Dolby Pro Logic Ii Decoder Software

I just want to start this by saying a couple things. I have been trying to get this question answered for weeks now, and it seems that no one has been able to give me a real answer. I've asked at forums and at chatrooms, and various people I could find.

It occured to me that I should just ask here, since this is probably the most inclusive website there is with regards to experts about PC video/audio. I want to offer in advance my most sincere appreciation and thanks if anyone can answer this for me, since I've been trying to find out for so long. Please, if you know anything, I'd love to hear it.I want to know if it's possible to use a PC as a 'receiver' that's Dolby Pro Logic II compatible.I'm in the market for a new PC, and Pro Logic II is something that's very important to me. I don't have a new PC yet, meaning that I can buy anything that's needed to get this done.I have heard of several programs or filters that can output sound in Dolby Pro Logic II assuming you have a 5.1/7.1 soundcard, etc. Programs like and (I think those are the names) are ones that I've been told are Pro Logic II compatible.The problem is, I'm looking for the capability of having an actual Pro Logic II compatible 'receiver'. I do not know if these programs like WinDVD work only with DVD's and CD's, which I would assume might be the case.

Dolby Surround Vs Dolby Pro Logic Ii

I need something that I can actually input sound into (like using the line-in on a PC soundcard) and get Dolby Pro Logic II sound. Dolby Pro Logic II would be kind of useless for DVD's, since DVD's are in 'real' surround sound anyway. The main uses of PLII are with TV shows and videogames that are encoded specifically for PLII, and this is what I would intend to use it for (as well as music). For instance, I have a couple videogames that were made specifically for use with Dolby PLII, and I believe there are also some TV shows like the Simpsons that have the same thing.I'm surprised this isn't something that's covered regularly, since so many people use their PC's for surround sound, in place of buying receivers. I already have good PC speakers, as do my friends, so that's not a problem.

I don't have a regular home theatre set up so it wouldn't do me any good to go out and spend money on an actual PLII standalone receiver. I also know there are all-in-one kits that you can buy (such as the Logitech series) which include a complete speaker system.and.

a surround sound decoder, but since I don't need speakers, that wouldn't do me any good either.I also am aware of a couple other things. I have heard of a 'utility' called, which supports Dolby Pro Logic II. But again, I have no idea if this can actually be used with 'live' sound. Ie: a line-in input from TV or videogames.One final thing I've been made aware of is that Intel's new integrated audio, 'Intel High Definition Audio', is supposedly Pro Logic II compatible. However, if you go to Intel's website for this technology, it makes it out to sound like it is just 'capable' of supporting Pro Logic II, and can't actually make use of it on it's own.I really need an answer and I would be most appreciative to anyone who can give me.any. information at all. I just would think that there must be some program out there available that can decode Pro Logic II from 'live' sound sources such as a line-in audio feed.

Also, for anyone who has the aforementioned programs such as WinDVD, PowerDVD, or that AC3 Filter utility, it would be a great help if you could let me know if those programs support using Pro Logic II for 'live' sound sources.Thank you very much for your time. First, DPLII is not a encoder/decoder. It is a sound matrix. In other words no encoding or decoding is required. DPLIItakes any stereo source and remaps it via complexalgorithms to 6 channels. By phasing, fading, reverberating etc. The stereo input is turned intoa 3d soundscape.Essentially DPLII is just another Digital SignalProcessor - like 'concert hall', 'arena' andthe other pre-set receiver settings, but morecomplex.Second, any audio technology that can handle6 discrete channels without modification is'Dolby Pro Logic II capable'Third, although DPLII is available as softwareplug-in for various programs including windowsmedia player, no software solution has yet to beoffered to remap an external source.

Why?Because it is not required when can enjoy the benefits of multi-channel output from any 2 channel audio encoded MP3s, audio CDs, VCDs, SVCDs, DVDs via a software plugin & your computer.Fourth, to obtain (external source) DPLII you simply needa cheap computer speaker setup with DPLII built inor a home theatre receiver. Dolby has several technologies. Dolby Pro Logic II is intended to matrix several channels into 2 stereo signals, sort of a poor man's 2.1 to 5.1. I'm certain you really want more than just Dolby Pro Logic II.Dolby Digital is the latest standard and is part of DVD and ATSC digital television. Dolby Digital offers a true 5.1 or 6.1 or 7.1 digital surround.Check out the this link and the Dolby links below to better understand the basics of surround sound in general and the various Dolby technologies in particular. Thanks for the replies, but let me say a couple things.First, I do in fact know what Dolby Pro Logic II is.

