How to Set Up Speakers and Run Auto Calibration on the Sony STR-DH590

To set up speakers on the Sony STR-DH590, unplug the receiver and wire each speaker to its matching SPEAKERS terminals. Connect a powered subwoofer to a SUBWOOFER OUT jack, then turn everything on with the TV connected. Easy Setup appears on the TV. Pick your language, plug the supplied microphone into the CALIBRATION MIC jack, set it at ear height at your seat, and select [Start]. After about 30 seconds of test tones, choose [Save&Exit].

Auto Calibration checks that each speaker is connected. It also measures distance, level, size, and frequency response. You need a TV connected to the receiver to see the setup screens, and the test tones are loud. You can run it again any time from the home menu. Everything below works for the full 5.1 layout and for smaller systems down to two speakers and a subwoofer.

What you need

• Speakers rated at 6 to 16 ohms. This is Sony’s range for the STR-DH590. Check the label on the back of each speaker.
• Speaker wire, plus a mono RCA cable (often sold as a subwoofer cable) for the subwoofer. Neither comes in the box.
• The calibration microphone that came with the receiver.
• A TV connected to the receiver’s HDMI TV OUT jack. If yours isn’t hooked up yet, see our STR-DH590 HDMI ARC connection guide first.
• About 15 quiet minutes.

Step 1: Place the speakers

The STR-DH590 drives up to five speakers plus a subwoofer. That’s the “5.1” setup Sony designs it around. Sony’s setup diagram puts the speakers in these spots:

• Front left and right: on either side of the TV, each about 30 degrees off center from your seat.
• Center: above or below the TV, facing you. This speaker carries most of the dialogue.
• Surround left and right: beside and slightly behind your seat, at about 100 to 120 degrees from center.
• Subwoofer: anywhere that fits. Deep bass doesn’t point in one direction, so Sony says placement is flexible.

With only two speakers and a subwoofer, you can still get a surround-style effect. Pick the Front Surround sound field. Sony’s diagram for this layout also uses the 30-degree angle and puts the front speakers about 1.5 to 3 meters (5 to 10 feet) apart. Aim the tweeters at ear height.

Step 2: Wire the speakers and subwoofer

Unplug the receiver’s power cord before connecting any speaker wire. A stray wire strand that touches another terminal can short the amplifier. Sony warns this can seriously damage the receiver.

1. Strip about 10 mm (13/32 inch) of insulation from each end of the speaker wire.
2. Twist the bare strands tightly so no loose hairs stick out.
3. Connect each speaker to the matching terminals on the receiver: front left, front right, center, surround left, and surround right.
4. Match polarity on every speaker. Red (+) on the receiver goes to + on the speaker, and black (–) goes to –. Most speaker wire has a stripe or ridge on one side to help you keep track.
5. Tug each wire gently to make sure it’s held firmly.
6. Connect the subwoofer’s line or LFE input to either SUBWOOFER OUT jack with the mono RCA cable. If you have two subwoofers, use both jacks.
7. Check the back of the receiver one more time. No bare wire should be touching a neighboring terminal or the metal panel. Then plug the receiver back in.

The SUBWOOFER OUT jacks need a powered subwoofer, the kind with its own power cord and volume knob. If your sub has only speaker-wire terminals, see our guide to fixing STR-DH590 subwoofer problems.

Step 3: Get the subwoofer ready

Do this before calibrating so the receiver can measure the sub properly:

1. Turn the subwoofer on.
2. Set its volume (LEVEL) knob to just below the halfway point.
3. If it has a crossover or frequency knob, turn it to the maximum.
4. If it has an auto standby or auto-on setting, turn that off. Sony notes that auto standby can put the sub to sleep during quiet movie scenes, and it may not wake up in time.

Step 4: Run Easy Setup and Auto Calibration

Before you start, unplug any headphones and quiet the room: no fans, dishwasher, or conversation. Make sure the receiver’s speakers aren’t switched off. If the display ever showed “OFF SPEAKERS,” press SPEAKERS on the receiver until you see “SPK ON.”

Heads up: the tones are very loud and you can’t turn them down during the test. Warn anyone at home, and keep kids and pets out of the room.

