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\u00a0 Want to set up a home theater surround sound system?\u00a0 It is much more difficult to set up a surround sound system today than it was a few years ago.\u00a0 There is HDMI, assignable inputs, new surround sound formats… and even when you have a system that seems to work and make sound, chances are it is not performing as well as it should.\u00a0 Receiver and Blu-ray player manuals are hard to understand and are often written without the other components in mind.\u00a0 Whatever to do?This home theater surround system setup guide makes it so simple ANYONE can do it. \u00a0 Each step is explained clearly from connecting the speakers to using the receiver’s and Blu-ray player’s on-screen menus.\u00a0 Follow it step-by-step and great results will be yours!Equipment used for this tutorial:<\/strong><\/p>\n Comments about the equipment and why I chose it are at the end of this setup guide.Connection cables and wires<\/strong><\/p>\n Don’t forget… do NOT buy expensive HDMI cables!\u00a0 For more information see my page Buy HDMI and A\/V Cables for under $5.00<\/a>.Tools you will need<\/strong><\/p>\n A word about receiver\u00a0automatic setup\u00a0features<\/strong><\/p>\n Most surround sound receivers have an automatic calibration feature that\u00a0uses a microphone to automatically set speaker levels and distance and\u00a0with some systems, adjust the sound to match your room acoustics.\u00a0 In most cases these systems do not work very well and you get better results doing the adjustments by hand.\u00a0 (Pioneer’s MCACC is a notable exception.)\u00a0 Automatic calibration is completely incompatible with surroundbars because of the speaker configuration so it will not be discussed at all here.<\/p>\n PART ONE: Connecting the Surroundbar to the Receiver<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n The Mythos SSA-50 has speaker connections for five channels. <\/strong><\/p>\n 1.\u00a0 <\/strong>Cut the wire into five 10-foot lengths.Comments: A 10-foot length may seem like a bit more than necessary because the surround bar will be close to the TV and receiver, it is best to have extra to accommodate winding it through the cabinet to the speaker, as well as making it easy to connect when the receiver is out of the cabinet.\u00a0 Better too much length than not enough!<\/p>\n Using a wire stripper to remove insulation <\/strong><\/p>\n 2.\u00a0 <\/strong>Strip the insulation off of both ends of the wire.\u00a0 Twist the bare wire so it is smooth and firm.Comments:\u00a0 You can do this by cutting the plastic insulation with scissors, but an inexpensive wire stripper will make the task much easier.<\/p>\n Connected surround right terminal<\/strong><\/p>\n 3.\u00a0 <\/strong>Connect the bare wire to a speaker terminal, making sure polarity is correct.Comments: The wire is marked with either a ridge, a stripe, or writing to show polarity.\u00a0 I use the marked end with the positive (red) terminal.\u00a0 Make sure you have a good connection and no bare is sticking out the other side of the terminal as this can cause a short.<\/p>\n 4.\u00a0 <\/strong>Take the other end of the wire and attach a piece of tape.\u00a0 Mark it with the channel connect.\u00a0 This is right surround, so it is marked RS.<\/p>\n \u00a0 Connected speaker…<\/strong><\/p>\n …with 5 labeled wires. <\/strong><\/p>\n 5.<\/strong> Repeat the process for the other five channels. With wiring complete, we will now set up the surroundbar stand.<\/p>\n \u00a0 Mythos SSA-50 bracket <\/strong><\/p>\n \u00a06.\u00a0 <\/strong>Attach the bracket to the back of the surroundbar, passing the wires through the space provided.