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System Configuration

When all audio, video and system con-
nections have been made, there are a few
configuration adjustments to be made. A
few minutes spent to correctly configure
and calibrate the unit will greatly add to
your listening experience. 

Speaker Selection and Placement
The placement of speakers in a multi
channel home theater system can have 
a noticeable impact on the quality of
sound reproduced. For Home THX opera-
tion it is recommended that the speakers
carry the certification mark of Lucasfilm
Ltd.’s Home THX Division. However, with
careful selection and placement, the
AVR80

will deliver accurate reproduc-

tion with any high quality speakers.

No matter which type or brand of speak-
ers are used, the same model or brand of
speaker should be used for the front left,
center and right speakers. This creates a
seamless front soundstage, and elimi-
nates the possibility of distracting sonic
disturbances that occur when a sound
moves across mis-matched front channel
speakers. 

For the most accurate and exciting
reproduction of bass frequencies a sepa-
rate subwoofer should be used. When
THX Certified front channel speakers are
used, a separate subwoofer is mandatory,
as THX front and center speakers are not
designed for extreme low frequencies.

The AVR80

may be used with either 

conventional (point source) surround
speakers or with THX Certified diffuse
surround speakers. No adjustment is
needed to select the type of surround
speaker used.

Speaker Placement
Depending on the type of center channel
speaker in use and your viewing device,
place the center speaker directly above or
below your TV or in the center behind a
perforated front projection screen.

Once the center channel speaker is
installed, position the left and right front
speakers so that they are as far away
from one another as the center channel
speaker is from the preferred listening
position. Ideally, the front channel
speakers should be placed so that their
tweeters are no more than 24” off center
form the tweeter in the center channel
speaker.

Depending on the specifics of your room
acoustics and the type of speakers in use,
you may find that imaging is improved
by moving the front left and right speak-
ers slightly forward of the center channel
speaker. If possible, adjust all front loud-

19

Right Front
Speaker

Left Front

Speaker

No more

than 24"

Center Front Speaker

Right Front
Speaker

Left Front

Speaker

Center Front

Speaker

Right
Front
Speaker

Left

Front

Speaker

No more

than 24"

Center Front

Speaker

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20

System Configuration

speakers so that they are aimed at ear
height when you are seated in the listen-
ing position.

Using these guidelines, you find that it
takes some experimentation to find the
correct location for the front speakers in
your particular installation. Don’t be
afraid to move things around until the
system sounds correct. Optimize your
speakers so that pans across the front of
the room sound smooth, and that sounds
from all speakers appear to arrive at the
listening position at the same time with-
out delay from the center speaker as
opposed to the left and right speakers.

Note that some THX Certified center
channel speakers must be placed verti-
cally, while others may be placed hori-
zontally. Consult the instruction manual
accompanying your center speaker for
the correct mounting position.

Surround speakers should be placed on
the side walls of the room, at or slightly
behind the listening position. The center
of the speaker should face into the room
with the active speaker drivers pointing
towards the front and rear of the room.
The speakers should be located so that
the bottom of the cabinet is at least two
feet higher than the listeners’ ears when
in the desired area. 

If side wall mounting is not practical, the
speakers may be placed on a rear wall,
behind the listening position. Again, they
should be located so that the bottom of
the cabinet is at least two feet higher
than the listeners’ ears. The speakers
should be no more than six feet behind
the rear of the seating area.

Subwoofers produce non-directional
sound, so they may be placed almost
anywhere in a room. Subwoofer place-
ment is highly influenced by room size

Center Front

Speaker

Optional Rear Wall Mounting

TV or Projection Screen

Right Front

Speaker

Left Front

Speaker

No more than 6 feet

when rear-mounted

speakers are used

At least 2 feet

At least 6 inches from ceiling 

and shape, and the type of subwoofer
used. Follow the instructions of the sub-
woofer’s manufacturer, or experiment
with the best location for a subwoofer in
your listening room.

Once the speakers have been placed in the
room and connected, the final step is to
enter the configuration information and
balance the speaker output levels. Before
proceeding further this is a good time to
review the installation section of the
manual to make certain that all connec-
tions are properly made.

