Harman Kardon AVR 8000 Owner'S Manual Download Page 31

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OPERATION

Operation

pictures or TV programs bearing the logo of one
of the major surround-encoding processes, such
as Dolby Surround, DTS Stereo or UltraStereo

may be played in either the Dolby Digital, Dolby
Pro Logic II Cinema, DTS Neo:6 Cinema, or
Logic 7 Cinema surround modes depending on
the source material. In addition, the THX mode
may be used with both analog and digital
soundtracks to provide optimal reproduction.

NOTE:

Once a program has been encoded with

matrix surround information, it retains the sur-
round information as long as the program is
broadcast in stereo. Thus, movies with surround
sound may be decoded via any of the analog
surround modes such as Pro Logic II Cinema,
Logic 7 Cinema or DTS Neo:6 Cinema, when
they are broadcast via conventional TV stations,
cable, pay-TV and satellite transmission. In addi-
tion, a growing number of made-for-television
programs, sports broadcasts, radio dramas and
music CDs are also recorded in surround sound.
You may view a list of these programs at the
Dolby Laboratories Web site at www.dolby.com.

Even when a program is not listed as carrying
intentional surround information, you may find
that the Pro Logic II, Logic 7 Enhanced or DTS
Neo:6, VMAx and the Hall or Theater modes
often deliver enveloping surround presentations
through the use of the natural information pres-
ent in all stereo recordings.

Surround modes are selected using either the
front panel controls or the remote. To select a
surround mode, first determine which of the
surround mode categories you wish to choose
from and press the button corresponding to
that category:

Dolby Mode

DTS

Surround

xÛ

for digital sources,

DTS

Neo:6

for analog sources,

Logic 7

DSP

modes or

Stereo

As you press any of the

Mode Select Buttons

57$ÒÛ

(except

the

Surround Mode Selector

as noted

below) the surround mode name will appear in
the

Main Information Display

and in the

on-screen display.

As the surround modes change, a green LED
will light next to the current mode in the

Surround Mode Indicators

list on the

front panel.

The Dolby Digital and DTS 5.1, DTS-ES Matrix
and DTS-ES Discrete modes may only be select-
ed when a digital input is in use. In addition,
when a digital source is present, the AVR 8000

will automatically select and switch to the
correct mode, regardless of the mode that has
been previously selected. For more information
on selecting digital sources, see the Digital
Audio Playback section below.

The THX modes involve specialized postpro-
cessing techniques that optimize the audio
signals after they have been decoded. Thus,
when selecting a THX mode, the AVR will auto-
matically examine the signal to see whether
it is analog or digital and apply Dolby Digital
or DTS decoding if needed. The special THX
circuits will then be activated. To select a THX
mode, press the

THX Mode Select Button

and the proper THX mode for the active

input will be activated.

When the 6-Channel/8-Channel direct inputs
are in use there is no surround processing, as
these inputs take the analog output signals
from an optional, external DVD-Audio or SACD
player, or another source device and carry them
straight through to the volume control without
any further digital processing.

To listen to a program in traditional two-chan-
nel stereo, using the front left and front right
speakers only (plus the subwoofer, if installed
and configured), press the

Stereo Button

until

SURR OFF

appears in the

Main

Information Display

Digital Audio Playback

Digital audio is a major advancement over older
analog surround processing systems such as
Dolby Pro Logic. It delivers five discrete channels:
left front, center, right front, left surround and
right surround. Each channel reproduces full fre-
quency 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 is a standard part of DVD, and is
available on specially encoded LD discs and satel-
lite broadcasts 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 8000 to listen to the

Dolby Digital soundtracks 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

Coaxial Inputs

of the

AVR 8000. No demodulator is required for use
with DVD players or DTS-encoded laser discs.

DTS

DTS is another digital audio system that is
capable of delivering 5.1 or 6.1 discrete or
matrix sound field reproduction. Although both
DTS and Dolby Digital are digital, they use dif-
ferent methods of encoding the signals, and
thus they require different decoding circuits to
convert the digital signals back to analog.

DTS-encoded soundtracks are available on
select DVD and LD discs, as well as on special
audio-only DTS discs. You may use any LD or
CD player equipped with a digital output to
play DTS-encoded discs with the AVR 8000. All
that is required is to connect the player’s out-
put to either an

Optical

Coaxial Input

the rear panel

or front panel

In order to listen to DVDs encoded with DTS
soundtracks, the DVD player must be compati-
ble with the DTS signal as indicated by a DTS
logo on the player’s front panel. Early DVD
players may not be able to play DTS-encoded
DVDs. This does not indicate a problem with
the AVR 8000, 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 discs, consult the
player’s owner’s manual.

Selecting a Digital Source

To utilize either digital mode, you must have
properly connected a digital source to the
AVR 8000. Connect the digital outputs from
DVD players, HDTV receivers, satellite systems
or CD players to the

Optical

Coaxial

Inputs

. In order to provide a

backup signal and a source for analog stereo
recording, the analog outputs provided on digi-
tal source equipment should also be connected
to their appropriate inputs on the AVR 8000 rear
panel (e.g., connect the analog stereo audio out-
put from a DVD to the

DVD Audio Inputs

on the rear panel when you connect the
source’s digital outputs).

If you have not already configured an input for
a digital source using the on-screen menus as
shown on page 20, first select the input using
the remote or front panel controls as outlined
in this manual. Next, select the digital source