Yamaha RX-A3040 receiver, Dolby Atmos, 4K via satellite ......

[Son_of_SJ]

The current (November 2014, issue number 239) issue of a certain magazine which is dedicated to Home Cinema, giving you a Choice, has a very good review of the Yamaha RX-A3040 receiver, they do like it! On the cover in large type is "Dolby Atmos", and the magazine contains a 4-page article on the technology. The magazine also has a three-page account of getting 4K via satellite, reviews of the Samsung UE55HU7500 and Sony KD-55X8505 televisions, the Optoma HD50 projector etc ..... Well worth £4:50 of anyone's money, especially if you are a doctor about to move house I would have thought .... My subscription copy arrived over a fortnight ago, but there should still be copies available

 

[Son_of_SJ]

In fairness, I should mention that our own What Hi-Fi has this thorough article about Dolby Atmos http://www.whathifi.com/news/dolby-atmos-what-it-how-can-you-get-it

though the article in the magazine that I quoted in my initial post compares a 36-speaker array with a more domestic 7.1.4 setup, and also compares ceiling speakers with upfiring models.

 

[bigboss]

Thanks! Will check it out.

 

[Son_of_SJ]

Bigboss, did you manage to get a copy of issue 239 of HCC magazine? As late as Monday 14th October i saw a copy in a big Tesco, but since then I'm seeing only the next issue, 240. I really would urge you to get a back copy of issue 239, it's probably the best since the last issue that I recommended, the one with the Stephen Withers article about calibration.

 

[bigboss]

Sorry, forgot to update. Yes, I got the copy couple of weeks ago, when I was in London. The review certainly was a very good.read, and the article on Atmos was useful too! Thanks Son_of_SJ!!

 

[Son_of_SJ]

Hello bigboss, I'm glad that you got issue 239 of HCC, with the big article about Dolby Atmos. The issue that is on the bookshelves now, December 2014 issue 240, maybe isn't so useful overall, but on page 50 there begins a three-page review of the Onkyo TX-NR838 receiver, which is Dolby Atmos enabled. You can read the review of the Onkyo TX-N838 here. Unlike the review of the Yamaha RX-A3040 in the November issue, this time the reviewer DID have a pair of small Dolby Atmos upfiring speakers to hand (the £130 Onkyo SKH-410s) , as well as his own lounge's in-ceiling speakers. Using Dolby Atmos test material, the reviewer said that he preferred the sound of the upfiring speakers to the in-ceiling speakers, which is good for most people. He also says that he did have to position the upfiring speakers not on top of or near his front speakers, but almost mid-room to get best results. However, he concluded the review of the Oknyo by saying that the days of buying a non-Dolby Atmos-enabled receiver are drawing rapidly to a close. Remember also the the big article about Dolby Atmos in issue 239 was wholeheartedly positive, so it's all good, yes?

Well, not quite. Yesterday Audioholics sent me an email newletter, the main feature of which was this review of the Denon AVR-X5200 Dolby Atmos receiver. It concludes that "Despite the claims otherwise, Dolby Atmost is NOT the greatest breakthrough in 20 years for home theater." (By the way, both the Onkyo and Denon receivers - like the much more expensive Yamaha RX-A3040 - are very fine machines even without considering their Dolby Atmos abilities.) And the Audioholics article strongly prefers in-ceiling speakers to upfiring speakers, which contradicts what Home Cinema Choice says!

So, what's a man with four home cinema setups in his four rooms to think? I don't think that I can have Dolby Atmos in my kitchen, because the false ceiling is too low, only 7'6" high, and the tops of the large surround speakers, which are placed on the normal kitchen surfaces, are only 15" from the false ceiling. So I'll just have to chug along with my normal 8.1 system. I'm most curious to see how Dolby Atmos might work in the parlour (ceiling height 10' 6") , to compare with my present 11.1 system (with front height, front wide and surround back speakers, and an additional stereo amplifier driving the front wide speakers). If I were to get the Yamaha RX-A3040 receiver, which has nine channels of amplication with processing for 11 channels, then I could replace my existing 9-channel Denon AVR-4810 with the Yamaha. I could then compare my existing 11.1 system with a 7.1.4 Dolby Atmos system (with upfiring speakers, not in-ceilings), still of course needing my present extra stereo amplifier. I'm quite prepared to believe that a Dolby Atmos 7.1.4 could be better than my existing 11.1 system, but I would need to hear the Dolby Atmost system in my own room in order to verify the improvement. With acoustics in differerent rooms being so different, it would not be enough for me to hear a successful demonstration of Dolby Atmos at a dealer's room or at a home cinema or hi-fi show, I would need to hear it in my own room to be sure of the improvement. Perhaps I'm not the right target market for Dolby Atmos, because I happen to think that my parlour and kitchen systems sound pretty good as they are, so I'd have to ensure that any change was a significant improvement.

