Anyone here get a Emotiva UMC-1?

[Xki]

I'm going to try this afternoon, also. After getting the UPA-7 running, everything needs to be readjusted so it's the perfect time to upgarde. From what I hear, the new firmware is much more an upgrade than an update. We shall see!

[kde]

what about Onkyo/Integra processors?

When Integra is mentioned, it seems that people always reference the 9.8 or 9.9 model -- why not the 40.1 or 40.2 models?

[carbon summit]

I did the firmware upgrade and it took on the first try. No problems at all. Sounds like the picture has changed so I plan on recalibrating the TV tonight. I never really had any problems with the .05 firmware so hard for me to say what has been improved. The mute button works like I'd expect it to now so I'm pretty happy with that!

Anyone notice any new improvements with the latest firmware?

[InVeNtOr]

when i bought mine, it had a firmware of 6.0 or something like that. it was much lower than the lowerest firmware on the site. i have had the .05 for quite a while now (vincent emailed it to me before it was available on the website) and to be honest, other than now having an "All Stereo" option, i can't tell a difference. when i did the .05 update it was the third time i have done one, and i really didn't notice any differences.

[Xki]

Did the upgrade yesterday. Ran EmoQ and recalibrated the TV today. Tested with CDs, Pandora, BluRays, and DVDs.

Watched Lord of the Rings, Disk 6 - The dynamic range is much improved. When the actors are whispering, it now sounds like a whisper instead of modulated pink noise. Cracks, thumps, bangs, clanks, explosions are great! Picture quality is the best yet. Recalibration of the plasma was needed. The new firmware is much more accurate in PQ. I had to flatten out most all of the boosts that I did prior to the firmware upgrade. The black levels are deeper. Sharpness needs zero boost. Avatar BluRay shows the color accuracy of the new f/w. I don't know if that was tweaked or not but, during the floating mountain scenes, there was more detail in the background and the color specks on the foreground went right down to the pixel. SQ during orchestral passages was very full. I actually played parts of these 2 DVDs before and after the upgrade for comparison. The surround experience is also better. LOTR showed this very well. The forest sounds in Avatar really wrap you up in the stage.

Danny Elfman on Pandora was better than before. A full orchestra is a great test for the new f/w. Honestly, I think if I listened hard enough, I could tell you how many violins were playing at any given time. Enya was fuller and smoother across the entire frequency range. There was an improvement here but not as much as CDs.

The noise floor is so low that between CD tracks I sometimes thought my amp was off. Really! I put in Rush - Snakes and Arrows for a few tests. With the new firmware, the La Scalas just plain sang. Mind you I just added a UPA-7 for amplification. That upgrade in and of itself was startling. But the difference with the new f/w took it up an additional level. PLIIx - Movie, with dimension set at 5, center width at 3, and the db meter peaking about 98 was killer. That's about as close to the much sought after "party mode" as you can get. The punch was better than before and each instrament was easily discernable. Vocals on this CD aren't mixed very well so I switched to some Transiberian Orchestra. Now that was a treat. Instead of sounding sort of studio compressed and altered, the vocals were more raw. That was a good thing. Every breath inhaled sounded right.

EmoQ is substantially improved. Distances were spot on except for the subs that are always problematic. Crossovers were where they should be. Speaker levels were so close that I only needed to boost the surround rears by 1.5 db. EQ needed about 30% of the tweaking it needed the last time I ran it. For some reason it set the 2k and 4k on my left main 3db too high. Easily fixed. It set my HeresyII center exactly right to match the mains. It never did that before. Amazing.

I'm a happy camper so far. I'll test basic HDMI lock on and decoding this week. The UMC-1 powers on/off about 15% faster. Also, my learning remote all but lost all the UMC codes with the upgrade. The Emo remote was fine. Taught the learning remote again and all is well.

[carbon summit]

EQ needed about 30% of the tweaking it needed the last time I ran it. For some reason it set the 2k and 4k on my left main 3db too high.

Any advice on how to tweak the EQ? How do you do it?

[Xki]

EQ needed about 30% of the tweaking it needed the last time I ran it. For some reason it set the 2k and 4k on my left main 3db too high.

Any advice on how to tweak the EQ? How do you do it?

I don't know if there is any 'good' advice I can give. It's a really
subjective process. I'll try to explain what I do and that might help. I
don't have any sophisticated testing equipment except for my ears! I'm snowbound working from home today. I could multi-task and write some stuff quickly but even though I CAN muti-task, that isn't how I prefer to work. I'll try to get some thoughts posted later today. :-)

[Xki]

EQ needed about 30% of the tweaking it needed the last time I ran it. For some reason it set the 2k and 4k on my left main 3db too high.

Any advice on how to tweak the EQ? How do you do it?

