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Blu ray decoding/ analog

post #1 of 8
11/24/08 at 9:10am
Thread Starter 
Hi,

Will i be losing some sound quality because multi channel outputs are anaolog and I am not using the hdmi for all the high res audio codecs such dtshd-ma? in otherwords will by using multi channel outputs and having the blu ray player decode, will it sound the same as using hdmi and having a receiver decode?

2nd question,
are blu ray movies in 7.1?

thanks!
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post #2 of 8
11/24/08 at 10:27am

Re: Blu ray decoding/ analog

Last question first: A few, very few.

Analog audio can be nearly as good as a HDMI 1.3 connection depending upon your equipment. Bass Management System, or lack of, is the thing you have to watch out for. Some newer Blu-ray players have good BMS, while others (Smasung P1400 for one) have nearly no BMS. Some AVRs have BMS for their analog inputs, but most do not. Therefore, I hope you are seeing the "Catch 22." It is important that you know the exact capabilities of your AVR & Blu-ray player so you can properly set your system up. It can be easy, or a real pain if you are not careful. I have been there, done that, and have felt the pain, but I did make it work. However, I now have a Onkyo 805 and use HDMI .
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post #3 of 8
11/24/08 at 11:46am

Re: Blu ray decoding/ analog

sptrout...........
Does your 805 do bass management for the 7.1 analog outputs?
Thanks.
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post #4 of 8
11/24/08 at 12:08pm

Re: Blu ray decoding/ analog

Quote:
Originally Posted by Ed Moxley
sptrout...........
Does your 805 do bass management for the 7.1 analog outputs?
Thanks.

I do not believe so because in the manual under the "Listening Modes Available for Each Source Format" Section the only modes available are; Pure Audio, Direct, Multichannel, and Stereo. All the listening modes that would require DS Processing are unavailable. This seems to be typical; you have to read the manual carefully, and "between the lines," to be able to figure out what is going on, or not going on.

I had the same problem before with a Denon 3300 where you REALLY had to read between the lines to figure out that it did not do any DSP work on its 5.1 analog input.

Therefore in my previous setup with a P1400 & the 3300, neither device provided BMS. The P1400 only has settings for speaker sizes, which only set the crossover frequency of each speaker to 100Hz when set to small. No LFE boost, or speaker distance settings. I first installed this configuration nearly 1 1/2 years ago and it took me a longtime to figure out why I had no bass and then how to fix it by increasing the analog LFE input 15dB.
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post #5 of 8
11/24/08 at 5:01pm
Thread Starter 

Re: Blu ray decoding/ analog

thanks but im wondering now...

currently with my dvd player i use an opitcal cable and my receiver has the option of PLIIx which takes the 5.1 sound and makes it 7.1 by taking the surround speakers signal and feeding it to the surround back speakers as well.

However, for blu ray if i use the multi channel inputs can i still matrix the sound from 5.1 to 7.1?
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post #6 of 8
11/24/08 at 6:27pm

Re: Blu ray decoding/ analog

Quote:
Will i be losing some sound quality because multi channel outputs are anaolog and I am not using the hdmi for all the high res audio codecs such dtshd-ma? in otherwords will by using multi channel outputs and having the blu ray player decode, will it sound the same as using hdmi and having a receiver decode?
In addition to what's already been said, things like Audyssey and bass and treble controls are usually not available thru the analog in's. Some Onkyo's (I say "some" because I don't know if all do, though my HT-500 and 702 did) do allow Bass/treble adjustments. But this means a another conversion which some think adversly affects sound quality. The lack of these adjustments can have a big effect on sound quality.
Quote:
Does your 805 do bass management for the 7.1 analog outputs?
I haven't seen very many receivers do BM or signal processing thru the analog in's. One is the Outlaw 1070 and another is the old Pioneer 59txi which allows both. One of the reasons I bought one earlier this year. Most receivers just pass the 5/7.1 analog signal straight to the volume controls.
Quote:
However, for blu ray if i use the multi channel inputs can i still matrix the sound from 5.1 to 7.1?
I guess it would depend on the BR player since it would do the processing. If it has Dolby ProLogicII I think it would. The BR player would need 7.1 analog outs, not 5.1. The receiver would also need 7.1 analog in's. Some only have 5.1
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post #7 of 8
11/24/08 at 7:50pm
Thread Starter 

Re: Blu ray decoding/ analog

do you know if the sony bdp 550 is capable of doing PLIIx?

also i would really like to have all 7 speakers being used otherwise its a waste so do you think if i use an optical cable instead of multichannel outputs that it will sound the same?

i need your opioion. can you notice the difference in sound quality of lossless sound?
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post #8 of 8
11/24/08 at 8:48pm

Re: Blu ray decoding/ analog

Quote:
do you know if the sony bdp 550 is capable of doing PLIIx?
I looked (very quockly) at the 550's manual and I didn't see anything that said it had Dolby PLIIx or DTS:Neo6 decoders for the analog outs.
Quote:
i need your opioion. can you notice the difference in sound quality of lossless sound?
I have my Samsung 1400 hooked up with both 5.1 analog cables and optical and by pushing a button on the remote I can quickly change from one to the other. I would say the difference in sound quality is noticable, but not drastic. But the 1400 doesn't do DTS-MA thru the 5.1's, only Dolby TrueHD.
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