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DTS Digital Surround
DTS
Digital Surround is a 5.1-channel surround sound
format, similar to Dolby Digital.
As such it is a competing format to Dolby Digital.
DTS (Digital Theater System) features up to five discrete (independent) channels (front center, front left, front right, surround left, surround right; giving it the "5" designation) of full
frequency sound (with respect to the range of human hearing, which ideally ranges from 20
Hz to 20,000 Hz), plus a sixth channel for low frequency effects
(LFE). The LFE signal is usually reserved for the subwoofer speaker(s), or those speakers capable of reproducing
low frequency ranges. The low frequency effects channel gives DTS the ".1" designation. The ".1" signifies that the sixth channel is not full frequency, as it contains only deep bass frequencies (3 Hz to 120
Hz).
DTS is a lossy audio
encoding scheme that supports up to 5.1 channels of discrete
audio. Though the vast majority of DTS digital surround
soundtracks consist of 5.1 channels, the fact is that it can be composed of
less than 5.1 discrete channels. For example, DTS 4.0 have discrete audio signals for
the center, left, and right channels, plus a mono audio signal that is
common for the surround channels. DTS 4.1 is like DTS 4.0, but
adds the ".1" low frequency
effects channel. DTS 5.0 is like DTS 5.1, but lacks a discrete audio signal for the low frequency
effects channel. Keep in mind that "DTS" does not always equate to "DTS 5.1". "DTS" generically refers to the encoding scheme as discussed
above. Only when it says "DTS
5.1" explicitly can you be sure that the soundtrack consists of 5.1
discrete channels. Fortunately, the vast majority of DTS
encoded DVDs are in fact DTS 5.1.
DTS uses higher data rates (1.5 Mbit/sec or 754 kbit/sec, which
are almost twice to four times higher) to encode the 5.1
channels of surround sound information than
Dolby Digital (448 kbit/sec or 384 kbit/sec), prompting many home theater enthusiasts and industry experts
to claim that it is superior to Dolby Digital. DTS surround sound
encoded DVD-Video titles are far fewer in number than their Dolby Digital counterparts, and
until recently were released months after their Dolby Digital
counterparts. Thanks to the new lower DTS data rate (i.e., the 754
kbit/sec data rate), some studios (e.g., Buena Vista, DreamWorks, Fox, New
Line and to a
lesser extent Columbia TriStar and Artisan) have begun to release DVD titles
that feature both Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS 5.1. Prior to
the advent of the lower DTS data rate, DTS DVD titles featured the full
DTS data rate (i.e., the 1.5 Mbit/sec data rate) soundtrack, a Dolby
Surround 2.0 soundtrack (for backwards compatibility with non-DTS
equipment), and few (if any)
bonus material since capacity of the DVD was limited due to the
"data hogging" full-rate DTS soundtrack.
To take advantage of DTS digital surround, you must have either
configuration (A) or (B):
Configuration (A): DTS decoding in the receiver or preamplifier (this is
the preferred configuration)
(1) a receiver
or preamplifier
with built-in DTS decoding (look for the "DTS" logo on the
faceplate), and
(2) a DVD player with DTS digital output (look for the
"DTS" or "DTS digital out" logo on the
faceplate). Alternatively you can use a DVD player with DTS
decoding built-in with its digital output (in which case you're not
really using the decoder in the DVD player), and
(3) use an optical or coaxial digital
audio interconnect to connect the DVD player to the receiver or
preamplifier
Configuration (B): DTS decoding in the DVD player
(1) a "5.1-channel ready" receiver
or preamplifier
(with no DTS decoding) that has a set of 5.1-channel analog inputs, and
(2) a DVD player with built-in DTS decoding (look for the
"DTS digital surround" logo on the faceplate and a set of
5.1-channel analog outputs on the back panel), and
(3) use six analog audio interconnects (i.e., three
stereo RCA pairs) between the DVD player and the receiver or
preamplifier
Dolby Digital is a competing
format that also supports up to "5.1" discrete
channels.
Also see: Surround Sound
Formats page for a full explanation, DTS
Extended Surround, Dolby Digital
Additional Information and Reference:
DTS
Digital Surround home page
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