I don't know if there is any 'good' advice I can give. It's a really
subjective process. I'll try to explain what I do and that might help. I
don't have any sophisticated testing equipment except for my ears! I'm snowbound working from home today. I could multi-task and write some stuff quickly but even though I CAN muti-task, that isn't how I prefer to work. I'll try to get some thoughts posted later today. :-)

What I do first is make sure only the surrounds are playing. I unplug everything else and use PLIIx with 2 channel source CD. EmoQ has a tendency to reduce the low end on the sourronds and I know they can handle more. I bring up the lows at the crossover point and above until it's warmer. Done.

Next I check that the surrounds are focussed in the middle of my head in the sweet spot. +/- 1 or 2 db does the trick. Done.

Next I hook the mains back up and disconnect all others. Again with 2 channel source CD. This is where you really have to concentrate. I look for a center mixed part of the source and try to hear if any of the frequencies are pulled to one side or the other. For my LaScalas, thats pretty easy. The 1, 2, 4k bands are where the biggest difference is usually found. I've found my left front to be a little harsh so I play with those 3 bands until the left sounds just like the right and the center mixed part is a narrow as possible. (Wide is bad!) Done

Next is the speaker level. This is the easiest part. Put in a movie that has a lot of surround and just sit and listen. If you want more, push the surrounds up. I normally have the rear surronds 2/3 db higher than the sides. That's just my preference. Done.

The subs are the hardest part but with the new EmoQ it was much easier. I have a few examples of source material that are really bass heavy and can boom if the subs are too hot. So I put those in first and get rid of the boominess with LFE level. I found that my room sucks up bass at about 53 Hz. It's a big notch! -10+db! So I adjust the bands in that area to find a happy medium between too much and too little. That's just part of it. Now I have to pay attention to which speaker is redirecting the bass to the subs. (Avia II disc is perfect for this) If the surrond speaker makes the sub boom, you have to lower the bass bands, below the crossover point until the sub sounds better or more in line with what you expect. THis is a 1 speaker at atime deal but, I do the rights first and then just set the lefts the same. Once that is complete, I switch to the center. Same exercise. I have needed to do more trial and error on this one. TheLFE/Sub crossover frequency makes a huge difference. So does the slope. I've gotten it all set and changed my mind many times. Settled on 90Hz crossover on the subs at 12db slope. It makes the subs blend well. Done.

The final bit is to really pick some well mixed source and just listen. I've found that tweaking the 500Hz band by 1 db up/down can change the whole experience. My room is to blame. And that's OK!

Done!

Back in the days of plain old stereo we had it made. Now we need more time, a more discerning ear, and crutches in the form of setup discs and SPL meters. Keeps us young!

[carbon summit]

Now I have to pay attention to which speaker is redirecting the bass to the subs. (Avia II disc is perfect for this) If the surrond speaker makes the sub boom, you have to lower the bass bands, below the crossover point until the sub sounds better or more in line with what you expect. THis is a 1 speaker at atime deal but, I do the rights first and then just set the lefts the same. Once that is complete, I switch to the center. Same exercise. I have needed to do more trial and error on this one. TheLFE/Sub crossover frequency makes a huge difference. So does the slope. I've gotten it all set and changed my mind many times. Settled on 90Hz crossover on the subs at 12db slope. It makes the subs blend well. Done.

I think this highlights the bass management problem with the UMC-1. But overall the UMC-1 is probably the most flexible system I've ever owned.

[carbon summit]

Now I have to pay attention to which speaker is redirecting the bass to the subs. (Avia II disc is perfect for this) If the surrond speaker makes the sub boom, you have to lower the bass bands, below the crossover point until the sub sounds better or more in line with what you expect. THis is a 1 speaker at atime deal but, I do the rights first and then just set the lefts the same. Once that is complete, I switch to the center. Same exercise. I have needed to do more trial and error on this one. TheLFE/Sub crossover frequency makes a huge difference. So does the slope. I've gotten it all set and changed my mind many times. Settled on 90Hz crossover on the subs at 12db slope. It makes the subs blend well. Done.

I think this highlights the bass management problem with the UMC-1. But overall the UMC-1 is probably the most flexible system I've ever owned.

I usually set all the speakers EQs flat on the lower two frequenes so the sub doesn't get any boosts it shouldn't since thats what Lonnie recommended doing with the UMC-1. I might try your way to see the difference. I have a test CD that plays bass tones from 10 Hz to 300 Hz. I need to take the time to play the CD with my SPL meter and find out where my peaks and dips are in my room.

[Xki]

I usually set all the speakers EQs flat on the lower two frequenes so the sub doesn't get any boosts it shouldn't since thats what Lonnie recommended doing with the UMC-1. I might try your way to see the difference. I have a test CD that plays bass tones from 10 Hz to 300 Hz. I need to take the time to play the CD with my SPL meter and find out where my peaks and dips are in my room.

I believe everyone's way is different. And yes, this shows the problem with the UMC bass management.

Those sweep tones along with an iPhone app (RTA - Real Time Analyzer) really worked well to show where my room was lacking. In a perfect world, the EQ on the UMC-1 would be capable of adjusting down to 5Hz bands. ***** Then I woke up! []

I would be interested in the methods you use to get things in order. Share if you have time.

Regards, Xki