7.1 audio in 5.1 setup?

[reyz]

With a 7.1 receiver like the Yammy V663, is it possible to create a 7.1 audio experience with a 5.1 speaker setup (aka the creation of 2 invisible channels behind you)??

Have read somewhere before that this is possible but want to seek some solid clarification... as it will determine whether or not i dip for 2 more rear surr. speakers.

Also, is it advisable to bi-amp your front speakers if your receiver can already comfortably power them on a single amp per channel?

my yammy rx-v663 min rms output is 95w/ch and max power is 135w/ch
but dynamic power on 6 ohms can do 165W according to the specs.

for ease of reference, my front speakers type are a 3-way bass reflex design
and specs:

200W dynamic power (max)
Input Power (Maximum/Normal) : 200 W / 50 W
Sensitivity (dB/2.83V,1m) : 88
Freq response : 40Hz-50kHz
Tweeter : 2.8cm aluminium dome
Woofers : Dual 12.5cm Advanced PMD Cone
Impedance : 6 ohms

Am currently starting up a HT in the living room and have the display and receiver down-pat. The 5.1 speaker setup i'm looking to get and am one step away from doing so is in my sig as well

[Johnny Vinyl]

Welcome reyz!

Simulating a 7.1 experience from a 5.1 setup is hogwash in my opinion, but then I'm not a HT expert.

You could bi-amp your fronts (using the rear-surrounds on your receiver), but I think it's a waste of time, effort and money. Even in mid-fi to high-fi systems, bi-amping isn't always going to provide you with enough of an aural difference to make it all worth it.

John

[crazyBLUE]

Originally Posted by John72953

Welcome reyz!

Simulating a 7.1 experience from a 5.1 setup is hogwash in my opinion, but then I'm not a HT expert.

You could bi-amp your fronts (using the rear-surrounds on your receiver), but I think it's a waste of time, effort and money. Even in mid-fi to high-fi systems, bi-amping isn't always going to provide you with enough of an aural difference to make it all worth it.

John

+ 1 I agree with John on both points !!

[zicmubleu]

Originally Posted by reyz

With a 7.1 receiver like the Yammy V663, is it possible to create a 7.1 audio experience with a 5.1 speaker setup (aka the creation of 2 invisible channels behind you)??

Have read somewhere before that this is possible but want to seek some solid clarification... as it will determine whether or not i dip for 2 more rear surr. speakers.

You may be thinking of the bi-polar and di-polar speaker arrangements that can give you sound from the side as well as from behind based on design and speaker placement. See the last sticky in this speaker section. It still wouldn't give you the actual 7.1 back channels unless your system somehow down mixes the signals. And if you already have your 5.1 speakers and they aren't bi/di-polar this would seem a moot point. Buy the additional speakers and give yourself the full 7.1 treatment - unless there is a space consideration more than a new speaker cost issue.

[reyz]

thanks a bunch guys!

well i certainly do agree that it will never be possible to create a full 7.1 experience with a 5.1 speaker setup, I recently checked the Pioneer VSX-919AH receiver specs ( http://www.pioneer.eu/eur/products/4...H-K/specs.html ) and it says under the 'Surround Modes' drop-down of the 'Surround Sound Formats' drop-down (abit confusing, i know) that it has this capability:

• Virtual surround back: Surround sound becomes even more impressive. You can now experience 6.1 surround sound with a 5.1 speaker set-up. Just switch to Virtual Sourround Back mode, and the left and right rear satellite speakers will create a phantom sound source behind you - it sounds as if there are actually speakers behind you.

well it certainly wont be the real deal, i'm wondering whether how close to an actual 6.1 sound experience you will get. plus this would certainly be a tipping point in getting the vsx over the rx-v663 as i think the latter doesn't have this functionality.

you can see more of this rx-v663 vs vsx-919ah discussion in this other thread ->

https://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread.php?t=104557

ultimately i would certainly be looking to upgrade to a 7.1 speaker setup in the future though! but as of now, the recession's burning a hole in the pocketses

[lamont360]

i have the pioneer 1019 receiver and it has fooled me a few times as to where sounds were coming from. Right now I only have 5 speakers hooked up, but while watching A Bug's Life there is a specific moment in the film when Flick knocks over the offering food. You hear the seeds drop into the water and you hear one specific seed fall directly behind you. I am not sure if this is due to the "virtual surround mode" which to my knowledge I do not have turned on or if it is simply a standard ability for speakers to throw sounds like a ventriloquist throws his own voice.