PCM or Bitstream? HELP!

jblackie · 03-28-01, 08:04 AM

Okay, my Toshiba has these options (as well as analogue) but I can't figure out which to use when? If the DVD is DTS, shouldn't I use bitstream? I was once told PCM was only for older 2 channel Dolby that you want to sound "as if" it were surround.

General rules on this, someone, please?

DigIt · 03-28-01, 10:04 AM

I don't think PCM has anything to do with "sounding like" surround. PCM is simply an uncompressed sound format found on all CDs and some DVDs, and it is a 2-channel format that may or may not be encoded with Dolby Pro-Logic surround. Bitstream would seem to connotate that an encoded digital bitstream will be passed on, so if you're interested in listening to DD and DTS, then you should probably set it to this.

I don't see any reason why you should be constantly changing this setting, either. You should set it up once, and it should work for all of your needs.

If the "bitstream" setting is not passing the DTS signal to your receiver, you can try the "PCM" setting to see if that works, but one of the settings probably prevents the DTS signal from passing. This protects a non-DTS receiver from receiving the (potentially) harmful DTS bitstream. Consult the manual to see which setting passes DTS and which one doesn't.

jblackie · 03-28-01, 02:18 PM

That sounds reasonable. Thank you.

03-28-01, 08:04 AM	#1
jblackie Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2000 Location: Northern Virginia Posts: 773	Okay, my Toshiba has these options (as well as analogue) but I can't figure out which to use when? If the DVD is DTS, shouldn't I use bitstream? I was once told PCM was only for older 2 channel Dolby that you want to sound "as if" it were surround. General rules on this, someone, please? __________________ Profiler ---- Aficionado -- and Guzzlefish "The movie never changes. It can't change. But every time you see it, it seems different because you're different. You see different things." - - 12 Monkeys

03-28-01, 10:04 AM	#2
DigIt DVD Talk Special Edition Join Date: Jun 1999 Location: Chicago Posts: 1,468	I don't think PCM has anything to do with "sounding like" surround. PCM is simply an uncompressed sound format found on all CDs and some DVDs, and it is a 2-channel format that may or may not be encoded with Dolby Pro-Logic surround. Bitstream would seem to connotate that an encoded digital bitstream will be passed on, so if you're interested in listening to DD and DTS, then you should probably set it to this. I don't see any reason why you should be constantly changing this setting, either. You should set it up once, and it should work for all of your needs. If the "bitstream" setting is not passing the DTS signal to your receiver, you can try the "PCM" setting to see if that works, but one of the settings probably prevents the DTS signal from passing. This protects a non-DTS receiver from receiving the (potentially) harmful DTS bitstream. Consult the manual to see which setting passes DTS and which one doesn't.

03-28-01, 02:18 PM	#3
jblackie Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2000 Location: Northern Virginia Posts: 773	That sounds reasonable. Thank you.