Surround Mode Buttons (Remote Only); Delay Time Buttons (Remote Only) - Rotel RSP-980 Owner's Manual

Rsp-gso
Surround Mode Buttons (remote only) ^
Steps sequentually backwards or forwards through various sur¬
round sound operating modes:
2CH STEREO
MONO
MUSIC 1 (Music)
MUSIC 2 (Jazz)
MUSIC 3 (Concert)
MUSIC 4 (Stadium)
DOLBY PRO LOGIC
DOLBY PRO LOGIC/THX
Your current selection will be indicated by front panel LEOs and
by the On-Screen Display as you step through the available op¬
tions.
The different Surround Mode choices provide a variety of
"acoustic environments" to complement your source.
2 CH STEREO is a conventional 2-speaker stereo direct bypass
mode with no surround sound or other processing. The Front Left
and Right speakers are on, all other speakers (including
subwoofer) are off.
MONO sends all information to the center channel speaker if
you've selected 'Normal'' or 'Wide" center mode or to the main
Left and Right speakers if you've selected "Phantom" center
mode. All other speakers (including subwoofer) are off.
MUSIC 1, MUSIC 2, MUSIC 3. and MUSIC 4 simulate the natural
ambience of live concert venues and are suitable for use with
any music source. MUSIC 1 provides the characteristics of a
smaller room than does MUSIC 2 and so forth. MUSIC 3 is ideally
suited for source material originally recorded in larger spaces
such as concert halls. MUSIC 4 approximates the acoustic char¬
acteristics of an outdoor concert or sports event. Consequently,
it offers fewer "reflections' to better emulate the way you hear
where there are no walls or other close surfaces.
DOLBY PRO LOGIC is intended for any CD, videotape, or broad¬
cast containing a Dolby Surround encoded soundtrack.
THX adds circuits to process a Dolby Surround encoded signal
after Dolby Pro Logic decoding allocates channel-by-channel in¬
formation properly. THX circuitry includes:
•
Re-Equalization™to
filter the soundtrack's high frequency con¬
tent to correct for the differences between theatrical and home
playback, and prevent an excessively bright, strident sound
when certain movie soundtracks are played on a high-quality
home theater system.
•
Timbre Matching^Xo
smooth the transitions between front and
surround speakers by implementing a complex equalization
curve on the surround signal. This special EQ compensates for
the fact that the very shape of our ears contours sounds coming
from behind and above us in a different way than sounds coming
from in front of us. THX's Timbre Matching circuit makes sure
that front-surround transitions (called "pans") are glitch-free.
•
Decorrelation^Xo
enhance the apparent spaciousness of Dolby
Pro Logic's mono surround channel signal by splitting the sur¬
round output of a Dolby Pro Logic decoder and then slightly shift¬
ing pitch and phase relationships between each leg of that
signal. The circuit helps enhance the diffuse nature of the sur¬
round soundfield and widen the listening area.
»
THX's Bass
Crossover removes low frequency information from
the signals sent to the front speakers and re-routes it to a dedi¬
cated subwoofer. In addition to more accurate bass response,
this circuit enhances the dynamic performance of the main front
speakers by freeing them from the demands of bass reproduc¬
tion. The improvements benefit the entire midrange — dialog in¬
telligibility in particular.
Delay Time buttons (remote only) ^
The digital signal processing in the RSP-980 delays the signal
sent to the rear surround speakers as a means of simulating a
larger physical space (such as a movie theater or concert hall)
and to ensure that sounds from the front speakers reach your
ear first. The Delay Time buttons (labelled DEL TIME) steps se¬
quentially through various delay timed settings available for your
selected Surround Mode.
You will get visual confirmation of your delay time settting on the
On-Screen Display as you adjust the setting.
DELAY TIME possibilities vary as you select different Surround
Modes and setting a different delay time for one surround mode
has no effect on the others. This assures that your system will al¬
ways provide convincing reproduction from mode to mode while
still giving you latitude to meet particular conditions.
There are no hard and fast rules for setting proper delay time.
Many listeners will be satisfied with the default settings. Others
will want to experiment. In the end, it is a matter of personal
taste.
In general, longer delay time settings will tend to create the illu¬
sion of a larger accoustic space, although if overdone, the effect
can be exaggerated and unnatural.Longer delay settings may
typically be more'spectacular'. Shorter delay times may be more
"natural'.
Delay times also may need to be adjusted depending on the rela¬
tive distance from the listening position to the front and rear
speakers. As a generaly rule, your attention should never be
drawn the surround speakers as a primary sound source, par¬
ticularly when listening to music. If you are closer to the rear
speakers, increasing the delay time may prevent this problem.
Seethe Calibration section of this manual for specific instruc¬
tions on setting the delay time for Dolby Surround mode.