I also know what Dolby Digital and DTS are. Dolby Digital is pretty much a standard feature on any decent 5.1/7.1 soundcard anyway, so that is not my concern.I do know for a fact that audio can be specifically encoded for use with Dolby Pro Logic II. Example: certain videogames. The audio itself is obviously only in stereo, but when used with a PLII decoder or receiver, you will hear a more discrete 5.1 surround sound than you would with a regular stereo source that wasn't encoded specifically for PLII.I'm not sure what the first poster meant when speaking about encoding and decoding. That's not entirely true. Yes, no encoding is.required., but if something is specifically encoded for PLII, PLII will take advantage of that. For instance, I already know there are programs available that can take a 6-channel audio source or 6 individual wav sources and upmix them into a stereo PLII-compatible source.

If you were to take the same 6 wav files, and mix them manually into a stereo file, and play that through a PLII decoder, you wouldn't get quite the same results as you would if the source was encoded specifically for use with PLII. Hence why there are a handful of videogames that licensed the PLII technology and are designed specifically for use with it.I know that PLII will take any audio source (CD's for instance) and still turn it into a 'fake' surround sound.

But that doesn't mean that audio can't be encoded specifically for use with PLII, because it can. As I said, there are programs available for a PC that can do it, and there are also a few videogames that make use of the same thing. It still won't be true 5.1 obviously, and would still be a 'fake' surround sound, but the results you get are different with audio that is encoded specifically for PLII.That is mainly my concern. I own a few videogames in specific that I have used with PLII before, and I want to be able to do that myself without actually buying a standalone PLII receiver, preferably with a PC if possible.The reason I didn't mention things like Dolby Digital in my post is that, it's basically a standard feature when talking about anything involving surround sound, like any 5.1/7.1 soundcard. PLII however, isn't. Dolby Digital also can only be used with a DD encoded source, like DVD's, where as PLII can be used with anything that's in stereo at all, to 'create' surround sound from anything.As far as I know, like I said before, the main use of PLII is not for DVD's or for things like that, but for live audio sources, such as videogames or TV.

I am not talking about pre-recorded audio such as MP3's, CD's, etc, like the first poster mentioned below. 'Because it is not required when can enjoy the benefits of multi-channel output from any 2 channel audio encoded MP3s, audio CDs, VCDs, SVCDs, DVDs via a software plugin & your computer.' I am talking about live audio, like videogames, where the sound occurs as you are playing, and is not something that's concrete and set in stone that you can just listen to at any time.

TV is the same way. If you're watching a TV episode live, you obviously don't have the capability of having the audio in an MP3 file beforehand. Same thing with a videogame, where the audio changes (like ships flying by you) depending on what you do while playing.With all that said, I'm not sure if my question was answered. Are you guys saying that it's 100% impossible to use your PC as a Pro Logic II-capable receiver? Again, I'm talking about using it as an actual receiver, not just for pre-recorded MP3's or audio files. I mean something that would be used in the same way that most people use PLII receivers for - for videogames, TV, the radio, etc.Thanks again, very much. I appreciate it.

With all that said, I'm not sure if my question was answered. Are you guys saying that it's 100% impossible to use your PC as a Pro Logic II-capable receiver? Again, I'm talking about using it as an actual receiver, not just for pre-recorded MP3's or audio files. I mean something that would be used in the same way that most people use PLII receivers for - for videogames, TV, the radio, etc. You mean can a PC decode an incoming DPLII signal so it can be output to Dolby Digital or DTS to a home surround amplifier? If you get a home surround amplifier that decodes DPLII, then any stereo digital or analog output from your PC to it can be decoded. Let's say if you had a TV Tuner card in your PC, you could watch the Simpsons and send the audio from your PC to this home theater decoder and then decode DPLII.The PC itself will not decode DPLII.

It can pass the signal but not decode it. You need an external amplifier that supports DPLII decoding. A prologic II encoder does nothing but mix6-7 channels of digital sound into a digitalstereo source. No special filtering is applied.

No 'upmixing' no nothing. Only basic sound presets for downmixingas per the Dolby standard.Once Again - Dolby Pro Logic II is not really a decoder, itsa sound processor of standard stereo signal. Youonly need special equipment if you intend tobroadcast digital or include PLII in adigital source. Better immersion occurs throughdownmixing 62or 72, the same process headac3 andother pc apps do just fine for PL, SRS or Surround 2.0.If you want to play a game with DBLII you need somethinglike the Logitech Z-680. A prologic II encoder does nothing but mix6-7 channels of digital sound into a digitalstereo source. No special filtering is applied. No 'upmixing' no nothing.

Only basic sound presets for downmixingas per the Dolby standard.Once Again - Dolby Pro Logic II is not really a decoder, itsa sound processor of standard stereo signal. Youonly need special equipment if you intend tobroadcast digital or include PLII in adigital source.

