Sony STR de845, 5.1 Surround does not work. 3.2 is indicated o

Might be a bad speaker relay.

There are a few things required for the rear surround channels to operate;

1. The surround back channels must be enabled in the surround setup menu.

2. The media being played through the receiver must have audio encoded for the rear surround
channels. There are only a few exceptions to this but I'll exclude the explanation for simplicity.

3. The audio level of the speaker channels must be set high enough to be audible.


Enter the surround setup menu with your remote. Use the center button on the remote to toggle through the selections, press down on it to enter the selection.
You will navigate to a selection in the surround setup menu that says "surround back" or S/B with a selectable yes or no indication. Press on the center button to enable them.

Media like DVD or Blu-ray that has 6.1 or 7.1 channel audio has separate, or often referred to as "discrete" or "matrixed" audio intended for playback through surround rear speakers, depending on the music or movie. If your media is encoded for 5.1, then there will be no audio sent to these speakers. However, with the different modes of on-board digital processing of this receiver you can still have audio through these speakers.

Last but not least is the actual playing level of these rear surround channels. They may simply be adjusted to quietly. Enter the setup menu with remote, choose "level" and navigate to the rear surround channels. You can adjust the level up or down in 1/2 dB level increments by toggling left or right with the center button. Each surround channel can and should be adjusted independently and equally.

Since you seem to be having problems with 'simulated' surround, how does ACTUAL surround material behave?

Have you tried AFD with certifiable multichannel source material to verify the surround speakers receive programmed sound??

Do the Dolby Digital or Pro Logic indicators light?

What about the other modes?

Check if you're using the digital cables like optical cable to get the audio from the receiver. If yes, please select the Input mode to AUTO by pressing the mode button repeatedly. If you're using a analog cables, please try to change the sound field and check. Press the A.F.D button repeatedly to change the sound field and try. You can also try connecting a different audio source like Cable box, dvd player and check the issue.
If the issue persists, please reset the receiver. To reset the Receiver, turn OFF the unit and press n hold the MODE + button and Power button till S.F Initialize appears. If the issue still persists, you may be having 90 days warranty after the date of repair or original warranty which ever is longer. Contact sony to resolve the issue.

Here you go buddy:
http://www.docs.sony.com/release/STRDE685.pdf

The rear speaker decoding has to be enabled for them to function, regardless of the media. Enter the speaker setup menu and choose "yes" for the rear surround speaker decoding.

I had this problem last night.

To solve it, you can reset the amp by:

1) Put the receiver on stand-by
2) Hold down "MODE" button and press on button
3) "S.F. CLR" appears in the display and surround is back on.


Good luck

Dr Gardner

Hi There,

Maybe can clarify the reasons you have different output configurations.
I worked for Dolby in London for ten years and cinema processing was an area close to me.

To cut a long story short;

The number of factors and different combinations possible for a fully equipped cinema offering Dolby and / or other protocols to the guest is large to say the least even within the Dolby formats.

For Sony to try to offer a range of home units (recievers or tuner/amps/decoders in this case) was to say the least ambitious .but hey!..........who else can give the public what they think they need.,,,good old Sony

I have looked at this unit and it seems the "amplifier section" is used for various configourations
and power output ratings vary depending on the configuration you choose.

Stereo 2 ch L+R is 2 x 75w

Surround requires more channels (centre and mono rear) and of course new signal routing to and from these blocks which of course will draw from the modest power supply.

So 4 channel surround will deliver 4 x 50w.

etc. etc.............what you hear are the relays which are reconfiguring and re - routing the signals.

Basically you cant have all the sections working all the time due to cost /design restraints

So speakers A OR B can be used but not BOTH when in surround mode....where the centre and surround are needed. .you cant have A and B at any time....push both buttons an NEITHER will work ....release one button and there you go.............it saves "letting the smoke out of the box".........which you should never do...........cos they never work without it. :)

Sorry for boring you ...............but I think you will find the unit is working just fine.............you could read the manual but that's not too informative.

Right...off to get a life now

Nik

Receivers like this will incorrectly decode rear channel audio and pass it on to the rear channels as distorted audio. Make sure the source being used really has rear channel information encoded into it. It could have other issues but check this first.