Treble.

What do you guys have your treble level set at. I until tonight had mine at max +6bd I decreased it to +2db after I heard some clipping in the tweeter of my center speaker during some shouting.
What should treble be set at?
Why do receivers even have that setting?

Quote:
Why do receivers even have that setting?

Because they should! I hate how most all receivers these days have the "we know what's best for you" settings! I prefer a decent graphic EQs, like in the old day of REAL stereo systems, where you could adjust the tone modeling to your taste. Now we get the "pick from our 12 settings until you find one you like" garbage. Not only should these systems have treble and bass they should also have a few mid-tones to adjust, but they simply do not these days. Instead the average consumer is treated like an audio idiot.

It's all a matter of how you like your tone when making adjustments. I find cranking the treble can increase the hiss tones you can get through ambient noise, but it can be compensated by making adjustments in the mid-range which many receivers these days don't offer, so then you only have the bass tones to compansate for it instead.

[Post edited by Tim Raynor on May 20, 2008]

And those standalone graphic equilizers with all the lights were fun to watch too!

Some people might say adjusting your treble/bass anywhere off zero is going to output audio in a way that wasn't intended by the producer/director/musicians whatever, but nothing could be further from the truth IMO. This is like saying a person should not even perform simple calibrations on their TV like brightness or contrast adjustment and leave everything at factory settings.

No one can tell you where these treble/bass settings should be. Obviously, if you start having trouble making out dialogue in movies, you've got one or both cranked too high - same with distortion or clipping at all dB levels you possibly listen to. No one has your room environment, even if they have the exact same equipment, and you have your own tastes. Experiment with a variety of sources and choose what you think sounds best to you IMO.

Note: Cranking the treble up in an attempt to compensate for higher frequencies clipped or missing in the source will not help. So avoid using 120Kbps MP3s for adjusting these settings.

If your Amplifier is set correctly when it left the factory, you should not have to adjust it. Onkyo, Denon, Yamaha are great examples of manufactures, that really shouldn't need tweaking. Remember that speaker matching is also important. Like you found out that hard way, pushing your treble up forced the tweater to do unwaranted movements. You are lucky you didn't blow, or crack the domes... By the way, if you decide to pump up the base a little, watch you don't overload you voice coils in the drivers, then they are useless. That wet fart sound is so 80's... Best advice leave it alone. Graphic EQ's can be good, but to adjust them from reference level (0) and make minor alterations, as you hear sound change. A good practive may be to use the same peice of music over and over again. Personally, not a good idea for home theatre, unless you have some really nasty sound acoustics in your home, which is highly unlikely (Coffered Ceiling, Cathedral Ceiling). Sound treatments is your best option there.

Long Story short I think I had mine at +2 for treble for the longest time. I set it by accident.... I always wondered why my center channel was off. It is now back to zero and sounds great.

I had the treble set high and just forgot. The clipping was occasional and minor but it was bugging me.
I have a Sony receiver and Sony bookshelfs for mains and surround and a Sony center channel all purchased separately (no HTIB). All my speakers are SPL to 72db when main volume is at level 55. So everything is matched. But with all the info about calibration out there you would think someone has something to say about treble.
Heres another question, is it better to adjust subwoofer level on the sub or on the receiver?
I adjust the sub.

[Post edited by Ironbull on May 20, 2008]

I was just about to start a thread kind of like this myself. I was wondering how others have their EQ's and Tones set up since I just got a new Onkyo receiver. At first I did the whole Audyssey thing. But that was all over the map. Some films seemed to bright with no bass. While others the bass overpowered the treble. So I turned it off and it was much better, neither was over powering the other. But I've been tinkering with manual EQ for the speakers trying to find a nice balance of bass and treble. But I have Bass at +2 and Treble at +6. But as I've said I've been tinkering with the numbers. I really didn't have this many options with my old receiver so trying to find a setting I'm pleased with. this one is taking a bit longer than the last one.

I always have the sub volume at half way on the sub itself. then on the receiver I turn it up to +8 on the speaker calibration. And the crossover I let the receiver take care of that also. but I'm not a professional in this area, I just set it to what sounds pleasing to me.

Ironbull, I asked a Yamaha tech about your subwoofer question a week ago and he told me to adjust the level on the sub itself to the halfway mark, then on your receiver adjust the LFE level to whatever sounds good to you.

Also he told me to set the crossover on the receiver to 80hz but on the sub to 120hz.

I called Paradigm on the same day and the tech there told me to setup all my speakers to Small, even my fronts which are Monitor 7's (with the matching center channel).

I hope this helps.

[Post edited by Falcon01 on May 20, 2008]

"The Trouble with Trebles"

Every loudspeaker sounds different, everyone's room configuration is different, and everyone's hearing is different. A receiver's treble and bass controls are there to compensate for these differences.

If the balance of your loudspeakers favors the high end, you may want to use the treble control to turn it down, as I do by about 2 db. If it favors the midrange and/or bass, you may want to turn up the treble control, etc. Only you can decide which setting is "right" for you. Be aware, however, that for every three decibels of volume, the amplifier must produce twice as much power. Turning up your treble by 6 db means you are essentially tripling the power you're feeding them, and unless your tweeters are really robust, at higher overall volume levels you could blow them out.

If your listening area is heavily carpeted and uses drapes and much padded furniture, the high end could be absorbed by the furnishings, requiring you turn up the treble. Conversely, if your listening area is sparsely furnished, perhaps with hardwood floors and hard, reverberant walls and ceiling, you might want to turn the treble down.

If you are over 30 and you've been around a lot of loud noise (or music) all your life, you may be experiencing hearing loss. It's quite common. And hearing loss most often affects your ability to perceive high frequencies. Thus, some people may want to turn up the treble to compensate for their own hearing deficiencies. A hearing test at a doctor's office helps, and/or a frequency-response test disc.

John

[Post edited by John J. Puccio on May 20, 2008]

"...he told me to set the crossover on the receiver to 80hz but on the sub to 120hz." --Falcon

Which only serves to prove that most technicians don't know any more about what they're talking about than the next guy. Indeed, the day before yesterday they probably WERE the next guy.

Set the sub's crossover to the same frequency you set the receiver. That way, the sub takes over at about the same point the main speakers leave off. What you don't want is for the main speakers and the sub to be duplicating the same frequencies, which will cause a muddying of the sound in that area. Nor do you want to leave a hole in the frequency response. Thus, setting the subwoofer and the main speakers to the same crossover point is usually the best idea.

However, be aware that crossover points are not absolute. An 80hz crosssover point does cut off everything below 80hz. It merely begins tapering off the response below that frequency. Likewise, a woofer's 120hz crossover does not cut off everything above that point but tapers it off. The tapering-off slope depends on the manufacturer, and they sometimes include charts of the slope.

John

Try adjusting the Subwoofer LFE to a higher setting. You will find with an output of 8 to 10 db You will only have to have you volume on your sub to about 4 maybe 5 depending on the amp in the sub, and you will get great sounding bass. You will be happy, that you didn't spend huge money on a sub woofer.