomph” from both my JL Audio subwoofers working in concert. In the past, Audyssey has calibrated my subwoofers reasonably well but ARC has taken it to the next level. Even my KEF R50 Dolby Atmos enabled speakers which crossover at a more “specific” values at 225 Hz for my front Dolby channels and 130 Hz for my rear Dolby channels also brings out an even more “elevated” sound effects compared with what I have used for my Audyssey setup. The most distinct improvement in terms of object based clarity came with the Shattered baseball scene. Recall the shards of broken window glass panes “knock” against the ceiling hanged overhead lamp, the impact is much more “pronounced” and I have noticed for the very first time that the glass shards hit on the hard wooden floor has a loud thud that sends a low bass note to my Aura bass-shakers for the first time. As I have placed a 50 Hz low pass filter for anything lower than 50 Hz to be sent to the bass shakers to simulate the rumble. This is something else as I have never felt that before from that particular scene.

 

For the DTS:X demos, I played back Cacophony, Function of music, the Forley artist, Nightlight and Darlingside’s The Ancestors MTV to get a sense of things in the the DTS:X department. Both Cacophony, Function of music and the Nighlight scene stood out the most for me. In the Cacophony (of sound), precise imaging of the footsteps and the eerie soft breathing rhythm sound as one draws air and exhale at the side can also be picked up with more clarity. So much more nuances. This is truly a great clip to “pick out” sound localization with eyes closed. For dialogue intelligibility test, the interviewed male articulating about how he felt and dispensing his wisdoms on the function of music can give you an idea how well your center channels “lock-in” the dialogue with the ambience sound effects like crumpled papers and playback of the old cassette recorder deck and the screechy sound made by the turntable on the vinyl records as it slowly spins its tune is a joy to listen. The Nighlight scene (no dialogue) is filled with great dynamics from start to finish. It truly brings out the best when all your speakers + subwoofers worked in tandem to provide a broad spectrum of dynamics in brilliance mix of DTS:X object based sound.

 

Auro 3D utilize the DTS-HD MSTR (lossless high bitrate). There is only one demo clips spanning nearly 18 mins long and I just let it play. Perhaps I did not have a compatible Auro 3D sound decoder to take advantage of the Auro 3D mix, it is not as impressive as I would like to get when compared with a true Object-based sound mix. But that is not to say that the MRX-720 did not handle Auro 3D mix poorly. I would prefer to say that it performed equally good with my X7200WA calibrated by Audyssey and that says something. With a dearth of Auro 3D material, I can see why Anthem is not incorporating Auro 3D sound processing anytime soon in the MRX AVR range of models.

I will be doing some real-time testing on full length movies on a bluray later tonight and provide my 2 cents worth in due course. But suffice to say that I am very very impressed with ARC at this point.

 

Music / 2 Channel

For music, I took the opportunity to download the DTS Play-Fi app to take advantage of the high-performance DAC chip for my music playback. As I only played a few musical tracks and a couple of Mandarin ballads by Tsai Chin, I can already tell that my subwoofers really blended in well with the speakers. One neat and cool feature of Anthem’s unique feature is the assigning of 4 different profile speaker configs to suit different speaker setup for different needs. For instance, I can set a 5.2 or 7.2 speaker config for all my music listening without engaging the heights (or in this case, my front and rear Dolby-enabled speakers) for that natural sound at ear levels. I really do not see the need and the benefits of DSP mixed ambience sound to envelope you in a native 2 channel source such as songs. Even though I have spent only about less than 10 mins or so on music (not my priority here), I can safely say that it had far exceeded my expectations. I will do more music testing in days to come and as always, I will provide my 2 cents worth in this area.

 

Conclusion

So is it any good? Worth upgrading from Audyssey MultEQ XT32 for movies? And who is it for? At this juncture, I guess you already know the answers to all these questions. The Anthem MRX-720 gets an affirming recommendation by me. 2 thumbs up for the amazing calibration it does for my home theater system. Just when I thought it could not get any better, Anthem’s ARC proved me wrong. I am truly amazed at how well the MC1 mic worked in tandem with the ARC 2 software and allowed more advanced user the flexibility to make fine alterations to the post-calibrated frequency responses for the desired effects. This is truly one great AVR for all home theater enthusiasts out there in the XP forum.

