Auto-calibration

"My latest receicer comes with a cal. mic.--I never opened it up. Only because I liked the default setting. I just bumped up the center a taste.--I think this calebration is like salting ones food at a rest; before you taste it."

I would think of it the other way around. Accepting the uniform settings as default is accepting a random flavoring imposed by the setup/room which is rarely ever innocuous. I would rather calibrate it correctly and, if that's too bland for you, flavor to taste.

If you don't trust your ears to get an accurate SPL calibration: You can pick up an inexpensive, hand-held SPL meter at any electronics store, or (ugh) Radio Shack. Simply hold it up close to where your head is when you're watching movies, and adjust all the channels for the same reading. Here's a website with more details:(http://www.techlore.com/article/10037/How-To-Calibrate-Your-Surround-Sytem-Using-an-SPL-Meter/;jsessionid=20C6D30E4AA3F9F0885C8C49BF904011?page=2)

I guess one man's ceiling is another man's floor,huh. I don't do HT with the same zest as 2ch. To me; good enough is good enough. To me the new Dolby-True and DTS ma and such are such an improvement;I can't find the need for closer calibration.