Sony STR-DE445: Enjoying

Enjoying: Sony STR-DE445

You can take advantage of surround sound simply by

Enjoying

selecting one of the receiver’s pre-programed sound

modes. They bring the exciting and powerful sound of

movie theaters and concert halls into your home. You can

Surround

also customize the sound modes to obtain the sound you

desire by changing the various surround parameters.

The receiver containes a variety of different sound modes.

Sound

The cinema sound modes are designed for use when

playing back movie software (DVD, LD, etc.) encoded

with multi channel surround sound or Dolby Pro Logic.

In addition to decoding the surround sound, some of

This chapter describes how to set up

these modes also provide sound effects commonly found

in movie theaters.

the receiver to enjoy surround sound.

The virtual sound modes contain compelling applications

You can enjoy multi channel surround

of the Sony Digital Cinema Sound digital signal

when playing back software encoded

processing technology. They shift the sound away from

with Dolby Digital or DTS.

the actual speaker locations to simulate the presence of

several “virtual” speakers.

The music (etc.) sound modes are designed for use with

standard audio sources and TV broadcasts. They add

Enjoying Surround Sound

reverberation to the source signal to make you feel as if

you were in a concert hall or stadium (etc.). Use these

sound modes with two-channel sources like CD and

stereo broadcasts of sports programs or musical concerts.

For more information about the sound modes, see pages

29 - 30.

A.F.D.

The “Auto Format Decoding” sound mode presents the

sound exactly as it was encoded, without adding any

reverberation (etc.).

To fully enjoy surround sound, you must register the

number and location of your speakers. See “Multi-

Channel Surround setup” starting on page 16 to set the

speaker parameters before enjoying surround sound.

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Cursor buttons

Selecting a Sound Field

SOUND FIELD buttons

LEVEL TONE

You can enjoy surround sound simply by selecting one of

MULTI CHANNEL DECODING

the pre-programed sound fields according to the program

? / 1

– PTY SELECT +

PRESET/

SHIFT

DIMMER

DISPLAY

BASS BOOST TONE

– TUNING +

MEMORY

you want to listen to.

MASTER VOLUME

FM/AM

FM MODE

R ON r OFF

SPEAKERS

INPUT MODE

A

I

i

RDS EON RDS PTY

B

VIDEO

DVD/LD TV/SAT

5.1CH INPUT

CINEMA STUDIO

LEVEL

+

A B C

SET UP

MUTING

BASS

BOOST

TONE

1 Press MODE.

PHONES

MD/TAPE CD TUNER AUX

SOUND FIELD

SUR

NAME

A. F. D.

2CH MODE

TREBLE

BASS/

ENTER

The current sound field is indicated in the display.

2 Turn the jog dial or press the cursor buttons ( or

) to select the sound field you want.

SUR

Jog dial

See the table starting on page 29 for information on

BASS/TREBLE

each sound field.

Brief descriptions of buttons used to

To turn the sound field off

enjoy surround sound

Press A.F.D. or 2CH (page 24).

Enjoying Surround Sound

z

The receiver memorizes the last sound field selected for each

LEVEL button: Press to customize the level parameters.

program source (Sound Field Link)

Whenever you select a program source, the sound field that was

SUR button: Press to customize the surround parameters

last applied is automatically applied again. For example, if you

in the current sound field.

listen to CD with HALL as the sound field, change to a different

program source, then return to CD, HALL will be applied again.

BASS/TREBLE button: Press to adjust the tone.

With the tuner, sound fields are memorized separately for AM,

FM, and all preset stations.

Cursor buttons (

/ ): Use to select parameters after

z

You can identify Dolby Surround-encoded software by

pressing the LEVEL, SUR, BASS/TREBLE or SET UP

looking at the packaging

buttons.

Dolby Digital discs are labeled with the logo, and Dolby

Surround encoded programs are labeled with the A

Jog dial: Use to adjust parameters and select sound fields

logo.

(etc.).

SOUND FIELD buttons:

A.F.D. button: Press to set the receiver to

automatically detect the type of audio signal being

input and perform proper decoding (if necessary).

MODE button: Press to activate the sound field

selection mode.

2CH button: Press to output sound from only the

front (left and right) speakers.

TONE button: Turns the tone effect on or off.

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Sound field information

Sound field Effect Notes

NORM. SUR

Software with multi channel surround audio signals is

(NORMAL SURROUND)

played according to the way it was recorded.

Software with two channel audio signals, is decoded

with Dolby Pro Logic to create surround effects.