 

The price is a bit on the high-end and it lacks a plethora of features found in most conventional AVRs like the omission of a dedicated Video Processor for better video reproduction. At this point, the video signal only pass-through from source direct to your TV monitor or HT Projector and all video processing will either be done at the source (e.g. bluray player) or the TV/Projector itself. However this should not be the reason to stop you from getting the Anthem for your next upgrade (in the near future) as we usually leave the video processing to the TV/Projector which sports a better video processor to clean up those artifacts etc. If sound is what you truly after, then Anthem MRX-720 deserves a place in your X’mas wishlist this year. The only gripe, apart from the hefty price and non-descript outlook is the end user support locally. With no dedicated service center and Hwee Seng been the exclusive distributor here in Singapore, many may not wish to take the risk and that is understandable.

[desray]

Is Dirac Live any good?

 

Just came back from ronildoq's place and I must say that I am quite impressed with Dirac Live's features and its performance. As ronildoq does not have a dedicated AVR or Pre/Pro Amp to take advantage of object-based sound formats like DTS:X and Dolby Atmos, it is a pity. But even w/o the height channels, Dirac Live did a very wonderful job overall to ronildoq's setup.

 

To members - whether Dirac Live, ARC or even Audyssey MultEQ XT32 that you are using right at this very moment, you will not be disappointed with any of the 3 when it comes to room EQ. Go for Audyssey if you do not want the hassles of learning calibration s/w but for those who seek for a more "refined" approach or perhaps you are the type that have the knowledge of how to play with room EQ like REW software, Dirac Live and ARC will be the way to go. For software-based calibration, it is more powerful and packed with features and highly scalable to "fit" your custom need for a finesse control over what you can get for your speaker and subwoofer(s). It is not about how much you spent on your speakers or subwoofers, it is all about putting everything into a cohesive and seamless package that counts.

 

I have to give it to ronildoq for able to put together such a great setup in a living room setting which imo is the most challenging of all and he is able to do it in a minimalistic way. Well done! I urge everyone to get a taste of what Dirac Live can do to your existing HT setup. Before you consider to spend more $$$ on speakers or better subwoofers, do consider investing a modest amount in audio calibration s/w such as Dirac Live to reap the benefits and you will be impressed by how good your existing HT sound system is. A new level of immersion and clarify it does as opposed to splurging money on AV equipment, especially speakers!

 

In short, I will say Dirac Live is indeed a good software based calibration tool to invest.  ;)

 

[desray]

Is Dirac Live truly better than Anthem Room Correction (ARC)?

 

The answer is it depends on your room, setup and whether you have the luxury to move your speakers and/or subwoofer(s) if required. Do take note that regardless whether you use Dirac Live, ARC or even Audyssey, you are at the mercy of your room mode. How good your HT system sounded at the end of the day depends on your room. Hence the focus on in-room EQ.

 

With in-room response, it will come down to how receptive is your room at certain frequency range...most calibration tools focused in treating the lower end of the Schroeder Frequency range (usually from 20Hz -250Hz range for a typical home theater setup, emphasis here is "Home setting") before it do more harm that good. Over-EQ to get a flatter response at the higher end may not be desirable. I'm surprised to see Dirac Live able to do EQ to as high as 15Khz...

 

ARC and Dirac utilize pretty similar calibration approach with the exception that the latter comes with more control and features like built-in delays and gain input/output to compensate for fairly accurate distance setting. This is something that ARC is missing. In addition, Dirac Live is able to play with custom house curve which resulted in amore "acquired" (Preference) taste to suit individual's needs. Again, this is something missing from ARC.

 

What both ARC and Dirac Live did very well is the ability to achieve a flat response (remove peaks and elevate nulls) at the key frequency range of 20Hz and 200Hz with emphasis to fix the 50 - 55Hz standing wave in order to provide you with a clean sound that complements the subwoofers. The subwoofers will then be able to get an effective and efficient HPF and crossovers amongst the speakers to achieve a well balanced sound with a healthy dose of bass without "too much bloating" that masks the surround effects. Dirac Live is a "feature-rich" toolkit for home theater enthusiasts provided you truly invest your time to really go through the features or else you will be wasting your money and only to use a few functions. If you want a step down from Dirac but something better and more refined than Audyssey, then ARC provides a more easy, intuitive and a all-rounder package and yet able to deliver equally impressive sound w/o the need for you to go through the literature and science behind it.

 

Calibration software is but just a tool...even if you reaped the maximum benefits and understand all the technicalities and how it all works, you can not escape from poor speaker layout and placement. You need to fix this before using the calibration software to achieve the best results.

