Denon AVR-X3300W A/V Receiver Menu System & Set Up
Denon Receiver Setup Assist
Denon has put forth quiet an effort to make the setup of their receivers easy for the layman. Upon initial power up you are asked a series of questions pertaining to your speaker layout, size, etc so the AVR-X3300W can properly configure them. You can then use the included microphone to have Audyssey equalize and set the delays and levels of all of your speakers.
Denon AVR-X3300W offers 0.5dB channel adjustments and 0.1ft trim increments.
Audyssey Editor App & Manual EQ
In most situations, I usually use the auto-EQ system to configure delay and level for the speakers and then disable the EQ because it usually does more harm than good. This is because the prospect of full range EQ is a nebulous goal at best since the EQ system has no way of distinguishing between the loudspeaker response and effect of the room has on the speaker above bass frequencies (> 300Hz) so it tries to correct it as a system, which can muck things up. Thankfully the folks at D&M listened to consumer feedback and worked on an App exclusive to Denon and Marantz that allows the end user to limit and adjust the EQ after the calibration is run. This is all done via your smartphone and it's very slick and worth the $20 it will cost you in your App store. In fact, it has me on the fence about eventually trading in my venerable Denon AVP-A1HDCI for a new flagship Marantz Atmos Pre/Pro that will offer this feature.
Audyssey EQ Editor App - screenshot taking from mobile device
Note how the correction is limited to 500Hz (bottom pic)
This app allows users to:
- View the Audyssey MultEQ speaker detection results, to check and modify the configuration, and adjust for any unusual speaker set-up
- View before and after results of the Audyssey calibration, making it easy to identify room problems and see just what changes the system is making
- Edit the Audyssey target curve for each channel pair to suit individual tastes
- Adjust the overall EQ frequency roll-off for each channel pair
- Switch between two high-frequency roll-off target curves
- Enable/Disable midrange compensation to make the sound brighter or smoother, perhaps making dialogue even clearer or taming those hard-edged soundtracks
- Gives the home theater enthusiast even greater control over the performance of their surround sound system
- Save calibration results for ‘piece of mind’, ready for instant re-loading should one ever need to reset their system
Editorial Note on Audyssey App Testing:
Unfortunately during the time this review was being written, the Audyssey App was not available. We will be testing this feature extensively in future Denon/Marantz products and will report on it then.
For those that want to fine tune the equalization of their system, Denon offers a manual 9-band graphic EQ for each channel. This is really archaic and I wish Denon would update it to a PEQ (Parametric EQ) to allow for variable frequency and Q control. Imagine how slick that would be if they did this via their smartphone App. Then you could fine-tune the bass in your system without ever having to run Auto-EQ at all. Yamaha has this on their AVENTAGE AV receivers with adjustability down to 15Hz. Come on Denon!
Denon AVR-X3300W GEQ - Please Denon Update to a PEQ
Denon AVR-X3300W Bass Management OSD
Speaker Set-Up & Bass Management
Denon has always offered excellent bass management on all of their AV receivers, and the AVR-X3300W is no exception. As mentioned earlier, it offers dual independent subwoofer outputs and has a separate setting for LFE crossover, which we usually recommend leaving at 120Hz to not truncate the LFE soundtrack of Blu-ray or DVD mixes which can have content above 80Hz that would otherwise be lost if you set the LFE crossover lower. You can have independent crossover settings per channel groupings.
Denon AVR-X3300W Bass Management
Using our Audio Precision APx585 8-channel HDMI Audio Analyzer, I measured the HPF and LPF responses of the bass management circuits and observed a 20dB/oct slope of the LPF and 12dB/oct slope of the HPF at the selected crossover frequency. Normally I'd like to see a 24dB/oct slope of the LPF like you see on THX certified products, but the slightly more shallow slope probably won't make much of an audible difference in a practical sense.
Denon AVR-X3330W Eco Mode - NEVER Engage!
Eco Mode - Avoid like the Plague!
