STR-DA7100ES Features, Setup & Menu System

• Upconversion of all 480i video inputs (composite, s-video, component) to 480p HDMI and/or component (HDMI does not downconvert to component video)
• Video upconversion and processing are defeatable (Note: closed captioning will not work unless video conversion is set to "off")
• HDMI multi-channel audio is supported (DTS, Dolby Digital, DVD-Audio, and LPCM)

• "9.1" proprietary surround mode support for using additional side surround speakers (wired in parallel on the same amplifiers) Note: There does not appear to any explanation of any associated DSP for use with 9.1 loudspeaker configurations

• i.Link with Dolby Digital, DTS, DVD-Audio, LPCM and DSD support as well as a buffer for reduced jitter.
• 3 User presets for DSP and input settings

There are also several features which are targeted to address the needs of the custom installer:

• 3 Zones with independent source selection (analogue only) and 12VDC trigger settings
• Collapsible Setup menu which hides some advanced setup functions
• "Installer Mode" enables and disables the RS-232C port when the unit is powered down
• Extensive Zone and 12VDC trigger customization (see above)

I'd have to say that overall I was very pleased with the feature set of this receiver. An additional HDMI and component video input would be welcome at this price as would a more compatible IEEE 1394 input (though this will hardly be significant next year as new HDMI 1.3 products are released). I'll also speak a bit about the remote control and Sony's control and menu methodologies later in the review.

Some will laugh at me, but I actually had to read through the manual to figure out how to bring up the on-screen display. So "set in my ways" was I, that I was intently focused on finding a "Setup" button. Sony's remote calls it "On Screen" which is not at all counterintuitive, except that it appears under a button labeled "Main Menu". Having failed my first Sony test I proceeded into the SPEAKER SET UP menu where I was able to configure what speakers I was using, their size, distance, and whether my surrounds were located at SIDE HIGH/LOW or BEHIND HIGH/LOW positions. I was also able to set the crossover frequency which is adjustable from 40Hz to 200Hz in 10Hz increments. Distance is configurable in 1 foot steps - we like to see at least 0.5 foot increments on higher end/higher cost products.

One thing Sony does in their Setup Menu that really struck me as super-convenient was their EASY SET UP sub-menu function. Using the remote control you can simply scroll through a series of visual representations of surround sound speaker configurations from 2.0 all the way to 7.1 setups.

Options include those without center channels and the various surround speaker locations (behind versus side, raised, lowered, etc.)

After configuring your speaker and crossover settings you'll want to proceed with getting the correct levels to the listening position. While we give extra credit to receivers providing automated setup and configuration systems, its absence here wasn't really all that significant. The LEVEL menu features a pink noise test tone which can be set to "Auto" or "Fixed" (which is nice as you can park yourself and get an accurate level reading for one channel at a time.) Here, the non-standard Sony approach to configuration reared its ugly head. There is no "follow what I'm doing" mode, so if you want to adjust the center channel, followed by the surround right channel, you have to scroll all the way back to the top to change the "Fixed" setting from 'Center' to 'Surr R'. (The reason I didn't use left of right as an example is because you adjust levels relative to the main speakers which only have a balance control.) Our preference would be to have "Fixed" automatically jump the test tone to any speaker that is being adjusted. The "Auto" mode puts the tone on the speaker for only 1 second, so it is pretty much useless for calibration purposes.

OK, now the good news. Sony included two features which I think are simply excellent for custom installers in particular. Under the LEVEL menu are two items labeled "Phase Noise" and "Phase Audio". "Phase Noise" allow you to play the pink noise test tone in two adjoining speakers at the same time to double check whether they are in phase. "Phase Audio" goes one step further and allows you to use the 2 front channels - sound for checking phase in this manner. This is helpful in checking whether your surround speakers are in phase with the rest of the system.