System Settings
1. Plug the unit into an AC wall outlet
and press the 

button on either

the front panel 

(

or the remote 

b

.

Note that the ring surrounding the front
panel switch will turn green, and the
front panel display will illuminate. 

2. Turn on the TV connected to the
receiver. Select the appropriate video
input on the TV.

NOTE: Although the unit will switch “S”
video signals, the on screen menus con-
trol system is NOT visible on the S video
output. 

3. Press the 

s

button, and then press any of the naviga-
tional arrow buttons or the 

r

button on the remote to bring the

MAIN MENU

up on your video screen. 

(Figure #1)

4. Press the 

¤

button five times until 

the on screen 

>

cursor is pointing to

SET UP MENU

.

5. Press 

r

to move to the

next screen, 

SET UP MENU 1

. 

(Figure #2).

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System Configuration

6. The first item to be set is the Center
Channel Mode. The on screen 

>

cursor

will already point toward this option
when you select the menu. Press the 

‹

or 

›

buttons 

q

to choose one of

these center channel options by moving
the cursor:

LARGE

: Choose this option if you are

using either a THX Certified speaker
system with a subwoofer or large size
full range center channel speaker.

SMALL

: Choose this option if the cen-

ter speaker is small sized.

NONE

: Choose this option if you are

not using a center channel speaker.

7. When the center channel speaker
selection is complete, press the 

¤

button

q

to move to the next option. Note that

the on screen 

>

cursor will move down to

SUBWOOFER

.

8. Press the 

‹

or 

›

buttons 

q

to choose

one of these options:

ON

: Choose this option if a Subwoofer

is installed. Selecting this option
routes all low frequency information
(below 80Hz) to the subwoofer out-
put.

OFF

: Choose this option if no

Subwoofer is present.

9. Press 

¤

q

once and then 

r

to move to 

SET UP MENU 2

to contin-

ue the set-up procedure. (Press 

¤

twice

and then 

if you prefer to

return to the 

MAIN MENU

.)

10. At 

SET UP MENU 2

(Figure #3) you are

able to establish settings for multiroom
operation and lock the control settings.
You may skip these menus by pressing 

¤

q

until the on screen 

>

cursor is next

to 

RETURN TO MAIN MENU

and pressing

r

. 

11. If multiroom operation will be used,
the first option enables you to select the
method used for volume control. With
the 

>

cursor pointing to 

MULTI RM VOL

press the 

‹

or 

›

buttons to choose one of

these options:

VARIABLE

: Choose this option if the

volume control in the remote rooms
will be controlled by a remote control
and a sensor connected to the
AVR80

via the 

input on

the rear panel.

FIXED

: Choose this option if there is

no remote control link to the remote
rooms, or if you wish to have the vol-
ume in these rooms remain at a
fixed, constant level.

12. When you have made your selection,
press 

¤

q

to move to the next option,

SET LEVEL

. Press the 

‹

or 

›

buttons

q

to set the volume in accordance with

the option chosen in the previous menu:

a. If you selected 

VARIABLE

Volume Set, this option selects the
volume level at the remote rooms
when the system is first turned on in
those locations.

b. If you selected 

FIXED

Volume Set,

this is the level that will remain con-
stant in the remote rooms.

13. When you have made a volume selec-
tion, press 

¤

q

to move to the next

option. Note that the 

>

cursor should

point to 

SET UP LOCK

.

14. This option enables you to lock the
settings at the 

SET UP MENU 1

. This

makes it difficult for someone to inadver-
tently change the settings by causing the
word 

LOCK

to appear at the top of 

SET

UP MENU 1

. Before any further changes

21

I N P U T   S E L E C T O R

R E C   O U T   S E L E C T O R

S U R R O U N D   M O D E

T E S T   T O N E

M U L T I   R O O M   S E L : O F F

S E T   U P   M E N U

M E N U   O F F

M A I N   M E N U

C E N T E R   M O D E   > L A R G E

                          S M A L L

                          N O N E

S U B   W O O F E R       O N

                          O F F

G O   T O   S E T   U P   M E N U   2

R E T U R N   T O   M A I N   M E N U

S E T   U P   M E N U   1

M U L T I   R M   V O L

                  > V A R I A B L E

                    F I X E D

S E T   L E V E L   Ð X X d B

                         

S E T   U P   L O C K     L O C K

                          U N L O C K

R E T U R N   T O   M A I N   M E N U

S E T   U P   M E N U   2

O F F             > O N

T E S T   T O N E

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System Configuration

are made, the user must first go to 

SET

UP MENU 2

and unlock the system.