C. STUDIO A

Reproduces the sound characteristics of the Sony

This is a standard mode, great for

(CINEMA STUDIO A)

Pictures Entertainment “Cary Grant Theater” cinema

watching most type of movie.

production studio.

C. STUDIO B

Reproduces the sound characteristics of the Sony

This mode is ideal for watching science-

(CINEMA STUDIO B)

Pictures Entertainment “Kim Novak Theater” cinema

fiction or action movies with lots of sound

production studio.

effects.

C. STUDIO C

Reproduces the sound characteristics of the Sony

This mode is ideal for watching musicals

Enjoying Surround Sound

(CINEMA STUDIO C)

Pictures Entertainment scoring stage.

or classic films where music is featured in

the soundtrack.

V. MULTI*

Uses 3D sound imaging to create an array of virtual rear

L C R

(VIRTUAL MULTI

speakers positioned higher than the listener from a

DIMENSION)

single pair of actual rear speakers. This mode creates

four sets of virtual speakers surrounding the listener at

RSLS

SIDE**

approximately a 30° angle of elevation.

LS

RS

RSLS

L C R

RSLS

BEHIND**

LS

RS

RSLS

** See

page 17

V. SEMI-M*

Uses 3D sound imaging to create virtual rear speakers

L C R

(VIRTUAL SEMI-MULTI

from the sound of the front speakers without using

DIMENSION)

actual rear speakers. This mode creates five sets of

virtual speakers surrounding the listener at a 30° angle

RSLS

of elevation.

LS

RS

RSLS

* “VIRTUAL” sound field: Sound field with virtual speakers.

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Selecting a Sound Field

Sound field information

Sound field Effect Notes

HALL

Reproduces the acoustics of a rectangular concert hall.

Ideal for soft acoustic sounds.

JAZZ

Reproduces the acoustics of a jazz club.

(JAZZ CLUB)

LIVE

Reproduces the acoustics of a 300-seat live house.

Great for rock or pop music.

(LIVE HOUSE)

GAME

Obtains maximum audio impact from video game

Be sure to set the game machine to stereo

software.

mode when using game software with

stereo sound capabilities.

Notes

The effects provided by the virtual speakers may cause increased noise in the playback signal.

Enjoying Surround Sound

When listening to sound fields that employ the virtual speakers, you will not be able to hear any sound coming directly from the rear

speakers.

Use the buttons on the front panel to operate the following modes

AUTO FORMAT DECODING

Automatically detects the type of audio signal being

You can use this mode as a reference. Set

(Press the A.F.D. button)

input (Dolby Digital, Dolby Pro Logic, or standard two

the tone to OFF while using this mode to

channel stereo) and performs the proper decoding if

hear the source sound exactly as it was

necessary. This mode presents the sound as it was

recorded.

recorded/encoded, without adding any effects.

2 CHANNEL

Outputs the sound from the front left and right

This allows you to play any source using

(Press the 2CH button)

speakers only. Standard two channel (stereo) sources

only the front left and right speakers.

completely bypass the sound field processing. Multi

channel surround formats are downmixed to two

channels.

Note

No sound is output from the sub woofer when the 2 CHANNEL mode is selected. To listen to two channel (stereo) sources using the front

left and right speakers and a sub woofer, use the AUTO FORMAT DECODING mode.

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Understanding the Multi-Channel Surround Displays

1 2 3

4 65 7

8

a

DIGITAL

PRO LOGIC

OPT

COAX

a

dts

D.RANGE MONO

TA NEWS INFO STEREO

RDS

MEMORY

L C R

L F E

LS S RS

9 q;

1 ; DIGITAL

8 Tuner indicators

This indicator lights up when a sound field other than

These indicators light up when using the receiver to

2 CHANNEL is selected and the unit is decoding

tune in radio stations, etc. See pages 37 - 43 for tuner

signals recorded in the Dolby Digital (AC-3) format.*

operations.

* However, this indicator does not light when the recording format

is 2/0 or 2/0 Pro logic.

9 Playback channel indicators

Enjoying Surround Sound

The letters light up to indicate the channels being

2 PRO LOGIC

played back.

Lights up when the receiver applies Pro Logic

L: Front Left R: Front Right

processing to two channel signals in order to output

C: Center (monaural) LS: Left Surround

the center and surround channel signals.**

RS: Right Surround

** However, this indicator does not light if the center and rear

S: Surround (monaural or the rear components

speakers are set to “NO”, or the SPEAKER button is set to

obtained by Pro Logic processing)

“OFF” and the A.F.D. or NORMAL SURROUND sound fields

The boxes around the letters light up to indicate the

are selected.

speakers used to playback the channels.