SB Decoding/Mode
This simply allows you to predetermine how your Surround Back speakers will be implemented when a Dolby Digital EX flag is detected (all 6 of them - lol). Options include Dolby Digital EX, Pro Logic IIx Music, and Pro Logic IIx Movie modes. There are some caveats regarding 6.1 vs. 7.1 systems (namely 6.1 systems will always play Dolby Digital EX on a flagged movie by default) but you should be able to get the general idea.

If you plan to use a 9.1 speaker setup (presumably if you have an extremely long/large room and desire a true surround array) there is an option for indicating this. I am not aware of any particular DSP which results from this setting and your Surround Back speakers must be set to "Dual" for this to become an available option.

"Multi In 5.1 > 7.1" ensures that analogue multi-channel 5.1 sources are made available as 7.1 preamplified signals for use with an external amplifier. This is very handy if you are using analogue inputs for DVD-Audio or SACD.

i.Link can be assigned a video input so that you can use it as a transmission medium with compatible players (Sony only lists the SCD-XA9000ES as being specifically compatible.) We weren't exactly shocked to find that this only potentially works with Sony players.

A Dimmer option allows you to set the front panel gain to 0, 60, or 100 percent brightness. One thing we noticed about the front panel display is that it goes dark after 2 seconds. There does not seem to be a user override for this, nor can you adjust the time for the panel to go black. It was nice to see Sony work to prevent "LED clutter" in the listening room, but it also became quite frustrating when I was looking to get specific information off the display regarding stream info and such. I suspect that under typical use this should end up being a great feature.

A.F.D. 2CH SW
A.F.D. is Sony's acronym for "Auto Format Direct". This cryptically-named menu item is similar to a "Source Direct" mode, and will take a 2-channel input and apply the crossover to send low frequencies to the subwoofer (when set to "Create").

The CUSTOMIZE Menu
This is the "garbage bagel" of settings. Sony took everything else they needed to provide settings for, including some very major items, and lumped them into a general CUSTOMIZE menu heading. Audio, Video, menu options, analogue and digital input assignments, and DSP - all are found here. I, for one, would hope to see, at the very least, input assignments and video processing pulled out into the main menu in future models. 27 sub-items, most of which are key settings, does not make for a sensible organizational structure. There are a lot of important items in here so I'll try to cover them as best I can.

DIGITAL ASSIGN
While the optical and coax inputs are labeled on the back of the receiver, they can be associated with, or assigned to, one of several video inputs. It's a tad confusing on several counts, however, as none of the digital inputs are numbered. For example, I had two DVD players connected at one point and ended up routing "TV/SAT COAX" to "VIDEO 1" to obtain coax to the Video 1 input for my second player. Your "available" inputs are Video 1, Video 2, and Tape in addition to each digital input's default. A somewhat better system, one I'd love to see Sony implement, would involve simple numbered inputs with full assignability.

COMPONENT VIDEO ASSIGN
This submenu sets the assignability of the two available component video inputs. Simply select the input (again labeled as DVD and TV/SAT instead of simply numbered) and select to which video input you would like it assigned. With only two inputs this wasn't nearly as odd as the coax and optical audio configuration menu I had just navigated.

HDMI VIDEO ASSIGN
HDMI Video Assign works in exactly the same way as Component Video Assign but with numbered, rather than labeled, inputs. You can also set whether or not the HDMI audio will pass through the receiver to the HDMI-enabled display.

Missing Features
There were some things we looked for and didn't find. On-the-fly channel trims is a big one. When you are jumping between SACD, DVD, Dolby Digital and DTS you are simply going to want to be able to make adjustments to your center channel and subwoofer without having to go into the main Setup menu and permanently alter your settings. On-the-fly level adjustments are the solution and Sony has yet to implement this in their ES line. Another feature we look for is input leveling whereby you can adjust the input levels of all of your sources to avoid volume jumps when going from input the input. It is also nice to have a feature for limiting maximum volume and setting the default "turn on" volume. This is a great safety feature - especially with receiver sporting a 170W/channel amplifier!