Anthem AVM 20 Operation - 5. Front Panel Operation
5. FRONT PANEL OPERATION
continued …
5.8.3 DOLBY DIGITAL EX
Dolby Digital EX can be used to decode DVDs encoded in Dolby Digital Surround EX. Dolby Digital EX can
also be applied to Dolby Digital 5.1 channel material that is not encoded in Dolby Digital Surround EX,
however, the Rear channel information may or may not be pleasing depending on the soundtrack.
A list of movies encoded in Dolby Digital Surround EX can be found on the Dolby web site at www.dolby.com
and THX web site at www.thx.com. DVDs released prior to Fall 2001 do not have a flag to indicate Surround
EX and can not engage Dolby Digital EX decoding automatically – be sure to set Dolby Digital EX to ‘On’ when
playing unflagged EX titles. While playing the Dolby Digital 5.1 EX DVD, press MODE and use the Master
Control Knob to turn Dolby Digital EX ‘On’. To automatically decode DVDs that contain the Surround EX flag,
set Dolby Digital EX to ‘Auto’.
Note: To use Dolby Digital EX without THX processing, THX Ultra2 must be ‘Off’ (see section 5.8.6).
5.8.4 DTS-ES MATRIX
All DVDs encoded with DTS-ES Matrix contain the ES-Matrix flag. The AVM 20 automatically engages
DTS-Neo:6 to decode DTS-ES Matrix. Neo:6 can also be turned on and applied to DTS-5.1 channel material
that is not DTS-ES Matrix encoded – Neo:6 matrix processing will then be used to derive mono Rear channel
information from the Left and Right Surround channels. This Rear channel will be program dependent and
may or may not be pleasing depending on the particular soundtrack and your personal preferences.
5.8.5 DTS-ES DISCRETE
DTS-ES Discrete movies contain an independent Rear channel. For DVDs containing the ES-Discrete flag,
the AVM 20 automatically engages DTS-ES Discrete to decode the DTS-ES Discrete source material.
5.8.6 THX ULTRA2 / THX SURROUND EX
Each of the four THX modes include specific combinations of the following:
• Re-Equalization – De-emphasizes high frequencies in the front channels. Soundtracks commonly
have pre-emphasized treble because they are mixed for movie theaters where high frequencies are
usually absorbed. They can then sound overly bright when played back in the home. Re-Equalization
restores the correct tonal balance for watching a movie soundtrack in a home theater environment.
Some TV shows that are broadcast in Dolby Surround also benefit from Re-Equalization, whereas
some movies on DVD may already have Re-EQ applied and do not require it from the processor. To
defeat Re-EQ, press the THX button a third time to display “RE-EQ Filters: On (Off)”, then adjust.
• Timbre Matching – The human ear changes our perception of a sound depending on the direction
from which the sound is coming. In a movie theatre, there is an array of surround speakers so that
the surround information is all around you. In a home theatre, 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.
• Adaptive Decorrelation – In a movie theatre, a large number of surround speakers help create an
enveloping surround sound experience, but in a home theatre there are usually only two speakers.
Unless you are using properly positioned dipoles, surround speakers can sound like headphones
that lack spaciousness and envelopment – they will also collapse into the closest speaker as you
move away from the middle seating position. Adaptive Decorrelation senses the presence of
identical surround channels (mono) and slightly changes one surround channel's time and phase
relationship with respect to the other. This expands the listening position and creates – with only
two speakers – the same spacious surround experience found in a movie theatre. Adaptive
Decorrelation does not operate when the surround channels are different, as is often the case in
discrete multichannel source material.
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