DTS, Inc. (originally Digital Theater Systems) is an American company. DTS company makes multichannel audio technologies for film and video. Based in Calabasas, California, the company introduced its DTS technology in 1993 as a competitor to Dolby Laboratories, incorporating DTS in the film Jurassic Park (1993).[3][4][5] The DTS product is used in surround sound formats for both commercial/theatrical and consumer-grade applications. It was known as The Digital Experience until 1995. DTS licenses its technologies to consumer electronics manufacturers.
DTS, Inc. was acquired by Tessera Technologies Inc. in December 2016[6] and combined under the newly created Tessera Holding Corporation. The combined company was renamed to Xperi Corporation in February 2017.[7]
DTS was founded by Terry Beard, an audio engineer and Caltech graduate. Beard, speaking to a friend of a friend, was able to get in touch with Steven Spielberg to audition a remastering of Spielberg's film Close Encounters of the Third Kind mixed in DTS. Spielberg then selected DTS sound for his next film, Jurassic Park (1993) and with the backing of Universal and its then-parent Matsushita Electric, over 1,000 theatres in the United States adopted the DTS system.[8]
A photo of a theatrical DTS CD-ROM disc used for the original 1993 release of Jurassic Park
The basic and most common version of the format is a 5.1-channel system, similar to a Dolby Digital setup, which encodes the audio as five primary (full-range) channels plus a special LFE (low-frequency effects) channel for the subwoofer.
Encoders and decoders support numerous channel combinations, and stereo, four-channel, and four-channel+LFE soundtracks have been released commercially on DVD, CD, and Laserdisc.
Other, newer DTS variants are also currently available, including versions that support up to seven primary audio channels plus one LFE channel (DTS-ES). These variants are generally based on DTS's core-and-extension philosophy, in which a core DTS data stream is augmented with an extension stream which includes the additional data necessary for the new variant in use. The core stream can be decoded by any DTS decoder, even if it does not understand the new variant. A decoder which does understand the new variant decodes the core stream, and then modifies it according to the instructions contained in the extension stream. This method allows backward compatibility.
DTS's main competitors in multichannel theatrical audio are Dolby Digital and SDDS, although only Dolby Digital and DTS are used on DVDs and implemented in home theater hardware.
One of the DTS Inc.'s initial investors was film directorSteven Spielberg, who felt that theatrical sound formats up until the company's founding were no longer state of the art, and as a result were no longer optimal for use on projects where quality sound reproduction was of the utmost importance. Spielberg debuted the format with his 1993 production of Jurassic Park, which came slightly less than a full year after the official theatrical debut of Dolby Digital (Batman Returns). In addition, Jurassic Park also became the first home video release to contain DTS sound when it was released on LaserDisc in January 1997, two years after the first Dolby Digital home video release (Clear and Present Danger on Laserdisc), which debuted in January 1995. Universal Pictures would exclusively support DTS until late 1997.
In 2008, the cinema division was divested to form DTS Digital Cinema. In 2009 DTS Digital Cinema was purchased by Beaufort International Group Plc. and became known as Datasat Digital Entertainment.
A photo of a 35 mm film print featuring all four audio formats (or "quad track"). From left to right: SDDS (blue area to the left of the sprocket holes), Dolby Digital (grey area between the sprocket holes labelled with the Dolby "Double-D" logo in the middle), analog optical sound (the two white lines to the right of the sprocket holes), and the DTS time code (the dashed line to the far right)
SRS Labs
In 2012, DTS acquired the business of SRS Labs (Sound Retrieval System), a psychoacoustic 3D audio processing technology, including over 1,000 audio patents and trademarks.