Better immersion occurs throughdownmixing 62or 72, the same process headac3 andother pc apps do just fine for PL, SRS or Surround 2.0.If you want to play a game with DBLII you need somethinglike the Logitech Z-680 DPLII is an analog decoder. To bcd61,I would like to answer your question by asking.how. are you going to listen to your Dolby Pro Logic output? Obviously you plan to have a five speaker setup (L and R front, Center, L and R rear, I do not believe a subwoofer was part of Dolby Pro Logic).

Then the next logical question is what is going to amplify these speakers (the output arriving, of course, from the sound-out of your sound card)?The answer is that the Dobly Pro Logic processing (it is not decoding).must. be done by the amplifier. Dolby Pro Logic processing is an.analog.

Dolby Pro Logic Ii Settings

process from an analog intput to the amp. Dolby Pro Logic is not hidden digital encoding within the audio track, but a choice of recorded analog frequencies that sound better when Dobly Pro Logic Processing is applied as part of the external amplification process that sends the audio to the speakers.Now, Dolby Digital and DTS is a.digital. output, ergo the requirement to send the audio from a DVD player to an amp via a digital cable. There is no requirement that such amps process Dolby Pro Logic, but they do so to give the consumer backward compatability.So, to answer your question, there never will be a software 'decoder' for Dolby Pro Logic, because the technology doesn't work that way. The Dolby Pro Logic frequences are already present in the games and TV input and so on. The Dolby Pro Logic processing only takes place in the analog playback via the speakers, which obviously occurs external to your computer.So you need to buy either a home amp (and five speakers!) that is Dolby Pro Logic capable, or a computer 5.1 DolbyDigital amp-speaker setup that will downgrade to Dolby Pro Logic if required.One problem may be that sending the audio in via a tuner card or whatever, and then out via the sound card, will muddy the audio so that Dobly Pro Logic processing won't work as well when the amp gets ahold of the original source.

There may be some corrective software out there, but I do not know of any.The only other software solution would be for creating your own Dolby Pro Logic sources, but that wasn't what you were asking about. @ SillynameDolby Pro Logic II is an.ANALOG. stereo audio streamthat is processed by a.ANALOG PROCESSOR' whichis then ajusted by DIGITAL SIGNAL PROCESSOR presetswhich are converted by DACs (Digital to Analog Converters)to ANALOG and added to the now 6 or 7 channels of ANALOGaudio. There is NO DECODING. PLII uses servo circuits, ratherthan pure processing to produce the channels.The OP needs a DPLII capable amp. End of story.

Game OverTo produce HDTV PLII signal, you then need a PLII Encoder toconvert the audio direct to digital. This digital signal is thenconverted to analog by your set top or TV and processed (not decoded)via a PLII amp.If you don't require a digital signal, you can produce PLII maximisedaudio by simply downmixing a 6 or 7 channel source via software. I do not believe a subwoofer was part of Dolby Pro Logic.

Pro Logic II has 'LFE' matrixed into it's signal. It can be extracted and is as 'discrete' as a matrixed stereo signal can get.And you keep on referring to Pro Logic not Pro Logic II. Pro Logic II is special. It's been groomed by computer algorithms that were not available at the time that the original Pro Logic came about. The difference, besides having LFE (sub channel) capabilities is that it also has full frequency surrounds with STEREO seperation!!!Pro Logic only had mono in the rear and a cutoff frequency of 120Hz-7kHz. Hence all the talk of muddiness still being an issue, which it isn't. Well I think the discussion of “is Pro-logic ii decoded or not” is really more of a discussion how one defines the word “decode”.

One might say that if it is digitally encoded then it has to be decoded as in (AC3, mp3, dts) where as prologic is processed in analog there for it is not decoded. But in realty the word decode is used loosely to describe a process such as “1 a: to convert (as a coded message) into intelligible form b: to recognize and interpret (an electronic signal)”. So it can be called decoding and still be correct. Dolby themselves use the term “Dolby Pro-logic II Decoder”. So I guess it’s just a matter of if it is analog or digitally decoded. I myself believe it is analog decoding with digital processing.to OfflineI totally agree with you on the Pro-logic II sounding better on music.

It ads an ambiance that is far more natural sounding.Deek. DPLII is an analog decoder.