<\/p>\n Adjustable foot for Mythos SSA-50 (included) <\/strong><\/p>\n 7. <\/strong>Attach the leveling feet.<\/p>\n Comments: If the surroundbar will be wall mounted, the feet will not be used.<\/p>\n Definitive Technology Mythos SSA-50 with grille removed<\/strong><\/p>\n 8.\u00a0 <\/strong>Place the surroundbar in front of the TV and pass the wires through the cabinet to where the receiver will be placed.\u00a0 The surroundbar is now ready to be connected to the receiver.<\/p>\n Back of Onkyo TX-SR806 receiver- speaker terminals are on the bottom <\/strong><\/p>\n Connecting the first speaker channel <\/strong><\/p>\n 9.\u00a0 <\/strong>Connect the speaker wires to the corresponding terminal on the receiver.\u00a0 The labels will make it easy to match each wire to the appropriate terminal.<\/p>\n Comments: Again, be careful you do not have bare wire sticking out, as this can cause a short.<\/p>\n \u00a0 All 5 speaker channels connected from receiver to surroundbar <\/strong><\/p>\n Nice job!\u00a0 Now that the surroundbar is connected to the receiver, we will now connect the subwoofer,\u00a0 Blu-ray player and cable\u00a0 box.<\/p>\n Part Two: Connecting the Subwoofer, Cable Box, and Blu-ray player<\/strong><\/p>\n Connecting the subwoofer cable to the receiver <\/strong><\/p>\n 1.\u00a0 <\/strong>Locate the subwoofer output on the receiver.\u00a0 Connect the subwoofer cable and pass it through the equipment cabinet to where you have placed the subwoofer.<\/p>\n Connecting the subwoofer cable to the subwoofer<\/strong><\/p>\n 2.<\/strong>\u00a0 Connect the\u00a0 subwoofer cable to the LFE IN connection on the subwoofer.<\/p>\n Comments:\u00a0 LFE stands for “Low Frequency Effects” and is the .1 in 5.1.\u00a0 5.1= 5 full channels and an LFE channel.<\/p>\n Cable box HDMI connection <\/strong><\/p>\n 3.<\/strong>\u00a0 Using an HDMI cable, connect the cable box to the corresponding HDMI input on the receiver.\u00a0 Note the “Assignable” label in the illustration above; it will be important later.<\/p>\n Comments: If it is a satellite box, it is the same thing as a cable box.\u00a0 “Cable box” is used here as it is the most common connection in the USA and Canada.<\/p>\n 4.<\/strong>\u00a0 Using an HDMI cable, connect the Blu-ray player to the corresponding HDMI input on the receiver.<\/p>\n Comments: Blu-ray players also play DVDs and CDs so it should be the only disc player you need.<\/p>\n The receiver’s HDMI output goes to the television <\/strong><\/p>\n 5.<\/strong>\u00a0 Connect an HDMI cable to the HDMI OUT connection on the receiver.<\/p>\n TV HDMI input <\/strong><\/p>\n 6.<\/strong> Connect the HDMI OUT from the receiver to the HDMI IN on the TV.<\/p>\n You’re done connecting the speakers and components- congratulations!<\/p>\n Why was everything connected this way?\u00a0 Why only one input on the TV, for two devices?<\/strong><\/p>\n Whenever you select an input on the receiver not only will it play the sound from the connected component, the proper video signal will automatically be routed to the TV.\u00a0 It’s much simpler than constantly switching TV inputs and receiver inputs.\u00a0 Just select your source on the receiver remote and enjoy.<\/p>\n Antenna connections on TX-SR806 <\/strong><\/p>\n 7.<\/strong>\u00a0 If you plan on listening to AM and FM radio, connect the included antennas to the antenna connections.<\/p>\n Comments: Notice how the\u00a0 75 ohm FM antenna connection looks just like a similar connection on a TV?\u00a0 An ordinary set of TV rabbit ears makes an AWESOME antenna for FM… try it and see!<\/p>\n PART TWO: Configuring the Receiver <\/strong><\/p>\n The remote’s setup button will call up the setup menus<\/strong><\/p>\n 1.\u00a0<\/strong> Turn on the TV and select the HDMI 1 input.