Manzanita Systems
In 2014, DTS acquired Manzanita Systems,[9] a provider of MPEG software for digital television, VOD, and digital ad insertion.[10]
Phorus
Phorus, a subsidiary of DTS, Inc., is a Los Angeles-based technology group dedicated to wireless audio for connected devices.[11]
HD Radio (iBiquity)
On September 2, 2015, iBiquity announced that it was being purchased by DTS for US$172 million, uniting iBiquity's HD Radio digital radio broadcast technology with DTS' digital audio surround sound systems.[12]
Theatrical use
In theatrical use, a proprietary 24-bit time code is optically imaged onto the film. An LED reader scans the timecode data from the film and sends it to the DTS processor, using the time code to synchronize the projected image with the DTS soundtrack audio. The multi-channel DTS audio is recorded in compressed form on standard CD-ROM media at a bitrate of 882kbit/s. The audio compression used in the theatrical DTS system (which is very different and completely unrelated to the home Coherent Acoustics-based DTS Digital Surround format) is the APT-X100 system. Unlike the home version of DTS or any version of Dolby Digital, the APT-X100 system is fixed at a 4:1 compression ratio. Data reduction is accomplished via sub-band coding with linear prediction and adaptive quantization. The theatrical DTS processor acts as a transport mechanism, as it holds and reads the audio discs. When the DTS format was launched, it used one or two discs with later units holding three discs, thus allowing a single DTS processor to handle two-disc film soundtracks along with a third disc for theatrical trailers. The DTS time code on the 35mm print identifies the film title which is matched to the individual DTS CD-ROMs, guaranteeing that the film cannot be played with the wrong disc. Each DTS CD-ROM contains a DOS program that the processor uses to play back the soundtrack, allowing system improvements or bug fixes to be added easily. Unlike Dolby Digital and SDDS, or the home version of DTS, the theatrical DTS system only carries 5 discrete channels on the CD-ROMs. The .1 LFE subwoofer track is mixed into the discrete surround channels on the disc and recovered via low-pass filters in the theater.
DTS technologies
Most DTS consumer codec techniques are documented in ETSI. DTS Digital Surround, DTS-ES, DTS 96/24, and DTS-HD are recorded in ETSI TS 102 114. DTS:X is recorded in ETSI TS 103 491.
DTS Digital Surround
A DTS Sound logo on a compatible Toshiba Laptop
On the consumer level, DTS is the oft-used shorthand for the DTS Coherent Acoustics (DCA) codec, transportable through S/PDIF and part of the LaserDisc, DVD, and Blu-ray specifications. This system is the consumer version of the DTS standard, using a similar codec without needing separate DTS CD-ROM media. As with standard CD players, DVD and Blu-ray Disc players cannot decode audio from DTS audio CDs.
Both music and movie DVDs allow delivery of a DTS audio signal, but DTS was not part of the original DVD specification (it was added later in 1997[17]), so early DVD players do not recognize DTS audio tracks at all. The DVD specification was revised[when?] to allow optional inclusion of DTS audio tracks. The DVD title must carry one or more primary audio tracks in AC-3 or LPCM format (in Europe, MPEG-1 Audio Layer II is also an allowed primary track format). The DTS audio track, if present, can be selected by the user. Subsequent DVD players now decode DTS natively or pass it through to an external decoder. Nearly all standalone receivers and many integrated DVD player/receivers can decode DTS.
A small number of LaserDiscs carry DTS soundtracks. The NTSC LaserDisc format allows for either analog audio only or both analog and digital audio tracks. LaserDiscs encoded with DTS sound[18] replace the LPCM digital audio track with the DTS soundtrack. This soundtrack is output via digital coaxial or optical audio outputs and requires an external decoder to process the bitstream.
For PC playback, many software players support the decoding of DTS. The VideoLAN project has created a decoding module for DTS called libdca (formerly libdts), which is the first open source implementation of DTS.[19]
Sony's PlayStation 3 and Microsoft's Xbox 360 are capable of DTS decoding and output via TOSLINK or HDMI as LPCM. However, HDMI output on the Xbox 360 is only found on the "Elite" model and newer models available since mid-2007, with the release of the Falcon motherboard revision. Also, the Xbox 360 cannot decode DTS from DTS audio CDs. PlayStation 3 consoles can bitstream DTS over HDMI, but cannot decode audio from DTS audio CDs. The newer "slim" models are able to bitstream DTS-HD MA as well, but also cannot decode audio from DTS CDs.
