Official ICE CLUB Thread

polkapolka · March 2009

doggie750 wrote: »

Hello Matt, polkapolka
My advice is to go in before the end of MARCH, was informed this is a dealer sale only for this month and it'll gain back up. :cool:

BOTH of you are so FORTUNATE to have merchant local like the HIFI!!!! :cool:

Mantis, thanks for the tip. I still have to save my pennies for a few months, so hopefully they will have another sale down the line a little.

Yes, we are luck ****, woohoo!

mantis · March 2009

The end of March is the end of the sale from what I have heard, after that it's full wood.

Dan

Retro152 · March 2009

metal83 wrote: »

So for you guys using the "ICE" amps in the Pio Elite instead of an external amp(s), how loud have you cranked it? I don't have an SPL meter "yet", but I got down to -10 on the receiver so far, and it sounded fantastic without any hints of clipping. Though to be honest I didn't leave at that volume for very long. I'll typically listen to music around -20 through -15 (-15 being loud!).

Listening to some Metallic "And Justice For All" as we speak, and it's sounding great.

Yeah! been to -8 for a short time. (very short!) got nervous. No signs of a clip at all. But my comfortable reference is that -20, 15 range as you mentioned, favoring the upper teens more. It does' vary with certain tracks somewhat of course, but great FUN experimenting.:D

comfortablycurt · March 2009

retro152 wrote: »

Curt, put that baby on "ICE" and your in. LOL

Alrighty...I had to get some really thin IC's and speaker cables so I could put the Onkyo in the freezer and still be able to shut the door. It's all done now though.

I've got the worlds first Onkyo ICE AVR. Am I in the ICE Club now?:p

disneyjoe7 · March 2009

Hell if I don't have it around 104+db I don't feel I have it ON.

And that's not having ICE amps.

metal83 · March 2009

xcapri79 wrote: »

I hate to say it but shouldn't owning a SPL meter be a prerequisite to being a member of the ICE club.

Nope...:rolleyes:

vijayl · March 2009

Alright.. Sorry if this is a bad news for folks here.
I was shopping around in San Jose, CA area and a Authorized seller told me that Pioneer Elite series is going out of business from next year and this is the last year that u get the Elite series - Not sure if this is both Audio and Video.

vijayl · March 2009

You are correct (just the video) and I confirmed w/ other dealers as well..

kevhed72 · April 2009

Mantis,
I just hooked up my sc-05 last night, and hooked up the BD player via HDMI.
When I played the disc, the display showed PCM (instead of HDMI (?))
(I am running a 5.1 speaker setup w/ no sub yet).
What does PCM mean...I am assuming something to do w/ the fact I do not have a full 7.1 speaker setup.

Also, it is amazing how far receivers have come in 10 years...the 2 channel audio on this thing is unbelievable....

zx_toth · April 2009

kevhed72 wrote: »

Mantis,
I just hooked up my sc-05 last night, and hooked up the BD player via HDMI.
When I played the disc, the display showed PCM (instead of HDMI (?))
(I am running a 5.1 speaker setup w/ no sub yet).
What does PCM mean...I am assuming something to do w/ the fact I do not have a full 7.1 speaker setup.

Also, it is amazing how far receivers have come in 10 years...the 2 channel audio on this thing is unbelievable....

PCM is the acronym for Pulse Code Modulation. An uncompressed (lossless) digital audio format. It is indicating the digital audio format going through your HDMI connection not stating which connection you are using. PCM is a good thing

Other current formats include the DTS HD MA and Dolby Digitial HD or some derivative of that name. These formats are WHY you have Bluray and a new reciever

enjoy!!

Zsolt

kevhed72 · April 2009

Thanks Zsolt for the info. I probably should have opened the owners manual, but needed that instant gratification when it arrivied yesterday.

Sherardp · April 2009

zx_toth wrote: »

PCM is the acronym for Pulse Code Modulation. An uncompressed (lossless) digital audio format. It is indicating the digital audio format going through your HDMI connection not stating which connection you are using. PCM is a good thing Other current formats include the DTS HD MA and Dolby Digitial HD or some derivative of that name. These formats are WHY you have Bluray and a new reciever enjoy!!