\u00a0 Turn on the receiver and press the SETUP button on the remote control.<\/p>\n Main setup menu <\/strong><\/p>\n 2.<\/strong> \u00a0 The main setup menu will appear.\u00a0 This is where the system will be configured for your equipment and room.<\/p>\n Input Assign<\/strong><\/p>\n HDMI Assign <\/strong><\/p>\n 3.<\/strong>\u00a0 Select Input Assign, then HDMI Input.<\/p>\n Comments: This is where you will tell your receiver what component is connected to which input.<\/p>\n Menu as it first appears <\/strong><\/p>\n Menu with first three inputs configure correctly.\u00a0 I’m about to turn off the game input. <\/strong><\/p>\n Set Digital Audio Inputs to match HDMI inputs . <\/strong><\/p>\n 4.<\/strong>\u00a0 Configure the inputs to match the components as you connected them.\u00a0 Turn the others off.\u00a0 In this case, the Blu-ray player is connected to Input 1 and the cable box to Input 3.\u00a0 Press Return on the remote, select Digital Audio Input and set them to match the HDMI inputs as shown above.<\/p>\n Press Return on the remote to go back to the Main Menu <\/strong><\/p>\n 5.\u00a0 <\/strong>Press return to go back to the Main Menu.<\/p>\n 6.<\/strong>\u00a0 Select Speaker Setup from the Main Menu, then go to Speaker Settings.<\/p>\n Comments:\u00a0 This is where we will configure the receiver to work with the Mythos SSA surroundbar.\u00a0 If you have a conventional 5.1 channel system, the following steps still apply.<\/p>\n 7.\u00a0 <\/strong>In Speaker Settings, select normal and 6 ohms.\u00a0 Press return to go back to the Speaker Setup Menu.<\/p>\n Comments: The Onkyo TX-SR806 is one of the few modestly-priced receivers that will work with 4-ohm speakers.\u00a0 The available settings are 4 ohms and 6 ohms.\u00a0\u00a0 The 4-ohm setting is used only with 4-ohm speakers.\u00a0 If you are using 6-ohm speakers like Ohm Walsh speakers or 8-ohm speakers like the Mythos SSA-50, select 6 ohms.<\/p>\n Speaker Configuration Menu as it first appears <\/strong><\/p>\n Speaker Configuration Menu after proper setup <\/strong><\/p>\n 8<\/strong>.\u00a0 Select Speaker Configuration from the Speaker Setup Menu.\u00a0 Since you have a subwoofer, set Subwoofer to Yes.\u00a0 The Mythos SSA-50 specifies crossover frequencies of 120Hz for all channels, so set Front, Center, and Surround to 120Hz and LPF of LFE to 120 Hz. Surround Back should be set to none, which will gray out Surround Bck Ch setting since it will not be used.\u00a0 Double Bass is set to Off.<\/p>\n Comments: If you have a conventional system with five separate speakers and subwoofer, look at your speaker’s manual to determine the proper crossover frequencies for your speakers.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Speaker Distance Menu<\/strong><\/p>\n 9.\u00a0<\/strong> Press Return on the remote, the select the Speaker Distance Menu.\u00a0 In this case the sub and surroundbar were 15 feet from the listener, so all are set to 15 feet.<\/p>\n Comments: Surroundbars perform best when the listener is closer than this, but the system still sounded great once it was all set up.\u00a0 If you have five separate speakers, set the distance from each speaker to your seating area acccordingly.\u00a0 Unlike a surroundbar setup, distances will likely be different for each speaker.<\/p>\n Selection 4: Level Calibration<\/strong><\/p>\n Set Surround Channels to +7dB as a starting point, as recommended in the manual.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n 10. <\/strong>Set the subwoofer’s volume control to 50%.\u00a0 Press Return on the remote, the select the Level Calibration Menu.\u00a0 Test tones will play.\u00a0 Set the surround channels to + 7 dB to start, as recommended by Definitive Technology.