DTS HD demo disc
Ever since I got the Dolby True HD to light up on my Onkyo 885, I've been itching to see the cool DTS-HD Master Audio logo light up. It's been a challenge since the PS3 currently does not output DTS-HD MA in bitstream (said to be impossible if you believe this thread) . On the red side, there aren't many HD DVD releases with DTS HD MA either - mostly imports from what I can see. Most HD DVDs are Dolby Digital Plus or Dolby True HD. So what to do?? If you were lucky enough to go to CES this past January, they were giving out free DTS demo discs in HD DVD and Blu Ray. I didn't make it and man, some people are trying to pawn off these demo discs for $60. No thanks! Currently, Widescreen Review is offering the demo discs for "free" in either format. Given the PS3 limitations, I went with the HD DVD version.You get a decent selection of movie clips and music clips. I was hoping for more DTS trailers but that's ok. Now the question you might ask is how does it sound? It sounds great! As you would expect. But now that I have listened to uncompressed PCM, Dolby True HD, and now DTS-HD MA, I don't think it's easy to claim one format to be superior over another. From the Dave Matthews Band Blu Ray, it's much easier to hear and appreciate the difference between Dolby Digital vs Dolby True HD. But among the lossless formats, it's much harder I think - the quality of original soundtrack master is probably much more important than the lossless format itself.
posted by baconandeggs at 12:06 AM
2 Comments:
when i read the last bit about comparing lossless formats, i kind of tilted my head in confusion. isn't the definition of a lossless format to mean that there is no loss in data? sure, the compression algorithms might be different, but the resulting bitstream should be the same, right?
i dug around a little bit and i'm sure that you've probably read this article, but it helped opened my eyes with just how many factors are involved when it comes to audio...
http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/show/1233
[isn't the definition of a lossless format to mean that there is no loss in data? ] -> AFAIK that is correct. Yes I've read Josh's article and it explains the subject matter very nicely. The lossless tracks in theory should sound identical to the studio master. But there are caveats - read on below..
[sure, the compression algorithms might be different, but the resulting bitstream should be the same, right?] -> Assuming the studio encoded the same soundtrack with the same bit resolution per sample then I think it's simply a choice of compression (Dolby True HD, DTS-HD MA) vs no compression (mutilchannel PCM). The resulting 1's and 0's that undergo digital to analog conversion are the same. The caveat has to do with the bit resolution selected by the studio (ie 16, 20, 24 bits per sample) which could affect the sound. So if the studio selected 16bit on the True HD vs 20bit on the PCM track, then one might be able to discern a difference.
The bit resolution, the sampling rate, and bit rate differences could be what's causing people to claim one lossless format to be superior to another.
PCM:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linear_pulse_code_modulation#Standard_sampling_resolutions_and_rates ( 16, 20, 24 bit resolution per sample)
Dolby:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dolby_Digital#Dolby_Technologies_in_packaged_media_formats (typically 16 bit or 24 bit per sample)
DTS:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_Theater_System#DTS_variants (typically 16 or 24 bit per sample)
[how many factors are involved when it comes to audio] -> yah, it's gotten pretty complicated over the years. I just hope the complexity and jargon do not cause people to dismiss these newer formats. That would be a shame cause the newer formats are really, really...really awesome.
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