See the next page for details regarding the playback

3 OPT

channel indicators.

Lights up when the source signal is a digital signal

being input through the OPT terminal.

q;

L F E

L F E

will light up when the disc being played

4 COAX

contains the LFE (Low Frequency Effect) channel and

Lights up when the source signal is a digital signal

when the sound of the LFE channel signal is actually

being input through the COAX terminal.

being reproduced.

5 ;

Lights up when Dolby Digital (AC-3) signals are

input.

6 dts

Lights up when DTS signals are input.

Note

When playing a DTS format disc, be sure that you

have made digital connections and that INPUT MODE

is NOT set to ANALOG (see 3 on page 23).

7 D. RANGE

Lights up when dynamic range compression is active.

See page 35 to adjust the dynamic range compression.

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Understanding the Multi-Channel Surround Displays

Source sound displays

The letters (L, C, R, etc.) indicate the source sound. The box around the letters varies to show how the receiver downmixes

the source sound (based on the speakers settings). When using music sound modes such as HALL or JAZZ CLUB, the

receiver adds reverberation based on the source sound.

The following table shows how the indicators light up when using AUTO FORMAT DECODING mode.

Although the table below shows almost all of the configurations available from multi channel surround signals, the ones

marked “

” are the most common.

Source sound and Output Channel Display

Recording

Format

Input Channel Display

(Front/Rear)

All speakers

Rear speakers

Center speaker

Rear/center

present

absent

absent

speakers absent

a

DIGITAL

C

a

DIGITAL

C

a

DIGITAL

C

a

DIGITAL

C

DOLBY DIGITAL [1/0]

1/0

C

C

C

C

DTS [1/0]

Enjoying Surround Sound

dts

dts

dts

dts

L R L R L R L R

DOLBY DIGITAL [2/0]

2/0*

L R L R L R

L R

DTS [2/0]

dts

dts

dts

dts

a

DIGITAL

L C R

a

DIGITAL

L C R

a

DIGITAL

L C R

a

DIGITAL

L C R

DOLBY DIGITAL [3/0]

3/0

L C R

L C R

L C R

L C R

DTS [3/0]

dts

dts

dts

dts

a

DIGITAL

L

R

a

DIGITAL

L

R

a

DIGITAL

L

R

a

DIGITAL

L

R

DOLBY DIGITAL [2/1]

S

S

S

S

2/1

L

R

L

R

L

R

L

R

DTS [2/1]

dts

S

dts

S

dts

S

dts

S

a

DIGITAL

L C

R

a

DIGITAL

L C

R

a

DIGITAL

L C

R

a

DIGITAL

L C

R

DOLBY DIGITAL [3/1]

S

S

S

S

3/1

L C

R

L C

R

L C

R

L C

R

DTS [3/1]

dts

S

dts

S

dts

S

dts

S

a

DIGITAL

L

R

a

DIGITAL

L

R

a

DIGITAL

L

R

a

DIGITAL

L

R

DOLBY DIGITAL [2/2]

LS

RS

LS

RS

LS

RS

LS

RS

2/2

L

R

L

R

L

R

L

R

DTS [2/2]

dts

LS

RS

dts

LS

RS

dts

LS

RS

dts

LS

RS

a

DIGITAL

L

C R

a

DIGITAL

L

C R

a

DIGITAL

L

C R

a

DIGITAL

L

C R

DOLBY DIGITAL [3/2]

LS

RS

LS

RS

LS

RS

LS

RS

3/2

L

C R

L

C R

L

C R

L

C R

DTS [3/2]

dts

LS

RS

dts

LS

RS

dts

LS

RS

dts

LS

RS

L C

R

L C

R

L C

R

L C

R

2/0**

DOLBY DIGITAL [2/0]

PRO LOGIC

S

PRO LOGIC

S

PRO LOGIC

S

PRO LOGIC

S

L C

R

L C

R

L C

R

L C

R

DOLBY PROLOGIC

PRO LOGIC

S

PRO LOGIC

S

PRO LOGIC

S

PRO LOGIC

S

L R L R L R L R

PCM XX kHz***

* Signals with Dolby surround encoded flag OFF

**Signals with Dolby surround encoded flag ON

*** The sampling rate is displayed.

Notes

The receiver performs Pro Logic decoding and the display conforms to 2/0** when using the following movie sound modes with 2/0*

or STEREO PCM format signals. (C. STUDIO A, B, C, V. MULTI, and V. SEMI-M.)

When using music sound modes such as HALL or JAZZ CLUB with standard audio formats e.g., PCM, the receiver creates rear

signals from the front L and R signals. In this case, sound is output from the rear speakers, but output channel indicators for the rear

speakers do not light.

