Dolby/DTS encoding

Neveboy · 24th November 2006, 02:11 AM

Hey Slutz,

Anyone tell me of some surround encoders for use stand alone or plug-in? (Mac OSx PT HD and LE if possible)

I know of the Digi plug and Soundcode but not looking to spend that much just yet !! If possible !!!

Any other options under $500/600??

If I'm mainly encoding for radio broadcast, cd and dvd audio, am I better off with Dolby or DTS?

Soundcode works for PT HD and LE which is a plus considering I've a laptop and would rather not take up studio time encoding, but the Digi plug doesn't work with LE.

The Digi Plug works for audio cd and FM but Soundcode wont do 44.1 16 bit cd as far as I can tell.

Anyone??

minister · 24th November 2006, 06:58 PM

hi,

radio broadcast? sorry, just asking, i only do occasional stereo radio spots. are you talking surround radio?

cd? by definition, that is stereo redbook 16/44.1 ... what good would a Dolby or DTS plug do you?

DVD i can understand....

DIGI plug? they don't make a surround encoding plug.

to simply make and AC3 file, you can use APPLE's compressor which now has the A.Pack rolled into it. however, you can only get it bundled with DVD Studio Pro -- but then you can burn surround DVD's. it does not plug-into PT, but is stand alone. and, AC3 is AC3, so the audio quality is there.

The Neyrinck plugs (Soundcode) are excellent. RTAS and AS in PT, allow you to audition all the various downmixes and DRC situations...and let you play the AC3 or DTS back into the session to watch in time with the video. well worth the money, but as you found out, about $1000....

http://www.neyrinck.com/Pages/products.html

MinnetonkaAudio Software makes some good plugs too.

http://www.minnetonkaaudio.com/

for down mixing and LtRt, you can also use the Dolby Surround Tools plug-in...
http://www.digidesign.com/index.cfm?...00&itemid=1042

Neveboy · 24th November 2006, 07:15 PM

[quote=minister;986409]hi,

radio broadcast? sorry, just asking, i only do occasional stereo radio spots. are you talking surround radio?

I know I know, this is a dance gig I recorded and they have asked me to mix it in surround for FM broadcast.

I was a bit miffed by the suggestion as my only experience with surround encoding is DVD, like you mention, but apparently it can be done, and even if it can't, I'm being payed to deliver so deliver i will !!

cd? by definition, that is stereo redbook 16/44.1 ... what good would a Dolby or DTS plug do you?

True, apologies, it was late at night !

DVD i can understand....

DIGI plug? they don't make a surround encoding plug.

Sorry, I meant the Dolby plug as opposed to the Soundcode.

Thanks for the pointers

minister · 24th November 2006, 07:22 PM

as to DTS, it does sound better as the data rate is not as low...but there is a trade-off. sometimes you have reduce the data rate of the video to accomodate the DTS 754 or 1509. and, fewer people think to even use it thinking that Dolby is standard. also, you have to have at least on Dolby stream in the DVD, you can't do DTS only. but the Dolby could be an AC3 of the stereo.

oh, sorry, just saw your replies embedded in my quote....

never heard of surround FM broadcast...then again, i don't know a ton about radio...so, it is very possible that they do it now.

let me know if you have any other questions.

Neveboy · 24th November 2006, 07:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by minister

as to DTS, it does sound better as the data rate is not as low...but there is a trade-off. sometimes you have reduce the data rate of the video to accomodate the DTS 754 or 1509. and, fewer people think to even use it thinking that Dolby is standard. also, you have to have at least on Dolby stream in the DVD, you can't do DTS only. but the Dolby could be an AC3 of the stereo.

oh, sorry, just saw your replies embedded in my quote....

never heard of surround FM broadcast...then again, i don't know a ton about radio...so, it is very possible that they do it now.

let me know if you have any other questions.

Thanks very much, very appreciated.

So you think Dolby is the way to go? Seem as you have to have a Dolby stream in there anyway !?

