Usb Playback - Harman Kardon AVR 645 Owner's Manual

When a digital source is first detected, the AVR 645
will display a message to indicate the type of bitstream
being received. It will remain in the Lower Display
Line $ for about 5 seconds before that portion of the
display returns to the normal surround mode indication.
For Dolby Digital and DTS sources, a numerical indica-
tion (such as 3/2/2.1) will appear, showing the
number of channels present in the data.
The first number in the display message indicates how
many discrete front-channel signals are present.
• A "3" tells you that separate front left, center and
front right signals are available. This will be displayed
for Dolby Digital 5.1, Dolby Digital EX and DTS 5.1
or DTS-EX programs.
• A "2" tells you that separate front left and right sig-
nals are available, but there is no discrete center
channel signal. This will be displayed for Dolby
Digital bitstreams that have stereo program material.
• A "1" tells you that there is only a mono channel
available in the Dolby Digital bitstream.
The middle number in the display message indicates
how many discrete surround channel signals are present.
• A "3" tells you that separate, discrete left surround,
center surround and right surround signals are pres-
ent. This is available only on discs with DTS-ES
digital audio.
• A "2" tells you that separate surround left and right
signals are available. This will be displayed for Dolby
Digital 5.1 and DTS 5.1 programs.
• A "1" tells you that there is only a single, surround-
encoded surround channel. This will appear for
Dolby Digital bitstreams that have matrix encoding.
• A "0" indicates that there is no surround channel
information. This will be displayed for two-channel
stereo programs.
The last number indicates whether there is a discrete
low-frequency effects (LFE) channel. This is the ".1" in
the common abbreviation of "5.1" sound and it is a
special channel that contains only bass frequencies.
• A ".1" tells you that an LFE channel is present. This
will be displayed for Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS 5.1
programs, as available.
• A "0" indicates that there is no LFE channel infor-
mation available. However, even when there is no
dedicated LFE channel, low-frequency sound will be
present at the subwoofer output when the speaker
configuration is set to show the presence of a
subwoofer.
• The information on the right side of the display will
tell you whether the digital audio data contains a
special flag signal that will automatically activate the
appropriate 6.1 or 7.1 mode. This will be shown as
EX-ON or EX-OFF for Dolby Digital bitstreams and
ES-ON or ES-OFF for DTS bitstreams.
When a 2.0 or 5.1 digital source is playing on a sys-
tem configured for 5.1 operation, you may use Dolby
Digital EX, DTS-ES, Logic 7/7.1 or Dolby Pro Logic IIx
to add rear channels for full 7.1 sound fields. Note,
however, that the availability of specific modes for
postprocessing is dependent on the format of the
incoming source material. While some combinations
(e.g., a Dolby Digital or DTS 5.1 source with Logic 7/
7.1 or Dolby Pro Logic IIx postprocessing) are allow-
able, others (e.g., a Dolby Digital 5.1 source with DTS
Neo:6) are not. If you wish to add surround back
channels to a 2.0 or 5.1 source, we recommend that
you experiment with the various options to see which
may be available and which are best suited to your
taste and listening environment.
It is always a good idea to check the readout for the
channel data to make certain that it matches the audio
logo information shown on the back of a DVD pack-
age. In some cases, you will see an indication for
"2/0/0" even when the disc contains a full 5.1, or
3/2/.1, signal. When this happens, check the audio
output settings for your DVD player or the audio menu
selections for the specific disc being played to make
certain that the player is sending the correct signal
to the AVR.
PCM Playback
PCM is the abbreviation for Pulse Code Modulation,
the digital signal format used for standard CD play-
back, and other non-Dolby Digital and non-DTS digital
sources such as MiniDisc. When a PCM signal is
detected, the Lower Display Line $ will briefly
show a message with the letters PCM, in addition to a
readout of the sampling frequency of the digital signal.
In most cases, this will be PCM 44 . 1kHz or
PCM 48kHz, though in the case of specially
mastered, high-resolution audio discs, you will see a
PCM 96kHz indication. Note that the sampling
rate displayed is that of the incoming digital signal, and
not the upsampled rate that may be applied to PCM
sources when Dolby Pro Logic or Dolby Pro Logic II
processing is applied, as shown on page 26.
During PCM playback, you may select any surround
mode except Dolby Digital or DTS/DTS-ES mode.

USB Playback

The AVR 645 is among the very few A/V receivers
capable of direct connection to a computer for audio
playback. Once the AVR is connected, audio streams
and playback are possible through your AVR, with all
the power and performance of the high-current amplifi-
OPERATION
er, your own speakers, and the enhanced multichannel
playback made possible through the use of Logic 7,
Dolby Pro Logic II/IIx or DTS Neo:6 processing.
The AVR 645's USB connectivity may be used with
PC-compatible computers running either Microsoft
Windows ® 2000 with Service Pack 4 or higher
installed, or Windows XP or Windows XP Media Center
Edition with Service Pack 1 or higher installed.
Connect one of the available USB ports on your com-
puter or a USB hub to the USB Port
using a cable with a standard USB plug on one side
and a USB "Mini B" plug on the other side. You may
use an optional cable available at most electronics and
computer stores for this purpose.
In addition, you will need to have a media player
installed on the computer. The AVR 645 has been
tested for operation with Windows Media
Version 8.0 and above, but it is also compatible with
many other popular players such as iTunes
and RealPlayer. ® In most cases, it is best to always
make certain that you have the latest version of the
player installed to ensure the best compatibility.
When the connection between a computer and the
AVR is made for the first time, or if the USB connection
is plugged into a different USB port on a computer or
hub that has not been previously connected to the
AVR, you will see a series of pop-up messages from
Windows to indicate that the computer is configuring
itself for the new device. Since the AVR provides a
number of different functions, you may see the "Found
New Hardware" message up to four times, one each
for "A/V Receiver," "Compatible Device," "Audio
Receiver" and "Human Interface Device." When all
messages have appeared and then cleared the
screen, you are almost ready to begin.
Before selecting the USB input, first make certain
that one of the media players listed above has been
opened on the computer. Then you may select the
USB input in any of the following ways:
• To select USB as a source from the front panel,
press the Input Source Selector Button 7 until
USB appears as the input name in the Upper Display
Line # and in the semi-OSD display, if available.
The USB Input Source Indicator ! will also
light up on the front panel.
• To select USB as the input using the main remote
press the Input Selector with DMP printed on
the button twice.
• To select USB as the input using the ZR 10 remote,
press the USB Input Selector ∂.
When the USB input is selected and the AVR 645 is
connected to a compatible computer with one of the
media players mentioned above open, you may then
use either remote's transport controls to start and stop
OPERATION OPERATION
®
on the AVR
Player
®
, Winamp
® ®
39 39