Zsolt

This is somewhat correct. Set the BDP to Bitstream and let the SC-05 do the decoding and you may notice better SQ. If you have PS3 then you're limited to PCM over HDMI.

mantis · April 2009

kevhed72 wrote: »

Mantis,
I just hooked up my sc-05 last night, and hooked up the BD player via HDMI.
When I played the disc, the display showed PCM (instead of HDMI (?))
(I am running a 5.1 speaker setup w/ no sub yet).
What does PCM mean...I am assuming something to do w/ the fact I do not have a full 7.1 speaker setup.

Also, it is amazing how far receivers have come in 10 years...the 2 channel audio on this thing is unbelievable....

What Bu ray player do you have? If you can set it to auto out over HDMI, it will stream it unless the player has to decode the signal first. According to Dolby, there is no difference in sound quality where it is decoded. I have not proved this to myself but it's what I was told by Dolby Labs. The signals can be decoded correctly or not there is no room for error. Ok I will believe that when I have done it myself and listened.

So lets hear about your Blu Ray player. We can find out if it can stream or not.

Dan

doggie750 · April 2009

Quote:
Originally Posted by doggie750 View Post
Hello Matt, polkapolka
My advice is to go in before the end of MARCH, was informed this is a dealer sale only for this month and it'll gain back up.

BOTH of you are so FORTUNATE to have merchant local like the HIFI!!!!
Mantis, thanks for the tip. I still have to save my pennies for a few months, so hopefully they will have another sale down the line a little.

Yes, we are luck ****, woohoo!

polkapolka wrote: »

Mantis, thanks for the tip. I still have to save my pennies for a few months, so hopefully they will have another sale down the line a little.

Yes, we are luck ****, woohoo!

I am not mantis....:mad:....HE HE HE:):):)

kevhed72 · April 2009

mantis wrote: »

What Bu ray player do you have? If you can set it to auto out over HDMI, it will stream it unless the player has to decode the signal first. According to Dolby, there is no difference in sound quality where it is decoded. I have not proved this to myself but it's what I was told by Dolby Labs. The signals can be decoded correctly or not there is no room for error. Ok I will believe that when I have done it myself and listened.

So lets hear about your Blu Ray player. We can find out if it can stream or not.

Dan

The BD player is a Sony BD-S350, which if I rememeber correctly, I bought instead of the 550 because I was planning on a new receiver (at the time) that could do the decoding. Does this sound correct?

kevhed72 · April 2009

There is a setting "Audio (HDMI)" that can be set as AUTO or 2ch PCM and states to select 2ch PCM when using a receiver that does NOT support Dolby Digital or DTS. Then there are other settings for this if your using optical out vs. HMDI. (Again, it does pay to read the manual;).
I re-ran the MOCC again last night and started experimenting with the manual settings. The instructions and steps for setting up your speakers are very straightforward and easy to understand. The MOCC set my fronts (RTIa9), center (CSia6), and rears (FXia6) all to large, and the distances were right on. Due to the room configuration, the rears are pretty close to the seating position on the back wall, but the MOCC was able to detect this and the rear surround effects seem right on the mark.
The fronts did a very good job reproducing bass, since I have no sub yet. Last night I watched the T2 Blue Ray and was able to discern all kinds of detail in the sound track that was missing with the old Yamaha RX-V595 receiver.
So far, the unit is all I expected +. I spent almost a year researching receivers since I was out of the hobby for awhile, but the homework definitely payed off.
Next step is purchasing a new needle / cartridge for the phono, since I am a bit hesitant to use the 15yr. old + needle on my albums.

doggie750 · April 2009

Just dont like the fact that my PS3 needs to go to SC07 then to my TV. For DTSHD formats, HDMI cable must be applied right?

mantis · April 2009

doggie750 wrote: »

Just dont like the fact that my PS3 needs to go to SC07 then to my TV. For DTSHD formats, HDMI cable must be applied right?

WHy don't you like this?

mantis · April 2009

kevhed72 wrote: »

The BD player is a Sony BD-S350, which if I rememeber correctly, I bought instead of the 550 because I was planning on a new receiver (at the time) that could do the decoding. Does this sound correct?

Sounds good to me. Auto HDMI and you should bit stream. It really doesn't matter where the processing happens. Not until I test it for myself. I have to stand by the good words of Dolby labs.

Dan

sir_lagzalot · April 2009

Does its on screen display, display over hdmi or only over component or lower like my Onkyo 805.

cnh · April 2009

If you guys keep lauding the new Elites, I think Pioneer will owe you a percentage of their profits! I suspect CP, itself, is single-handedly boosting their sales? Not a bad thing.

cnh

Disc Jockey · April 2009

Setup menus display over hdmi. Volume and other settings only display over hdmi if you have a compatible tv, which are mostly only later model Pioneers.

sir_lagzalot · April 2009

I would say the fact that only setup menus display over hdmi and the lack of network ability is the only reason I'm thinking of upgrading, otherwise the 805 is a solid performer.

