THE GRAMOPHONE WIRE
AUDIO EDITION NO. 1
Take a look inside for all about surround sound, speakers, channels, and the latest sound technology.
IN THIS ISSUE
TOTEM ARRO FLOORSTANDING SPEAKER, $1750/PAIR on the cover: Bowers & Wilkins PM1
3 6 7 8 9
SURROUND SOUND: HOW MANY CHANNELS DO YOU NEED? THE FIRST STEPS IN CHOOSING SPEAKERS EASY LOUDSPEAKER PLACEMENT FOR BEST SOUND SURROUND SOUND PART I: 1.0 ... 2.1 ... 5.1 ... 7.1 ... 9.1 ... 11.1... A New Dimension in Surround Sound: DOLBY ATMOS
SURROUND SOUND:
HOW MANY CHANNELS DO YOU NEED? BY JOHN SCIACCA
Decades after its birth, multi-channel audio is still confusing to many consumers, particularly when it comes to more than 5.1 channels. John Sciacca explains the evolution of surround sound and how those extra channels benefit listeners.
In the beginning, there was one-channel and it was mono.
And verily, it was good. Then the light grew brighter, and man said unto himself, “If one is good, then certainly two is better!” And left and right were created, and thus we had stereo. There was channel separation, and it was very good. And for years, two-channel stereo was enough. But many years passed, and man grew tired of having only two-channels. And thinking went that if two was better than one, than four would obviously be twice as good as two. And in 1967, Pink Floyd expanded the horizons of our feeble listening minds, debuting a custom-made quadraphonic speaker system. Four speakers, two in the front and two in the back. And we were now literally surrounded by sound. And it was the birth of something truly outstanding. While surround sound for music has come and gone with various degrees of success, it has been the perfect complement for movies, and we must thank Dolby for picking up the multi-channel audio ball and running with it. In 1982 Dolby introduced Dolby Surround, which took the audio signal embedded into just two recorded channels and created four playback channels: front left, center, front right and surround. Time and technology advanced and Dolby Surround eventually gave way to Dolby Digital (and the competing DTS) which gave us the 5.1-channel audio channels that makes up the vast majority of surround systems existing still to this day. With a front left, center, front right, surround right, surround left and dedicated subwoofer, low-frequency effects (LFE) channel you can now enjoy truly cinematic sound in your living room. But, is 5.1-channels enough? What if you want…more? If you’ve been looking for a surround receiver lately, you’ve likely run across all manner of additional audio channels beyond the basic 5.1 layout. In fact, nearly every receiver above entry-level models offers 7 channels of amplification, with the highest-end models capable of driving 11 different audio channels! What are all of these extra channels and do you need to bother with them?
SURROUND BACK
Surround back was the first addition to the basic 5.1-channel speaker layout and was originally developed in 1999 for Star Wars: Episode One: The Phantom Menace. These extra speakers enabled audio mixers to place sounds from the pod racers directly behind the listeners and create a more exciting and immersive mix. This was originally called Surround-EX or –ES for “extended surround.” When using these channels, the traditional “surround” speakers are placed at the sides of the listening position and then one (6.1) or two (7.2) additional speakers are added to the rear of the room behind the listeners. In my experience, surround back channels work best in rooms that are long, where there is six or more feet of space behind the primary listening position. This allows for sounds to be placed directly behind you, and creates better front-to-back sound transitions, such as when a jet flies overhead. Nearly every receiver above $400 supports surround back channels and many Blu-ray discs are recorded with 7.1 channel audio soundtracks to take advantage of these speakers.
FRONT HEIGHT
In 1999 both Dolby and Audyssey introduced new audio channels to raise the perceived height of presentations. Dolby called their version ProLogic IIz while Audyssey offers DSX. Both of these channels are meant to be installed several feet above and slightly outside the main front left and right speakers. The higher the speakers, the larger the front wall can seem. Front height channels can create a very impressive sonic image that you often aren’t aware of until you turn the speakers off. Things like rain fall and audience applause and a swelling music score all seem bigger and more impressive. Receivers costing below $1500 can often run surround back OR front height channels, but not both simultaneously. For rooms with ceiling heights 8-feet and greater, the front height channels can offer an impressive effect. The front height channels also complement front projection screens very well, providing an even bigger sonic impact. Currently, there are no Blu-ray discs that are encoded with Front Height channel information, but this is extracted from the recording using post processing from Dolby (IIz), Audyssey (DSX) or DTS (Neo:X).
