Q&A # 230 - May 8, 2001

Staff

Q I am shopping for a surround sound system. How significant is the wattage rating that appears in system specs? Is a 100 watt per channel "better" than an 80 watt per channel system?

A There are many variables other than just the number of watts alone that determine rating and performance. Many mass market receivers these days are rated at 130 watts per channel into five channels. The price for these receivers might be $2,000 or less. Yet, you can spend $20,000 on a pair of power amplifier monoblocks rated at 100 watts per channel. The biggest difference is in the power supply. Mass market receivers might very well deliver 130 watts per channel, for a couple of microseconds. The music would have plenty of higher ordered harmonic distortion due to negative feedback in the amplifier. The $20,000 amplifiers on the other hand, would put out that 100 watts for several seconds, and with very low amounts of higher ordered harmonics. Also, the mass market receiver might rate their 130 watts at 1 kHz rather than 20 Hz - 20 kHz in one or more of those five channels. It might rate the 130 watts with only two of the channels operating at the same time. So, the answer to your question is, if all other factors between the two amplifiers are the same, then yes, 100 watts is better than 80. Other than that, buyer beware. Specs are not everything.

Q I have a video/data projector that is mounted on the ceiling approximately 50-75 ft away from the rest of my equipment. I currently have a computer (VGA) connector and composite audio/video cables running from the  projector. Since the projector is also used for watching DVDs, I was considering adding an S-Video cable to increase quality. However, I have heard that S-Video degrades in quality after 15 ft. Would an S-Video cable make  a difference over that long of a run? If so what kind of cable should I buy, and do I need any additional amplifiers or other equipment?

A It sounds like you are using a PC with your projector, so have you thought about using your PC as your DVD player?

Since your projector is data grade, you should be running at least at 480p. If you do not want to use your PC as your DVD player, you should consider either a progressive DVD player or an external de-interlacer such as the iScan Pro.

If you want to stick with S-Video, then you should buy a good cable, and 50 - 75 feet will work fine. You should contact http://www.bettercables.com and get a quote on that length.

Q I bought a used Sony VPH-1020Q1 projector. I have successfully converged the CRTs,  but I am unhappy with the color intensity. The whites are white and the blacks are black, but the colors are washed out. I have not yet selected a  screen for my home theater, so I am currently projecting onto a white wall.  Will a screen significantly improve color intensity? I have seen LCD  projectors which produce very bright colors on any surface. Are there any  adjustments I could make to improve the color? I should note that the projector is connected to my DVD player via a composite video cable with a BNC converter.

A First question for you is did you set the color control on your projector yet? We recommend Avia for this purpose.

You will not see a huge change in color saturation with a screen. You are using the lowest form of video with the composite video connection. If your projector does not have an S-Video input, you might want to look for an alternative. Can your projector accept RGBHV and scan at 31.5 kHz? (Will it support an external de-interlacer?) If so, then you might want to add an iScan Pro to your system.

Q I was reading through past Q/A's and found one in which you recommended several links to check out for component video switching. These look like they would work great except for switching audio. These products are also very pricey ($600+). Have you guys seen anything on the market that would switch between two 1080i inputs and audio (XBox and satellite receiver will be the inputs) that is reasonably priced?

A Key Digital (http://www.keydigital.com) is introducing a new two-channel component video switcher for $299. It will also switch analog and PCM at the same time. It has 120 MHz video bandwidth, so it can handle HDTV.

Q I am curious to the status of the Denon 2800 review. It's been quite awhile since a post saying the review would be done shortly.

I understand there is a black and blue dot on the box. Blue is for Canada???

Is there any information from Denon regarding the Chroma upsampling error?

Please hurry. My Toshiba 4109 is going out on me. Can't watch DTS on "The Mummy" DVD. It locks up.

Thanks for a thorough job. Ever think about creating a paper edition for sale?

A We have received a few software updates from Denon since we first got the DVD-2800. These have fixed several issues. We have decided to include the DVD-2800 in our 2nd annual DVD Benchmark. This will take place in early June, and we hope to start publishing the results in early July.

We are not sure about the color scheme for the dots on the DVD players. We have heard of both green and black dots on the US versions.

The DVD-2800 does have the chroma bug. Denon did get the artifact reduced, but it cannot be completely eliminated without changing the MPEG decoder. This would take any manufacture at least a year to complete. We hope this is fixed in future models.

Q I just bought a Denon AVR4800 Receiver. I have no speakers at all. What home theater speakers would you recommend given a budget of $1,500 to $2,000?

A A budget like that will get you a nice set of speakers, and there are lots and lots to choose from. Since you have a mass market receiver, get speakers with a nominal impedance of 8 Ohms (rather than 4 Ohms) and sensitivity of 90 dB/w/m or higher (e.g., 92 dB/w/m). Don't forget the subwoofer. It is critical for home theater, especially if you like action movies.

Q I am looking at replacing my aging CD player. Do current DVD players do a good job for playing music CDs, or am I best to get a good quality standalone CD player? I listen to music 90% of the time, but would like a DVD player as well.

A This really depends on your budget. I still prefer a stand alone CD player for CDs and a DVD player for DVDs, due to the laser difference between CDs and DVDs. Sony makes dual laser players, but that limits your choice of players. Plus, don't forget, we have SACD and DVD-A to contend with.

Q I just bought a Yamaha HTR-5250, and I'm pretty happy with it, but I have a question I hope you can help with. Well, the Dolby Digital sounds great, but what's the best way to listen to five speakers during movies on cable or football games coming from a source such as a VCR or TV? Both have normal RCA outputs, but isn't there a way to have the receiver do this in a "Simulated Surround" sort of way? Most of the DSPs are not coming out of the rear speakers at all (or very low). The "Disco" DSP made for audio uses all the speakers but fades the vocals too low and doesn't sound very good.

A The best way to do this is probably using just plain old vanilla Pro Logic mode. However, it will only work if the signal is in stereo, and won't work very well if the two channels of the stereo have phase problems, which cable and satellite channels sometimes seem to have. DSP modes often do not use all the speakers, but Pro Logic will, again, assuming the signal is stereo to begin with. Lastly, DSP modes can sound worse than ordinary stereo, and I don't particularly care for them when playing stereo CDs.

� Copyright 2001 Secrets of Home Theater & High Fidelity
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