Hi, I have a DENON 3808 which supports Dolby True HD, and I have a Toshiba HD EP30. Connect both via HDMI, but when I play a HD on my Toshi, I see only Multi CH IN in the display and not either Dolby Digital nor True HD (when one is in and selected) HAs someone a idea ? many thanks,
AFAIK the Toshiba EP30 doesn't do bitstream transmission of True HD. So what happens is the player decodes the audio and sends it out as multichannel LPCM over the HDMI connection. This is why you see the Multi CH IN displayed on your Denon. You're still hearing the True HD soundtrack this way. If you want the Denon to do the decoding (and to read True HD on the front display) then you may have to spring for the EP35 which does bitstream transmission. http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2008/01/30/review_toshiba_hd_ep30/ The above link confirms that the EP30 doesn't do bitstream.
many thanks for the answer. Wow, had never believed this, but is it bad that the Player is doing it or is the quality similar as TrueHD ? many thanks, g_flash
Don't worry about it. It's the same True HD soundtrack whether it's decoded by the player or by the Denon. Just sit back and enjoy.
Some people say they rather have the player send the bitstream to the receiver and let it do the decoding. Why is that?
I think it depends on which on has the better sounding decoder: the player or the recever. The other issue is the LFE boost that some receivers are able to apply to an incoming multichannel LPCM signal. Most enthusiasts will try both settings then decide which one they like better. The LFE issue is explained here: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=748147 A couple of problems with bitstreaming though: 1. The secondary audio from the PiP feature could be lost. If you have a player like the XA2 or the A35, set it to bitstream then try the PiP feature in the 300 HD DVD. 2. Some DTS HD Master Audio soundtracks bitstreamed to some Yamaha, Onkyo and Integra receivers could cause a loud "pop" that could damage your speakers: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1008620 Bottom line is sometimes you're limited to what your player or receiver can do. g_flash, for example has no choice but to use player decoding and LPCM since his EP30 dosn't support bitstreaming. Anyone else have some thought on this?
Yea, that's what I originally had thought. That it depended on how well the player or receiver could decode the signal. So in some cases, will you get better sound if the receiver has better decoding capabilities?
Theoretically, yes. But "better sound" is a purely subjective entity and relies on so much more than just a better decoder on a receiver.