FRONT WIDTH
To expand the width of the listening area, both Audyssey and DTS support front width channels. These channels placed 60-degrees off-axis of the main listening position help to augment the direct sounds coming from the main left and right speakers. According to Audyssey’s Chief Technical Officer, Chris Kyriakakis, "Our research showed that perception of spaciousness and envelopment relies on perceptual cues from specific directions. So, wide speakers were introduced and the algorithm generates the appropriate acoustical and perceptual cues to match human perception." Again, there are no Blu-ray discs encoded with Front Width channel information, but this is extracted from the recording using post processing from Audyssey (DSX) or DTS (Neo:X).
in 1967, Pink Floyd expanded the horizons of our feeble listening minds, debuting a custom-made quadraphonic speaker system. Four speakers, two in the front and two in the back. And we were now literally surrounded by sound. If you are fortunate enough to have an audio system with 7, 9 or even 11-channels, there are three Blu-ray discs – Step Up Revolution, Dredd, and The Expendables 2 – which have been optimized for DTS Neo:X playback to support the full complement of speaker channels! While many receivers can run 7-channels, and a few can support 9-channels, there are very few receivers or pre-amp/processors capable of running all 11-channels simultaneously. Notable exceptions include the Marantz AV8801, Onkyo TX-NR5010, and Denon AVR-4520CI. (The Yamaha CX-A5000 pre-amp can also do 11-channels of processing, but utilizing Yamaha’s proprietary Digital Signal Processing, and using rear height channels instead of front width.)
AND BEYOND
As if 11-channels of audio wasn’t enough, Dolby has once again raised the bar with its new Atmos audio system, developed in 2012 (jump to page 10 for more info!). An Atmos Cinema Processor can support up to 128 discrete audio tracks and up to 64 unique speaker feeds! While it is currently only supported in commercial cinemas – around 300 locations worldwide – there is little doubt that some version of Atmos will eventually make its way to consumer living rooms. Who knows, maybe even yours!
THE FIRST STEPS IN
CHOOSING SPEAKERS by WES PHILLIPS
IT’S A GREAT TIME TO BE BUYING LOUDSPEAKERS.
Your choices used to be: large or small; but nowadays measurement technology, digital equalization, and talented audio engineers have expanded our choices tremendously. But matching your speakers to your lifestyle and listening habits will go a lot smoother if you plan a bit before you buy. As always, what you listen to will influence what you listen through. If you like listening to symphonies from the fifth row or heavy metal in front of the stage, you probably won't be satisfied with tiny little speakers. You want big'uns that can play loud and can deliver deep bass. There's nothing quite like a floor standing loudspeaker for projecting the power of a Mahler symphony or Metallica's Enter Sandman/ So not only do you need the floor space in which to place the speaker, but you'll want to move it away from the walls behind them and on either side. Want big sound, but don't have lots of floor space? Well, there's a way around that: Use two monitor loudspeakers with a subwoofer (those terms mean two small speakers and a special speaker that only plays low bass notes). There's no such thing as a free lunch, however. You gain floor space this way, but you have to be very careful in placing the speakers and subwoofer. Your dealer can help you with this. Small loudspeakers can have space requirements, too. Most monitor speakers are called bookshelf loudspeakers, but most of them do not actually sound their best inside of bookshelves or on top of low furniture. They sound best mounted on stands out away from the walls. What do they offer if they take up similar amounts of space as floor-standing speakers? Well, for one thing, they cost less. Also, small speakers can focus sound in a very special way—you can hear the space surrounding the musicians with remarkable detail. We call this spatial imaging and monitor loudspeakers can be very seductive because they offer it to such a remarkable degree. What if you don't want speakers out in the room? You have choices. Some speakers actually are designed to go in bookshelves; these are called near-boundary speakers and they have the frequency reinforcement added by the wall calculated into their response curves. Some designers prefer designing this type of loudspeaker because the "bump" in frequency response caused by placing a speaker near a wall is a constant and engineers love constants. In recent years, the proliferation of flat-screen televisions designed to be hung on walls, has inspired a new type of loudspeaker. These too are designed to be hung on the wall and provide sound for those flat TVs. Some of these even include their own amplification and digital equalization—these are usually called sound-bars and offer some degree of surround-sound simulation or even multichannel sound. Others require external amplification, but are designed to complement the flat-screen TVs. We could go on. What we wanted to do here was get you thinking about different types of loudspeakers and what you want to do. The next step is to visit your dealer and listen to a few loudspeakers. What you learn may raise other questions.