Comparison with Dolby Digital
DTS and Dolby Digital (AC-3), DTS's chief competitor in the cinema and home theatre markets, are often compared because of their similarity in product goals, though Dolby believed that the surround channels should be diffused[clarification needed] and DTS said they should be directional.[citation needed] In theatrical installations, AC-3 audio is placed between sprocket holes on the 35mm film itself, leaving the audio content susceptible to physical damage from film wear and mishandling. DTS audio is stored on a separate set of CD-ROM media, with greater storage capacity that affords the potential to deliver greater audio fidelity and is not subject to the usual wear and damage suffered by the film print during the normal course of the movie's theatrical screening. Disregarding the separate CD-ROM assembly as a potential point of failure, the DTS audiopath is comparatively impervious to film degradation, unless the film-printed timecode is completely destroyed.
Dolby claims its competing AC-3 codec achieves similar transparency at its highest coded bitrate (640kbit/s). However, in program material available to home consumers (DVD, broadcast, and subscription digital TV), neither AC-3 nor DTS typically run at their highest allowed bitrate. DVD and broadcast (ATSC) HDTV cap AC-3 bitrate at 448kbit/s. But even at that rate, consumer audio gear already enjoys better audio performance than theatrical (35mm movie) installations, in which AC-3 is limited to 320kbit/s. When DTS audio was introduced to the DVD specification, a few studios authored DTS tracks on some DVDs at the full bitrate (1509.75kbit/s). Most later DVD titles that offered DTS tracks were encoded at 754.5kbit/s (about half the rate of 1536kbit/s). At this reduced rate, DTS no longer retains audio transparency. This was done to make room for more audio tracks and content to reduce costs of spreading extra material on multiple discs.
Dolby Digital 5.1 can compress the same data to less, taking up minimal space. Conversely, DTS proponents claim that the extra bits give higher fidelity and more dynamic range, providing a richer and more lifelike sound. But no conclusion can be drawn from their respective bitrates, as each codec relies on different coding tools and syntax to compress audio.[citation needed]
In addition to the standard 5.1-channel DTS Surround codec, the company has several other technologies in its product range designed to compete with similar systems from Dolby Labs. Those which conceptually extend DTS (to add more channels or more accurate sound reproduction) are implemented as extensions to a core DTS Coherent Acoustics data stream.[20] The core stream is compatible with DTS decoders which do not support the extension(s); the extension(s) provide the additional data required to implement the additional functionality.
DTS 70 mm
This is a process designed specifically for playback in motion picture theaters equipped with 70 mm film projection and 6-track surround sound. The 70mm DTS prints do not have 6-track magnetic striping, so there is no analog backup should the digital sound fail. The time code track on the film is many times wider than the 35mm version, since it can occupy the area formerly taken up by a magnetic track. Theaters with 70mm DTS frequently install two time code readers for greater reliability.
The gradual disappearance of 70mm as a common exhibition format has led to DTS-70 being reserved for niche engagements of 70mm revivals and restorations. Dolby Digital has not been adapted to the 70mm format.
DTS-ES (DTS Extended Surround), introduced in March 1999 theatrically[21][non-primary source needed] and in June 2000 for home theaters[22][non-primary source needed]; includes two variants, DTS-ES Discrete 6.1, and DTS-ES Matrix 5.1, depending on how the sound was originally mastered and produced originally - as many DTS-ES 6.1 Discrete tracks, are simply remastered from DTS 5.1, where both surround channels are split up to add new center surround channel as well, which is similar to the DTS-ES 5.1 Matrix's goal, but differ in that DTS-ES Matrix is a 5.1 in discrete channels, but upmix to 6.1 and also states this in its name, being a matrixed, or rather upmixed format for use with non-6.1 content, not unlike the DTS Neo:6 but those are usually upmixing stereo-content and not discrete channels into a 5.1 matrix sound setup.
The newer DTS Neo:X formats, using DTS proprietary upmixer, DTS Neural:X, is used in all formats having the suffix ":X", allowing DTS Neo:X to matrix up to an 11.1 setup - more commonly set up as 7 1.4 [23][24]
Therefore, like other more modernized DTS formats such as DTS:X, can be played back on older DTS compatible equipment because of the backwards compatibility DTS offer through its use of extensions.[24]
This backwards compatibility is present in all of the later and modern formats followconsidered extensions.