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Customizing Sound Fields

By adjusting the surround parameters and the tone

Wall type (WALL)

characteristics of the front speakers, you can customize

Initial setting : midpoint

the sound fields to suit your particular listening situation.

When sound is reflected off soft material, such as a

curtain, the high frequency elements are reduced. A hard

Once you customize a sound field, the changes are stored

wall is highly reflective and does not significantly affect

in memory indefinitely (unless the receiver is unplugged

the frequency response of the reflected sound. This

for about two weeks). You can change a customized

parameter lets you control the level of the high

sound field any time by making new adjustments to the

frequencies to alter the sonic character of your listening

parameters.

environment by simulating a softer (S) or harder (H) wall.

The midpoint designates a neutral wall (made of wood).

See the table on page 36 for the parameters available in

each sound field.

Reverberation (REVB.)

Initial setting : midpoint

Before sound reaches our ears, it is reflected

To get the most from multi channel

(reverberated) many times between the left and right

surround sound

walls, ceiling, and floor. In a large room, sound takes more

Enjoying Surround Sound

Position your speakers and do the procedures described

time to bounce from one surface to another than in a

in “Multi Channel Surround Setup” starting on page 16

smaller room. This parameter lets you control the spacing

before you customize a sound field.

of the early reflections to simulate a sonically larger (L) or

smaller (S) room.

The reverberation can be adjusted from REVB. S. 1 ~

Adjusting the surround parameters

REVB. S. 8 (short) to REVB. L. 1 ~ REVB. L. 8 (long) in

17 steps.

The SUR menu contains parameters that let you

The midpoint (REVB. MID) designates a standard room

customize various aspects of the current sound field. The

with no adjustment.

settings available in this menu are stored individually for

each sound field.

1 Start playing a program source encoded with multi

channel surround sound.

2 Press SUR.

The button lights up and the first parameter is

displayed.

3 Press the cursor buttons ( or ) to select the

parameter you want to adjust.

4 Turn the jog dial to select the setting you want.

The setting is stored automatically.

Effect level (EFFECT)

Initial setting : (depends on sound mode)

This parameter lets you adjust the “presence” of the

current surround effect.

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Customizing Sound Fields

*Sub woofer level (S.W. xx)

Adjusting the level parameters

Initial setting : 0 dB

The LEVEL menu contains parameters that let you adjust

Lets you adjust the level of the sub woofer.

the balance and speaker volumes of each speaker. The

The level can be adjusted in 1 dB steps from –10 dB to

settings available in this menu are applied to all sound

+6 dB.

fields.

* The parameters can be adjusted separately for 5.1 CH INPUT.

1 Start playing a program source encoded with multi

LFE (Low Frequency Effect) mix level (LFE

;

xx)

channel surround sound.

Initial setting : 0 dB

This parameter lets you attenuate the level of the LFE

2 Press LEVEL.

(Low Frequency Effect) channel output from the sub

The button lights up and the first parameter is

woofer without affecting the level of the bass frequencies

displayed.

sent to the sub woofer from the front, center or rear

channels via the bass redirection circuitry.

3 Press the cursor buttons ( or ) to select the

The level can be adjusted in 1 dB steps from –20.0 dB to

parameter you want to adjust.

Enjoying Surround Sound

0 dB (line level). 0 dB outputs the full LFE signal at the

mix level determined by the recording engineer.

4 Turn the jog dial to select the setting you want.

Selecting OFF mutes the sound of the LFE channel from

The setting is stored automatically.

the sub woofer. However, the low frequency sounds of

the front, center, or rear speakers are output from the

sub woofer according to the settings made for each

*Front balance (

L

R

)

speaker in the speaker setup (page 16).

Initial setting : balance

Lets you adjust the balance between the front left and

dts LFE (Low Frequency Effect) mix level

right speakers.

(LFE

dts

xx)

The balance can be adjusted ±8 steps.

Initial setting: 0 dB

These settings can also be adjusted using the supplied

This parameter lets you attenuate the level of the LFE

remote. See “Adjusting the speaker volume” (page 19).

(Low Frequency Effect) channel output from the sub

woofer without affecting the level of the bass frequencies

*Rear balance (

LS

RS

)

sent to the sub woofer from the front, center or rear

Initial setting : balance

channels via the “dts” bass redirection circuitry.

Lets you adjust the balance between the rear left and right

The level can be adjusted in 1 dB steps from –20.0 dB to

speakers.

+10.0 dB (line level).

The balance can be adjusted ±8 steps.