 

So is Dirac Live better than ARC? The answer is Yes but with caveats.

 

[desray]

Picking the best frequency cut-off range for your Dolby Atmos-enabled speakers

 

Front pair of Dolby Atmos-enabled Speakers Frequency Response Curve

Max Frequency EQ at 500 Hz

Max Frequency EQ at 1 KHz

Max Frequency EQ at 2 KHz

Max Frequency EQ at 5 KHz

 

Rear pair of Dolby Atmos-enabled Speakers Frequency Response Curve

Max Frequency EQ at 500 Hz

Max Frequency EQ at 1 KHz

Max Frequency EQ at 2 KHz

Max Frequency EQ at 5 KHz

 

One of the greatest benefits of ARC is the ability to look at the target (linear) curve versus the corrected curve with bass management built-in. Rule of thumb,Equalization (EQ) should not be used beyond the treble region which is usually in the 2 Khz and above as the sound wave will become too  “directional”. If it becomes too “directional”, the calibrated mic will cease to become “accurate” when measuring these higher frequencies. A typical “law of diminishing returns” I would say. Hence it is advisable to keep it less than 2 Khz whenever possible. For ARC, the upper band limit for its In-Room EQ frequency range will be from 20 Hz to 5 Khz (or 5,000 Hz) to allow for better accuracy measurement using its proprietary ARC1M calibrated mic. For those who wish to do EQ until to 20 Khz (or 20,000 Hz) even though the ARC software allows it, it serve little to no purpose at all. Another great feature of Anthem ARC software is the flexibility to play with 4 distinct profiles to take advantage of “cycling” amongst the 4 Profile Presets and choose the one that fits your gear best. For instance, if my source is a Sony UDP-X700 4K UHD bluray player that playback Dolby Atmos/DTS:X  content, I may choose to set the maximum frequency range cut-off for my room EQ to be say between 20 Hz and 500 Hz and I set this as my Profile which I tagged it as “MxEQ-500”. For each Profile, I will set accordingly like “MxEQ-1K”, “MxEQ-2K” and “MxEQ-5K”.

 

Today’s topic is focused on optimizing my Dolby Atmos-enabled speakers. My speaker configuration is a 7.2.4 setup, meaning it  as 2 pairs of Dolby Atmos-enabled speakers (front and rear). With ARC, it is much easier to see, pick and do testing on-the-fly with ease. This is a huge advantage when compared to Audyssey which shows you rather rough frequency response curve. ARC calibration advocated that each speakers will be measured on its own “merits” vis-a-viz the Main Listening Position (MLP). Simply put, ARC measured each individual speakers relative to the MLP and makes correction to the nasty peaks and valleys to get to that linear response curve for the entire 7.2.4 speaker setup to be optimized in a coherent manner (in its simplest terms to say the least).

 

Picking the best frequency cut-off range for your Dolby Atmos-enabled speakers

 

If we take a look at the Front Dolby-enabled speaker pair and made side by side comparisons among the 4 Profiles - i.e. MxEQ-500, MxEQ-1K, MxEQ-2K and MxEQ-5K, you can see how the corrected bass response (denoted in green color) curve looks like. Our focus is actually on the treble region and above as Dolby Atmos-enabled speaker characteristics focused squarely in the higher frequency range and we need the “much-desired” boost in that upper region frequency to “shine” as much as possible without compromising the low to mid-bass range (between 20 Hz and 1 Khz). The idea or rather objective is to “pick” the maximum frequency cut-off range to ensure a that there will be a “boost” at 1 Khz onwards.

 

If we take a look at the Profile, “MxEQ-500”, you can see that at frequency cut-off range of 500 Hz, there is an immediate drop in level (SPL) ever so slightly which are visible for my front left and also for for the rear pair. This tells us that it is not ideal but it can be easily compensated by a 2 - 3db boost to both the front and rear pairs to make up for the slight dip in SPL.

 

Let’s move on to the next Profile, the “MxEQ-1K”. That is even worst than MxEQ-500 Profile. See the major dip in SPL levels from the target curve of 75db to 71db for my front left Dolby Atmos-enabled speaker. Literally all the speakers at 1 Khz range as the cut-off range performed poorly for Dolby Atmos-enabled speakers.

 

How about Profile, “MxEQ-2K”? Well, this seems rather “promising” as we can see that the corrected bass response curve (denoted in green color) seems to go up by for all the speakers in this scenario. And this is what we wanted - a green curve going “above” the target curve (denoted in black) at 2 Khz and above.

