help with onkyo 605 and sources

[mercury187]

Ok, so I got my onkyo 605 yesterday and borrowed some speakers from a relative to have all 5 speakers for a ghetto surround sound. I was unable to calibrate it because it was pretty late when i got everything hooked up and the auto calibration made these wierd whipping sounds so i had to immediately turn it off so the neighbors didnt think we were whipping each other or something.
Anyways, I went to configured my xbox 360 and I wasnt sure which audio option to pick: see attached picture PIC-0004-sm.jpg. After I select one of those options, which one do i pick on the reciever for the listening mode? I looked on the back of a few xbox 360 game boxes and they say in-game dolby digital?

I also am sort of clueless for which listening mode to select when watching comcast HD tv, attached is a picture of what it says for one of the HD channels (PIC-0001-sm.jpg), it looks like Dolby 5.1? I ran a hdmi cable from the cable box to the onkyo 605 and then an hdmi cable from that to the tv and last night I was flipping through all the listening modes and i noticed there was 2 different dolby ones: I think one was d digital and then the other one was CBL Dolby D EX.
When I turned on the TV and receiver this morning, it was on a channel that was standard definition and the receiver said something like PLIIx 2 or something, then I switched it to discovery hd theater and the receiver display said CBL Dolby D EX so does it just switch on its own?

Is there anything else I need to know about this receiver? I was thumbing through the instruction book and got to the analog and digital source comparison pages an there was all these checkmarks all over the place and it was talking about pcm and had hz numbers and stuff but none of it made any sense to me.

-One confused newb

Also, some of the things I'm going to playback on my 360 have the following audio properties:
These are 3 different source's audio properties:
-440kbs 5.1 WMA
-DS 5.1 440kbs 48Khz 24bit
-640kbs 5.1 WMA @ 48khz

Link to 605 manual: http://63.148.251.135/redirect_servi...05_En_web_.pdf

Does it only auto switch the listening mode if it goes through hdmi?

Can I also use a car subwoofer if i dont have a regular home theater subwoofer? I got a JL Audio 13w7 in my car...

[un4gvn94538]

dont know about using a car sub
i have the 705 and i would recommend using the auto calibration. those wierd chirps it makes is normal. just let it do its thing and follow the on screen instructions. it made a big difference to me. im using infinity primus speaker set up and it sounds a lot better since i used the auto calibration.
for my ps3 i set the console to out-put pcm and do not use any other settings on the reciever except the surround mode. when i watch a hd movie the reciever displays multi channel. thats the best sound you will get out of it for hd movies as long as the audessey logo is also showing wich means that its using the auto calibration settings for the speakers.
dont remember the 360, but the ps3 cannot send the true hd sound in bitstream form meaning the reciever will decode it and will display tru hd. the ps3 does the decoding when set to pcm so the reciever will display multi channel.
just make sure you read the section in the manual where it says how to set the inputs and outputs on the reciever, otherwise nothing will work right.
i hope this helps

[gearyt]

there are complete instructions elsewhere in this section
they are very well written, I will go looking and post if I can find
search 605,705,805, and 905

[crackinhedz]

the Onkyo Receiver is 8ohm resistance while the JL Sub is 2.4 ohm

I would say do not use it.

[jd213]

It can be set for 4ohms (at least mine can, but it's a Japanese model which has some differences from the US one such as having 7.1 pre-outs), but I still wouldn't use it.

[crackinhedz]

Originally Posted by jd213

It can be set for 4ohms (at least mine can, but it's a Japanese model which has some differences from the US one such as having 7.1 pre-outs), but I still wouldn't use it.

North American model does not allow it.

• North American models: Only connect speakers
with an impedance of 6 ohms or higher. If you use
speakers with a lower impedance, and use the amplifier
at high volume levels for a long period of time, the
built-in protection circuit may be activated. (pg.20)

[nyyanks]

I just got my Onkyo 605 today and had to go to work when I got off of school but finally got to experiment with the settings of my receiver. I think I know what the problem is when you calibrate it. Its normal to make those sound but you said you only have five speakers. Does it say retry after you try to calibrate it. I only had five speakers(no right and left speakers) connected and it would tell me to try again. I connected all seven speakers and it worked.

[mikenike]

Originally Posted by nyyanks

I just got my Onkyo 605 today and had to go to work when I got off of school but finally got to experiment with the settings of my receiver. I think I know what the problem is when you calibrate it. Its normal to make those sound but you said you only have five speakers. Does it say retry after you try to calibrate it. I only had five speakers(no right and left speakers) connected and it would tell me to try again. I connected all seven speakers and it worked.

Actually, you can work with 5 speakers, minus the subwoofer. That's how I'm rockin' it. The speaker set I have is from a home theater setup (Kenwood), and the sub is passive (and I'm not connecting one until I can find a powered one). What you have to do is connect one for center, front left and right, and surround left and right (not the surround backs, also labeled as bi-amping fronts on the back of the receiver). After calibration, the settings will be calibrated fine. Initially, I had the surround connected to surround backs, and it kept telling me to retry, so I modified it a bit, and it works now. The difference (even using the cheap Kenwood speakers) is huge!

[Kayne314]

Originally Posted by mercury187

When I turned on the TV and receiver this morning, it was on a channel that was standard definition and the receiver said something like PLIIx 2 or something, then I switched it to discovery hd theater and the receiver display said CBL Dolby D EX so does it just switch on its own?

Yes, The receiver can switch to an optimal listening mode automatically, based on the channel's audio output. Some channels will only broadcast stereo sound, and the receiver will choose something like the ProLogic mode(PLIIx 2) to simulate a surround sound through the other speakers. Other channels broadcast an actual dolby surround, hence the switch to Dolby D Ex.

Customize your listening modes for each type of audio reception, and you'll always have the type of audio you prefer without having to manually switch it yourself. The Receiver will detect the audio change, and switch automatically.

I'm getting spoiled with my SR705. These are great Receivers.