Yes apparently it can be done via FM but lets face, 1. Whos going to notice/care unless its plugged heavily in advance and 2. Who the heck, that has a tuner plugged up to their Pro Logic, would think of putting it into "Surround" mode anyway if they knew nothing about it !!

Its an adventerous experiment and one I will be very curious to watch, or should I say listen !!

Its going out all over Europe via the EBU

minister · 24th November 2006, 07:37 PM

i am finishing a surround concert DVD now... the director decided he did not want to sacrifice the data rate of the picture by including DTS as well. at one point we thought of Dolby Stereo AC3 and 5.1 DTS...but lets face it, 10% of the population knows what DTS is. so we are going Dolby all the way. and it sounds good.

for DTS, i use Neyrinck. for Dolby, for the moment, i am using Compressor...but will get the Soundcode.

As far as encoding PL II up until this month there was only the Dolby Hardware option...Minnetonka Audio just came out with a Dolby PL II plug for PT.

Neveboy · 24th November 2006, 07:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by minister

i am finishing a surround concert DVD now... the director decided he did not want to sacrifice the data rate of the picture by including DTS as well. at one point we thought of Dolby Stereo AC3 and 5.1 DTS...but lets face it, 10% of the population knows what DTS is. so we are going Dolby all the way. and it sounds good.

for DTS, i use Neyrinck. for Dolby, for the moment, i am using Compressor...but will get the Soundcode.

As far as encoding PL II up until this month there was only the Dolby Hardware option...Minnetonka Audio just came out with a Dolby PL II plug for PT.

I have the demo for Soundcode so I'm thinking go with what I kno !

I always thought PLII was just a "Toy" included in the receivers to simulate something into the rear channels !??!

I looked at the Minnetonka Audio page last night and thats what confused me as they offer a "Surcode CD-DTS surround software encoder" which I thought might suit this application !?

I also notice they offer:

SurCode for Stereo Dolby Digital (software encoder) This is just for Dolby stereo right?
SurCode for Dolby Digital V2 (surround software encoder) This is for 5.1/6.1 right
SurCode for Dolby Pro Logic II for Windows (surround software encoder) ?!
SurCode for Dolby Pro Logic II for Mac (surround software encoder)?!

Whats the difference otherwise?!

Thanks again for your help.

Been putting off getting into surround for some time now and this is the perfect excuse, plus I have recently listened to Pink Floyds Dark side of the moon that was remixed into 5.1

Mainly, I want to get into mixing high res (96k 24Bit) dvd audio versions of albums I work on.

I record at 96k 24 bit anyway using PT 7

minister · 24th November 2006, 10:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Neveboy

I always thought PLII was just a "Toy" included in the receivers to simulate something into the rear channels !??!

PLII is how most consumers listen to DVD's and TV...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Neveboy

SurCode for Stereo Dolby Digital (software encoder) This is just for Dolby stereo right?

correct. AC3 creation for Stereo and LtRt mixes.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Neveboy

SurCode for Dolby Digital V2 (surround software encoder) This is for 5.1/6.1 right

correct.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Neveboy

SurCode for Dolby Pro Logic II for Windows (surround software encoder) ?!
SurCode for Dolby Pro Logic II for Mac (surround software encoder)?!

Dolby Digital (5.1) is different than PL II. Dolby Digital is discreet; PL II is matrixed.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Neveboy

Mainly, I want to get into mixing high res (96k 24Bit) dvd audio versions of albums I work on.

for DVD-A look at Disk Welder Bronze. otherwise...for DVD-V you are taking up too much bandwidth...and you are restriced with DVD-V with how data rate the audio can take up.

Will · 25th November 2006, 01:57 AM

2nd disc welder. the platinum version also converts your hi res audio to DTS (I think) so that it can be played on normal dvd players, lower quality.