 

Now let us move to the last Profile, the “MxEQ-5K”, it immediately becomes clear as day that it literally flattens the “peak” in MxEQ-2K Profile for all the speakers. Although this is what ARC sets out to achieve in the first place - i.e. to get a linear response curve at the maximum frequency cut-off range but it also unwittingly put a lid on the “height” effects as well. It may be good for audio playback but it may not be good for playback of bluray titles authored in Dolby Atmos or DTS:X sound mix.

 

If we look slightly further, we can see that a 10 Khz range looks promising as it is rather similar to MxEQ-2K Profile with a corrected bass response curve staying above the black target curve.

 

The Winner is…

As you have guess it by now, the 3rd Profile - i.e. MxEQ-2K at 2 Khz or 2,000 Hz performed the best for my 7.2.4 setup. I have cycled between the 4 Profiles and find MxEQ-2K Profile to have that high octane drive for low frequency extension while having a good blend of “atmos-pheric” effects to take advantage of movies mixed in Dolby Atmos or DTS:X. Of course, I have also did some experimentation for the 10,000 Hz range since it follows closely to the MxEQ-2K Profile but I did not like it as it makes the whole sound mix more “confined” like having constipation. Recall when I first mentioned about ARC’s room EQ logic. The default maximum frequency EQ cut-off range is set at 5 Khz or 5,000 Hz and anything above will make the sound more directional and makes it less accurate for the ARCM1 mic to pick up. So EQ is best treated within the confines of 5,000 Hz and not above it. Since 10,000 Hz attracts “law of diminishing returns” which aptly explains the sound I heard with too much “flat-ness” and lose out on its dynamics. I have decided to pick 2 Khz as my preferred cut-off range for ARC to EQ.

 

Because of this neat feature which I can adjust on the fly and apply the settings via Wi-Fi and no need for complex setup. I am able to experiment with sound like I never could when I use Audyssey.

 

[rayleh]

Hi Desray, with the new Audyssey apps, we should be able to save different profiles and adjust on the fly? However, I do know that the apps doesn't support your previous Denon.

[desray]

Hi Desray, with the new Audyssey apps, we should be able to save different profiles and adjust on the fly? However, I do know that the apps doesn't support your previous Denon.

 

Bro, this is an Anthem thread...Yes, the X7200WA didn't have support for the new Audyssey app that can adjust the curve...I recalled X6300 onwards.

 

[desray]

I tried to salvage as much information from the web cache provisioned by Google. It will be gone within 3 days as that’s how the algorithm works. I will try to re-add the images that accompanies the postings in due course when I have the time.

 

Unfortunately majority of the member’s feedbacks after hearing the MRX 720 were gone except for the most recent one by winwinc81.

 

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[whitesox]

Abang Desray...

 

I heard ur setup alrd.

Comparing to ur previous 7200wa, ur LCR sounds much better ....

Anyway, I just still didnt like ur shaker... too me it is so fake.

Ur JL is a 'beast'...u need to 'disturb' them. Perhaps u may need help from AM.

 

:)

[desray]

Abang Desray...

 

I heard ur setup alrd.

Comparing to ur previous 7200wa, ur LCR sounds much better ....

Anyway, I just still didnt like ur shaker... too me it is so fake.

Ur JL is a 'beast'...u need to 'disturb' them. Perhaps u may need help from AM.

 

:)

 

Thanks for the feedback.

 

[winwinc81]

Fantastic write up! Appreciate the effort in aiding new comers and us to decide whats best for us next! :)

[OzJustin]

Just wanted to close out my ARC issues from my earlier posts. Turns out there was no issue with my MRX300 receiver or ARC1 kit. My issue appears to have been with an older PC which said my microphone was installed correctly but then would not run ARC. As soon as I tried a different PC ARC worked perfectly. My receiver is now nicely calibrated for my strange shaped room. Big thank you to forum member Spoctordock for assisting me with my diagnosis. If you are having similar problems with ARC I would recommend trying a different PC if you have access to one.  

Now off to watch ‘Logan’ for the second time!

[Neilsy]

So I received my Tripp Lite Keyspan USB to RS232 converter, installed its software and hey presto... My AVM 50 is now found by my PC (Windows 10) and ARC COMPLETELY works.

