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Installation and operation tips for a home theatre
A do-it yourself guide:
The room:
Too many bare surfaces can cause reflections that add harshness to the sound or muddy the dialogue; carpeting and drapes help to keep them in check.
If you have a choice of rooms, avoid those that are perfectly square, or that have one dimension exactly twice another; they can aggravate resonances that colour the sound.
Center the seating area between the side-walls on which you mount the surround speakers.
Keep out external noise by sound proofing the room to enhance the listening experience.
The closer a speaker is placed to intersecting room surfaces--corner, wall and ceiling, wall and floor--the stronger its bass output (possibly too strong in some cases).
Amplifier power:
All three front channels should have the same power if the three front speakers are identical. With a smaller center speaker, less center channel power is required. A total of one-half the power of one main front channel is usually sufficient for the surrounds. Specific power requirements depend on how loud you listen, speaker sensitivity, size of the room, and how much its furnishings "soak up" sound.
Audio/video connections:
Use good-quality shielded cables, and be sure plugs are fully inserted into jacks. Follow the color code used on most connectors and cables to prevent confusion.
Speaker wiring:
Prepare speaker wires by stripping their ends (A), then twisting the bared strands tightly together (B) to prevent shorts across terminals (C). Or, if speaker and amplifier/receiver terminals permit, use "banana" plugs to ensure solid connections (D).
Speaker polarity:
Connect the "+" and "-" (usually red and black) terminals on each amplifier channel to the corresponding terminals on each speaker. To make this easier, speaker cable is coded with a bead or stripe down one lead's insulation, and/or different colored wires. Connected identically, all speakers will operate "in phase," with their cones moving back and forth together. "Out of phase" connections, while doing no harm, muddy spatial effects and weaken bass.
Processing enhancements:
Some systems also feature "Cinema" digital signal processing (DSP) modes that simulate the acoustics of large theaters, and/or "THX(r)" processing that also strives for a more "theatrical" experience. These are provided as enhancements to Pro Logic decoding, not as alternatives.
Channel balance:
Systems with Dolby Pro Logic decoding feature a test signal generator for balancing the channels. As the signal "travels" from channel to channel, adjust the balance controls until each channel plays at the same loudness level.
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