no more 2.0 mixes? (1 Viewer)

[Franklin]

it seems to me that most recent DVD releases no longer offer a standard 2.0 audio mix and plays in 5.1 by default. this is fine when i'm watching discs on my setup, but more often than not im watching a flick on a friend's or the family TV that uses only the basic setup. the sound is unbalanced and dialoge is hard to hear. if there isn't a 2.0 mix available on the disc, such as on the new Indy box, is there a way to get an even sound through a standard TV? thanks!

 

[Mark Murphy]

I'm by no means an expert, but I think Dolby's website says that the 5.1 signal "downmixes" to stereo 2.0 signal when necessary.

I got this from the Dolby website:

7. Can I hear 5.1-channel Dolby Digital programs over a regular stereo or Dolby Surround Pro Logic system?

Yes. All Dolby Digital decoders, whether 5.1-channel or two-channel, have a unique feature called "downmixing" that assures full compatibility with any playback system. At your option, the decoder will create "on the fly" from 5.1-channel programs a two-channel, Dolby Surround-encoded mix for playback over a home theater system with Dolby Surround Pro Logic decoding; a two-channel stereo mix for regular stereo and headphone playback; or a mono mix for playback over a mono TV set. See Figure 7-1.

This makes it possible for producers of 5.1-channel programs to provide only the one 5.1-channel mix on the disc or other source. The decoder in the playback system does the rest, automatically conforming the signal to the particular playback circumstances. Note: downmixing is not used for laser discs because they contain three different soundtracks: stereo PCM for a conventional stereo or Dolby Surround mix; one FM track for a mono mix; and one FM track for a 5.1-channel Dolby Digital mix. Frequently these mixes are prepared at different times, even by different mixers, so can sound quite different from each other.

 

[Wayne A. Pflughaupt]

Franklin,

All DVD players offer a downconverted two-channel analog mix through the L/R RCA jacks. The analog jacks are active all the time; no menu option is required. This is not the same as a 2.0 option – that only goes out of the digital (coaxial or optical) output, so you can’t access it through a TV or basic Pro-Logic system anyway.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

 

[John Garcia]

There are very few 2.0 mixes because it is very rare to see movies mixed this way anymore.