Audio News for January 27, 2009

by | Jan 27, 2009 | Audio News | 0 comments

Possible Delay of DTV Changeover – The Senate voted yesterday to delay until June 12 the deadline for the complete switch from analog to digital TV broadcasting. Otherwise people using antennas with analog sets who may or may not know about the deadline would face loosing all TV reception on Feb. 17.  Comparable legislation is being readied in the House and with the backing of the Obama administration it is expected to pass soon. The estimate is that over 6.5 million U.S. households are still not ready for the transition, and the coupon program for the converter boxes ran out of money.

Surround Sound for iTunes Coming? – Fraunhofer, the German company who invented the MP3 data reduction format, has developed a new MPEG Surround format and says that Apple might be one of their first licensees. While surround sound is common in home theater systems and supported by SACD, DVD-Audio, standard DVD and Blu-ray, it has been difficult to get online digital audio files to support surround sound.  Fraunhofer’s MPEG Surround plugin – from the firm who also invented the improved AAC codec  used in the iTunes Store – encodes six, eight or more channels of surround sound audio data for playback on compatible stereo systems but will still be playable on non-surround devices such as iPods. The codec also works with Quicktime, and since both are cross-platform, if and when Apple signs up, both companies will be reaching a whole new class of consumers embracing surround sound in their homes and cars.

On a standard stereo MP3 player, one hears exactly the same signal as if the MPEG Surround file was a plain stereo MP3, but on a player with the new codec (and six speakers or a pseudo-surround speaker setup) the 10-20% of the file containing the surround information kicks in and turns the stereo signal into a discrete 5.1-channel signal. Since Apple was the first to make a success of an online store selling stereo music, it would be fitting for them to start marketing digital surround sound files.  Record labels have been recording in multichannel for some years now and have large libraries of surround masters, but many have only released on stereo CD because of limited sales of SACDs. One major label has already agreed to use MPEG Surround. Fraunhofer feels that MPEG Surround is the first practical way to get surround sound music to mainstream consumers.  iTunes would be the natural place for the surround sound files to be sold. A Fraunhofer rep predicted that the next step would be adding 3D sound to the iPod: “We think that new music players will eventually have binaural playback mode that lets you experience a realistic simulation of surround over ordinary headphones.”

AstoundSound Stereo Expander Launched
– A different, non-discrete surround sound technology was introduced at the recent Consumer Electronics Show. GenAudio’s AstoundStereo Expander software, which will be available at an introductory offer of $20, processes standard audio files in realtime to create a more immersive audio experience. (The overstated announcement refers to “4D sound.”) The effect is said to be heard thru as little as two audio channels, as in headphones or laptop speakers, but is better with a 5.1 speaker system.  The technology works with any stereo files and is cross-platform. Sample tracks are available until Feb. 8 at the GenAudio website.

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