[Jake]

What kind of speakers came with the system? Are they 2 or 3-way? Does the receiver have bass management? What are they lacking, power? Maybe the amp is too weak.

 

[Jake]

Yes I know what you mean. I much prefer the sound of CD's from my 15 year old Pioneer receiver and tower speakers than I do with my 5.1 satelllite setup. Perhaps because the old speakers have tweeters, mid-range and woofers. Whereas my 5.1 setup, while great for movies is lacking punch for music and sends the bass to the sub.

 

[Jake]

I am not an expert in audio but perhaps some the audiophiles here could advise you. It may also be the placement of your speakers that results in a poor stereo or surround field. I have read that sub placement can be tweaked. I just placed my beside the TV and it seemed to be what I was expecting (for movies).

I have a similar setup as you except my Pioneer HTIB receiver does video switching as well. For CD's I turn off the DSP and put the decoding mode to AUTO or NONE. I have P.BASS ON. Also check to make sure MIDNIGHT is not ON as it will compress the range of the sound. Like you found you can booth the bass and treble a few notches.

Did you setup the distances for your speakers? My systems allows me to enter the distances to all 6 speakers. Also run the "test tone" and see how well balanced everything is.