I think they are only available for PC though, unless things have changed since last time I looked.

minister · 25th November 2006, 02:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Will

I think they are only available for PC though, unless things have changed since last time I looked.

Bronze is Mac.

Will · 25th November 2006, 02:12 AM

cool, I'll have to get a copy

Neveboy · 28th November 2006, 09:19 PM

Okay, heres where I'm at.

Got compressor and can now encode files as AC3 files (Dolby 5.1 or Dolby 2)

Ordered Disc Welder (:( No download so gotta wait by the mail box)

Now, I kinda figured the encoding part but where I'm still running into trouble is getting my head around the authoring process.

First and foremost, I have to deliver a Dolby 2 mix of a session, but as a stereo .WAV file.

Am I totally wrong with my assumtion that this is possible and to back myself even further into a corner, is it also possible to burn a stereo .wav file with Dolby 5.1 embedded in it?

Excuse the ignorance but I'm eager to get this right and the web is full of right and wrong answers when it comes to surround in general !!

How so many have it wrong is beyond me !! So i'll make no assumptions if you don't mind.

As mentioned, the purpose of this format delivery (Dolby 2) is so that an attempt can be made to broadcast the concert I am encoding over FM, if alarm bells are ringing having read that, please only post a response if you really really know what you are talking about !!

If i have an AC3 file, how then can I encode it for delivery as a .wav?

Finally, my future intentions are to burn DVD Audio discs and this is where Discwelder comes into play, right ?

I'm presuming that this is the missing link in my needs wanting an AC3 Dolby 5.1 file to play in a dvd player as a dvd audio disc?!

Does Discwelder also give me the option to add a slide show?

Anyone care to point me in the right direction for a bit of education regarding all this ??

Thanks very much, especially given that most surround engineers spend so much more time finishing mixes as opossed to us mere 2 channel understudies !!

Your time is precious and I appreciate it

**Geert van den Berg** · 28th November 2006, 10:12 PM

There's no such thing as an AC3 file encoded as WAV.

AC3 is compressed data format originally develloped for cinema and later ported over to various consumer formats. It doesn't always need to be 5.1 either, since the AC3 is just the compression scheme. If there's no 5.1 mix, a stereo or a Dolby surround mix, it will still be encoded as an AC3 if it were to be authored on a DVD, unless you'd use DTS.

As you know, a WAV file is an uncompressed PCM file.

Ask your client for detailed delivery requirements...

What could be meant by your client is that they want either a regular stereo version of your mix or a Dolby Surround (=Dolby Stereo = the professional format as used in the cinema minus the SR encoding) encoded mix, which is an analogue format develloped to encode one surround channel into a 2 channel mix. A decoder extracts the surround information from these 2 tracks via some phase tricks. Offcourse this format can also be recorded or encoded digital nowadays, but it's still the same thing. This format can also easily be broadcasted. Mind you this is not 5.1. You can also make a Dolby Surround mix from your 5.1 mix with compressor and encode this as a WAV file. (no data compression will come into play while doing this). Offcourse some things gets lost when going from 5.1 to Dolby Surround or stereo, the LFE, is never included in these downmixes.

Another thing your client could mean is that you'd just have to deliver him a printmaster containing 6 discrete WAV's for the 5.1 mix and then 2 additional WAV files containing Dolby Stereo/Surround, this is very common for authoring DVD's or as a pre-master for a trailer/feature.

It could even be that you won't even have to deliver an AC3 file and that the encoding will take place at the DVD authoring studio.

Look on the Dolby website for further explanations. They've got PDF's for download about this subject.

Neveboy · 28th November 2006, 11:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Geert van den Berg

There's no such thing as an AC3 file encoded as WAV.

AC3 is compressed data format originally develloped for cinema and later ported over to various consumer formats. It doesn't always need to be 5.1 either, since the AC3 is just the compression scheme. If there's no 5.1 mix, a stereo or a Dolby surround mix, it will still be encoded as an AC3 if it were to be authored on a DVD, unless you'd use DTS.

