By: Gary DeRoy                

OK. First, for those beginners who may be reading this, there are 2 types of bass signals that may be directed to your main speakers and your sub-woofer. The first is Deep Bass which is normally present in music, and the second is LFE (Low Frequency Effects). This is the .1 channel in a 5.1 surround system. According to Dolby Labs, the LFE channel delivers bass-only information (less than 120 Hz) and it's purpose is to supplement the overall bass content of the program or to ease the burden on the other channels.

Source: Discwasher Home Theater Setup Disc - Silver Edition (DVD)

Signal: PCM 96 kHz/24 Bit Hi-Res stereo and 48 kHz/16 Bit were tested with the same results.
Song: Blues for Danny
Front speakers set to Large: No bass was directed to SW (sub-woofer).
Front speakers set to Small: Bass was directed to SW.
Results: The 563 handles PCM from DVD in the same way it handles regular CD and MP3 music.

PCM Deep Bass test - 20 Hz to 80 Hz tone (pink noise) - stereo
Front speakers set to Large: No bass was directed to SW (sub-woofer). Full bass in main speakers.
Front speakers set to Small: Bass was directed to SW. Faint bass in main speakers
Results: The crossover frequency seems to be 100 Hz. The 80 Hz signal sent to the Small main speakers was several decibels down.

Dolby Deep Bass test - 20 Hz to 80 Hz tone (pink noise) - stereo
Same results as the PCM test.

Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS (5.1) LFE
Results: The LFE signal went only to the SW regardless of speaker size selected.


Source: Avia - Chapter 7 Reference Tones - Dolby Digital 5.1
Low Frequency Sweep (Deep Bass) from 200 Hz to 20 Hz.
Large L, C, R, Small Rears: No bass was directed to the SW in the L & R channels, but bass was directed to the SW in the C and Rear channels.
Large L, R, Small C and Rears: No bass was directed to the SW in the L & R channels, but bass was directed to the SW in the C and Rear channels.
Small L, C, R, Rears: Deep Bass was directed to the SW in all channels.
Large L, C, R, Rears: Deep Bass is NOT directed to the SW from any speaker.

Results: The only thing unusual here is that the 563 didn't seem to care if the C channel was set to Large or Small if the Rears were set to Small. It directed C channel Deep Bass to the SW in each case.
NOTE: For those who want  to use an external ICBM for Bass Management, set ALL speakers to Large. 


Low Frequency Sweep - LFE - 100 Hz to 20 Hz
Results: Regardless of speaker size settings, only the SW was active with the LFE signal.

Low Frequency Pink Noise (Deep Bass) - 6 Channel Pan - Dolby Digital 5.1
Large L, C, R, Small Rears: No bass was directed to the SW in the L & R channels, but bass was directed to the SW in the C and Rear channels.
Small L, C, R, Rears: Bass went to each speaker and was directed to the SW in all channels.
Results: This test reconfirms the results of the other tests. In each speaker setting, sound pressure remained constant indicating that Bass Management is working as intended on my system.

DVD-Audio and SACD

Billy Joel "An Innocent Man" stereo SACD
Steely Dan "Everything Must Go" DVD-A, Stereo 192 kHz/ 24 Bit
Results: With each title, regardless of speaker size setting, the SW was active.

Conclusion:
The 563 handles Deep Bass and LFE material pretty much the way you'd expect it to. The only surprises are that it treats the Center channel as a Small speaker (even when it's set to Large) if your Rear speakers are set to Small. Also, if you have the SW turned off, LFE is not directed to your main speakers. Regardless of this, the system works very well. Of course, like any player, the Bass Management only works when you are using the Analog output on the DV-563A. When watching a DVD movie or listening to CDs or MP3s, most people will probably use the Digital output of the 563 and Bass Management would then be handled by your AV Receiver.