That's all right—come back and see us. We've got answers.
EASY LOUDSPEAKER PLACEMENT
FOR BEST SOUND BY WES PHILLIPS
Noted high-end audio expert Wes Phillips shares his time-tested methods for how to set up a stereo pair of speakers to get great sound in any kind of room. Novices and experienced listeners alike will find something of value in this clear, concise article. BOWERS & WILKINS CM10 S2 SPEAKER, $2499
YOU BOUGHT (SHALL WE SAY) A PAIR OF LOUDSPEAKERS. How do you get them to sound the best they can? Believe it or not, one simple answer doesn't cost a penny—just pay some attention to distance and symmetry in setting them up. The first two rules are breathing space and symmetry. In "Choosing Loudspeakers" we mentioned that most small loudspeakers (monitors) are designed to be placed away from the room's walls (boundaries), so pull them away from the front wall. (We always call the wall behind the loudspeakers the front wall because it is in front of you when you sit facing the speakers.) The speakers should be equidistant from the front wall (symmetry, remember?); they should also each be an equal distance from the side walls in most rooms. Some rooms aren't perfect rectangles, so you have to be a tad flexible. If you have an open floor plan that combines the living area with a dining area or side lounge, you need to think a bit harder about the side boundaries and speaker placement. Maybe you should place your listening chair in with its back to the open space between the living area and dining area—which lets you use the opposite wall as the front wall, putting the speakers where the sidewalls can be an equal distance from the speakers. Or consider setting up on the diagonal using one corner where the walls meet to place each speaker firing across the long dimension of the room toward the far corner, but spaced the same distance from their respective walls. No matter how you set up the speakers, they should form an equilateral triangle with the listening chair. A rule of thumb is to put the speakers two-thirds the distance apart that their front baffle is from your ears. (For example: The speakers are 6' apart and 9' from their baffle to your ears).
a pretty good rule of thumb: Nothing is cast in stone, you need to listen and you need to be comfortable in your own home. Don't like doing math? A trick carpenters used to use avoid measuring was to use a story stick. Rather than measure each drawer in a cabinet, they'd use a stick cut to fit diagonally across the rectangle of the drawer. Instead of a stick, use a piece of string and stretch it between the two speakers; then use that half three times to determine the distance from each speaker to the sides of your head when you're in the listening chair. (Obviously you need a helper for this method.) You're not doing any of this for the look of it—what you want is to have the speaker/wall interaction and the speaker/you interaction to be balanced. You can measure to the millimeter, however, and still hear more bass from one speaker than the other because of room acoustics, so remember that nothing takes the place of listening carefully before deciding where everything goes. Actually, that's a pretty good rule of thumb: Nothing is cast in stone, you need to listen and you need to be comfortable in your own home. Some interior decorators hate loudspeakers and want to hide them (all decorators want to hide loudspeakers, actually), but once you close your doors behind them as they toddle off to cash your check, it becomes your room again. But if you share it with anyone, you'll want him or her to be comfortable, too. Flexibility is important. In another article, we'll tackle room acoustics and the really hard stuff—right now, try to balance boundaries and symmetry and you'll have taken the giant first step toward good room sound. Or a good-sounding room. Um, good sound.
SURROUND SOUND
PART I
1.0 ... 2.1 ... 5.1 ... 7.1 ... 9.1 ... 11.1...
