Sony G90 manual Controllers

Controllers

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No product better exemplifies the fundamental shift in					nel musical experience. Other controllers can be considered
home-entertainment technology than the controller. Also					true High End preamplifiers that also offer surround-sound
known as a surround-sound processor or audio-video pre-					decoding and video switching. This diversity of products on
amplifier, the controller is an entirely new					the market lets you choose a controller that
product category that combines many					parallels your priorities. The movie buff will
diverse functions in a single chassis. To					have very different requirements from the
understand what a controller is and does is to					music listener who wants a little surround
understand the technologies that are trans-					sound when he occasionally watches a
forming the way we reproduce sound in our					movie.
homes.					Inputs, Outputs, and Source
A modern controller replaces as many as
four separate components in your music and					Switching
home-theater system: the source-switching					Let’s start with the controller’s most basic
functions of a preamplifier, a surround-sound					function, selecting the source you listen to or
decoder, six (or eight) channels of digital-to-					watch. The controller accepts audio or A/V
analog conversion, and an electronic					(audio and video) signals from all your
crossover to split up the frequency spectrum.					source components and lets you select which
Moreover, the rapidly increasing computer horsepower in					source signal is sent to the power amplifiers and video mon-
today’s controllers points to a future in which they will					itor. A basic controller will offer two analog-audio inputs
incorporate even more func-						(for a tuner and CD player, for
tions and capabilities, such as				A modern controller replaces		example) and perhaps four
digital	signal	processing	for			audio-video (A/V) inputs. In
loudspeaker and room cor- as many as four components						addition to the main outputs
rection. While power amp-				in your music and home-the-		that drive your TV and power
lifiers	and	loudspeakers		ater system: the source-		amplifiers, two record outputs
change	relatively little over					are often provided to drive
time, the controller repre-				switching functions of a pre-		two VCRs or a VCR and an
sents a radical new path to						analog tape recorder.
				amplifier, a surround-sound
the future.						When choosing a con-
Despite the power			and	decoder, six (or eight) chan-		troller, make sure its array of
sophistication		of some	of			inputs matches or exceeds the

today’s controllers, they are nels of digital-to-analog con- number of source compo-

remarkably inexpensive and	version, and an electronic		nents in your system. Your
relatively easy to use. While			system is likely to expand in
none of us would call a $5,000	crossover to split up the		the future, so look for a con-
audio product cheap, the price			troller with at least two more
	frequency spectrum.
of a High End controller is rea-			inputs than you need right
sonable considering all the			now.
functions it performs. In addition, it seamlessly merges a		All controllers have inputs for digital audio signals as
diverse array of sophisticated processing and controls to pro-		well as for analog. These inputs receive the digital-audio
vide nearly transparent inter-operability to the user. Still,		output of a DVD player, laserdisc machine, DSS receiver, or
designers need to focus on improving the user interface so		CD transport. The signals carried on these digital connec-
that anyone can operate even the most sophisticated system.		tions include Dolby Digital, DTS, Dolby Surround, and two-
As controllers replace two-channel analog preampli-		channel PCM (Pulse Code Modulation) signals, such as from
fiers, many of us music purists are concerned that two-chan-		a CD transport.
nel music reproduction may be compromised in the rush to		If you’re an old hand at home theater, you proba-
add features. Some controllers are designed with an empha-		bly own a laserdisc player with Dolby Digital output. Fur-
sis on multi-channel film-soundtrack repro-		ther, you know that to get Dolby Digital
duction, with little regard for the two-chan-		(once called AC-3) onto a laserdisc, the sig-

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