Home audio & video: Decoder for simulated surround sound
Decoder for simulated surround sound
by jcsmith - 8/3/09 10:03 AMI have a great, old stereo system with a pair of Magneplanar Tympani 1-Bs and a pair of RH Labs subwoofers. It’s bi-amped with 400 WRMS on the base panel and the subs and 160 WRMS on the tweeters and mids. I just got a flatscreen HDTV (Pioneer Kuro) and HD receiver for my DirecTV account and am shopping for a Blu-ray now so I have an excellent video picture and I can play the audio in stereo through my system, however I can’t get the “surround effect” that you can supposedly get with a simulated surround decoder. Does anyone know of a stand-alone decoder that I could install between my Blu-ray (and satellite receiver) and my pre-amp (Marantz 7T) that would give me simulated surround sound? Any other ideas? I really don’t want to go to a full surround system. We mostly just listen to music and watch “regular” TV but every now and then we rent a movie and it would be nice to have at least simulated surround sound. Thanks.
you can't simulate surround, if you only have stereo
by jostenmeat - 8/3/09 12:30 PM In reply to: Decoder for simulated surround sound by jcsmithbut, OTOH, you can downmix surround to 2ch.
Easiest is to pick the right BD player. 1) able to internally "decode" all formats, 2) able to downmix the decoded 5.1/7.1 PCM into 2ch PCM, as stereo outputs to your marantz. I would hope to think that any player that can do the first, can do the second as well.
you will suffer compression, compared to the ideal discrete surround setup, because you are putting more channels into less. it's normal. also, the discrete LFE track which is meant for the sub only in most cases, will be greatly reduced in order to protect your amp and speakers. Well, that's how it works when you downmix channels in a receiver, so I'd hope it's the same with the player. By greatly reduced, I'm talking 1/20th of the original signal.
How about the Bose 3-2-1 systems?
by jcsmith - 8/3/09 4:26 PM In reply to: you can't simulate surround, if you only have stereo by jostenmeatI know I've seen some advertisements (Bose for sure) that claim to do it, and I think some A/V receivers have a way they combine the signal into two channels (Dolby PL II is supposed to have a way to do it).
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