Arcam AVR500 Faq

AVR500/600 & AV888 — FAQ
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Part 1 -Audio
Audio Source Setup
Correct setting of the audio source will speed up audio switching. Prior to v2.3, the default was auto, manually setting this to the input type used (HDMI,
digital, analogue) will greatly speed up audio switching time. NB This is configurable for each source within the input config menu. (Auto setting removed from
V2.3 onwards and must be set per source).
Set-top box setup when using HDMI
When using HDMI connection, set-top boxes should be connected using HDMI for video & optical/coaxial SPDIF for audio. The input video source should be
set to HDMI, the audio source digital. i.e Optical / SPDIF from the set top box.
Speakers assigned as Small during auto set-up
This is due to the in-room measured performance of the speaker i.e a speaker may be physically large but acoustically small in the listening room i.e -3dB
performance below 40Hz and the presence of a Subwoofer.
"Zip" noise
Intermittent very low level "zip" noise from all channels when digital data is not present although the input config menu is pointing the AVR at the Digital or
HDMI – this is not a failure or fault but the action of the DSP looking for valid input sampling frequency and a mechanism of the data error correction.
This can also be sometimes heard when switching inputs due to the ramp mute/unmute scheme used.
Room EQ guidance
When running EQ ensure that the microphone is placed at ear level at the listening position ideal equidistant from either left or right speaker and with the
Arcam badge facing forwards – avoid sitting the microphone on a pile of cushions as this may add artificial high frequency damping causing the AVR to boost
frequencies artificially.
Subwoofer distance is completely wrong when running Auto EQ
This will happen if the Subwoofer in the system has it's own EQ DSP causing an audio delay on the LFE channel – hence the sub distance is increased to take
this extra delay into account. You should keep the measured distance for best bass timing.
No subwoofer output
When playing back from a 2 channel source and applying any of the Dolby (ProLogic) or DTS (Neo:6) modes, these sources do not contain a discrete .1 LFE
channel so if all speakers are set to large within the speaker sizes menu no bass management is performed and no low frequency audio will be directed to the
Subwoofer, low frequency audio will however be redirected to the subwoofer from any channels assigned as small at the pre-determined crossover point within
the speaker sizes menu.
PS3 format switching noise
When a PS3 changes sampling frequencies or channel numbers, there can sometimes be a double "pop". To eliminate this, you should reduce the number of
options to:
Dolby Digital 5.1
DTS 5.1
Linear PCM 2 Ch 48kHz
Linear PCM 5.1 Ch 48kHz
Linear PCM 7.1 Ch 48kHz

Dolby Volume

The Dolby Volume leveler within the input configuration options is a global control and is used to set the desired volume level for the input. Any input that has
Dolby volume function set to on within the input config setup will match this desired gain setting.
Subwoofer Hum during input switching
This is a sign that the Subwoofer gain is set excessively high and the AVR's Subwoofer trim is set low – in effect this causes the subwoofer to amplifier any
residual switching noise on the LFE channel – try setting the Subwoofers own gain to around half and recalibrate aim for +/- 3dB of the trim menus centre
point.
Audio playback from BD players with the screen in standby
For most BD player / display combinations, when used with a 3D model AVR in bypass mode, audio cannot be played over HDMI due to the player failing to
establish a link with the display that is in standby. To solve this, connect either the SPDIF/optical output of the player to the AVR and use this input for audio-
only playback.
irDock/drDock configuration
From v2.26 (non 3D) and v3.06 (3D), the Dock input default is no longer limited to analogue as it was in previous versions. Direct video input is also possible.
If upgrading from earlier versions, please re-check your Dock input configuration.