Digital Audio Playback; Dolby Digital; Dts; Pcm Audio Playback - Harman Kardon AVR 135 Owner's Manual

Operation

Digital Audio Playback

Digital audio is a major advancement over older
analog surround processing systems such as
Dolby Pro Logic. It delivers five or six discrete
channels: left front, center, right front, left sur-
round and right surround and with DTS ES (see
below) even surround back (with identical signals
for left and right). Each channel reproduces full
frequency range (20Hz to 20kHz) and offers dra-
matically improved dynamic range and significant
improvements to signal-to-noise ratios. In addi-
tion, digital systems have the capability to deliver
an additional channel that is specifically devoted
to low-frequency information. This is the ".1"
channel referred to when you see these systems
described as "5.1," "6.1" or "7.1". The bass
channel is separate from the other channels, but
since it is intentionally bandwidth-limited, sound
designers have given it that unique designation.

Dolby Digital

Dolby Digital (originally known as AC-3
a standard part of DVD, and is available on
specially encoded LD discs and satellite broad-
casts and it is a part of the new high-definition
television (HDTV) system.
Note that an optional, external RF demodulator is
required to use the AVR to listen to the Dolby
Digital sound tracks available on laser discs.
Connect the RF output of the LD player to the
demodulator and then connect the digital output
of the demodulator to the Optical or Coaxial
*Ó of the AVR.
inputs
No demodulator is required for use with DVD
players or DTS-encoded laser discs.

DTS

DTS is another digital audio system that is capa-
ble of delivering 5.1, 6.1 or 7.1 audio. Although
both DTS and Dolby Digital are digital, they use
different methods of encoding the signals, and
thus they require different decoding circuits to
convert the digital signals back to analog.
DTS-encoded sound tracks are available on select
DVD and LD discs, as well as on special audio-
only DTS CDs. You may use any LD, DVD or CD
player equipped with a digital output to play
DTS-encoded special audio-only CDs with the
AVR, but DTS-LDs can be played on LD players
and DTS-DVDs on DVD players only. All that is
required is to connect the player's digital output
to either the Optical or Coaxial input on the
or front panel *Ó.
rear panel
In order to listen to DVDs encoded with DTS
sound tracks, the DVD player must be compatible
with the DTS signal as indicated by a DTS logo on
the player's front panel. Note that early DVD
players may not be able to play DTS- encoded
DVDs. This does not indicate a problem with the
AVR, as some players cannot pass the DTS signal
through to the digital outputs. If you are in doubt
as to the capability of your DVD player to handle
DTS DVDs, consult the player's owner's manual.
Please note that some DVD players are shipped
with their output set for Dolby Digital only. To
insure that DTS data is being sent to the AVR,
please check the setup menu system on your
DVD player to make certain that DTS data output
is enabled.

PCM Audio Playback

PCM (Pulse Code Modulation) is the non- com-
pressed digital audio system used for compact
discs, Non-Dolby Digital/DTS Laserdiscs and some
special PCM encoded DVDs. The digital circuits in
® ) is
the AVR are capable of high quality digital-to-ana-
log decoding, and they may be connected directly
to the digital audio output of your CD/DVD or LD
player (LD only for PCM or DTS programs, for
Dolby Digital laser discs an RF adapter is needed,
see "Dolby Digital" above).
Connections may be made to either the Optical
or Coaxial inputs
front panel Digital Inputs *Ó.
To listen to a PCM digital source, first select the
input for the desired source (e.g., CD) to feed its
video signal (if any) to the TV monitor and to pro-
vide its analog audio signal for recording. Next
press the Digital Select button Û
use the buttons
⁄ / ¤
Selector buttons 7 on the front panel, until the
desired choice appears in the Main Information
Display ˜, then press the Set button @
to confirm the choice.
During PCM playback the unit automatically will
turn to the default surround mode or to the
mode but you also may select any
surround mode except Dolby Digital or DTS.

Selecting a Digital Source

To utilize either digital mode you must have
properly connected a digital source to the
AVR. Connect the digital outputs from DVD play-
ers, HDTV receivers, satellite systems or CD play-
ers to the Optical or Coaxial inputs on the rear
or front panel
backup signal and a source for analog stereo
recording, the analog outputs provided on digital
source equipment should also be connected to
their appropriate inputs on the AVR rear panel
(e.g., connect the analog stereo audio output
from a DVD to the DVD Audio inputs
the rear panel when you connect the source's
digital outputs).
To select a digital source such as DVD, first select
its input using the remote or front panel Input
Selector
order to feed its video signal (if any) to the TV
monitor and to provide its analog audio signal for
recording. When the digital input associated with
the input selected (e.g. "DVD") is not selected
automatically (due to the input settings made
earlier during the system configuration, see page
16), select the digital source by pressing the
Digital Input Selector button
then using the
or the Selector buttons 7 on the front panel to
choose any of the
inputs, as they appear in the Main Information
Display ˜ or on-screen display.
When the digital source is playing, the AVR will
automatically detect whether it is a multichannel
Dolby Digital or DTS source or a conventional
PCM signal, which is the standard output from
CD players.
Note that a digital input (e.g. coaxial) remains
associated with any analog input (e.g. DVD) as
soon as it is selected, thus the digital input need
not be re-selected each time the appropriate
input choice (e.g. DVD) is made.

Digital Bitstream Indicators

When a digital source is playing, the AVR senses
on the rear panel or the
the type of bitstream data that is present. Using
this information, the correct surround mode will
automatically be selected. For example, DTS bit-
streams will cause the unit to switch to DTS
decoding, and Dolby Digital bitstreams will enable
Dolby Digital decoding. When the unit senses
and then
PCM data, from CDs and LDs and some music
on the remote, or the
DVDs or certain tracks on normal DVDs, it will
allow the appropriate surround mode to be select-
ed manually. Since the range of available surround
modes depends on the type of digital data that is
present, the AVR uses a variety of indicators to let
you know what type of signal is present. This will
help you to understand the choice of modes and
the input channels recorded on the disc.
When a digital source is playing, the AVR will
display a variety of messages to indicate the type
of bitstream received. These messages will appear
shortly after an input or surround mode is
changed, and will remain in the Main
Information Display ˜ for about five seconds
before the display returns to the normal surround
mode indication.
*Ó. In order to provide a
on
% as outlined in this manual in
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buttons on the remote
/
⁄ ¤
or
OPERATION 27