Anyone know if the sweep tones can be volume adjusted? Seems the receiver goes into a config mode but I dare say it's sweeps aren't at 75dB but more like checking out reference peaks. With highly efficient speakers this unfortunately made across the street have to hear the tones... [emoji51]

I can say at first glance (well, first listen, technically speaking) comparing ARC adjustments on vs off I am impressed.
The low end of the dialogue and vocal body is really evened out across the entire front soundstage.
I let it do full spectrum (up to 5K adjustments). I know some expert tips discuss setting the Max EQ to 300hz - which might be quite valid.
However I find my FR very flat above 600hz onward so the minor adjustments probably aren't hurting the phase or wave form too severely but I will compare this much more over the weekend.

Opening up that discussion - - are there any sneaky tweaks on ARC people recommend such as Max EQ?

[Snoopy8]

3 hours ago, Neilsy said:

Anyone know if the sweep tones can be volume adjusted?

No ability to adjust volume. Buy some flowers or chocs for neighbours. 

 

There are tweaks in the first post.

Geeks Guide to using ARC-2 (Secrets of Home Theatre)

Super Geek Guide to Tweaking ARC-2 (Secrets of Home Theatre)

 

Good to hear ARC finally working.  

[jomjom]

Hi guys! Proud owner of AVM 60 here.
I read somewhere in this thread you can store upto 4 different profiles of loaded settings from arc2.
Will that be on SAVE/LoAD SETTINGS
under = save user settings
Load user settings
Reset on the fly adjustments
Load factory default

Thanks in advance.

[Guest DarkNark]

Have you run ARC yet? 

 

If I remember correctly, when you run ARC you will have some tabs that you can rename and alter the settings as you require. I have a MRX510 so I only have two tabs and thus two profiles, but later generations allow four profiles. Once you finalise ARC and upload the settings the 2/4 profiles will be available to choose in the menu.

 

@Snoopy8

 

[Snoopy8]

1 hour ago, jomjom said:

Hi guys! Proud owner of AVM 60 here.
I read somewhere in this thread you can store upto 4 different profiles of loaded settings from arc2.
Will that be on SAVE/LoAD SETTINGS
under = save user settings
Load user settings
Reset on the fly adjustments
Load factory default

Congrats!  Those are settings for the AVM60 itself

41 minutes ago, DarkNark said:

Have you run ARC yet? 

 

If I remember correctly, when you run ARC you will have some tabs that you can rename and alter the settings as you require. 

Dave is spot on.  You need to run ARC on your computer. It guides you though steps.  Also, have a look at some of the info in the first post of this thread and post questions if stuck

https://www.stereo.net.au/forums/topic/231088-anthem-av-owners-thread/

 

[desray]

For those who own MRC 720/1120, I just discovered that HDMI Input 7 (or last Input with MHL feature) DOES NOT output HDR signal to your display (TV or Projector). For those who have multiple devices, pls do take note. There is no problem with your HDMI cable, your Anthem MRX AVR or your TV/Projector but rather the way HDMI Input with MHL did not accept HDR signal - however it has no problem displaying 4K content up to 60fps at Rec 709...just not HDR/BT2020 colorspace. So be mindful of that.

 

 

[Neilsy]

Bit jealous of the multiple profiles!! I'm on AVM 50 so ARC1 for me... [emoji51]
Congrats and enjoy. It's great gear.
If only they did a D2 Statement 4K!

Hi guys! Proud owner of AVM 60 here.
I read somewhere in this thread you can store upto 4 different profiles of loaded settings from arc2.
Will that be on SAVE/LoAD SETTINGS
under = save user settings
Load user settings
Reset on the fly adjustments
Load factory default

Thanks in advance.

[jomjom]

I have been only using 5.1 since last year and it already sound awesome.Every time I have guests and hears my system they always say it sounds better than the movie house.
Last week i added 2xparadigm surrounds and use the mobile arc to calibrate 7.1
It work alright with no hiccups.
Tested the sound and it sounds very good.
I haven’t watched a movie yet.
But I’m already looking forward when it comes.

[Mobe1969]

You didn't consider going 5.1.2 instead? Or the model you have doesn't do Atmos? Personally if I had to choose between the two, I'd take the overheads.

[jomjom]

You didn't consider going 5.1.2 instead? Or the model you have doesn't do Atmos? Personally if I had to choose between the two, I'd take the overheads.

I have the AVM 60.
And yes I am considering Atmos,and that will be my next project.
I’m thinking of using four KEF Q50a instead of bouncing it to the cieling I’m going to mount it directly into the cieling.

Or get it professionally done with Atmos speakers with dynabox.

I just don’t know yet which of the two option is the best .