Level 5
just screen shot a part of the manual for your system
Manual can be downloaded here (direct link to pdf manual)
Level 5
malteaser wrote:
Yes I was using optical output from my PS3 to the surround, and it's been working well while I've had it on PCM, but only now I have heard all this about HDMI and Blitstream etc.... And I have played PCM but Blitstream sounds much louder and more clearer on optical but I kept it on PCM since everyone was telling me it was raw data and uncompressed hence higher quality sound....... I have another question as well that I forgot, when I select Optical Output it tells me to select output formats supported such as AAC and DTS 5.1 Ch. Etc.... But when I select linear PCM 2ch. 88.2 KHz or the 176.4 KHz one the Ps3 tells me the speakers may become damaged, is this accurate and does the PS3 100% know this about my receiver? Or is the message there for caution? just incase the receiver doesn't support the frequency?
If bitstream sounds better to you.... then keep it on bitstream no matter what anyone tells you.
There is a setting on the PS3 in video settings "BD/DVD Dynamic Range Control" switch that to on
the setting, set to on makes it easier to hear spoken dialogue at low volumes. This setting is used when outputting Dolby audio content in Linear PCM.
The message is most likely there for caution to cover Sony's ass and not be liable for any damages if you equipment does indeed become damaged due to the "ignored" message.
If unsure about continuing then don't enable those settings. Better to be safe, than sorry.
Just start the sound settings and let the PS3 set the audio formats automatically
Level 4
Level 3
Blu-rays for the most part contain lossless audio tracks which are true to the studio source and considerably more detailed than other audio tracks, these take the form of LPCM, DTS-HD Master Audio & Dolby TrueHD; assuming they all use the same source they should all output exactly the same thing with no loss of quality. These formats require the use of a HDMI cable.
The difference is that DTS-HD MA & Dolby TrueHD shrink the size of the Linear-PCM audio track via lossless compression (like a zip/rar file on your pc would). The only exception to the fact they should all sound identical is in some Dolby TrueHD tracks which employ inaudible watermarking and minor volume adjustments in the tags of the track, but with volume adjusted it should sound the same as Linear-PCM & DTS-HD Master Audio.
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DVDs use lossy audio tracks which are heavily compressed versions of their lossless counterparts, often with much of the audible information removed to save space and fit on DVDs, TV Broadcasts or On-Demand Videos. These take the form of Dolby Digital & DTS, though lossless LPCM is sometimes used for stereo tracks, usually concert/music DVDs. These formats require the use of a Optical (also known as toslink) Cable or you can use a HDMI cable.
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Bitstream means taking the audio off the disc in its compressed form (whether lossless or lossy) and sending that Dolby or DTS encoded audio track to the receiver (your surround systems main bit) over the cable, at which point the receiver decodes that data into Linear-PCM (the native audio language of almost all devices) which is then sent to your receiver's internal DAC (Digital-To-Analog Converter) which turns the signal from digital into an analogue waveform to be sent over your speaker wires to your speakers. In the case of lossy tracks like Dolby Digital 2.0-5.1 or DTS 2.0-5.1 the signal is converted to Linear-PCM, nothing is gained in terms of detail by doing this but it's the only way the DAC can accept the signal before sending it to the speakers. In the case of lossless tracks like DTS-HD MA 2.0-7.1 & Dolby TrueHD 2.0-7.1 the raw Linear-PCM is extracted before being sent to the DAC. If the source is LPCM, it'll simply be sent directly to the receiver and to the DAC.
Linear-PCM means that the player (or PS3 in this case) is converting/extracting the LPCM from the lossy/lossless tracks respectively before passing it over the cable and to the receiver.
If... you have a receiver which is capable of taking in just LPCM, then you select Linear-PCM, if you have a receiver which is capable of taking in DTS-HD MA & Dolby-TrueHD as well as LPCM then the only difference is whether or not the lights come on on your receiver saying it's receiving DTS-HD MA or Dolby-TrueHD, in the end it's the same result:: Linear-PCM going to the DAC.
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For your receiver though Dolby Digital 2.0-5.1 & DTS 2.0-5.1 & Linear PCM 2.0 are the only options available which means that it'll take all DVD tracks and On Demand Video tracks. With Blu-ray it's a little different, DTS-HD MA tracks contain a lossy core that behaves like a standard DTS track on a DVD while some Dolby TrueHD tracks contain a core-like lossy track and some don't. So it'll either use the lossy track if it's there or downmix it to Dolby Digital. If however there's an alternative English Dolby Digital 5.1 track on a Blu-ray with "Dolby TrueHD" on it, use it instead. Blu-rays with LPCM 5.1/7.1 will likely have all kinds of downmixing and messing around going on with them so choose a Dolby Digital 5.1/DTS 5.1 track on these blu-rays if they're available.
So, to summarise...
Run the HDMI from your PS3 directly to your TV.
Run an Optical Cable (toslink) from your PS3 to your Surround System's Receiver.