DTS-ES Matrix 5.1 is provided with 6 they are simply added onn-extra channel, with content disc as einto a 7-channel format by adding extensions in DTS Core, will wo
DTS-ES Discrete provides 6.1 discrete channels, with a discrete, mastered and recorded (non-matrixed) center-surround channel; in home theater systems with a 7.1 configuration, the two rear-center speakers play in mono, as does other decoders like the Creative DDTS-100, a standalone 7.1 channel decoder which includes support for up to 6.1 when paired with the GigaWorks S750 7.1 surround sound system. However, there is a switch to make all the speakers work on the system, either 5.1->7.1 or 6.1->7.1 as no discrete formats for 7.1 was included.[25]
To maintain compatibility with DTS decoders which do not support DTS-ES, the center-surround channel is also matrixed into the left and right surround channels, so that the rear center channel's sound is still present when played in 5.1 on non-6.1 systems; an ES decoder removes the matrixed audio from these two channels when playing back DTS-ES Discrete soundtracks. DTS-ES Discrete is sometimes notated as DTS-ES 6.1. Only a few DVD titles have been released with DTS-ES Discrete, due to the fast transition from 6.1 to 7.1 setups and technology.
In contrast, Dolby's competing EX codec, which also boasts a center rear channel, can only handle matrixed data and does not support a discrete sixth speaker channel; it is most directly comparable to DTS-ES Matrix 5.1.
Note: The center-rear/surround channel is encoded and decoded in exactly the same way as the center-front. The center-surround channel can be decoded using any surround sound processor by feeding the left and right surround signals to the processor inputs. The left-Center-Right surround is produced. This will work for a "center-surround" reproduction, whether the source material is explicitly encoded, as in DTS-ES, or hidden as the ambience in any 5.1 sources, including DTS-ES 5.1 and Dolby Digital Surround EX 5.1.
DTS 96/24
DTS 96/24, introduced in May 2001[26][non-primary source needed], allows the delivery of 5.1 channels of 24-bit, 96kHz audio and high quality video on the DVD-Video format. Prior to the development of DTS 96/24, it was only possible to deliver two channels of 24-bit, 96kHz audio on DVD Video. DTS 96/24 can also be placed in the video zone on DVD-Audio discs, making these discs playable on all DTS-compatible DVD players. DTS 96/24 is implemented as a core DTS stream plus an extension containing the deltas to enable 96/24 sound reproduction.
DTS-HD High Resolution Audio
DTS-HD High Resolution Audio, along with DTS-HD Master Audio, comprise the DTS-HD extension to the original DTS audio format. It delivers up to 7.1 channels of sound at up to 96kHz sampling frequency and 24-bit depth resolution. DTS-HD High Resolution Audio is selected as an optional surround sound format for Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD, with constant bit rates up to 6.0Mbit/s and 3.0Mbit/s, respectively. It is intended to be an alternative for DTS-HD Master Audio where disc space may not allow it. DTS-HD High Resolution Audio is implemented as a core DTS stream plus an extension containing the two additional channels plus details to enable 96/24 sound reproduction.
DTS-HD Master Audio, previously known as DTS++,[27] is the second of two DTS-HD audio formats.[28] It supports a virtually unlimited number of surround sound channels, can deliver audio quality at bit rates extending from lossless (24-bit, 192kHz) down to DTS Digital Surround and, like Neo, downmix to 5.1 or 2.1 systems.
DTS-HD Master Audio is selected as an optional surround sound format for Blu-ray, where it has been limited to a maximum of 8 discrete channels. DTS-HD MA supports variable bit rates up to 24.5Mbit/s, with up to 6 channels encoded at up to 192kHz or 8 channels and nine objects encoded at 96kHz/24 bit. If more than two channels are used, a "channel remapping" function allows for remixing the soundtrack to compensate for a different channel layout in the playback system compared to the original mix.
