Panasonic SC-PT464 manual Glossary, Getting Started Playing Discs, Other Operations Reference

Glossary

Getting Started

Playing Discs

Decoder

A decoder restores the coded audio signals on DVDs to normal. This is called decoding.

Dolby Digital

This is a method of coding digital signals developed by Dolby Laboratories. Apart from stereo (2-channel) audio, these signals can also be 5.1-channel sound.

DTS (Digital Theater Systems)

This surround system is used in many movie theaters around the world. There is good separation between the channels, so realistic sound effects are possible.

Dynamic range

Dynamic range is the difference between the lowest level of sound that can be heard above the noise of the equipment and the highest level of sound before distortion occurs.

Frame still and field still

Frames are the still pictures that go together to make a moving picture. There are about 30 frames shown each second.

One frame is made up of two fields. A regular TV shows these fields one after the other to create frames.

A still is shown when you pause a moving picture. A frame still is made up of two alternating fields, so the picture may appear blurred, but overall quality is high.

A field still is not blurred, but it has only half the information of a frame still so picture quality is lower.

JPEG (Joint Photographic Experts Group)

This is a system used for compressing/decoding color still pictures. The benefit of JPEG is less deterioration in picture quality considering the degree of compression.

Linear PCM (pulse code modulation)

These are uncompressed digital signals, similar to those found on CDs.

MP3 (MPEG Audio Layer 3)

An audio compression method that compresses audio to approximately one tenth of its size without any considerable loss of audio quality.

Playback control (PBC)

If a Video CD has playback control, you can select scenes and information with menus.

Progressive/Interlaced

NTSC, the video signal standard, has 480 interlaced (i) scan lines, whereas progressive scanning uses twice the number of scan lines. This is called 480p.

Using progressive output, you can enjoy the high-resolution video recorded on media such as DVD-Video.

Your TV must be compatible to enjoy progressive video.

Sampling frequency

Sampling is the process of converting the heights of sound wave (analog signal) samples taken at set periods into digits (digital encoding). Sampling frequency is the number of samples taken per second, so larger numbers mean more faithful reproduction of the original sound.

Other Operations

Reference

HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface)

HDMI is a next-generation digital interface for consumer electronic products. Unlike conventional connections, it transmits uncompressed digital video and audio signals on a single cable. This unit supports high-definition video output (720p, 1080i, 1080p) from the HDMI AV OUT terminal. To enjoy high-definition video, a high-definition compatible TV is required.

I/P/B

MPEG 2, the video compression standard adopted for use with DVD-Video, codes frames using these 3 picture types.

I:Intra coded picture

This picture has the best quality and is the best to use when adjusting the picture.

P:Predictive coded picture

This picture is calculated based on past I- or P-pictures.

B:Bidirectionally-predictive coded picture

This picture is calculated by comparing past and future I- and P-pictures so it has the lowest volume of information.

WMA

WMA is a compression format developed by Microsoft Corporation. It achieves the same sound quality as MP3 with a file size that is smaller than that of MP3.

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