\u00a0 All the others will remain the same.\u00a0 When you set the subwoofer, make adjustments by ear so it sounds about the same as the center channel’s volume.<\/p>\n Comments: If you are using a system with five separate speakers, adjust them by ear so they all have about the same volume.\u00a0 If you like more noticeable surround effects, turn the surround channels up a tad louder than the others. When I publish a seperate setup guide for a 5.1 channel system with five separate speakers and a subwoofer I will show you how to use an inexpensive sound pressure meter to set levels with scientific precision.<\/p>\n Select Source Setup…<\/strong><\/p>\n ..then Name Edit to rename the inputs, if desired. <\/strong><\/p>\n 11.\u00a0<\/strong> Press Return twice to remain to the Main Menu, then select Source Setup, then Name Edit.\u00a0 Here you can rename your inputs if desired.\u00a0 In the illustration above I am changing DVD to Blu-ray.\u00a0 It will now show as Blu-ray on the receiver’s display when it is selected.<\/p>\n Comments: This is especially useful if you have two different video games in use, as you can name one input PS3 and the other XBox 360, rather than remembering which one is connected to Input 1 and which to Input 2.<\/p>\n HDMI Hardware Setup <\/strong><\/p>\n 12.\u00a0<\/strong> Return to the Main Menu and select Hardware Setup. Set Monitor Out to HDMI and Output Resolution to Through.<\/p>\n Comments: Setting the Output Resolution to Through means the receiver will not apply any additional, unwanted processing\u00a0 to the video signals sent through the receiver.<\/p>\n 13.\u00a0 <\/strong>Press Return until the menus are all gone.\u00a0 Your receiver is now configured!<\/p>\n PART 3:<\/strong> Setting up the Blu-ray player<\/p>\n Sony BDP-S550 Setup Menu <\/strong><\/p>\n 1. <\/strong>Select the Blu-ray player on your receiver, turn on the Blu-ray player and press Setup on the remote.\u00a0 The Setup Menu will appear.<\/p>\n \u00a02.<\/strong>\u00a0 Go to Video Settings.\u00a0 The HDTV is a 1080p model that will accept a 24 fps (frames per second) input, so set Output Resolution to 1080p and 1080\/24p to Auto.\u00a0 Leave all other settings unchanged.<\/p>\n Comments:\u00a0 If\u00a0 your TV is 720p pr 1080i, set the output resolution accordingly.\u00a0 The 1080p\/24 setting will provide smoother motion with Blu-ray discs encoded at 1080p\/24 (that would be most all of them.)<\/p>\n \u00a0 <\/p>\n 3.<\/strong>\u00a0 Go to Audio Settings and set Audio (HDMI) to Auto, 48\/96kHz PCM to 96 kHz\/24 bit and BD Audio Setting to Mix.<\/p>\n Comments: The BDP-S550 decodes high-def audio internally (see my page Blu-ray Audio Explained<\/a>) so selecting mix decodes the audio internally and mixes menu and picture-in-picture sounds.\u00a0 If you want the receiver to decode the high-def audio, set the Audio Setting to Direct.\u00a0 Some feel this sounds better than internal decoding, but you lose the menu sounds and picture-in-picture audio.\u00a0 Few players decode high-def audio internally, so you will probably be using the Direct setting.\u00a0 This is also called “HD Audio” and Bitstream” on some players.<\/p>\n 4.\u00a0 Press return on the Blu-ray player remote to exit setup.\u00a0 The player is now set to work with your HDTV and receiver.<\/p>\n Ready to go! <\/strong><\/p>\n You’re all done!\u00a0 Can you believe it?\u00a0 Time to watch some movies!<\/p>\n Final Notes <\/strong><\/p>\n Final speaker level settings\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n About the equipment:<\/p>\n Definitive Technology Mythos SSA-42 and SSA-50 <\/strong><\/p>\n![\"Tell](\"https:\/\/www.smallgreentree.net\/buddybuttons\/default.gif\")
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