Surround sound is a wide topic. The general idea in surround sound
that there are multiple speakers around the listener and they are used to form a
soundfield where the listener can heard sound coming from any direction. Surround sound is
mostly used in movies. There are many surround technologies in use. Here is some
information about most common ones you might encounter:
Dolby Pro-Logic is a souped up version of the old Dolby Surround
used in movie industry for few dacades. It uses two analog stereo channels (L and R) to
encode four channels of information. In the coding process of four channels to two
channels some of the audio information is bound to be lost in the process.
Dolby Digital (known in the past as AC3) is a completely digital
system which transmits 6 independent streams of digital data. The data is compressed using
Dolby's proprietary codec algorithms. Other digital systems competing in this field are
DTS and multi channel MPEG audio.
Ambisonic
Surround Sound FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions by domestic listeners about Ambisonic
Surround Sound. Includes theory, practice, details of current decoder manufacturers and a
discography of UHJ encoded LPs and CDs.
Decoding
and virtualization bring surround sound to the masses - You may plan to include only
two speakers, just a set of headphones, or support for one- and two-channel sound sources
in your next design. Not to worry. Psychoacoustics, processors, and plenty of memory can
still give your customers an immersive audio experience. "Hear" is how.
Listening To
Music With ProLogic - listening music through Prologic system is usually not a great
idea unless it is has been mixed for use in Surround Sound
Surround in the Age of
Digital - Now that 5.1-channel Dolby Digital is available to the consumer, is matrixed
four-channel Dolby Surround on the way out?
Circle
Surround® White Paper - originally developed to offer the benefits of surround sound
for music applications, article covers also surround sound history