1. Turn on the TV and switch it to the receiver’s HDMI input.
2. Turn on the receiver. On first use, or after a reset, the Easy Setup screen appears by itself. Otherwise, press HOME, select [Easy Setup], and press Enter.
3. Choose your on-screen language and press Enter.
4. Plug the calibration microphone into the CALIBRATION MIC jack on the front of the receiver.
5. Put the microphone where your head usually is, at ear height. A tripod or a stack of books on the seat works well.
6. When the Auto Calibration screen appears, select [Start] and press Enter.
7. Confirm that the microphone is connected and press Enter.
8. Read the on-screen instructions and press Enter. Measurement begins after about 5 seconds.
9. Stay quiet and out of the way. Each speaker plays a test tone in turn. The whole run takes about 30 seconds.
10. When the results appear, select [Save&Exit] and press Enter. To throw away the results and start over, select [Retry]. To leave without saving, choose [Exit].
11. Unplug the microphone and press Enter to finish.

The measurement stops if you touch the power button, change inputs, press HOME, AMP MENU, mute, press SPEAKERS, change the volume, or plug in headphones. If that happens, just start again.

Limits worth knowing

• Dipole speakers and other special designs may not measure correctly.
• The subwoofer distance the receiver reports may not match where the sub actually sits. That’s expected. The sub’s own design affects the measurement.
• Calibration results aren’t used when the [Direct] sound field is playing an analog input.

If you see an error or warning

When a measurement goes wrong, the screen shows a code. Fix the problem, then select [Retry].

Code	What it means	What to do
Error 30	Headphones are plugged in	Unplug them and retry.
Error 31	Speakers are switched off (“OFF SPEAKERS”)	Press SPEAKERS on the receiver until “SPK ON” appears, then retry.
Error 32 / Error 33	The mic heard nothing from one or more speakers	Check that the mic is plugged in fully and isn’t damaged. Then recheck every speaker wire.
Warning 40	Finished, but the room was noisy	You can save, but for better accuracy, retry when it’s quieter.
Warning 41 / 42	The mic signal is too strong	The mic is probably too close to a speaker. Move it to your listening seat and retry.
Warning 43	The subwoofer’s distance and position couldn’t be found	Check that the sub is on and its volume is up, then retry in a quiet room.

Choose a Calibration Type

After you save a calibration, you can choose how the receiver uses it. Press HOME, open [Sound Effect], then [Calibration Type], and pick one:

• [Full Flat]: evens out the frequency response of every speaker. This is the most neutral choice.
• [Engineering]: tunes the sound to what Sony calls its listening room standard.
• [Front Ref.]: matches the sound of every speaker to your front pair. It’s useful if your front speakers are your best ones.
• [Off]: skips the frequency correction.

Try each one with a movie scene you know well. There’s no wrong answer. Calibration Type doesn’t work while headphones are connected, or when [Direct] is playing an analog input.

Check the results and fine-tune

Auto Calibration gets you close, but it’s worth a quick check. Press HOME and open [Speaker Setting]. Use the left and right arrows to move between these tabs:

• [Size]: [Large] or [Small]. Choose [Small] if bass sounds distorted or surround effects seem weak. That sends each speaker’s deep bass to the subwoofer. Setting the fronts to [Small] also sets the center and surrounds to [Small].
• [Crossover Freq]: the point where bass hands off to the sub. You can only change it for speakers set to [Small].
• [Distance]: how far each speaker is from your seat. To switch between feet and meters, press AMP MENU and use “DIST.UNIT” under “<SPKR>.”
• [Level]: the volume of each speaker, including the subwoofer.

Two more checks happen on the receiver’s display panel. Press AMP MENU first:

1. Go to “<SPKR>” – “PATTERN” and confirm the pattern matches what you actually connected. The choices are “5.1,” “5.0,” “4.1,” “4.0,” “3.1,” “3.0,” “2.1,” and “2.0.” The first number counts the main speakers. “.1” means a subwoofer. If you have a sub, pick an “x.1” pattern.
2. Go to “<LEVEL>” – “T. TONE” and choose “AUTO.” A test tone plays from each speaker in turn, and the display names each one: FL, CNT, FR, SR, SL, SW. Listen to each speaker as its name appears. Turn the test tone off when you’re done.

Troubleshooting after setup

• No test tone from one speaker: the wire is loose or shorted. Recheck both ends.
• Tone comes from the wrong speaker: the “PATTERN” setting doesn’t match your wiring, or two wires are swapped at the terminals.
• “PROTECT” appears after you wire everything: look for stray strands touching, and confirm your speakers are rated 6 to 16 ohms. Sony’s full check is in our STR-DH590 reset and PROTECT guide.
• No surround from stereo music or TV: [PLII Movie] and [PLII Music] don’t work with the “2.0” or “2.1” patterns. Use [Front Surround] on a two-speaker system.
• Subwoofer silent after calibration: check the pattern first, then the sound field. Some sound fields don’t use the sub at all.

Sony covers the menu options on its Help Guide page listing settings you can adjust from the display panel and in its guide to selecting the Auto Calibration type.