Yamaha RX-V1600 118, Neo6, PCM Linear PCM, Sampling frequency and number Quantized bits

GLOSSARY

■Neo:6

Neo:6 decodes conventional 2-channel sources for

6 channel playback by. It enables playback with the full- range channels with higher separation comparable to digital discrete signal playback. Two modes are available; Music mode for playing music sources and Cinema mode for movies.

■PCM (Linear PCM)

Linear PCM is a signal format under which an analog audio signal is digitized, recorded and transmitted without using any compression. This is used as a method of recording CDs and DVD audio. The PCM system uses a technique for sampling the size of the analog signal per very small unit of time. Standing for pulse code modulation, the analog signal is encoded as pulses and then modulated for recording.

■Sampling frequency and number of

quantized bits

When digitizing an analog audio signal, the number of times the signal is sampled per second is called the sampling frequency, while the degree of fineness when converting the sound level into a numeric value is called the number of quantized bits.

The range of rates that can be played back is determined based on the sampling rate, while the dynamic range representing the sound level difference is determined by the number of quantized bits. In principle, the higher the sampling frequency, the wider the range of frequencies that can be played back, and the higher the number of quantized bits, the more finely the sound level can be reproduced.

■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 theaters and in your home theater, as faithful as possible to what the director intended.

Movie soundtracks are mixed in special movie theaters called dubbing stages and are designed to be played back in movie theaters 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 theater environment.

THX engineers developed patented technologies to accurately translate the sound from the movie theater environment into the home, correcting the tonal and spatial errors that occur. On this product, when the THX indicator is on, THX features are automatically added in Cinema modes (e.g. THX Cinema, THX Surround EX).

Adaptive decorrelation

In a movie theater, a large number of surround speakers help create an enveloping surround sound experience, but in a home theater there are usually only two speakers. This can make the surround speakers sound like headphones that lack spaciousness and envelopment. The surround sounds will also collapse into the closest speaker as you move away from the middle seating position. Adaptive decorrelation slightly changes one surround channel's time and phase relationship with respect to the other surround channel. This expands the listening position and creates – with only two speakers – the same spacious surround experience as in a movie theater.

Re-equalization

The tonal balance of a film soundtrack will be excessively bright and harsh when played back over audio equipment in the home because film soundtracks were designed to be played back in large movie theaters using very different professional equipment. Re-equalization restores the correct tonal balance for watching a movie soundtrack in a small home environment.

Timbre matching

The human ear changes our perception of sound depending on the direction from which it is coming. In a movie theater, there is an array of surround speakers so that the surround information is all around you. In a home theater, you use only two speakers located to the side of your head. The timbre matching feature filters the information going to the surround speakers so that they more closely match the tonal characteristics of the sound coming from the front speakers. This ensures seamless panning between the front and surround speakers.

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