All Blu-ray players can decode the DTS "core" resolution soundtrack at 1.5Mbit/s, however, as DTS-HD Master Audio is also implemented as a standard DTS core plus extensions, but cannot decode audio from DTS audio CDs. DTS-HD Master Audio and Dolby TrueHD are the only technologies that deliver compressed lossless surround sound for these disc formats. (DTS Coherent Acoustics' coding system was selected as mandatory audio technology for Blu-ray Discs.)[29]
DTS:X
For each speaker, DTS:X allows the "location" (direction from the listener) of "objects" (audio tracks) to be specified as polar coordinates. The audio processor is then responsible for dynamically rendering sound output depending on the number and position of speakers available. Dolby Atmos uses a similar technique,[30][31] although the speaker layout employed by cinema DTS:X is the sum of Dolby Atmos and Auro-3D. The layout showcased at AMC Burbank theatre number 8 has a standard eight channel base layer, a five channel height layer on top of the base layer (on the front and side walls) and three rows of speakers on the ceiling. The surround arrays are bass managed by woofers suspended from the ceiling.[32] A first public demonstration was performed at CES 2015 on a Trinnov Altitude32 processor.[33]
A follow up, non-consumer focused format known as DTS:X Pro, usually supported by many consumer receivers anyway, supports up to 32 channels of audio, effectively making the aforementioned setup a DTS:X Pro setup. There is no other differences than the added support for more channels, nor does it exist a Pro-variant of a DTS:X soundtrack - it is merely to be more convenient in large cinemas.
DTS Neo:6
DTS Neo:6, like Dolby's Pro Logic IIx system, reconstructs 2.1, 5.1, 6.1, or 7.1 sources to 3.1, 4.1, 5.1, 6.1, and 7.1 channel systems. A 7.1 system's 2 rear speakers are mono. Neo:6 is a multi-band decoder, unlike Dolby Pro Logic II's broadband logic steering, meaning that the decoder can enhance more than one predominant signal at a time — provided each predominant signal lies in a different frequency band than the others. The number of bands steered varies in each Neo:6 implementation, with the first decoders steering in 12 separate bands and later units steering up to 19.
DTS Neo:X
DTS Neo:X reconstructs 2.1, 5.1, 6.1, or 7.1 sources to 11.1 front height and width channel systems. Dolby's Pro Logic IIz's system adds only front height channels to the 7.1 configuration. Neo:X also matrix downmixes 11.1 sources to 5.1 or 7.1 channel systems.
DTS Neural:X
DTS Neural:X, like Dolby Surround, is an upmixing technique to serve legacy bitstreams and PCM content by upmixing or remapping them to virtually any speaker layout (in which the sound can come from anywhere around the listener, including above). It is complementary to the DTS:X system, allowing the full use of a DTS:X speaker layout when the content has not been encoded for it or exceeds the number of supported channels in DTS:X, effectively being exactly what a DTS:X Pro setup consists of with support for 32 channels (via Neural:X, the spatial audio remapping engine ad opposed to a format contrary to popular belief.) .[34][35]
DTS Virtual:X
DTS Virtual:X creates "phantom" surround or height speakers using psychoacoustic processing of existing soundtracks (including, if needed, the creation of height channels) to allow systems with a reduced number of physical speakers (such as TV soundbars) to provide a more "immersive" experience.[36]
DTS Surround Sensation
DTS Surround Sensation: Previously known as DTS Virtual. It allows a virtual 5.1 surround sound to be heard through a standard pair of headphones.[37]
DTS Headphone:X
DTS Headphone:X is a spatial audio technology, sometimes referred to as DTS Headphone:X "v2.0" or even "v2.0 7.1",[38] if the technology is to be licensed out to companies and not implemented by DTS themselves (through 1st party applications such as DTS Sound Unbound and others), where usually on non-PC devices such as video game consoles can still provide the technology, using multi-channel [[Dolby Digital]] bitstreams, usually over a separate optical SPD/F that contain metadata which is then processed by an external headphone decoder, as seen in the Arctis Pro headphone variants by SteelSeries, and several other companies like headphone systems by [[Turtle Beach]] with the Elite2+SuperAmp combination, specifically the one for PlayStation and not Xbox, as in Xbox there is the potential for using the Windows Spatial Audio API which can be set up in apps like DTS Sound Unbound, avoiding the original audio format to be processed by a dedicated device, to get the effects of spatial audio through the use of sound objects rather than channels, and placing them where they would naturally occur in a 3D space,[39] but is also compatible with stereo PCM tracks, and can be encoded on top of a 2-channel lossy DTS bitstream that reproduces 12 channels of spatial audio, sometimes called surround sound, using Head-related transfer function to allow for any pair of stereo headphones to be used. However, in the Windows and Xbox versions of the technology, there exists almost 600 pre-made presets (by DTS) for different headphone models or earbuds, tuned specifically for the purpose of DTS Headphone:X .[40][41]
