View Full Version : Onkyo SP-800
ear-doc
03-21-2003, 06:57 AM
I just hooked this player up and everything is fine except I get no sound when playing a SACD. It recgonizes the SACD and indicates it's playing but no sound. DVD videos, CD's and DVD audios all work fine. Any thoughts or suggestions?
ear-doc
I'm not an SACD person, but I believe you need to hook up 5-6 separate cables from the output of the player to the appropriate input on your receiver (if you have them). The digital coaxial or Toslink connector does not carry the SACD signals.
Check the operating manuals for both pieces of equipment on the hookup instructions. The manuals for receivers are usually quite clear, not sure about the DVD player..
ear-doc
03-23-2003, 07:27 AM
Thanks for the input. I had the 4 cables from the player hooked up to my receiver BUT I had them hooked up to the wrong area. Once I hooked them to the 6 channel section everything worked fine. I discovered this by reading the receiver manual as you suggested. I find it interesting that some items like dvd audio and SACD sound better in the 6ch mode but dvd videos sound better with the digital input. May be an adjustment issue.:D
The receiver may have a better decoder for DVDs, or the decoder may simply be "different" and you like the sound better. I would not have expected a signficant difference, but I'm sure there's some.
Most people recommend using the receiver's decoder, unless of course it won't decode - like with SACD.
ear-doc
03-23-2003, 12:10 PM
Thank you again for your comments. You say that it is reccomended to use the receivers decoder- does this mean that the decoding effects the quality of the signal or sound. How can you determine if a device has "good" decoding ability. Is there something in the specs that provide this information? My dvd player, Onkyo SP800 cost more than my Yamaha HTR-5560, is cost a factor in decoding quality. Perhaps I should consider a better or "more expensive" receiver. :confused: :confused:
I would guess that people recommend using the receiver's decoder because it is "better". I doubt it is a "lot better". Perhaps there are some differences in the way decoders operate, especially from different brands (Onkyo, vs Yamaha). One may not be "better" just "different"... I doubt there are any specs for this.
It's usually a good idea to have "equivalent quality" throughout your component line, but if the receiver is doing its job and you're happy with it, probably no reason to replace it...
I quickly looked at the specs for the receiver and it looks more than adequate. Sit back and enjoy, whichever decoder you prefer...
spaceman_spiff
03-24-2003, 10:21 AM
Arent the decoder for DD or DTS certified by Dolby or DTS respectively, just like in THX certification for THX select or Ultra decoding.
I may be wrong, was just wondering ?
But if the answer is yes, they should be almost the same.
THX certification means that the component meets certain minimum requirements. It doesn't mean that the components that meet the requirements will sound exactly the same... certainly not the speakers...