Selecting OFF mutes the sound of the LFE channel from

These settings can also be adjusted using the supplied

the sub woofer. However, the low frequency sounds of

remote. See “Adjusting the speaker volume” (page 19).

the front, center, or rear speakers are output from the

sub woofer according to the settings made for each

*Rear level (REAR)

speaker setup (For details, refer to “Multi Channel

Initial setting : 0 dB

Surround Setup”).

Lets you adjust level of the rear (left and right) speakers.

The level can be adjusted in 1 dB steps from –10 dB to

z About the level differences in the LFE MIX settings

+6 dB.

The “dts LFE MIX” level is set to +10.0 dB and “LFE MIX” (Dolby

These settings can also be adjusted directly using the

Digital) is set to 0 dB. This is because there is an initial difference

supplied remote. See “Adjusting the speaker volume”

of 10 dB in the overall mix between the Dolby Digital and dts

(page 19).

LFE channel levels. Essentially, with the “dts LFE MIX” level set

to +10 dB and the “LFE MIX (Dolby Digital)” level set to 0 dB,

approximately the same amounts of LFE channel signal are

*Center level (CTR)

distributed to the other audio channels in the overall mix.

Initial setting : 0 dB

Lets you adjust the level of the center speaker.

The level can be adjusted in 1 dB steps from –10 dB to

+6 dB.

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Dynamic range compressor (COMP.

D. RANGE

xx)

Adjusting the bass/treble

Initial setting : OFF

The BASS/TREBLE button lets you adjust the tone (bass

Lets you compress the dynamic range of the sound track.

or treble) of the front speakers for optimum sound. You

This may be useful when you want to watch movies at

can adjust the tone for each separate sound field.

low volumes late at night.

OFF reproduces the sound track with no compression.

1 Start playing a program source encoded with multi

STD reproduces the sound track with the dynamic

channel surround sound.

range intended by the recording engineer.

0.1 ~ 0.9 allow you to compress the dynamic range in

2 Press BASS/TREBLE.

small steps to achieve the sound you want.

The button lights up and the first parameter is

MAX provides a dramatic compression of the dynamic

displayed.

range.

3 Press the cursor buttons ( or ) to select the

Note

parameter you want to adjust.

Dynamic range compression is not possible with DTS sources.

Enjoying Surround Sound

z

About the Dynamic Range Compressor

4 Turn the jog dial to select the setting you want.

This parameter allows you to compress the dynamic range of the

The setting is stored automatically.

soundtrack based on the dynamic range information included in

You can select a tone level of -6 dB to +6 dB in 2 dB

the Dolby Digital signal. “STD” is standard compression, but

steps.

because many sources have only light compression, you may not

notice much difference when using 0.1~0.9.

5 Press TONE so that the TONE indicator lights up.

Therefore, we recommend using the “MAX” setting. This greatly

compresses the dynamic range and allows you to view movies

z

You can turn off the tone without erasing it

late at night at low volumes. Unlike analog limiters, the levels are

The tone settings are stored separately for each sound field. Press

predetermined and it provides a very natural compression.

the TONE button to turn the TONE indicator off.

Resetting customized sound fields to the

factory settings

1 If the power is on, press ?/1 to turn off the power.

2 Hold down MODE and press ?/1.

“SUR CLR” appears in the display and all sound fields

are reset at once.

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Customizing Sound Fields

Adjustable parameters for each sound field

EFFECT WALL REVERB FRONT REAR REAR CENTER

SUB WOOFER

LFE dts LFE

LEVEL TYPE TIME BAL. BAL. LEVEL LEVEL

LEVEL

MIX mix

2CH r r r

A.F.D. r r r r r r r

NORMAL SURROUND r r r r r r r

CINEMA STUDIO A r r r r r r r r

CINEMA STUDIO B r r r r r r r r

CINEMA STUDIO C r r r r r r r r

V. MULTI DIMENSION r r r r r r r

V. SEMI–M. DIMENSION r r r r r

Enjoying Surround Sound

HALL r r r r r r r r r r

JAZZ CLUB r r r r r r r r r r

LIVE HOUSE r r r r r r r r r r

GAME r r r r r r r r r r

5.1CH INPUT r r r r r

D.RANGE

BASS/TREBLE

COMP.

2CH r r

A.F.D. r r

NORMAL SURROUND r r

CINEMA STUDIO A r r

CINEMA STUDIO B r r

CINEMA STUDIO C r r

V. MULTI DIMENSION r r

V. SEMI–M. DIMENSION r r

HALL r r

JAZZ CLUB r r

LIVE HOUSE r r

GAME r r

5.1CH INPUT

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