DPLII is a decoding algorithm that can be implemented in the analog world or the digital world.Digital example: Older DVD titles that were mastered as 2ch AC3 or PCM, often has Dolby Surround/DPLII encoding. Your DVD player software in your pc has AC3 codec, and if your soundcard can put out 2 channels (such as Audigy2's etc) should also have Dolby Surround/PL/PLII decoder(processing) software to route the 2ch out to 4 or 5 channels. ALL of this is done in the digital stage, as the computer does NOTHING in the analog stage. The very last thing the computer does is send the digital signals to the appropriate channels of the sound card where each channel's D-to-A converter & amp spits it out the connectors to your speakers/receiver.Having gone through this example, I am now of the opinion that what the poster wants could be done with.Scott.

One final thing I've been made aware of is that Intel's new integrated audio, 'Intel High Definition Audio', is supposedly Pro Logic II compatible. However, if you go to Intel's website for this technology, it makes it out to sound like it is just 'capable' of supporting Pro Logic II, and can't actually make use of it on it's own.I just bought a new Intel board with that High Definition Audio thingy and it came with this info sheet for it. I tried snapping pics of it with my picture-taking camcorder, so sorry about the quality:Try going to that URL:My guess is that if you use that software at the URL along with the driver supplied with the board, anything processed by the 'Wave Out' on the soundcard will output surround sound through the analog audio jacks on the back of the board. Green for 'Frnt Left/Frnt Right', Black for 'Surr Left/Surr Right', and Orange for 'Center/Sub'. Anything that goes into the 'Line In' (Blue jack) on the soundcard also gets processed by the 'Wave Out'.

If you're connecting to a home theater receiver, most of them have 6ch analog audio input jacks via RCA connection. So you're gonna have to connect a '3.5mm to Stereo RCA adaptor' to all 3 of the jacks on the back of the motherboard, so it leaves you with 6 RCA jacks which you can hook 6 RCA cables to go to your receiver's 6ch analog input.

Hell, even try digital coax or fiber optic output if you want.If you have an Intel motherboard with 'High Definition Audio', give this setup a shot. You can always return adaptors and cables the store.well almost always. An excellent Pro Logic II test is on Rogue Leader for Gamecube. It's a TIE Fighter flying circles around you, and it sounds amazingly discrete. I can't test this setup for you because my new motherboard's temperature sensor is busted and I gotta return it.If you don't have one of these boards yet, then I don't know why you're even considering it. A Pro Logic II capable receiver is just as much money as a new motherboard. Plus you might lose quality through cabling that goes into the PC and then out of the PC.

Basically, if you can afford it, definitely upgrade the receiver. I love Pro Logic II.

My receiver is on Pro Logic II 90% of time that it's turned on. It's one great feature to have.Man, sorry I can't test the PC stuff for you. I gotta wait until i get my motherboard fixed.

I even got an Audigy 2 ZS card that might work as well (now that I think about it). The only way to know for sure is to guess and check (we all learn through experiment), so good luck man and keep me up to date because I'm curious about this too. Im not sure if you were making a point for or against encoding of Prologic II. So I will assume that you were saying it is not encoded. If I misunderstood you then I apologize.From the link that you gave it states that“During program production, the Dolby Pro Logic II encoder combines five input signals-Left, Center, Right, Left Surround, and Right Surround-into the matrix-encoded, two-channel Lt/Rt signal.”So it is encoded in the beginning then“They are treated as two-channel or stereo audio throughout the broadcast distribution chain, then decoded back into surround sound by the viewer's home receiver “.Well that’s all I have to input on this discussion. Sense I guess it really does not matter, sense most us never encode prologic II here on this forum, AC3 seems to be the better choice for most projects.Deek.

With short terms, and from what I know: When you encode a more than stereo audio, you encode to something called Dolby surround.When you decode this Dolby surround, you can decode it to dolby prologic & dobly prologic 2.Dolby Prologic 2 decodes Dolby surround better than Dolby prologic 1. How it does it, is complicated. It includes delays, compinations of filtered inputs from the 2 channels, etc.There is also Dolby prologic IIx, which don't do a great difference IMO. It is more of a 'overall' audio solution than something extra to DB prologic II.If your audio PC card has a 5 speakers output (optional also a sub) then with the correct software you can have dolby prologic II (from what I know).

It doesn't change something, the input is (and always gonna be) the same as the last 20 (or so.) years! Dolby Suround!This is what I know, and if I'm wrong correct me. I found this. It might help you. It's used to 'use' pro logic II to upmix to 5.1 channels. If someone can confirm that pro logic II information is not lost when using the audio inputs of a TV card, then it should work.I can post a screenshot of the graph used if you need more help.BTW, I also have a GameCube and will buy a component cable and mod it to VGA, and wanted to know if I would get 5.1 sound using this method, to play with the maximum quality possible.

But I don't have 5.1 speakers, so if you can try this, I would really appreciate it (only then I would buy a 5.1 channel speaker system).