As you know, a WAV file is an uncompressed PCM file.

Ask your client for detailed delivery requirements...

What could be meant by your client is that they want either a regular stereo version of your mix or a Dolby Surround (=Dolby Stereo = the professional format as used in the cinema minus the SR encoding) encoded mix, which is an analogue format develloped to encode one surround channel into a 2 channel mix. A decoder extracts the surround information from these 2 tracks via some phase tricks. Offcourse this format can also be recorded or encoded digital nowadays, but it's still the same thing. This format can also easily be broadcasted. Mind you this is not 5.1. You can also make a Dolby Surround mix from your 5.1 mix with compressor and encode this as a WAV file. (no data compression will come into play while doing this). Offcourse some things gets lost when going from 5.1 to Dolby Surround or stereo, the LFE, is never included in these downmixes.

Another thing your client could mean is that you'd just have to deliver him a printmaster containing 6 discrete WAV's for the 5.1 mix and then 2 additional WAV files containing Dolby Stereo/Surround, this is very common for authoring DVD's or as a pre-master for a trailer/feature.

It could even be that you won't even have to deliver an AC3 file and that the encoding will take place at the DVD authoring studio.

Look on the Dolby website for further explanations. They've got PDF's for download about this subject.

So let me get this right,

You can encode any Dolby format as AC3, in fact, this is just the carrier for which the audio is compressed to the disc.

"What could be meant by your client is that they want either a regular stereo version of your mix or a Dolby Surround (=Dolby Stereo = the professional format as used in the cinema minus the SR encoding) encoded mix, which is an analogue format develloped to encode one surround channel into a 2 channel mix. A decoder extracts the surround information from these 2 tracks via some phase tricks. Offcourse this format can also be recorded or encoded digital nowadays, but it's still the same thing. This format can also easily be broadcasted."

Yes thats it, so what do I need to encode this way. Compressor has the option Dolby Stereo Auto ?! This it?

"You can also make a Dolby Surround mix from your 5.1 mix with compressor and encode this as a WAV file.

Please, if you don't mind, take me through this as a procedure.

I'm sure of what I'm delivering as this is for broadcast only, the authoring to DVD is for other project I'd like to mix in 5.1 and burn as DVD-A.

Neveboy · 29th November 2006, 12:31 AM

I've managed to encode a Dolby Stereo Auto (as its described in compressor) as an AIFC file.

Compressor will only let me choose AIFF as the file format when preparing for batch processing.

Am I on the right lines here?

minister · 29th November 2006, 01:25 AM

...sorry been too busy to follow this or answer....

the delivery specs ask for an AC3 and a WAVE file?

they are 2 different things...Though there is such a thing as a Dolby Digital Wave file (but we should not confuse the issue here.)

is this stereo? if yes, then Dolby recommends that you create a 192kbps AC3 file. use the Dolby 2.0 setting and TURN OFF EVERYTHING IN THE PRE-PROCESSING TAB!!

a WAV file is PCM WAV file.

Neveboy · 29th November 2006, 02:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by minister

...sorry been too busy to follow this or answer....

the delivery specs ask for an AC3 and a WAVE file?

they are 2 different things...Though there is such a thing as a Dolby Digital Wave file (but we should not confuse the issue here.)

is this stereo? if yes, then Dolby recommends that you create a 192kbps AC3 file. use the Dolby 2.0 setting and TURN OFF EVERYTHING IN THE PRE-PROCESSING TAB!!

a WAV file is PCM WAV file.

Thanks for your time.

The delivery is for whatever file type is correct for surround broadcasting over FM.

Keeping in mind that it will probably need to be 16bit 44.1k.

Yes this is stereo and I've tried what you mention above, but Compressor will only allow me to encode at a minimum rate of 224kbps

Just to clarify, I have been talking about two diffrent things on this post,

1. How to encode Dolby Surround 2 for FM broadcasta and

2. How to encode and Author for DVD-A

minister · 29th November 2006, 03:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Neveboy

The delivery is for whatever file type is correct for surround broadcasting over FM.

