Home Theater Volume ?



Hello All~
So I am using a Technics SA-DX930 Reciver.Paradigm MM,CC350,PDR 8 & Cinimas rears. My question is -When I am watching a movie in Dolby Digital (or even analog) I have to crank up the volume to hear the dialog ,when thetre is a loud sene I have to grab the remote and ride the volume level. I have all of the speakers set to the same DB with the test tones. Is this just the nature of this amp or is there something wrong ? I want to watch a movie without the remote in my hand to ride the volume ?
HELP !
antman27
Slappy's got it right...check for dynamic range compression or 'night mode' and turn it on. With this off, dvd becomes more like the theater experience where loud is very loud and quiet is too quiet. Also check your center channel...I've seen several systems with the center channel above the TV, aimed into dead space. If that's where yours is, be sure to angle it down so the dialogue doesn't get lost. Good luck
Most action movies are mixed with a huge amount of dynamic range. Big changes are normal.

If you can't hear the dialog at low volumes you have a problem of some sort (speaker placement and acoustics are candidates when the system is properly calibrated) with your setup.
I had to individually adjust my center channel up a few dB's above the rest of the speakers with my H/K receiver. I had a limit of +10dB's and I used all of them. Backed the sides down to about +7dB and now movies sound great.
Combine that with the Dynamic Range compression feature and you should be good to go.
The problem was only in Dolby Digital.
Correct me if I'm wrong here:
Setting all of the gains up so high is like using an equalizer with all the frequencies boosted to give extra gain. I was always taught to try to stay around 0 gain to keep the truest/cleanest signal.
From what I was taught, I would have the sides at about-1db and the center at +2. You may have to use more volume that way to get the same decible level but you will be using the amplifier to get the increased volume instead of circuitry to get the added gain. Just my 2 cents.......I'd love to hear some feedback here!
Elevick is right, keep it as close to 0 gain(or flat) as possible. Remember that for every 2dBs that you increase, your amp has to work twice as hard(or something along those lines).