Glossary
THX information
■ THX Ultra2 |
Before any home theatre component can be THX Ultra2 certified, it must incorporate all the features above and also pass a rigorous series of quality and performance tests. Only then can a product feature the THX Ultra logo, which is your guarantee that the Home Theatre products you purchase will give you superb performance for many years to come. THX Ultra2 requirements cover every aspect of the product including pre- amplifier performance and operation, and hundreds of other parameters in both the digital and analog domain.
■THX Cinema processing
THX is an exclusive set of standards and technologies established by the world- renowned film production company, Lucasfilm Ltd. THX grew from George Lucas’ personal desire to make your experience of the film soundtrack, in both movie theatres and in your home theatre, as faithful as possible to what the director intended. Movie soundtracks are mixed in special movie theatres called dubbing stages and are designed to be played back in movie theatres with similar equipment and conditions. This same soundtrack is then transferred directly onto Laserdisc, VHS tape, DVD, etc., and is not changed for playback in a small home theatre environment. THX engineers developed patented technologies to accurately translate the sound from the movie theatre environment into the home, correcting the tonal and spatial errors that occur. On this product, when “THX” appears in the front panel display, THX features are automatically added in Cinema modes (e.g. THX Cinema, THX Surround EX).
THX Cinema mode
In this mode, THX Loudness Plus is designed around the
■THX Music mode
THX Music modes provide the appropriate THX processing to enhance music listening. THX Music applies a dedicated music profile of THX Loudness Plus, designed around the varying mix levels in music sources which are often very different than film or television sources. Additionally, THX Music applies Timbre Matching to the surround speaker channels.
■THX Games mode
THX Games mode gives the benefit of THX Loudness Plus, as well as other THX proprietary features which provide the gamer with a more accurate listening experience at lower levels, while maintaining all of the directional cues critical to gameplay.
■THX Surround EX
Dolby Digital Surround EX is a joint development of Dolby Laboratories and the THX Ltd.
In a movie theater, film soundtracks that have been encoded with Dolby Digital Surround EX technology are able to reproduce an extra channel which has been added during the mixing of the program. This channel, called Surround Back, places sounds behind the listener in addition to the currently available front left, front center, front right, surround right, surround left and subwoofer channels. This additional channel provides the opportunity for more detailed imaging behind the listener and brings more depth, spacious ambience and sound localization than ever before.
Movies that were created using the Dolby Digital Surround EX technology, when released into the home consumer market may exhibit wording to that effect on the packaging. A list of movies created using this technology can be found on the Dolby web site at www.dolby.com.
Only receiver and controller products bearing the THX Surround EX logo, when in the THX Surround EX mode, faithfully reproduce this new technology in the home.
This product may also engage the “THX Surround EX” mode during the playback of
5.1channel material that is not Dolby Digital Surround EX encoded. In such case the information delivered to the Surround Back channel will be program dependent and may or may not be very pleasing depending on the particular soundtrack and the tastes of the individual listener.
■THX Ultra2 Cinema mode
THX Ultra2 Cinema mode plays 5.1 movies using all 8 speakers giving you the best possible movie watching experience. In this mode, ASA processing blends the side surround speakers and back surround speakers providing the optimal mix of ambient and directional surround sounds. This mode permits the playback of a non Surround EX/ES encoded 5.1 movie to be played back over a 7.1 system.
6.1Discrete) and Dolby Digital Surround EX encoded soundtracks will be automatically detected, if the appropriate flag has been encoded. Some Dolby Digital Surround EX soundtracks are missing the digital flag that allows automatic switching. If you know that the movie that you are watching is encoded in Surround EX, you can manually select the THX Surround EX playback mode, otherwise THX Ultra2 Cinema mode will apply ASA processing to provide optimum replay.
■THX Ultra2 Music mode
For the playback of
5.1encoded music sources such as DTS, Dolby Digital and
■THX Ultra2 Games mode
For the playback of stereo and
■THX Loudness Plus
THX Loudness Plus is a new volume control technology featured in THX Ultra2 Plus™ and THX Select2 Plus™ Certified receivers. With THX Loudness Plus, home theater audiences can now experience the rich details in a surround mix at any volume level. A consequence of turning the volume below Reference Level is that certain sound elements can be lost or perceived differently by the listener. THX Loudness Plus compensates for the tonal and spatial shifts that occur when the volume is reduced by intelligently adjusting ambient surround channel levels and frequency response. This enables users to experience the true impact of soundtracks regardless of the volume setting. THX Loudness Plus is automatically applied when listening in any THX listening mode. The new THX Cinema, THX Music, and THX Games modes are tailored to apply the proper THX Loudness Plus settings for each type of content.
