5.1 for HT & 2.0 for music

[wish]

I see a lot of people on hear who recommend running the Sierras small with a 60 to 80 crossover with a sub for HT listening and 2.0 for music. When you swap from HT (fronts set to small) to listen to music what do you do? Do you go in and manually change the set up to have the fronts to large? Switch off the sub? That seems like kind of a pain.

I can set the receiver mode to "Straight" for music (i.e. 2.0) but the set up would still have the front speakers set to small. Would a receiver automatically adjust and set receivers to small in that instance?

Any input is appreciated!

[tdercole]

It would be easier if i knew what reciever you had to help you through this. I have an onkyo reciever so i will explain how i do it. If your receiver has an audyssey callibration then it will do it for you when you use the setup mic. Your manual for the reciver will help you through it also. The other way is to manualy do it, go to setup, then audio adjust. As you scroll through your audio adjust options you can change your xover frequencys, your small or large speaker settings and you can even turn your sub off. With the sierras in front i have the xover set at 80hz and the speakers set to large. I personally think that the sierras sound better when set to large vs small because they can handle the lower frequencies just fine, however you will bottom out your woofer much faster when set to large. hope that helps

[wish]

I have a Yamaha RX-V863.

I might be missing your point but I have gone through the setup (first did auto and then tweaked with manual and a SPL meter). So it's not that I don't know how to run the setup but rather how does one switch the setup on the fly to match the input.

To furthur explain...I've run set up and have speakers set to small using a sub with crossover at 60 (also tried 80). This is fine with HT listening. However many on here claim that the Sierras are great on their own for music listening (i.e. no sub). So how does one go from their current setup (5.1 small 60 cross) to two channel for music with speakers set to large. I only see two possible options.

1. Go back into the set up and manually adjust to a 2 speaker system with fronts set to large. This seems like a pain.

2. Change the receiver mode to "Straight" (which for music send only two channel). This is easy, a one button push, but I wasn't sure if by doing this the setup would adjust on the fly to set the fronts to large. The Yamaha manual leaves something to be desired about Pure Direct. I found this in another thread about the Yamaha Pure Direct mode.

"I have the Yamaha 863. Pure Direct does indeed work fine if you like to listen to a lot of 2channel stereo music, AND you have apair of high quality full range fronts. It disengages ALL unnecessary circuits and applies all the power to the fronts. I have played with it somewhat . I think it's kinda for stereo purists."

The sub indeed does shut off but I still don't know if my fronts are automatically set to large or if they are still small. Maybe that isn't even a valid concern. Would the size of the speakers in the setup really matter if you are using a "pure" 2-channel mode and the sub is shut off?

[wish]

Here's the best answer I found.

http://www.avforums.com/forums/av-am...rect-mode.html

"Pure Direct switches off all AV processing including speaker size and crossover so will direct full range to your front speakers (not exactly the same as setting them to large as this concept disappears in Pure Direct, but essentially end result is the same).

Incidently, if you want to use the sub in Pure Direct mode you would need a sub that allows you to also connect via the level filter (like the BK Gemini for example) wired to your main front speaker connections on your amp."

[tdercole]

Well it seems like you have a good understanding of it all. Pure direct is an easier path for current to flow avoiding all unecessary video circuitry which then gives you a pure clean signal. I know that when i switch between stereo or surround my fronts stay on large. If your saying that pure direct is 2 channel with sub off and full band that means that the full frequncy spectrum is through the left and right channels which is basically the large setting on the reciever. Ive been told that a speaker that is greater than 6 1/2'' should be set to large and anything that and smaller should be set to small, on the other hand i have been told that any speaker that is bigger than your average cube satellite speaker should be set to large. always keep in mind that when running the sierras on large, be careful with your volume knob. I have a 8 month yr old son that loves to crawl over to my reciever and crank the volume up to max, there was a time that i thought i was going to blow the woofers, i was quick about it and turned it down. Personally i think that the sierras have enough bass to where i dont need my sub on for music, movies on the other hand i definetly need a sub and it makes thinks more interesting. What kind of sub do you have? I am using a cheap polk psw10 that i would love to replace but i dont have the funds to splurg on a hsu or rythmik. ttys

[wish]

What kind of sub do you have? I am using a cheap polk psw10 that i would love to replace but i dont have the funds to splurg on a hsu or rythmik. ttys

It's a Velodyne CT-100. It's next in the line of items to get a facelift! I just purchased the Sierra LCR combo a few weeks ago so I'll have to wait a while for more funds. I really like the SVS
PC12-NSD.

[tdercole]

I heard that those are decent subs, i will own a better sub one day.

well i got into doing some research and i think that i am going to stop runnin my sierras full range. If you dont feel like reading the full article than you can scroll down and read the last paragraph. I guess i can say that my reciever will thank me in the long run. I read a few articles that suggested setting all speakers to small if theres a sub in use. I guess theres a lot i still have to learn.
http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/volum...rs-9-2002.html