[KR...]

...in the form of Dueldiscs. As many will have special Headphone only dolby headphone tracks, which give you 5.1 surround sound with normal headphones.

The full article can be found in the new issue of Stereophile (March 2005)

 

[acs236]

"You just don't do heavy metal in dobly."


Anyway, it should be fun to get some more 5.1 headphone content.

 

[PinkFloyd]

What the heck is Dobly?

 

[drminky]

Quote:

Originally Posted by PinkFloyd What the heck is Dobly?

A company that made squillions on technology to reduce tape hiss on analogue (which was little more than an eq preset). They then went on to do digital surround sound on film, and now must be investing in other areas of DSP as not to many use analogue tape anymore..

 

[aeriyn]

I think he was being a smarta** and pointing out the other guy's typo rather than asking who Dolby was. rofl

 

[KR...]

Quote:

Originally Posted by aeriyn I think he was being a smarta** and pointing out the other guy's typo rather than asking who Dolby was. rofl

Yes, he was, I made a mistake and mispelled it, I have changed it to the correct spelling. er... "My Badd"

That said, considering his posts here in the past, I can see how people could belive he didn't know what dolby is, LOL

Please note only mods can change the name of threads.

 

[PinkFloyd]

Quote:

Originally Posted by KR... Yes, he was, I made a mistake and mispelled it, I have changed it to the correct spelling. er... "My Badd" That said, considering his posts here in the past, I can see how people could belive he didn't know what dolby is, LOL Please note only mods can change the name of threads.

Course I know what Dolby is

I thought "Dobly" may have been some weird new dance after reading the guys post saying "You just don't do heavy metal in dobly."

hmmmmm......

 

[rauer]

I believe Dobly is a very common feature on amps that go to 11.

 

[mbriant]

Typo in main heading has been fixed. The Ray Doblys of this world have now officially had their 15 minutes of fame.

 

[acs236]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rauer I believe Dobly is a very common feature on amps that go to 11.

Yes! Thanks for getting my Spinal Tap reference!

 

[PinkFloyd]

ah! I must have been thinking of the famous Spanish dance, the Pasa dobly

 

[rickcr42]

Quote:

A company that made squillions on technology to reduce tape hiss on analogue (which was little more than an eq preset). They then went on to do digital surround sound on film, and now must be investing in other areas of DSP as not to many use analogue tape anymore..

the original Advent 101 Dolby NR stand alone encoder/decoder with Holman mic preamps and mini-mixer- later implemented into the Advent 201 Cassette Deck bringing the lowly dictation medium,the cassette tape,into the home as a high fidelity medium.

(BTW-Howcum cassette decks and CD players mostly went away from top loaders ?)

Dolby Headphone has been a mystery guest in the world of audio with glimpses here and there but like the pink panther,elusive and just out of sight,slippery and not easy to pin down.Just ask Peter sellers !

My first exposure was via a DVD with a Dolby headphone track which meant no decoding needed to play it back.Just pop it in and enjoy !
I guess this was too damn easy because the total lack of such discs has been something of a sorepoint with me considering this highly successful (to me) demo was in 2001 in the Headroom suite of the Stereophile HE01 at the NY hilton.
I was actually blown away by the demonstration and was all exited to have this "new thing" become the norm.how could it not ?

Well it did not and even DSP or hardware implementations of the technology were few and far between and some very poor shades of what I heard.
thinking DVD movies with two ch surround and headphones were a "natural' it was baffling to me personally why this did not fly and become popular.

Now years later I really don't care if i ever hear Dolby Headphone again.Screw it.i went and built my own device so i can do headphone surround NOW instead of continuously being dissapointed with each new "announcement' of how this was going to be mainstream.

Dolby Headphone missed an oppurtunity for fame and glory as far as the rickmonster is concerned.Now it is my humble opinion that it will be just another "also ran' and hang out with Mr.Quadraphonic and Ms.Betamax

 

[Jasper994]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rickcr42 My first exposure was via a DVD with a Dolby headphone track which meant no decoding needed to play it back.Just pop it in and enjoy ! I guess this was too damn easy because the total lack of such discs has been something of a sorepoint with me considering this highly successful (to me) demo was in 2001 in the Headroom suite of the Stereophile HE01 at the NY hilton. I was actually blown away by the demonstration and was all exited to have this "new thing" become the norm.how could it not ? Well it did not and even DSP or hardware implementations of the technology were few and far between and some very poor shades of what I heard. thinking DVD movies with two ch surround and headphones were a "natural' it was baffling to me personally why this did not fly and become popular. Now years later I really don't care if i ever hear Dolby Headphone again.Screw it.i went and built my own device so i can do headphone surround NOW instead of continuously being dissapointed with each new "announcement' of how this was going to be mainstream. Dolby Headphone missed an oppurtunity for fame and glory as far as the rickmonster is concerned.Now it is my humble opinion that it will be just another "also ran' and hang out with Mr.Quadraphonic and Ms.Betamax

ummm both PowerDVD and WinDVD offer Dolby headphone on their software suites and have for several years now...

 

[Fastjack]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rickcr42 Well it did not and even DSP or hardware implementations of the technology were few and far between and some very poor shades of what I heard.

