ROTEL Surround Sound Receiver RSX-1055 - Manual (Page 30)

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NOTE
: There are two types of bass in a sur-
round system. The first is normal bass recorded
in each of the main channels (front, center,
and surround). This bass is present in all re-
cordings and soundtracks. In addition, Dolby
Digital 5.1 and DTS 5.1 recordings have a
Low Frequency Effects (LFE) channel – the .1
channel. This bass channel, typically played
by a subwoofer, is used for effects such as
explosions or rumble. The use of the LFE chan-
nel will vary from soundtrack to soundtrack.
Recordings that are not encoded in Dolby Digi-
tal or DTS do not have the LFE channel.
The following configuration instructions refer to
LARGE and SMALL speakers, referring more
to their desired bass configuration than their
physical size. Specifically, use the LARGE set-
ting for speakers that you want to play deep
bass signals. Use the SMALL designation for
speakers that would benefit from having their
bass sent to more capable speakers. The bass
management system redirects bass information
away from all SMALL speakers and sends it to
the LARGE speakers and/or the SUBWOOFER.
It may be useful to think of LARGE as “full-range”
and SMALL as “high-pass filtered.”
Four typical examples of the many possible
system configurations illustrate the principles
behind bass management:
• A system with five LARGE speakers and a
subwoofer: This system requires no bass
redirection. All five speakers play the nor-
mal bass recorded in their respective chan-
nels. The subwoofer plays only the LFE
channel bass. This may not be the most ef-
ficient use of system resources. Depend-
ing on the soundtrack, there may be mini-
mal use of the LFE channel, so the subwoofer
would be underutilized. Meanwhile the
normal bass places higher demands on the
capabilities of the other speakers and the
amplifiers driving them.
• A system with LARGE front, center, and
surround speakers, but no subwoofer. The
normal bass from the front, center, and
surround channels is played in its respec-
tive speakers. With no subwoofer, the LFE
bass is redirected to all five LARGE speak-
ers. This places significant demands on these
speakers and their amplifiers, as they must
play their own normal bass plus the very
demanding LFE bass.
RSX-1055 Surround Sound Receiver
• A system with LARGE front speakers, SMALL
center and surround speakers, and a sub-
woofer. The normal bass from the SMALL
center and surround speakers is redirected
to the LARGE front speakers and the sub-
woofer. The LARGE front speakers play their
own normal bass plus the redirected bass
from the SMALL speakers. The subwoofer
plays the LFE bass plus some of the redi-
rected bass from the SMALL center and
surround channels. This might be an ap-
propriate configuration with a pair of very
capable front speakers driven by a large
separate power amplifier.
• A system with all SMALL speakers and a
subwoofer. The normal bass from all chan-
nels is redirected to the subwoofer, which
also plays the LFE bass. The subwoofer
handles ALL of the bass in the system, while
the other speakers benefit from the added
dynamic range and reduced strain of not
having to play low bass. This configura-
tion realizes the full benefits of bi-amping:
bass is played by the speaker most suited
to do so, the other speakers play louder
with less distortion, and the need for am-
plifier power is reduced. This is the most
popular home theater configuration and
should be strongly considered even if the
speakers are physically large and capable
of playing low bass. This configuration is
particularly advantageous when driving the
speakers with moderate power amplifiers.
NOTE
: As an alternative configuration with a
satellite/subwoofer package as the front
speakers, follow the speaker manufacturer’s
instructions, connecting the high-level inputs
of the powered subwoofer directly to the front
speaker outputs of the RSX-1055 and con-
necting the satellite speakers to the
subwoofer’s own crossover. In this arrange-
ment, the speakers would be classified as
LARGE and the subwoofer setting would be
OFF for all surround modes. No information
is lost during playback because the system
redirects bass information to the front LARGE
speakers. While this configuration ensures
proper satellite speaker operation by using
the speaker’s own crossovers, it has some
disadvantages in terms of system calibration.
The following speaker options are available:
FRONT SPEAKERS (small/large): Use the
LARGE setting to have the front speakers play
low bass (full-range). Use the SMALL setting
to redirect normal bass away from these speak-
ers to a subwoofer (high-pass filtered).
CENTER SPEAKER(S) (small/large/
none): Use the LARGE position (not available
with SMALL front speakers) to have the cen-
ter speaker play low bass (full-range). Use the
SMALL position if your center channel speaker
has more limited low frequency capability, or
if you prefer that the bass be sent to the sub-
woofer (high-pass filtered). Select the NONE
setting if your system does not have a center
channel speaker (the surround modes will
automatically divide all center channel infor-
mation equally between the two front speak-
ers, creating a phantom center channel).
SURROUND SPEAKERS (small/large/
none): Select the LARGE setting (not avail-
able with SMALL front speakers) to have the
surround speakers play low bass (full-range).
If your rear speakers have limited bass capa-
bility or if you would prefer that the bass go
to a subwoofer, use the SMALL setting (high-
pass filtered). If your system has no rear sur-
round speakers, select the NONE setting (sur-
round channels are added to the front speak-
ers so none of the recording is lost).
CENTER BACK SPEAKER(S) (small/
large/none): Some systems have one or two
additional center back surround speakers for
use with 6.1 channel surround signals or 7CH
stereo processing. With the RSX-1055, such
a configuration is available using the preamp
outputs and external amplifiers. Select the
LARGE setting (not available with SMALL front
speakers) to have your center back speakers
play low bass (full-range). If your side speak-
ers have limited bass capability or if you would
prefer that the bass go to a subwoofer, use
the SMALL setting (high-pass filtered). If your
system has no center back speakers, select the
NONE setting. With center back speakers,
the Rotel XS extended surround and/or other
decoders will provide center back signals for
any surround mode.
SUBWOOFER (yes/no/max): The YES set-
ting is the standard setting if your system has
a subwoofer. If your system does not have a
subwoofer, select NO. Select the MAX setting
for maximum bass output with normal bass
being duplicated by both the subwoofer and
any LARGE speakers in the system.