Dolby Labs launches Digital Sound Ahead

When Dolby Digital was first introduced as the foundation audio technology for HDTV, it was set to take broadcast TV sound a giant leap forward from stereo to 5.1 channel surround sound. Since then, new high-definition DVD formats have been introduced that expand digital audio capabilities to another level. At CES 2007, Dolby Labs is introducing two new home-theater sound playback technologies: Digital-Plus; TrueHD.

Upcoming optical disc formats with much greater capacities (HD DVD, Blu-ray Disc) will bring high-definition video to packaged media. Dolby has developed new technologies, Dolby Digital Plus and Dolby TrueHD, offering comparable advances in audio for these HD optical media, as well as for hard-disk-drive (HDD) applications. These technologies combine exceptionally high-quality audio performance with the flexibility and efficiency for expanded channel configurations. The DVD Forum as the standard has selected both Dolby Digital Plus and Dolby TrueHD for HD DVD, and both are also optional formats for the Blu-ray Disc.

Dolby Digital Plus, for HD media, extends the capabilities of Dolby Digital, allowing higher data rates (up to 6 Mbps) and up to 13.1 discrete channels of audio. Dolby TrueHD is a lossless audio technology designed for the new high-definition packaged media. Only Dolby TrueHD guarantees lossless HD audio playback from every HD DVD player and from supporting Blu-ray Disc players, and Dolby TrueHD also offers the most efficient lossless coding available. It supports up to eight channels (7.1-channel surround), with expandability to accommodate more channels in the future while retaining compatibility with all Dolby TrueHD decoders.

Other complementary sound enhancement providers, DTS Labs and SRS Labs, are also introducing new HD audio technologies at CES 2007.

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