Bitstream vs. PCM output for legacy codecs

[UFAlien]

Okay... sorry about this, but I'm still pretty much an audio n00b.

Now, I have a HTiB from Panasonic. It does not display any DTS logos, so I'm assuming it cannot decode that. I have it connected to my PS3 with an optical cable (it has no HDMI input).

My current PS3 settings are PCM (not bitstream), with supported audio formats checked as PCM 2.0 (the one that's checked by default) and Dolby Digital 5.1...
I unchecked the "DTS" box.

What I'm wondering is, what will I be getting when I play a DTS disc? And are my settings screwed up someplace?

Thank you.

[lnb]

If the disc only has DTS as the surround sound codec, you will only be able to hear the PCM2.0

If the disc has both DTS and Dolby Digital, ensure you select the DD as the audio choice.

As a side ... many entry level receivers have HDMI inputs and all audio CODECs these days. Depending on the speakers you may be able to upgrade for cheap (under $200). Ya it won't be as good as more expensive systems but it will be better that your HTIB until you can upgrade everything. For budgets, buy cheap receiver, then save up and get better spreakers, then save again and upgrade to higher quality receiver.

[UFAlien]

Actually, when I watch my DTS films on this setup I am getting 5.1... I can hear the discrete rear channel effects. I was wondering if, perhaps, it was being converted to Dolby, but then I realized that the Dolby logo on the receiver doesn't light up...

[lnb]

what are your settings on your receiver?

[UFAlien]

The only setting options (besides volume and source input) are Dolby Pro Logic II modes, which I always leave off on 5.1 movies (including DTS discs).

[BIslander]

If you have set your PS3 to output PCM and if you are using an optical connection, then you will only get stereo. Two channels is the limit of PCM over optical. If you are getting audio from the other channels, it is being matrixed by your AVR, most likely using ProLogic. That's the only way what you describe is possible.

Your best apporach with your current equipment is to set the PS3 to bitstream DD 5.1 and the output PCM for DTS sources. Since DVDs must have Dolby digital tracks, you'll always get discrete 5.1 from them. Just choose the DD 5.1 track all of the time.

Blu-ray is aother matter, though, since Dolby is not a required format. Many Blus do not have Dolby tracks, just dts-MA. With those discs, you'll be limited to stereo. Look for the PS3 downmix setting that uses Dolby surround. That folds four discrete channels into the stereo signal and produces passable surround sound. Use ProLogic in the receiver to extract the other two channels.

[UFAlien]

Okay, this is the part where I smash my head against the desk.

There's not even a choice of bitstream or PCM for an optical connection... JUST the checklist. Which explains the Dolby 5.1... but I still wonder how I'm getting surround from DTS tracks (and no, it is not Pro Logic II - I can hear the difference anyway, and as I mentioned I leave that off).

[BIslander]

Originally Posted by UFAlien

Okay, this is the part where I smash my head against the desk.

There's not even a choice of bitstream or PCM for an optical connection... JUST the checklist. Which explains the Dolby 5.1... but I still wonder how I'm getting surround from DTS tracks (and no, it is not Pro Logic II - I can hear the difference anyway, and as I mentioned I leave that off).

I can't hear what you hear. But, I can assure you it is not possible to feed more than two channels of PCM over an optical connection. That's the limit of the S/PDIF protocol.

So, if you are hearing more than two channels, then you must be bitstreaming a multichannel track that your receiver can decode. Or, your receiver must be doing some form or matrix processing. As best I can tell, those are the only two possibilities.

[UFAlien]

Perhaps the PS3 converts the DTS 5.1 to DD 5.1, and the light doesn't go on for Dolby on the receiver because of some technicality in the conversion process... well thanks anyway.

[Audiophile_At_Birth]

Originally Posted by UFAlien

Perhaps the PS3 converts the DTS 5.1 to DD 5.1, and the light doesn't go on for Dolby on the receiver because of some technicality in the conversion process... well thanks anyway.

Not possible. It's like saying Subway is the same thing as Quiznos just wrapped up in a different package.

[UFAlien]

You know what? Someone needs to lock this thread XD

While I was messing around with the cables earlier, I realized something - even though it made no mention of this in the specs or on the box or in the online manual, there is, in fact, a tiny DTS logo hidden away on the top of the unit. Why they don't advertise this function, I'm not sure... but whatever. Either way, this whole thread was an exercise in pointlessness.