Make sure to go to the PS3's Sound Settings and select Optical Cable, select Dolby Digital 5.1Ch, DTS 5.1, Linear PCM 2Ch 44.1KHz & Linear PCM 2Ch 48KHz and then go to Finish.
In terms of output, Bitstream (Direct) is the only way to get bit-perfect represantations of the Dolby Digital & DTS Surround Sound formats to your particular receiver for decoding, so chose Bitstream (Direct).
When it's setup...
DVDs should work without adjustment, PSN Video Store or XMB Video Content should work without adjustment.
If a Blu-ray contains Dolby Digital 2.0/5.0/5.1, DTS 2.0/5.0/5.1, DTS HD Master Audio 2.0/5.0/5.1/7.1, Dolby TrueHD 2.0 or LPCM 2.0 everything should work without adjustment.
If a Blu-ray contains Dolby TrueHD 5.0/5.1/7.1, opt for a Dolby Digital 5.1/DTS 5.1/DTS-HD MA 5.1/7.1 track instead if it's available. If a Blu-ray contains LPCM 5.0/5.1/7.1, opt for a Dolby Digital 5.1/DTS 5.1/DTS-HD MA 5.1/7.1/Dolby TrueHD 5.0/5.1/7.1 track instead if it's available. Otherwise you may have to put up with some rough edges in the sound.
Sometimes, if it's fitting for the content, you can apply Dolby Pro Logic-II to stereo content to make it into surround sound, it's not as good as proper surround sound by a long shot, but if you do wanna do it, you can usually enable this in your Surround System's user menu.
Hope that helps..
Level 3
chrisandsheva wrote:Bookmarked......
Thnx for putting time/effort into that post... very useful and interesting info there... i was kinda surprised last week when i learned i (basically) had a totally crap home-theatre... dav- z280... that wouldn't work with my new bravia3d...well for gaming/cable... but did produce 'sound'(?) through a older tv...now i think its (dav) around 2 to 3 years old and also think i payed around £250 for it at the time, (suckered Big time, lol.) But it Doesn't even have optical, just 1hdmi, 1scart.. and the useless usb, i-pod connectors, So now am looking for something else... got my eye on another dav.. but going to shop round a little first... But your post will be most helpful when i do..
NP, what sorta system you thinking of going for? All-in-one receiver/speaker package or separate av receiver + speakers? What's the budget like?
malteaser wrote:
Yes I was using optical output from my PS3 to the surround, and it's been working well while I've had it on PCM, but only now I have heard all this about HDMI and Blitstream etc.... And I have played PCM but Blitstream sounds much louder and more clearer on optical but I kept it on PCM since everyone was telling me it was raw data and uncompressed hence higher quality sound....... I have another question as well that I forgot, when I select Optical Output it tells me to select output formats supported such as AAC and DTS 5.1 Ch. Etc.... But when I select linear PCM 2ch. 88.2 KHz or the 176.4 KHz one the Ps3 tells me the speakers may become damaged, is this accurate and does the PS3 100% know this about my receiver? Or is the message there for caution? just incase the receiver doesn't support the frequency?
Unless you're using an older PS3 which supports SACD (Super Audio CD, sony's hi-res version of CD) and you intend to use SACD then you don't need to tick the 88.2/176.4KHz sample-rate options.
CD uses 44.1KHz,
PS3's XMB only supports music files in 44.1/48KHz and video files in 44.1/48/96/192KHz,
Blu-ray and DVD never use 88.2KHz/176.4KHz.
The only exceptions are DVD-Audio discs which can use any standard sample-rate, but the PS3 doesn't support these.
Level 3
This in my opinion is one of the best value home cinema packages about in that price range: http://www.pioneer.eu/uk/products/42/100/42/BCS-41
I've heard two of the slightly older pinoeer packages in roughly the same price range and they're really solid systems with surprising levels of power and transparency, the aesthetics are very pleasing too. The specifications are very good as well with full support for every popular codec including the lossless codecs DTS-HD/Dolby TrueHD & LPCM; so every single bit of every piece of content's audio will be hitting the receiver's DAC, it supports 3D too. The few reviews I can find have it highly recommended.
It's a tickle over 300 at £339 here:
http://www.petertyson.co.uk/ebuttonz/ebz_product_p
Bravia Link isn't a unique thing but uses a technology called HDMI-CEC which is (relatively) standard between most HDMI 1.2-1.4 devices. Different companies have different brand names for it, Samsung use Anynet+, Panasonic is Viera Link, Pioneer is/was Kuro Link; and they're all compattible with each other on a basic level with some offering the more advanced features cross platform and some not.
This system has HDMI-CEC support so should cover basic Bravia Sync features such as suspend and launch of several devices; remote control of the XMB should be supported too.
Of course, if you try another system in a shop and really like it it's usually better to go with what you've tried, but if you can try one of these systems somewhere or are willing to take a risk, this should be a really solid system.
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