"Hey, I just wanna watch a movie. What’s the deal with this surround sound number soup?" We’ll define all those numbers and explain the various speakers in surround systems in order of importance and their typical roles:
CENTER CHANNEL SPEAKER – This speaker is usually placed directly
above or below the TV screen. It delivers up to 85% of the dialogue and 65% of the special effects in a soundtrack. Just think about how much of the action in any viewing experience is in the center third of the screen; all the sound for that action and more is going to come from the center channel speaker.
LEFT/RIGHT FRONT SPEAKERS – Ideally placed equidistant from the left
and right sides of the screen, generally no more than 4 feet away, if possible. The L/Rs support the output from the center channel and reproduce sounds that show up on the left or right third of the screen. If a stereo source is being reproduced, all the information will come from these two speakers unless you’ve got a subwoofer in the system and the L/Rs are set to “Small” in the receiver menu.
PRIMARY SURROUND SPEAKERS – Ideally placed directly to the sides or
a little behind the prime listening area. These typically reproduce the ambience or the environmental sounds in the movie or TV show scene. Jungle sounds, office sounds, restaurant sounds, city street sounds, stuff like that. In spite of everyone’s powerful desire to hear the surround speakers all the time, the truth is you shouldn’t be consciously aware of their existence most of the time. Trust me, the film director doesn’t want you constantly distracted by sounds coming from your side or behind you. Surround music on the other hand, may have just the audience sounds in these channels or the engineer may place primary info in these channels. Why do they do this? Because they can.
The above add up to the “5” in a 5.1 system. They’re all full frequency channels (20Hz – 20kHz) when recorded by the studio but you can choose to send the low frequencies to your subwoofer. More channels to come...
A New Dimension in Surround Sound:
DOLBY ATMOS
At Gramophone, we’re excited! Dolby Atmos is the biggest advancement in home theater sound in over a decade. Dolby Atmos was first shown in commercial movie theaters with the release of Brave in 2012. Since then, most major motion pictures have been produced in Dolby Atmos. The home releases of these are starting to hit the market now, and we can demonstrate Dolby Atmos for you in one of our showrooms. With Dolby Atmos. movie directors now have a whole new dimension for the soundtracks of their movies. Surround sound for home theater generally uses a 5.1 channel system with the top systems being 7.1 channels. The speakers include left, center, and right across the front along with two rear speakers and in a 7.1 system surround left & surround right side speakers. The “point 1” is the deep bass track called LFE (low frequency effect) which is sent to a subwoofer. This arrangement of speakers allows producers to have sound appear any where in front of or behind you. Now, with Dolby Atmos, 4 more speakers are added to the system to create sound in front, on the sides, behind, and above you.
DOLBY ATMOS Now imagine this: directors now have a 3D map of your entire theater space to work with. Think about a rectangular 3D space that starts with your front speakers, encompasses your ceiling and includes all the way to the back walls of your theater. Atmos provides the director the ability to take any single spot in 3D space and locate precisely where any sound should come from! Dolby Atmos actually attaches “meta-data” to every sound to tell the Atmos processor where to locate the sound. This means that we need more processing power inside a home theater receiver to decode all of this than in the past, but fortunately, the technology is remarkably affordable. In the past, Dolby has recommended the surround and rear speakers be positioned slightly above the listening area to add a sense of height. With the addition of in ceiling speakers for the height channels, new home theaters will have the normal sides and rears more at ear level to give a bigger space for the 3D sound to occur within. If you currently have surround speakers located in the ceiling, you can still upgrade to a Dolby Atmos theater by locating additional surround speakers on the side & rear of your space. Just keep in mind that Atmos will just not work unless you make your in ceiling speakers the Atmos channels and add a pair of speakers for the surround channels on the side or rear walls. So what will you need to put Atmos in your home? First of all, the good news is, if you have a recent Blu-Ray player, it will decode Atmos soundtracks. Any Blu-Ray player with 1.4 HDMI capabilities can play Atmos. You WILL need a new surround sound receiver or preamp/processor and additional speakers. Integra, one of Gramophone’s favorite brands, has Atmos enabled receivers and processors available now. Once you have Atmos set up, all of your movies will become even better. The Atmos system has “up-sampling” to take normal 5.1 surround and use your Atmos speakers! Dolby Atmos is just amazing from a sound perspective. Once you hear it, we know you’ll be as excited as we are.
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