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28 OPERATION
Operation
or a PCM audio track from DVD, use the Logic 7
C or Cinema mode. For stereo or surround encod-
ed pure music recordings use the Logic 7 M or
Music mode for a wider front sound stage (see
Surround Mode Chart page 26).
MP3 Audio Playback
The AVR 3000 is one of the first A/V receivers to
provide on-board decoding for the MP3 audio
format used on specific computer audio files and
by portable MP3 players/recorders. In addition,
some new CD and DVD players are capable of
playing back optical discs that are recorded with
MP3, rather than standard CD audio information.
By offering MP3 decoding, the AVR 3000 is able
to deliver more precise conversion of the digital
signals to an analog output, along with the ben-
efits of listening to the MP3 audio through the
AVR 3000’s high current amplifier and the speak-
ers from your surround system, rather than the
smaller speakers and low powered amplifiers typ-
ically used with computers.
To take advantage of the AVR 3000’s MP3 capa-
bilities, simply connect the PCM output of a com-
puter sound card able to feed the MP3 format to
its digital output, or the PCM output of MP3
compatible CD or DVD players or of a portable
MP3 player with a digital output, to either the
rear panel Digital Inputs
QR
or the front
panel Digital Inputs
#$
.When the digital
MP3 signal is selected, the MP3 Bitstream
Indicator
A
will light, and the audio will begin
playing.
NOTES:
• The AVR 3000 is only capable of playing sig-
nals in the MP3 (MPEG 1/Layer 3) format. It is
not compatible with other computer audio
codecs.
• The MP 3 DSP mode found in the new
AVR 3000 requires an MP3 SPDIF stream.
Presently, only a few units provide this but in the
coming generations of motherboards and operat-
ing system updates this will follow, since SPDIF is
the standard for audio & video hardware.
• The digital audio input signal may be either
optical or coaxial, but the signal must be in the
PCM format. Direct connection of USB or serial
data outputs is not possible, even though the sig-
nals are in the MP3 format. If you have any ques-
tions about the data output format from your
computer or a sound card, check with the
device’s Owner’s Manual or contact the manu-
facturer’s technical support area.
Selecting a Digital Source
To utilize either digital mode you must have
properly connected a digital source to the
AVR 3000. Connect the digital outputs from DVD
players, HDTV receivers, satellite systems or CD
players to the Optical or Coaxial inputs on the
rear or front panel
QR#$
. In order to pro-
vide a backup signal and a source for analog
stereo recording, the analog outputs provided on
digital source equipment should also be connect-
ed to their appropriate inputs on the AVR 3000
rear panel (e.g., connect the analog stereo audio
output from a DVD to the DVD inputs
5
on the
rear panel when you connect the source’s digital
outputs).
When playing a digital source such as DVD, first
select its input using the remote or front panel
controls as outlined in this manual in order to
feed its video signal (if any) to the TV monitor
and to provide its analog audio signal for record-
ing.When the digital input appropriate with the
DVD player is not selected automatically (due to
the input settings made earlier during the system
configuration, see page 19), select the digital
source by pressing the Digital Input Selector
button
G
Ò
and then using the
⁄
/
¤
buttons
D
on the remote or the Selector buttons
5
on the front panel to
choose any of the
OPTICAL or COAXIAL
inputs, as they
appear in the Main Information Display Y,
Display Indicator
BE
or on-screen display.
When the digital source is playing, the AVR 3000
will automatically detect whether it is a multi-
channel Dolby Digital, DTS source, MP3 or a con-
ventional PCM signal, which is the standard out-
put from CD players. A Bitstream Indicator
A
will light in the Main Information Display
Ú
to confirm that the digital signal is Dolby Digital,
DTS, MP3 or PCM.
Note that a digital input (e.g. coaxial) remains
associated with any analog input (e.g. DVD) as
soon as it is selected, thus the digital input need
not be re-selected each time the appropriate
input choice (e.g. DVD) is made.
Digital Status Indicators
When a digital source is playing, the AVR 3000
senses the type of bitstream data that is present.
Using this information, the correct surround mode
will automatically be selected. For example, DTS
bitstreams will cause the unit to switch to DTS
decoding, and Dolby Digital bitstreams will enable
Dolby Digital decoding.When the unit senses
PCM data, from CDs and LDs and some music
DVDs or certain tracks on normal DVDs, it will
allow the appropriate surround mode to be
selected manually. Since the range of available
surround modes depends on the type of digital
data that is present, the AVR 3000 uses a variety
of indicators to let you know what type of signal
is present.This will help you to understand the
choice of modes and the input channels recorded
on the disc.
When a digital source is playing, a Bitstream
Indicator
A
will light to show which type of
signal is playing:
DOLBY D:When the DOLBY D indicator
lights, a Dolby Digital bitstream is being received.
Depending on the audio track selected on the
source player and number of channels on the
disc, different surround modes are possible. Note
that only one channel without subwoofer, called
”1.0” audio, or all five channels with subwoofer
(”5.1” audio) or all steps between can be record-
ed on digitally surround encoded audio tracks
(see NOTE below). With all those tracks, except
”2.0” audio, only the Dolby Digital and VMAx
modes are available. When the Dolby Digital sig-
nal is only two channel (”2.0”) these two chan-
nels (l and r) often contain Pro Logic surround
informations. With those tracks the AVR3000
automatically switches to the Pro Logic mode,
but you may also select the Vmax mode.
DTS: When the DTS indicator lights, a DTS bit-
stream is being received.When the unit senses
this type of data, only the DTS mode may be used.
PCM: When the PCM indicator lights, a standard
Pulse Code Modulation, or PCM, signal is being
received.This is the type of digital audio used by
conventional compact disc and laser disc record-
ings. When a PCM bitstream is present, all modes
except Dolby Digital and DTS are available. Note
that the PCM signal format can be selected on the
DVD player with any audio track, even with Dolby
Digital tracks (but not with Dolby Digital decod-
ing). So, if selected, even ”2.0” D.D. audio tracks
can be played with all surround modes, also with
the most effective Logic 7.
MP3: When the MP3 indicator lights, a compat-
ible MPEG 1/Layer 3 digital signal is being
received.This is the popular audio format used by
many computer programs for recording com-
pressed audio files. When an MP3 bitstream is
present, the sound will automatically be played
in the stereo (surround off) mode. The surround
modes are not available during MP3 playback.
In addition to the Bitstream Indicators, the
AVR 3000 features a set of unique channel input
indicators that tell you how many channels of
digital information are being received and if the
digital signal is interrupted.
These indicators are the L/C/R/LS/RS/LFE letters
that are inside the center boxes of the
Speaker/Channel Input Indicators
Q
in the
front panel Main Information Display
Ú
.
When a standard analog stereo or matrix sur-
round signal is in use, only the “L” and “R” indi-
cators will light, as analog signals have only left
and right channels, respectively, even surround
recordings, carry surround information on the left
and right channels only.
Digital signals, however, may have one to six sep-
arate channels, depending on the program mate-
rial, the method of transmission and the way in
which it was encoded.When a digital signal is
playing, the letters in these indicators will light in
response to the specific signal being received. It