Keeping in mind that it will probably need to be 16bit 44.1k.

Yes this is stereo and I've tried what you mention above, but Compressor will only allow me to encode at a minimum rate of 224kbps

ok, first, i am confused. in sentence one you said surround FM. in three you said stereo.

are you sure that they don't mean LtRt (2 channel matrixed surround)? and not LoRo (straight stereo)?

192 is recommended for DVD-V of stereo material. i don't know what bitrate is for FM.

my suggestion is to get specific delivery specs from your client or the network or the post prod. supervisor.

as to 224...here is my picture:

Neveboy · 29th November 2006, 03:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by minister

ok, first, i am confused. in sentence one you said surround FM. in three you said stereo.

are you sure that they don't mean LtRt (2 channel matrixed surround)? and not LoRo (straight stereo)?

192 is recommended for DVD-V of stereo material. i don't know what bitrate is for FM.

my suggestion is to get specific delivery specs from your client or the network or the post prod. supervisor.

as to 224...here is my picture:

Truth be told, i dont think they know what they want.

All I know is that they want to broadcast in surround over FM TX which is possible.

From what i can gather, this is possible with Dolby II or SRS Circle.

I guess they are looking for LtRt so is this encoded as per your picture?

Sorry to be such a fool with this, but I am learning !!

minister · 29th November 2006, 03:47 AM

i know these things are really confusing the first time......

hopefully someone else can help you through the rest of this as i got a fly on a 2 jobs yet tonight and all day tomorrow...

but, i would venture to guess that they want LtRt.

Dolby Surround is another name for LtRt which is 2 channel matrixed surround that will unfold to LCRS. Dolby Digital is (or SR•D) is discrete 5.1. SR means both Surround and Spectral Recording which is the noise reduction scheme that replaced Dolby A.

in a Dolby Surround LtRt, the 2 is derived from the 6...or, more precsely, 6-->4-->2 which decodes to 4. for this, you need a way to encode an LtRt. The Dolby Surround Tools will do this quite nicely in Pro Tools.

i suggest asking you client or contact one of the broadcats networks where they will do this for delivery specs and find someone in your area who has done this and has the tools and farm it out to them and have them show you.

good luck. if you can wait until thu. or friday, i can help you then. but there are many other people on this boaard and elsewhere who can help you....

Neveboy · 29th November 2006, 10:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by minister

i know these things are really confusing the first time......

hopefully someone else can help you through the rest of this as i got a fly on a 2 jobs yet tonight and all day tomorrow...

but, i would venture to guess that they want LtRt.

Dolby Surround is another name for LtRt which is 2 channel matrixed surround that will unfold to LCRS. Dolby Digital is (or SR•D) is discrete 5.1. SR means both Surround and Spectral Recording which is the noise reduction scheme that replaced Dolby A.

in a Dolby Surround LtRt, the 2 is derived from the 6...or, more precsely, 6-->4-->2 which decodes to 4. for this, you need a way to encode an LtRt. The Dolby Surround Tools will do this quite nicely in Pro Tools.

i suggest asking you client or contact one of the broadcats networks where they will do this for delivery specs and find someone in your area who has done this and has the tools and farm it out to them and have them show you.

good luck. if you can wait until thu. or friday, i can help you then. but there are many other people on this boaard and elsewhere who can help you....

Thanks m8, I'm not under any pressure so I'll sit this one out.

Right, so I gotta encode to LtRt.

By mentioning Dolby Tools, does this mean Compressor wont encode this format?

**Geert van den Berg** · 29th November 2006, 08:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Neveboy

By mentioning Dolby Tools, does this mean Compressor wont encode this format?

Compressor can create LtRt's!

I don't have access to our DVD set at this moment so I can't guide you through the process now, but I know it's possible.