The head related transfer function algorithm used here is developed by DTS and includes compensation for room cues such as reflection and delay by mapping the acoustic characteristic of the original mixing studio, or other professional audio techniques such as dynamic room correction, loudness equation, and a 360° sense of sound, like "Dolby Atmos for Headphones" as a very close reference and its main competitor.[42][43]
DTS Connect
DTS Connect is a blanket name for a two-part system used on the computer platform only, in order to convert PC audio into the DTS format, transported via a single S/PDIF cable.[44] The two components of the system are DTS Interactive and DTS Neo:PC. It is found on various CMedia soundcards and onboard audio with Realtek ALC883DTS/ALC889A/ALC888DD-GR/ALC892-DTS-CG and SoundMAX AD1988 chips, as well as several cards based on the X-Fi chipset, such as the SoundBlaster Titanium series and Auzentech's X-Fi Forte, X-Fi Prelude, X-Fi Home Theater HD and X-Fi Bravura cards.
DTS Interactive: This is a real-time DTS stream encoder. On the PC, it takes multichannel audio and converts it into a 1.5Mbit/s DTS stream for output. Because it uses the original DTS codec to transmit audio, fidelity is limited to 5.1 channel at 48kHz, 24bit. More than 5.1 channels, a higher sampling frequency or data rate are not supported, due to the lack of support for DTS variants such as DTS 96/24. It can also be found on some standalone devices (e.g. Surround Encoder). Nearly a dozen titles on the PlayStation 2 feature the "DTS Interactive" real-time stream encoder, such as Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines.
DTS Neo:PC: This is a technology based on the DTS Neo:6 matrix surround technology, which transforms any stereo content (MP3, WMA, CD Audio, or games) into a simulated 7.1-channel surround sound experience. The 7.1-channel surround sound is output as a DTS stream for output via a S/PDIF cable port.
DTS Play-Fi
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (April 2017)
Play-Fi is a wireless protocol for multiroom audio based on the existing 802.11 specification (b/g/n). It emerged in late 2012 as an Android streaming protocol, with iOS support added in September 2013, and Windows support later, including audio/video sync.[45] The first Play-Fi speaker was the Phorus PS1, made by DTS subsidiary Phorus.[46]
Unlike competitors such as Sonos or SoundTouch from Bose, Play-Fi is an open standard[citation needed] and has been adopted by a wide range of brands including Anthem, Arcam, Audiolab, Definitive Technology, Hewlett-Packard, Integra, Klipsch, MartinLogan, McIntosh, Onkyo, Paradigm, Philips, Pioneer, Polk Audio, Rotel, Sonus Faber, Soundcast and Wren. The Play-Fi app supports streaming from the user's device, DLNA servers,[47] via AirPlay[48] and from online streaming services including Spotify, Pandora Radio, Amazon Prime Music, iHeart Radio, Rhapsody, SiriusXM, Tidal, Qobuz, KKBox, QQ Music, and Juke.[49] DTS Play-Fi also introduced a Play-Fi enabled wireless speaker with Amazon Alexa Voice Services built-in under the Onkyo, Phorus, and Pioneer brands in September 2017.[50]
Other Play-Fi capabilities include:
grouping speakers for individual simultaneous playback of the same source and so that their volume can be controlled simultaneously[51]
grouping speakers in stereo[52] or surround[53] configurations
creating zones for playing different audio streams to different groups of speakers[54]
streaming of arbitrary audio output on computers running Windows[45] or Linux with PulseAudio (albeit with a delay[56] and only to individual speakers, as opposed to groups, zones, or stereo configurations[57])
streaming the left and right surround channels of a broadcast or movie to two wireless Play-Fi speakers to be used as surround channels with a Play-Fi enabled sound bar.[58]
Ability to stream and decode high resolution audio (up to 96kHz / 24-bit).[59]
Play-Fi does not support Google Cast, retransmitting Bluetooth input to more than one speaker,[60] or audio streaming in sync with video on non-Windows systems.[61]
Dolby Digital, originally synonymous with Dolby AC-3, is the name for a family of audio compression technologies developed by Dolby Laboratories. Called Dolby Stereo Digital until 1995, it is lossy compression. The first use of Dolby Digital was to provide digital sound in cinemas from 35 mm film prints. It has since also been used for TV broadcast, radio broadcast via satellite, digital video streaming, DVDs, Blu-ray discs and game consoles.
