Using The Rsp-980; Overall Design; Dsp Modes - Rotel RSP-980 Owner's Manual

SURROUND SOUND PROCESSOR RSP-980
to the next. This will probably mean that you'll need to cycle
through each speaker a few more times but the results will be
close to those obtained with a meter.
Step 9: When you're satisfied with the calibration, BAL CHK
again. The On-Screen Display will show the Operating screen.
Step 10: Select the proper surround channel delay time by press¬
ing the remote controller's DELAY TIME < or > buttons to see all
the following choices: 15,18,22,25, or 30 ms (milliseconds).
If you are equidistant from both front and surround speakers, or
if you are closer to the front speakers than to the surround
speakers, choose the 15 millisecond delay time.
If you are closer to the surround speakers than you are to the
Front speakers, add 1 ms of delay time for every foot your listen¬
ing position is closer to the surrounds and choose the delay pre¬
set closest to that ideal measurement. For example, if you are
seated 15 feet away from your front speakers but only 5 feet from
your surround speakers, a delay setting of 22 or 25 ms would be
Ideal.
Delay Time helps establish the Left. Center, and Right Front
speakers as the primary sound sources by using a psychoacous¬
tic phenomenon called the "precedence effect" In general
terms, this simply says that, if you hear identical sounds from
two sources, one closer to you than the other, you will think the
sound came only from the closer source.
Pro Logic decoding involves some unavoidable leakage from
front to surround channels. Time delay helps mask the resulting
confusion to focus our attention on the front of the room where
most aural action takes place.
Using the RSP-980
When you first plug the RSP-980 into a live AC wall outlet, it auto¬
matically selects the following operational settings (called "ini¬
tial defaults'):
Input: LD (for both Listening and Recording)
Surround Mode: Dolby Pro Logic/THX Cinema
Zone 2 output: Tuner
During normal use, the RSP-980 will recall your previous selec¬
tions whenever you turn the RSP-980 on again.
Note: Make sure you don't have the RSP-980 plugged into a
switched AC outlet. If you do, and accidentally turn the outlet off
when the RSP-980 is plugged into it the unit will revert to the ini¬
tial defaults. Also, you may experience some unexpected distur¬
bances if you inadvertently interrupt the RSP-980's source of AC
power while it is operating.
Overall Design
You'll understand the RSP-980 much better if you think of it as a
switcher/controller for three separate activities conveniently
housed in one chassis: Listening, Recording, and Zone 2.
The front panel LISTENING selectors choose the audio or video
source you want to hear or view through your main system. They
also route that source to the rear panel Tape Monitor outputs for
recording. The Listening Input LEDs will confirm your choice.
You can also choose a LISTENING source via the remote control¬
ler— simply press any of the six grey pushbuttons immediately
belowthe "Power" and "Mute" pushbuttons (RR-93D only.)
The front panel RECORDING selectors choose an audio or video
input to appear at the VIDEO 1, VIDEO 2 or VIDEO 3 outputs for
recording. Select your choice with the six smaller front panel RE¬
CORDING pushbuttons immediately below the row of LISTENING
buttons. You can not select a RECORDING choice from the re¬
mote controller. LEDs will confirm your selection.
Note: As we've already mentioned, the 5.1 CH INPUT pushbutton
ffrontpanel, lower right) is a direct mechanical selector that
overrides every other input choice AS FAR
AS
MAIN OUTPUTS
ARE CONCERNED. You can not route the 5.1 CH INPUT to any re¬
cording output, either Tape Monitor or any of the VIDEO outputs.
ZONE 2: You can route any source (even a different one than you
have chosen for either LISTEN or RECORD) to the rear panel
ZONE 2 outputs for use in another room. You can also adjust vol¬
ume for ZONE 2 playback. However, you can change ZONE 2 set¬
tings ONLY with remote command codes appearing at the
RSP-9B0's rear panel REMOTE IN jack.
There are no front panel controls for ZONE 2 source selection or
volume adjustment. Likewise, a remote control signal received
through the front panel infrared sensor will have no effect. The
On-Screen Display will NOT show any ZONE 2 functions.
DSP Modes
The RSP-980 includes several DSP (Digital Signal Processing)
modes designed to enhance your enjoyment of any source, audio
or audio/video.
in contrast to some competitive designs, however, we have
avoided creating large amounts of false reverberation in the
RSP-980's four MUSIC modes. Instead, we've concentrated on
extracting as much realistic and natural ambient information as
possible. You will notice that our approach drastically reduces
"digital Ping Pong," an artificial effect that often obscures sonic
detail. Rather, we think the source itself —the result of the aes¬
thetic judgement of the producer and engineers — should be the
controlling factor. Indeed, there are many compelling, scientifi¬
cally valid reasons NOT to impose unnatural artifacts on any
source.