The benefit of the Dolby Tools is that it's a realtime encoder and decoder so you can check on the fly what the decoding does and adjust your mix if something doesn't sound right (like a sound which is recorded MS for example, that won't work in Dolby Surround).

You're right about Compressor only encoding to AIFF and not WAV, I forgot about that, but after you have your AIFF you can convert this to WAV with PT.

And I'll repeat, confirm with your client what exactly the file format is that they want.

Offcourse for DVD-A you'll eventually end up with an AC3 file, but that doesn't seem logical to me for broadcasting. Keep in mind that a file converted to AC3 is data compressed. You can decode this file to a AIFF again, but that means you have lost audio quality.

I think you just want an LtRt encoded into a stereo AIFF, unless they're broadcasting AC3 files, which might be the norm for HD television, but over here there's no one broadcasting this yet. Again confirm with the client...

I can't really help you with DVD-A as I don't know the exact spec's but I am sure you can find those on the internet. If you know the spec's it's easy to fill in the parameters in Compressor.

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24th November 2006, 02:11 AM	#1
Neveboy Gear nut Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Ireland Posts: 109	Dolby/DTS encoding Hey Slutz, Anyone tell me of some surround encoders for use stand alone or plug-in? (Mac OSx PT HD and LE if possible) I know of the Digi plug and Soundcode but not looking to spend that much just yet !! If possible !!! Any other options under $500/600?? If I'm mainly encoding for radio broadcast, cd and dvd audio, am I better off with Dolby or DTS? Soundcode works for PT HD and LE which is a plus considering I've a laptop and would rather not take up studio time encoding, but the Digi plug doesn't work with LE. The Digi Plug works for audio cd and FM but Soundcode wont do 44.1 16 bit cd as far as I can tell. Anyone?? __________________ http://projectneve.blogspot.com www.myspace.com/markmccabe http://www.addastudios.com Last edited by Neveboy; 24th November 2006 at 03:21 AM.. Reason: .......after a bit of thought....... !

24th November 2006, 07:15 PM	#3
Neveboy Gear nut Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Ireland Posts: 109	[quote=minister;986409]hi, radio broadcast? sorry, just asking, i only do occasional stereo radio spots. are you talking surround radio? I know I know, this is a dance gig I recorded and they have asked me to mix it in surround for FM broadcast. I was a bit miffed by the suggestion as my only experience with surround encoding is DVD, like you mention, but apparently it can be done, and even if it can't, I'm being payed to deliver so deliver i will !! cd? by definition, that is stereo redbook 16/44.1 ... what good would a Dolby or DTS plug do you? True, apologies, it was late at night ! DVD i can understand.... DIGI plug? they don't make a surround encoding plug. Sorry, I meant the Dolby plug as opposed to the Soundcode. Thanks for the pointers __________________ http://projectneve.blogspot.com www.myspace.com/markmccabe http://www.addastudios.com

25th November 2006, 01:57 AM	#9
Will Gear maniac Join Date: May 2003 Location: London Posts: 273	2nd disc welder. the platinum version also converts your hi res audio to DTS (I think) so that it can be played on normal dvd players, lower quality. I think they are only available for PC though, unless things have changed since last time I looked. __________________ William Spong Apple Mac Support for London

25th November 2006, 02:12 AM	#11
Will Gear maniac Join Date: May 2003 Location: London Posts: 273	cool, I'll have to get a copy __________________ William Spong Apple Mac Support for London

