Harman-Kardon HS 500 Introduction to Home Theater, Surround Modes, Typical Home Theater System

INTRODUCTION TO HOME THEATER

The HS 500 may be the first multichannel surround sound component you’ve owned. This introductory section will help you to familiarize yourself with the basic concepts, which make setup and operation smoother.

If you are already familiar with home theater, you may skip this section and proceed to the Connections section on page 16.

Typical Home Theater System

A home theater typically includes your audio/video receiver, which controls the system; a DVD player; a source component (e.g., a cable box, a satellite dish receiver, an HDTV tuner or simply an antenna connected to the TV) for television broadcasts; a video display (TV); and loudspeakers.

The HS 500 offers a simpler solution by integrating the DVD player with the receiver, resulting in a sleek, streamlined component with just a few connections needed to enjoy a complete home theater experience.

All of these components are connected by various types of cables for audio and video signals.

Multichannel Audio

The benefit of a home theater system is that several loudspeakers are used in various locations around the room to produce “surround sound,” immersing you in the musical or film presentation for increased realism.

The HS 500 may have up to five speakers connected to it (plus a subwoofer). Each speaker is powered by its own amplifier channel, and the subwoofer has its own amplifier on board.

•Front Left and Right – The main speakers are used the same way as in a two-channel system. However, you may notice that in many surround modes, these speakers are used more for ambient sound while the main action and dialogue are moved to the center speaker.

•Center – The center speaker is usually placed above or below the video screen, and is used mostly for dialogue in movies and television programs. This placement allows the dialogue to originate near the actors’ faces, for a more natural sound.

•Surround Left and Right – The surround speakers are used to improve directionality of ambient sounds. In addition, by using more loudspeakers in the system, more dynamic soundtracks may be played without risk of overloading any one speaker.

Many people expect the surround speakers to play as loudly as the front speakers. Although all of the speakers in the system will be calibrated to sound equally loud at the listening position, most sound tracks use the surround speaker for ambient effects only, and they program their materials to steer very little sound to these speakers.

•Subwoofer – A subwoofer is a special-purpose speaker designed to play only the lowest frequencies (bass). It is used to augment the smaller, limited-range satellite speakers used for the other channels. In addition, many digital-format programs, such as movies recorded in Dolby Digital, contain a special low-frequency effects (LFE) channel that is directed only to the subwoofer. The LFE channel packs the punch of a rumbling train or airplane, or the power of an explosion, adding realism and excitement to your home theater.

Surround Modes

There are different theories as to the best way to present surround sound and to distribute soundtrack information among the various speakers. A variety of algorithms have been developed in an effort to accurately reproduce the way we hear sounds in the real world. The result is a rich variety of surround mode options. Some modes are selected automatically, depending on the signal being received from the source. In many cases, you may select a surround mode manually.

Several companies have taken surround sound in slightly different directions. It is helpful to group the numerous surround modes either by their brand name, or by using a generic name:

•Dolby Laboratories, Inc., Modes:

ÍDolby Digital – This mode is encoded in the program material either on a disc or within a television broadcast. It provides up to five separate main audio channels and a dedicated low-frequency effects (LFE) channel.

ÍDolby Pro Logic II – This mode is derived by an analog decoder built into the HS 500 that derives five full-range, discrete main audio channels from matrix surround-encoded or 2-channel analog sources. Select from Dolby Pro Logic II Movie, which is optimized for movies and television programs; Dolby Pro Logic II Music, which is optimized for music selections; or Dolby Pro Logic, the original version that steered a mono signal containing information below 7kHz to the surround channels.

•DTS Mode – DTS is a digital surround format that is encoded in the program material. It uses a different encoding and decoding method than Dolby Digital to provide up to 5 discrete main channels, plus an LFE channel. The HS 500 is capable of playing DTS materials when the Original setting is selected for the audio mode.

•Stereo Mode – Two-channel mode with no surround sound.

These surround modes may be selected on the HS 500 using the DVD Sound Mode setting found in the Audio Setup submenu (for the Disc Player), or the Audio Mode Setting within the on-screen menu for each source. For digital audio sources, such as the internal disc player or any source using one of the digital audio inputs, select Original to benefit from any digital surround modes encoded in the source materials.

Digital modes, such as Dolby Digital and DTS, are only available with specially encoded programs, such as DVDs and digital cable or satellite television. Other modes may be used with various digital and analog signals to create a different surround presentation, or to use a different number of speakers. Surround mode selection depends upon the number of speakers in your system, the materials you are watching or listening to, and your personal tastes. Feel free to experiment.

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