Press the 

‹

or 

›

buttons 

q

to choose

one of these options:

LOCK

: Choose this option to lock the

settings as described above.

UNLOCK

: Choose this option unlock

the settings and enable them to be
changed without going to this menu.

15. When you have made your choice,
press 

¤

q

and then 

r

to

return to the main menu. At this point
the output levels for all channels will be
set to a reference so that the sound level
is the same from each speaker. This com-
pensates for the differences between the
speakers used and the distance each
speaker is from your listening position. 

At this point you may wish to adjust the
rear channel delay time. See the Advanced
Features section later in this manual for
information on delay settings.

NOTE: Before setting the output levels it
is critical that the front panel bass 

˝

and treble controls 

ˆ

be set to their cen-

ter, or “12 o’clock” position. This ensures
accurate results.

16. At the

MAIN MENU

, press

¤

three

(3) times until the

>

cursor is next to

TEST TONE

. Press

to

continue.

17. When you press 

you will

immediately hear a test noise from the
front right speaker. The on screen display
will change to a graphic representation
of each of the speakers in your room,
with one speaker position blinking.
(Figure #4) That speaker is the one
whose level is being set. 

NOTE: This procedure will only operate if
the AVR80

is in the

THX

,

PRO LOGIC

,

MOVIE

or

DOLBY3 STEREO

Modes.

If the test tone cannot be selected, check
to see which surround mode is indicated
in the front panel display. If it is not one
of the four modes mentioned above, press
the

‹

button to cancel the test procedure.

Select one of the correct modes, and then
move the cursor to test tone to re-start the
procedure.

18. While seated in the primary listening
position, you should hear a test noise sig-
nal from the left front speaker. You may
leave the volume setting where it is, or
raise it to an appropriate level using the

⁄

or 

¤ 

w 

but-

tons on the remote. For a more precise
calibration, we recommend that you use
a sound pressure level meter, as described
at the end of this section.

19. Press 

v

on the remote.

Note that the sound should now come
from the Center Channel speaker, and
the icon for that speaker will flash on the
screen. Use the 

⁄

and

¤

buttons 

w

on the remote

to change the level of the test noise so
that it appears to be equal in level to the
Front Left speaker. 

20. Press the 

button again,

and repeat the procedure for the Front
Right, Surround Right, Surround Left
and Subwoofer channels. Each time, use
the 

⁄

and 

¤

but-

tons 

w

on the remote to change the

volume level so that all speakers match,
and the press 

v

to move to

the next channel. 

NOTE: This test also serves as an oppor-
tunity to verify that all speakers are 
properly connected. If the sound from a

speaker location does not match the
location shown on the video and front
panel displays, turn the AVR80

off and

check the speaker wiring to make certain
that the speaker is connected to the 
correct output terminals.

21. When all speakers appear to have an
equal volume, press the 

‹

button 

q

on

the remote to complete the procedure.

For a more accurate calibration of the
speaker output levels perform the test
outlined in steps 18 through 21 using a
sound pressure level (SPL) meter. For
calibration to THX standards, it is recom-
mended that the output for each channel
measure 75 dB (C-weighted, slow) on the
meter. An inexpensive SPL meter may be
purchased from Radio Shack stores as
the model 32-2050 or 32-2055.

NOTE: You may also check the output
levels at any time by pressing the 

button 

u

. When the on screen

display is also activated by pressing

s

, you will see

the speaker icons and level information
superimposed on your video screen.
Follow the instructions in steps 18
through 20 above to calibrate the system,
and press the 

button 

u

again to cancel the test.

CONGRATULATIONS! You have complet-
ed a basic set up and you are now ready
to enjoy the finest in home theater and
music listening enjoyment.

22

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