So you're saying that the DH filters in e.g. WinDVD are not as good as what you heard in the demo?
Just curious 'cause I have used The WinDVD filters for a few years now and found the results quite impressive. OTOH I have never heard any other implementations or demos of DH.

Quote:

Originally Posted by rickcr42 Now years later I really don't care if i ever hear Dolby Headphone again.Screw it.i went and built my own device so i can do headphone surround NOW instead of continuously being dissapointed with each new "announcement' of how this was going to be mainstream.

Could you give me a few more details about that device? Especially a software-solution would be great.

 

[rickcr42]

Quote:

ummm both PowerDVD and WinDVD offer Dolby headphone on their software suites and have for several years now...

Quote:

So you're saying that the DH filters in e.g. WinDVD are not as good as what you heard in the demo? Just curious 'cause I have used The WinDVD filters for a few years now and found the results quite impressive. OTOH I have never heard any other implementations or demos of DH.

Quote:

Could you give me a few more details about that device? Especially a software-solution would be great.

all three of the avove examples mean a computer must be used to facillatate Dolby headphone.I have a couple of probelms with that :

1-no way I use a computer sound card/stock computer/DSP as the heart of my home based sound system.Just not going to happen in my world.

2-As with purchasing a receiver that includes the technology you are locked into purchasing a product that includes Dolby headphone but are not offered the option of purchasing Dolby alone.

The first is a good option for a laptop and movies on the road but again you are stuck with an all or nothing .Why should I as a consumersituation with both scenarios be locked into a product that surrounds the part i really want and not be offered a stand alone option ?
What if I want a better or just different sound card ? (I do)
What if I HATE all-in-one receivers ? (also)

While a stand alone box would be nice this is also a thing I would shun unless it also offered direct digital outputs so I could choose the method of the music delivery,the DAC stage.In my experience "all-in-one" solutions usually mean "pretty crappy or mediocre but does everything"
There are exceptions but these exceptions are usually priced far beyond the avergae consumer and THAT is where any technology that has a chance of survival lives.
The main reason Quad,DAT,MD as a mainline medium and Ambience ectraction devices failed as everday/everysystem devices is solely due to consumer accptance.A few geeks will not fire up an entire industry but when "everyman" expects a thing it will be there.(put SACD/DVD-A in this category)
Ever wonder why and how Dolby surround made it to the big time ?
It was marketed at the living room,the family room,the family itself !
Unlike Quad where the wifey would ask "why should i put up with two more speakers in my living room" the "suits" came up with the brilliant strategy that has up to EIGHT speakers in that same room !

By pushing the "size doesn't matter" concept at the outset :Tiny little Surround Speakers and a subwoofer cube that can be placed "anywhere" allowed for unobtrusive placement and did not interfere with room decor' (a myth of course) but the GOTCHA was MOVIES !

While the hi-fi geek has and always will like his toys it is when the entire family gets involved that something is a must have.Who does not watch movies ?

BRILLIANT !

Now when the speakers are in place the "push" for SACD/DVD-A multichannel seems like a trasition without impediment,so they thought.But the "family" is just fine with either two channels for music OR at the push of a button on their multichannel home theater reciever can get the very same extra channels (seemingly) without going out and purchasing a thing that is meant to make their CD/DVD player and all the software (discs) obsolete.You better offer something new before folks are ready to crapcan their entire system and all their discs and go out and buy an entirely new thing.

The vinyl LP/CD is a perfect example.To many a step back in sound but it brought to the table convenience and better sound than they ever before had to the average person so it "took".

So for this technology to "take" and become mainstream it needs to do a couple of things in my mind

1-be marketed at the avergae family.Tout how the husband can still enjoy his movies after a hard day at work while the children sleep,or how the wife can relax to a movie after putting the babies down to bed without waking either them or her husband right next to her in bed !
Of course the man/woman roles can be reversed but in the end it is the same-family freindly.
Or you are on a long trip and there is a built mini-home-theater system in the back seat.Now you can enjoy full surround sound movies without disturbing others-especially the driver !

2-For the hi-fi geek who wants nothing but the best there needs to be "high end" stand alone Black Box versions where cost is no object !

3-for the rest of us something in the middle.

But the absolute BEST way to get there and not just satisfy ALL needs AND mainstream the technology is to add the damn track directly to the DVD !!!
There is room if you take away all the fillers no one pays attention to anyway.
Then once there on demand all the time even if on just most but not all DVDs people would come to want this convenience and expect it .In fact I beleive if two versions were offered and the price the same or just a little bit more the average consumer would go to the one that included Dolby Headphone just like many choose the Widescreen Version of discs now.

Too damn simple I guess.Easy fixes are the ones most often overlooked by the "thinkers"

BTW-My "solution" is too simple for many.

No CODEC,no DSP chip,no digital circuitry,just a passive device that has a complex switching and phasing matrix plus some HRTF tricks that are user selectable for movies,live recordings or ambience addition.
Great with movies and live music recordings,variable with studio recordings at best but still fun to experiment with.
I will not go into more detail because i may just have to manufacture and market this puppy so i can make some loot before the "suits" get their act together and make my little device "obsolete"