A home cinema, also called a home theater or theater room, is a home entertainment audio-visual system that seeks to reproduce a movie theater experience and mood using consumer electronics-grade video and audio equipment and is set up in a room or backyard of a private home. Some studies show that films are rated better and generate more intense emotions when watched in a movie theater, but convenience is a major appeal for home cinemas. In the 1980s, home cinemas typically consisted of a movie pre-recorded on a LaserDisc or VHS tape; a LaserDisc Player or VCR; and a heavy, bulky large-screen cathode-ray tube TV set, although sometimes CRT projectors were used instead. In the 2000s, technological innovations in sound systems, video player equipment, TV screens and video projectors have changed the equipment used in home cinema set-ups and enabled home users to experience a higher-resolution screen image, improved sound quality and components that offer users more options. The development of Internet-based subscription services means that 2020s-era home theatre users do not have to commute to a video rental store as was common in the 1980s and 1990s.
DVD-Audio is a digital format for delivering high-fidelity audio content on a DVD. DVD-Audio uses most of the storage on the disc for high-quality audio and is not intended to be a video delivery format.
WinDVD is a commercial DVD video player software for Microsoft Windows.
Surround sound is a technique for enriching the fidelity and depth of sound reproduction by using multiple audio channels from speakers that surround the listener. Its first application was in movie theaters. Prior to surround sound, theater sound systems commonly had three screen channels of sound that played from three loudspeakers located in front of the audience. Surround sound adds one or more channels from loudspeakers to the side or behind the listener that are able to create the sensation of sound coming from any horizontal direction around the listener.
Dolby Pro Logic is a surround sound processing technology developed by Dolby Laboratories, designed to decode soundtracks encoded with Dolby Surround. The terms Dolby Stereo and LtRt are also used to describe soundtracks that are encoded using this technique.
Dolby Laboratories, Inc. is a British-American technology corporation specializing in audio noise reduction, audio encoding/compression, spatial audio, and HDR imaging. Dolby licenses its technologies to consumer electronics manufacturers.
5.1 surround sound is the common name for surround sound audio systems. 5.1 is the most commonly used layout in home theatres. It uses five full-bandwidth channels and one low-frequency effects channel. Dolby Digital, Dolby Pro Logic II, DTS, SDDS, and THX are all common 5.1 systems. 5.1 is also the standard surround sound audio component of digital broadcast and music.
Dolby Digital Plus, also known as Enhanced AC-3, is a digital audio compression scheme developed by Dolby Labs for the transport and storage of multi-channel digital audio. It is a successor to Dolby Digital (AC-3), and has a number of improvements over that codec, including support for a wider range of data rates, an increased channel count, and multi-program support, as well as additional tools (algorithms) for representing compressed data and counteracting artifacts. Whereas Dolby Digital (AC-3) supports up to five full-bandwidth audio channels at a maximum bitrate of 640 kbit/s, E-AC-3 supports up to 15 full-bandwidth audio channels at a maximum bitrate of 6.144 Mbit/s.