As much as I am in favor of conserving resources and reducing my carbon footprint on this planet, running Eco mode on your AV receiver isn't going to slow the rising ocean levels or lower the acidity of our oceans. Instead, it's going to starve your speakers of power. With Eco mode engaged, it limited power on the bench to 20 watts/ch no matter how many channels were driven. This is worse than the dreaded 4-ohm impedance switch many receiver companies are using today. Make triple sure you NEVER set this receiver to Eco if you plan on using the internal amplifiers. I'd go so far as to omit the button from the remote control in case someone accidentally hits it and engages that mode.Caution: No matter how tempted you may be to do so, DO NOT change the default "8 ohm min" impedance setting of ANY AV receiver. All this does is starve your speakers of power, simply so Denon could get 4-ohm certification (at a reduced power level) without making the receiver get too hot during their power tests.
For more information, see: Setting the AV Receiver Impedance Switch
Power Amplifier Assignability
Denon offers flexible amplifier management that will accommodate virtually anything you want to do with its seven internal amplifiers, including running a 5.1.2 Atmos setup, a 7.1 conventional surround setup, 5.1 in the main zone and two speakers to zone 2 or bi-amp for the main zone. We don't recommend bi-amping with this receiver since its modest power supply won't really gain you much driving a pair of power-hungry bi-ampable towers. Instead, consider using the preamp outputs and external amplification if you want more power.
Unfortunately Denon did NOT include an extra set of speaker terminals like Yamaha did with the RX-A860 and Onkyo/Pioneer did on their similarly priced models. so the user could automatically switch between height/back channels or zone2 speakers. Thus, you need to decide during install which route you want to go, or add an external 2CH amp if you want both. That's an unfortunate oversight on Denon's part but gives them something to "upgrade" for their next generation product.
Denon AVR-X3300W Speaker Assignability Chart
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Recent Forum Posts:
KEW, post: 1313646, member: 41838
I find ECO mode reduces the temp by around 10 degrees F!
As Verdinut implied, it only effects the amplification section, downstream of the pre-outs, so if you run all external amps, it is a no-brainer. Personally, I would not hesitate to use ECO mode with the internal amps (aside from the front three channel).
I did not notice an audible difference between with and without ECO, but figure I won't take the chance on the front 3 since I have external amps available.
I have also started using Eco mode and the Xfinity Fans. Heat is no longer an issue and the sound does not seem affected to my ears! Thanks!
DigitalD, post: 1313326, member: 85490I find ECO mode reduces the temp by around 10 degrees F!
Great review. Does anyone know if turning ECO mode on affects sound with external amplification? Id like to have my Denon X4400H run cooler. It gets very hot.
As Verdinut implied, it only effects the amplification section, downstream of the pre-outs, so if you run all external amps, it is a no-brainer. Personally, I would not hesitate to use ECO mode with the internal amps (aside from the front three channel).
I did not notice an audible difference between with and without ECO, but figure I won't take the chance on the front 3 since I have external amps available.
Verdinut, post: 1313328, member: 80194
Whether you are using your AVR's internal amps or not, setting it on ECO mode won't affect any external amplifiiers connected to it. The pre-out signal level will not be modified.
For the heat problem, you can get AC Infinity fans from Amazon at very affordable cost. AC Infinity have several fan systems available to cool electronic equipment. I use the Airplate Series 5 system on top of my AVR using three 100mm fans with excellent results.
Thanks! I have ordered a pair of AC Infinity fans to help with cooling as well.
DigitalD, post: 1313326, member: 85490
Great review. Does anyone know if turning ECO mode on affects sound with external amplification? Id like to have my Denon X4400H run cooler. It gets very hot.
Whether you are using your AVR's internal amps or not, setting it on ECO mode won't affect any external amplifiiers connected to it. The pre-out signal level will not be modified.
For the heat problem, you can get AC Infinity fans from Amazon at very affordable cost. AC Infinity have several fan systems available to cool electronic equipment. I use the Airplate Series 5 system on top of my AVR using three 100mm fans with excellent results.