DVD Player Setup.

Hi Roryfan,

I respectfully disagree with Reubent on this one. As far as movie discs are concerned, it's always a good idea to check the disc's audio menu before starting the movie to be sure it is set to the "best" soundtrack (ie: highest number of channels) for that particular title. Sometimes the software on the disc will default to a lower soundtrack like Dolby 2.0 if that was how the disc was authored. Your player may not override this by itself.

One exeption that I know of is Sony. Most if not all of their models have a feature called "Audio Priority" which will seek out the soundtrack on a disc with the highest # of channels. This feature works well but is optional and must be enabled in the player's setup menu. I am not aware of other brands that offer this feature but check your owner's manual. Good luck! jz

Hi Kenn39,

I agree with you regarding PCM.. my comments above were regarding the typical Dolby Digital choices on movie DVD's and was just quoting my Sony owner's manual where "best" choice = most discreet channels... I agree the PCM track can sound great and as a bonus is often provided in high-res 96/24 and can sound awesome in stereo. I prefer the 96/24 stereo PCM track on the Eagles' "Hell Freezes Over" concert DVD to the DTS 5.1 version for sonics.

Check your player's specs, however, most DVD players can decode 96/24 but many (esp. older) DVD players will downconvert 96/24 to a lower 48khz spec to output via their digital output. 96/24 tracks may sound better through your players's analog outs on these players.. jz