7.1 surround sound is the common name for an eight-channel surround audio system commonly used in home theatre configurations. It adds two additional speakers to the more conventional six-channel (5.1) audio configuration. As with 5.1 surround sound, 7.1 surround sound positional audio uses the standard front left and right, center, and LFE (subwoofer) speaker configuration. However, whereas a 5.1 surround sound system combines both surround and rear channel effects into two channels, a 7.1 surround system splits the surround and rear channel information into four distinct channels, in which sound effects are directed to left and right surround channels, plus two rear surround channels.
Dolby TrueHD is a lossless, multi-channel audio codec developed by Dolby Laboratories for home video, used principally in Blu-ray Disc and compatible hardware. Dolby TrueHD, along with Dolby Digital Plus (E-AC-3) and Dolby AC-4, is one of the intended successors to the Dolby Digital (AC-3) lossy surround format. Dolby TrueHD competes with DTS's DTS-HD Master Audio, another lossless surround sound codec.
The Sony BDP-S1 is a first generation Blu-ray Disc (BD) player and is the first such player released in North America. It was originally scheduled for release in the United States on August 18, 2006 with a MSRP of $999.95. Sony had postponed the release date of this player several times and it was released on December 4, 2006.
An audio/video receiver (AVR) or a stereo receiver is a consumer electronics component used in a home theater or hi-fi system. Its purpose is to receive audio and video signals from a number of sources, and to process them and provide power amplifiers to drive loudspeakers, and/or route the video to displays such as a television, monitor or video projector. Inputs may come from a TV, FM, or AM tuner, satellite receiver, DVD players, Blu-ray Disc players, VCRs or video game consoles, among others. The AVR source selection and settings such as volume, are typically set by a remote controller.
DTS-HD Master Audio is a multi-channel, lossless audio codec developed by DTS as an extension of the lossy DTS Coherent Acoustics codec. Rather than being an entirely new coding mechanism, DTS-HD MA encodes an audio master in lossy DTS first, then stores a concurrent stream of supplementary data representing whatever the DTS encoder discarded. This gives DTS-HD MA a lossy "core" able to be played back by devices that cannot decode the more complex lossless audio. DTS-HD MA's primary application is audio storage and playback for Blu-ray Disc media; it competes in this respect with Dolby TrueHD, another lossless surround format.
This article compares the technical specifications of multiple high-definition formats, including HD DVD and Blu-ray Disc; two mutually incompatible, high-definition optical disc formats that, beginning in 2006, attempted to improve upon and eventually replace the DVD standard. The two formats remained in a format war until February 19, 2008, when Toshiba, HD DVD's creator, announced plans to cease development, manufacturing and marketing of HD DVD players and recorders.
libdca is a free library for decoding DTS Coherent Acoustics streams. It is released under the terms of the GNU General Public License, and is developed by Gildas Bazin of the VideoLAN team. The library is based on the DTS Coherent Acoustics standard.
Center channel refers to an audio channel common to many surround sound formats. It is the channel that is mostly, or fully, dedicated to the reproduction of the dialogue of an audiovisual program. The speaker(s) connected to the center channel are placed in the center of and behind the perforated projection screen, to give the effect that sounds from the center channel are coming from the screen. In many home surround sound units, the center channel is positioned above or below the video screen.
Dolby Atmos is a surround sound technology developed by Dolby Laboratories. It expands on existing surround sound systems by adding height channels, interpreted as three-dimensional objects with neither horizontal nor vertical limitations. Following the release of Atmos for the cinema market, a variety of consumer technologies have been released under the Atmos brand. The initial cinema Atmos systems used in-ceiling speakers, then upward-firing speakers were introduced as an alternative for consumer products. Atmos is also used on some devices that do not have a height channel, such as headphones, televisions, mobile phones, and tablets.
Auro 11.1 is one of the cinematic speaker layouts of the Auro-3D format, invented in 2005 by Wilfried Van Baelen.
↑ Britanak, V. (2011). "On Properties, Relations, and Simplified Implementation of Filter Banks in the Dolby Digital (Plus) AC-3 Audio Coding Standards". IEEE Transactions on Audio, Speech, and Language Processing. 19 (5): 1231–1241. doi:10.1109/TASL.2010.2087755. S2CID897622.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
