iPod and Home Stereo

[banditpowdercoat]

Originally Posted by mike31154

So do mp3 files play properly on a 5.1 or 7.1 surround sound? Are they encoded with sufficient data to separate the signal into the 5 or 7 channels plus sub woofer or is it the software in the surround sound systems that work the magic? I know certain DVDs have specially encoded soundtracks to play properly on 5.1 or 7.1 surround systems and older ones have less sophisticated soundtracks. The better home theater systems will still mix/multiplex the signal and send sound to each speaker but the quality will suffer on 2 channel stereo encoded soundtracks. How do mp3 files compare to one of these DVD soundtracks? If I were to seriously consider limiting my system to an ipod with mp3 files, I would want to be certain they're going to sound proper on a multi channel system, not just two speakers and a sub.

No, MP3's are not encoded for 5.1 Surround. Most Surround systems will "Fake" the surround. But at home, I switch my system to 7 channel Stereo, when I play music.

[mike31154]

Originally Posted by banditpowdercoat

No, MP3's are not encoded for 5.1 Surround. Most Surround systems will "Fake" the surround. But at home, I switch my system to 7 channel Stereo, when I play music.

That's kind of what I figured and what I meant by the surround receiver mixing or multiplexing the simpler mp3 coding to make use of all speakers. "Fake" is a little more harsh, but apt, I suppose. For those who remember old 8 tracks or reel to reel tape machines, it was the tape that separated each track as mixed by the sound engineer. I'm not clear how this is done in the digital realm. Most reel to reel machines were two track, but my Dad had a Studer Revox that was a four track, more heads. The analog stereo receivers had to be fed the appropriate signal for each amplifier stage, in most cases stereo, i.e. two channels only L & R... no subwoofer even! I actually still have a Telefunken receiver which simulated 'quad' technology, quite avant garde in the late '70's. Not sure how that's mixed with analog technology, but the back of the receiver has DIN connectors for 4 speakers.

If I'm not mistaken, Imax films have their soundtrack encoded in up to 16 channels, all on a strip of the film itself. With the digital age, the capability is there to isolate each instrument, if you will, and send it to the speaker of your (or the receiver's) choice. Just not convinced that mp3 files have that level of sophistication. I don't think bitrate has anything to do with separating audio signals into different channels for distribution to individual speakers. The receiver has to do all the work there and if it's not encoded properly in the first place, I believe the sound quality will suffer.