| It’s the SOUND that Makes What We Watch on TV, DVD Special – DTS & Dolby By Steve Kruschen, The One and Only Mr. Gadget® ©2009 All Rights Reserved November 24, 2009 – By now, I am sure you, among the movie-going public, have noticed surround sound and the exciting effects that sound adds to the enjoyment of watching films in theaters. I hope you have also noticed that a component of the sound, the surround “effect” may be deep bass tones you can, on occasion, actually feel in your gut. Behind this magnificent sound are usually one of two companies – Dolby Labs and DTS.
These two companies develop proprietary technology that gives the sound its oomph, its clarity, its character and anything else that adds sound-wise to your enjoyment. What I want to remind everyone is that these two companies do different things with the sound. Not one being better, necessarily, than the other, just different. OK, so some feel one is better than the other, but that is not my point. My point is that when you listen to your home entertainment whether it may be video games, certain TV shows and broadcast movies as well as just about every modern film on DVD, one of those companies, or both, may have had a hand in supplying the oomph that helps you to enjoy the experience all the more. So, if you listen to this content through a surround sound audio/video receiver, many built-in TV sound systems or one of the many “sound bars” gaining popularity with flat TV purchasers, or through some DVD players that have their own built-in sound systems, it is likely equipped with technology from one or both of these companies. What’s the big deal? Did you know you might have a choice as to the company’s circuitry that can be selected to process the sound? Why should you care? As I indicated earlier, each company does their work differently producing a different result. While many of you may not care, I’d bet that many of you would find pleasure in exploring this often-ignored aspect of their audio enjoyment. In the case of a DVD or video game, the source material’s packaging usually will display logos of one or both companies to indicate their technology is inside, and this is your cue to explore. First, you will need to learn if your TV sound system, A/V receiver or sound bar is equipped to offer the choice. If it is, then you will be able to read and learn how to select one over the other, in one of its many available forms. You see, there are not just “plain” DTS and Dolby processing, but a range of different offerings from each, which I will not go into here. Simply know that the more sophisticated your equipment, the more likely it is that more choices are available. Next, I most sincerely invite and encourage you to select from the choices present and listen to favorite action passages, especially on several DVDs, for example. It is likely that you, even with what you feel are unsophisticated, untrained ears will hear a measurable difference in the way a passage sounds when played with DTS circuitry engaged versus Dolby choices. Choice is good, right? And just as choice is good, so, too, is the chance you might discover your own personal preference that will make the experience all the sweeter, all the more pleasurable. So, go on, check into your available choices about which you may not now be aware. Once discovered and explored, your senses will be on high alert to enjoy your DVDs and other home entertainment options’ sound even more than yesterday! Now that you have learned about what home entertainment sound options may be available, did you know that these same companies are also involved in auto sound and in computer sound systems? And why not? These two “venues” are becoming a bigger part of where you enjoy sound entertainment. To learn more, visit this page at DTS and this one at Dolby Labs. |
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