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Old 07-04-2007, 12:51 AM
soundworx soundworx is offline
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Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Amsterdam
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Default Total newbie to surround and a lot of questions

Hi there,

I run a PTHD2 accell set and do mostly TV. I've been considering upgrading my studio to surround, because I do some independant docu's and want to be able to produce a surround mix. I think I can safely say that none of my current clients have the budgets to pay for a Dolby Surround mix for the theater, but I'd like to mix Surround and deliver LtRt for the theater and AC3 surround for DVD. I still have a lot of reading to do, but have a few questions up front;

I'm on a budget, so what are the minimal requirements for a surround monitor controller. ((suggestions?)
What kind of plugins do I absolutely need (encoders, decoders, specific surround processing)
Do I need to be able to listen to the encoded/decoded signal real time, or is that a nice option

If I mix stereo, but want to make sure that the mix is "surround compatible" (no strange things happening in the surrounds when using MS-Stereo etc), how do I do that?

Thanks once again,
Peter
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Old 07-10-2007, 02:33 PM
mbauer1 mbauer1 is offline
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Join Date: Nov 2004
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Default Re: Total newbie to surround and a lot of questions

Hi,

There's a few ways you can do this, but I use the Dolby Tools plug ins for PT.
http://www.digidesign.com/index.cfm?...=1042&langid=1

You get an encoder and a decoder, so you can monitor what you're doing in real time, which is essential.

In terms of controlling your monitors, the cheapest method could be what a friend of mine does.
He uses a domestic amplifier (Denon I think) that has 6 inputs and that's how he controls his passive monitors. If you have amplification of your 5 speakers & sub already sorted, then there are surround preamps you can get, (havn't tried any) or a simple controller choice could be.....
http://www.spl-usa.com/smc/smc_E.html

I use a Yamaha DM1000. It's a small surrond console and DAW controller also.

A Pro-Logic mix is encoded by using varying degrees of phase, so your MS recordings may automatically decode a little to the rear speakers.
Even if you mix your music (for example) completely to the front, some of it will automatically spread to the rears.

Your Pro-Logic Surround mix (LtRt) definitely allows you much less control than 5.1 discrete, but can still be great if you master a few tricks. (Some traps for new players)

Yes, as you pointed out, it's important that your Surround mix works well in normal stereo and mono too. All of my mixes for TV/Radio/Web are done as Pro-Logic Surround mixes as a minimum, and I would be happy to help you. Please feel free to email me directly if you want some help getting started. [email protected]

Seeya,
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Matt Bauer
www.bauer.net.au
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