 

[The_Lhc]

So, what's a man with four home cinema setups in his four rooms to think?

"I need to get out more." ?

 

[Son_of_SJ]

Ha-ha!

 

[bigboss]

Interesting! Thanks for that!!

I can only have ceiling speakers. What I want to know is, should I go for 3-way speakers (MA CT265-IDC) which can be pivoted to direct towards the listener (a £120 premium for the 2 speakers) over the 2-way non-pivotable speakers (MA CT265) for Atmos duties in a 7.1.2 setup? The Atmos speakers will be about 4 feet away from the listener (ignoring the height).

 

[Son_of_SJ]

As you'd have guessed, I don't know whether 3-way or 2-way speakers would be better, though I put your speaker model numbers into google and I was led to a whole page of MA in-ceiling speakers, for the benefit of everyone else, here. More than ever before, with Dolby Atmos it emphasises the importance of demonstrating before purchase, and especially with a dealer who will let you return equipment if Dolby Atmos doesn't work for the customer in the customer's home.

Quite apart from Dolby Atmos, I really do like the review of the Yamaha RX-A3040 "The result is an epic demonstration of scale and immersion, bouncing along atop a torrent of fluid power.", eh? Now that is a machine that if I had the money I would buy immediately, without audition, especially as I have three other Yamaha receivers that I am happy with and the house Yamaha sound will not have changed!

 

[bigboss]

The main question is whether the Atmos speakers need to be pivoted towards the listener or if downfiring ceiling speakers 4 feet away will be sufficient.

I'm going for the Yamaha RX-A2040.

 

[Son_of_SJ]

The main question is whether the Atmos speakers need to be pivoted towards the listener or if downfiring ceiling speakers 4 feet away will be sufficient.

I guess that at this stage of the Dolby Atmos game only a dealer, like David at Frank Harvey, can answer that.

I'm going for the Yamaha RX-A2040.

Oh? I'm not sure of the specification of the A2040, but if it follows previous generations it also has nine amplifier channels as does the A3040, but without the option of adding an extra stereo amplifier to give 11 amplifier channels. So with the A2040, if I'm right (and I've not checked) you would be limited to Dolby Atmos 5.1.4 or 7.1.2. Whereas if you got the A3040, and added a cheap (eBay or gumtree, it doesn't have to be new) stereo amplifier for the extra two channels, you could have the full 7.1.4 Atmos setup, no? Seems a shame to rule out the most complete domestic option?

 

[bigboss]

Check this thread.

 

[bigboss]

The main question is whether the Atmos speakers need to be pivoted towards the listener or if downfiring ceiling speakers 4 feet away will be sufficient.

I guess that at this stage of the Dolby Atmos game only a dealer, like David at Frank Harvey, can answer that.

Yes, I've been in touch with him. In fact, I'm buying my stuff from him. He's having an Atmos demo towards the end of November, so he will ask them.

 

[Son_of_SJ]

Check this thread.

Ah, I see. The back of the room would potentially get very crowded. Mind you, if you did change your mind, the Denon receiver that I mentioned earlier does do Atmos 7.2.4 if you add an extra stereo amplifier ..... I'm surprised that the Yamaha RX-A3040 won't do Atmos 7.1.4 even though it has processing for 11 channels if you add an extra stereo ampfier.

 

[bigboss]

That's the whole point. It means adding more boxes. Going up from 7.1.2 to 7.1.4 is an additional £800 at least, plus a stereo amplifier (besides a complicated install). I'm not keen on Denon or Marantz or Onkyo. Pioneer has sold its AV business to Onkyo, so not keen on that either. Yamaha has served me well over the years.

 

[Son_of_SJ]

The Yamaha RX-A2040 it is then! It is three generations more advanced than the RX-A2010 that I have in the kitchen, with which I am very satisfied and with which at present (not even with a lottery win) there is no reason to upgrade, especially as I can't have Dolby Atmos in the kitchen (ceiling too low) and it is more than powerful enough for the 17' x 14' x 7'6" room size. Yours will have many improvements over mine - Dolby Atmos, 4K upscaling and passthrough, 3D processing ...... you'll enjoy it muchly!