24th November 2006, 06:58 PM	#2
minister Lives for gear Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: minneapolis, mn Posts: 1,114	hi, radio broadcast? sorry, just asking, i only do occasional stereo radio spots. are you talking surround radio? cd? by definition, that is stereo redbook 16/44.1 ... what good would a Dolby or DTS plug do you? DVD i can understand.... DIGI plug? they don't make a surround encoding plug. to simply make and AC3 file, you can use APPLE's compressor which now has the A.Pack rolled into it. however, you can only get it bundled with DVD Studio Pro -- but then you can burn surround DVD's. it does not plug-into PT, but is stand alone. and, AC3 is AC3, so the audio quality is there. The Neyrinck plugs (Soundcode) are excellent. RTAS and AS in PT, allow you to audition all the various downmixes and DRC situations...and let you play the AC3 or DTS back into the session to watch in time with the video. well worth the money, but as you found out, about $1000.... http://www.neyrinck.com/Pages/products.html MinnetonkaAudio Software makes some good plugs too. http://www.minnetonkaaudio.com/ for down mixing and LtRt, you can also use the Dolby Surround Tools plug-in... http://www.digidesign.com/index.cfm?...00&itemid=1042

24th November 2006, 07:22 PM	#4
minister Lives for gear Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: minneapolis, mn Posts: 1,114	as to DTS, it does sound better as the data rate is not as low...but there is a trade-off. sometimes you have reduce the data rate of the video to accomodate the DTS 754 or 1509. and, fewer people think to even use it thinking that Dolby is standard. also, you have to have at least on Dolby stream in the DVD, you can't do DTS only. but the Dolby could be an AC3 of the stereo. oh, sorry, just saw your replies embedded in my quote.... never heard of surround FM broadcast...then again, i don't know a ton about radio...so, it is very possible that they do it now. let me know if you have any other questions.

24th November 2006, 07:37 PM	#6
minister Lives for gear Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: minneapolis, mn Posts: 1,114	i am finishing a surround concert DVD now... the director decided he did not want to sacrifice the data rate of the picture by including DTS as well. at one point we thought of Dolby Stereo AC3 and 5.1 DTS...but lets face it, 10% of the population knows what DTS is. so we are going Dolby all the way. and it sounds good. for DTS, i use Neyrinck. for Dolby, for the moment, i am using Compressor...but will get the Soundcode. As far as encoding PL II up until this month there was only the Dolby Hardware option...Minnetonka Audio just came out with a Dolby PL II plug for PT.

28th November 2006, 09:19 PM	#12
Neveboy Gear nut Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Ireland Posts: 109	Okay, heres where I'm at. Got compressor and can now encode files as AC3 files (Dolby 5.1 or Dolby 2) Ordered Disc Welder (:( No download so gotta wait by the mail box) Now, I kinda figured the encoding part but where I'm still running into trouble is getting my head around the authoring process. First and foremost, I have to deliver a Dolby 2 mix of a session, but as a stereo .WAV file. Am I totally wrong with my assumtion that this is possible and to back myself even further into a corner, is it also possible to burn a stereo .wav file with Dolby 5.1 embedded in it? Excuse the ignorance but I'm eager to get this right and the web is full of right and wrong answers when it comes to surround in general !! How so many have it wrong is beyond me !! So i'll make no assumptions if you don't mind. As mentioned, the purpose of this format delivery (Dolby 2) is so that an attempt can be made to broadcast the concert I am encoding over FM, if alarm bells are ringing having read that, please only post a response if you really really know what you are talking about !! If i have an AC3 file, how then can I encode it for delivery as a .wav? Finally, my future intentions are to burn DVD Audio discs and this is where Discwelder comes into play, right ? I'm presuming that this is the missing link in my needs wanting an AC3 Dolby 5.1 file to play in a dvd player as a dvd audio disc?! Does Discwelder also give me the option to add a slide show? Anyone care to point me in the right direction for a bit of education regarding all this ?? Thanks very much, especially given that most surround engineers spend so much more time finishing mixes as opossed to us mere 2 channel understudies !! Your time is precious and I appreciate it __________________ http://projectneve.blogspot.com www.myspace.com/markmccabe http://www.addastudios.com