Sherardp · April 2009

mantis wrote: »

Sounds good to me. Auto HDMI and you should bit stream. It really doesn't matter where the processing happens. Not until I test it for myself. I have to stand by the good words of Dolby labs.

Dan

When allowing my XA2 to decode and send PCM to my SC-07 there is a huge difference. The soundtrack sounds muffled and low in volume for some reason. But when switched to auto the SC-07 puts the soundtrack dead in your face. I'm not sure why this is happening though. I tested this with Phantom of the Opera on HD DVD. So if you have a BD player that can bitstream audio over HDMI I suggest you allow the AVR to handle decoding.

leroyjr1 · April 2009

Sherardp wrote: »

When allowing my XA2 to decode and send PCM to my SC-07 there is a huge difference. The soundtrack sounds muffled and low in volume for some reason. But when switched to auto the SC-07 puts the soundtrack dead in your face. I'm not sure why this is happening though. I tested this with Phantom of the Opera on HD DVD. So if you have a BD player that can bitstream audio over HDMI I suggest you allow the AVR to handle decoding.

I've noticed the same thing. Having the sc-07 do the decoding is your best bet. I don't even use my PS3 for Blu rays anymore. Waiting for the new Blu ray player line up to hit the stores.

cnh · April 2009

Is this some peculiarity of the new Elites because I've never noticed that problem from a PS3 on Denons or Onkyos I've used! I can't tell any difference between PCM and Bitstream decoding when I've used others BDPs on those same receivers.

cnh

leroyjr1 · April 2009

cnh wrote: »

Is this some peculiarity of the new Elites because I've never noticed that problem from a PS3 on Denons or Onkyos I've used! I can't tell any difference between PCM and Bitstream decoding when I've used others BDPs on those same receivers.

cnh

I was too scared to try to Bitstream anything with my Onkyo 805 because of the problem they had with speakers making a loud pop and ruining speakers, but the new firmware update took care of that problem.

I tried it with my sc-07 and it makes a noticable difference. Im running two blu ray players in my rig . The PS3 has a great picture but doesn't bitstream and my BDP-350's picture is not as good as the ps3's but the SQ is better. I find myself using the BDP-350 more often because of the SQ difference.

mantis · April 2009

Sherardp wrote: »

When allowing my XA2 to decode and send PCM to my SC-07 there is a huge difference. The soundtrack sounds muffled and low in volume for some reason. But when switched to auto the SC-07 puts the soundtrack dead in your face. I'm not sure why this is happening though. I tested this with Phantom of the Opera on HD DVD. So if you have a BD player that can bitstream audio over HDMI I suggest you allow the AVR to handle decoding.

Cool, I want to try this myself. I plan on conducting this test when I get a new Bu ray player. I'm hoping the new Pioneer Elite will be the one or the new oppo. Then I will use the Ps3 as a vs Bitstream. In my theory, i would imagine it would sound better in the receiver/preamp.

Dan

Sherardp · April 2009

mantis wrote: »

Cool, I want to try this myself. I plan on conducting this test when I get a new Bu ray player. I'm hoping the new Pioneer Elite will be the one or the new oppo. Then I will use the Ps3 as a vs Bitstream. In my theory, i would imagine it would sound better in the receiver/preamp.

Dan

I agree and think the AVR does a better job. I'm waiting for the Pio Elite 23FD. Saving my pennies as it will not surface this month. More like mid-May according to Rob @ VE. According to Amazon 320 has been pushed back as well. The oppo seems promising, but I'm curious about trying PQLS features with 23FD/SC07 combo, should be pretty awesome, especially with the RS10 projector.

jmos · April 2009

Gday All, this is the only thread on this forum I had found mentioning the Rotel RB-1572.
I was wandering if anyone is using this amp to run Lsi15's ? I have a Nad t973 running my lsi15's, Lsic and four Lsifx's 7x140watts@8ohms.
What do think about getting the RB-1572 to run the Lsi15's and let the Nad do the rest.
Not sure if the Nad is quite doing it for the Lsi15's. Using an Onkyo 875 as a pre
Thanks and sorry if this is the wrong place for this query

Official ICE CLUB Thread

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