28th November 2006, 10:12 PM	#13
Geert van den Berg Mac Moderator Join Date: May 2003 Location: Amsterdam Posts: 2,583	There's no such thing as an AC3 file encoded as WAV. AC3 is compressed data format originally develloped for cinema and later ported over to various consumer formats. It doesn't always need to be 5.1 either, since the AC3 is just the compression scheme. If there's no 5.1 mix, a stereo or a Dolby surround mix, it will still be encoded as an AC3 if it were to be authored on a DVD, unless you'd use DTS. As you know, a WAV file is an uncompressed PCM file. Ask your client for detailed delivery requirements... What could be meant by your client is that they want either a regular stereo version of your mix or a Dolby Surround (=Dolby Stereo = the professional format as used in the cinema minus the SR encoding) encoded mix, which is an analogue format develloped to encode one surround channel into a 2 channel mix. A decoder extracts the surround information from these 2 tracks via some phase tricks. Offcourse this format can also be recorded or encoded digital nowadays, but it's still the same thing. This format can also easily be broadcasted. Mind you this is not 5.1. You can also make a Dolby Surround mix from your 5.1 mix with compressor and encode this as a WAV file. (no data compression will come into play while doing this). Offcourse some things gets lost when going from 5.1 to Dolby Surround or stereo, the LFE, is never included in these downmixes. Another thing your client could mean is that you'd just have to deliver him a printmaster containing 6 discrete WAV's for the 5.1 mix and then 2 additional WAV files containing Dolby Stereo/Surround, this is very common for authoring DVD's or as a pre-master for a trailer/feature. It could even be that you won't even have to deliver an AC3 file and that the encoding will take place at the DVD authoring studio. Look on the Dolby website for further explanations. They've got PDF's for download about this subject.

29th November 2006, 12:31 AM	#15
Neveboy Gear nut Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Ireland Posts: 109	I've managed to encode a Dolby Stereo Auto (as its described in compressor) as an AIFC file. Compressor will only let me choose AIFF as the file format when preparing for batch processing. Am I on the right lines here? __________________ http://projectneve.blogspot.com www.myspace.com/markmccabe http://www.addastudios.com

29th November 2006, 01:25 AM	#16
minister Lives for gear Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: minneapolis, mn Posts: 1,114	...sorry been too busy to follow this or answer.... the delivery specs ask for an AC3 and a WAVE file? they are 2 different things...Though there is such a thing as a Dolby Digital Wave file (but we should not confuse the issue here.) is this stereo? if yes, then Dolby recommends that you create a 192kbps AC3 file. use the Dolby 2.0 setting and TURN OFF EVERYTHING IN THE PRE-PROCESSING TAB!! a WAV file is PCM WAV file. __________________ tom hambleton C.A.S. *I CAN'T BELIEVE HOW GOOD THAT MIX LOOKS!* ministry of fancy noises

29th November 2006, 03:47 AM	#20
minister Lives for gear Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: minneapolis, mn Posts: 1,114	i know these things are really confusing the first time...... hopefully someone else can help you through the rest of this as i got a fly on a 2 jobs yet tonight and all day tomorrow... but, i would venture to guess that they want LtRt. Dolby Surround is another name for LtRt which is 2 channel matrixed surround that will unfold to LCRS. Dolby Digital is (or SR•D) is discrete 5.1. SR means both Surround and Spectral Recording which is the noise reduction scheme that replaced Dolby A. in a Dolby Surround LtRt, the 2 is derived from the 6...or, more precsely, 6-->4-->2 which decodes to 4. for this, you need a way to encode an LtRt. The Dolby Surround Tools will do this quite nicely in Pro Tools. i suggest asking you client or contact one of the broadcats networks where they will do this for delivery specs and find someone in your area who has done this and has the tools and farm it out to them and have them show you. good luck. if you can wait until thu. or friday, i can help you then. but there are many other people on this boaard and elsewhere who can help you.... __________________ tom hambleton C.A.S. *I CAN'T BELIEVE HOW GOOD THAT MIX LOOKS!* ministry of fancy noises