Sound formats; ps3 remote

[barabos]

Hi, just two quick questions which I cannot find answers to here (or at least clear ones)

1) Is a special remote required to play blu-ray discs on a ps3 or can it be done with just what is in the box (plus an hdmi cable)?

2) I've been reading about all the sound formats, dts core, MS, pcm, lpcm, bitstream and I am totally confused. So here is my question boiled down:

Can the ps3 play all the sound formats supported on blu-ray discs, through my amp (Onkyo 875) to my 5.1 speakers without any loss of quality? If not, then which ones (I think DTS-MA but want to be sure) and is this a big loss? There seem to be a wealth of sound formats, and then the added complication of sending them over bitstream, pcm, lpcm!

Could someone perhaps list these three in order of preference, you know, give the best possible sound format over the best possible method? And also mention if this is available from the ps3?

I always assumed that the player output a particular hd format over hdmi to an amp which would then decode it and send it to the speakers.

Any help would be greatly appreciated, especially of the bottom line "this is good, this is better, this is best" variety.

[Ralphy1981]

You can play Blu Rays without the additional remote control by using the control pad.

The remote is £18 though and well worth it.

[Ettepet]

You can do everything through the included Sixaxis controller. Haven't bothered buying the separate remote yet.

Currently the PS3 doesn't support all sound formats properly, but from what I heard they are fixing this soon.

[kingfats]

Originally Posted by barabos

Hi, just two quick questions which I cannot find answers to here (or at least clear ones)

1) Is a special remote required to play blu-ray discs on a ps3 or can it be done with just what is in the box (plus an hdmi cable)?

2) I've been reading about all the sound formats, dts core, MS, pcm, lpcm, bitstream and I am totally confused. So here is my question boiled down:

Can the ps3 play all the sound formats supported on blu-ray discs, through my amp (Onkyo 875) to my 5.1 speakers without any loss of quality? If not, then which ones (I think DTS-MA but want to be sure) and is this a big loss? There seem to be a wealth of sound formats, and then the added complication of sending them over bitstream, pcm, lpcm!

Could someone perhaps list these three in order of preference, you know, give the best possible sound format over the best possible method? And also mention if this is available from the ps3?

I always assumed that the player output a particular hd format over hdmi to an amp which would then decode it and send it to the speakers.

Any help would be greatly appreciated, especially of the bottom line "this is good, this is better, this is best" variety.

Hi mate
Here's some links with plenty of info,still stuck..............just post.
http://www.avforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=663301

PS3 to decode DTS-MA?

Dolby True HD from PS3

[barabos]

Ah thanks for those links, the second especially i hadn't seen before and clears that up nicely for me. The third also gives an answer to another thing i was wondering about, that bitstream out sends digital data to a reciever which then does the decoding, and pcm decodes the format internally and then sends a "raw" pcm signal out to the reciever which then pipes that to the speakers.

And currently as of latest firmware only DTS-MA is not output over bitstream (and may/may not be possible in the future), all other formats are.

[kingfats]

Originally Posted by barabos

And currently as of latest firmware only DTS-MA is not output over bitstream (and may/may not be possible in the future), all other formats are.

Hi mate
The Ps3 can't output any HD audio bitstream and does all the decoding eternally..............DTS-MA is supposed to be on it's way,again that will be etenally decoded.HDMI audio connection only.
If you use optical and listen to regular DD then of course this is sent Bitstream by the Ps3.

[barabos]

Oh, my mistake, thanks for clearing that up. In that case, perhapps a standalone player which can output these formats via bitstream for the amp to decode would be better? Or would the decoding be roughly equivalent in the amp and the ps3, so that the standalone wouldn't in fact have any real end benefit?

The reason I ask is that in most threads here the ps3 is suggested as being the best at the moment, since it is upgradeable (regualarly too), has fast bluray start up and menu access times and also plays games (which is less important to me (pc and wii cover my needs, than the best audio-visual experience possible from a blu ray player). I assume that most people would not be too concerned by where the decoding is done, don't have an amp capable of decoding the newer hd formats or maybe they find the games upside more valuable than external decoding?

Once again thanks for your help on this, making more progress here than all the time i spent over the last few days just searching for info!

[kingfats]

Originally Posted by barabos

Oh, my mistake, thanks for clearing that up. In that case, perhapps a standalone player which can output these formats via bitstream for the amp to decode would be better? Or would the decoding be roughly equivalent in the amp and the ps3, so that the standalone wouldn't in fact have any real end benefit?

!

I've tested my HD dvd player on a borrowed amp and i can't realy tell the difference between the player or the receiver doing the decoding,to be honest about it.
Both ways sound great.

[barabos]

In that case the ps3 looks like a good purchase for christmas. I was wondering about waiting for the new gen of blu ray players next year but then i suppose i'd be waiting for the next gen after that etc. As long as the ps3 doesn't have any omissions, (and i suppose internal decoding isn't an omission as long as it internally decodes all the formats or will do with software upgrades), then it should still be a good buy well into the new year.

[PUD the Ancient]

Am I correct that for both Dolby TrueHD and DTS HD soundtracks the PS3 should be set to LPCM over HDMI to receive HD audio?

[Richard Torble]

Originally Posted by pauldarrington

Am I correct that for both Dolby TrueHD and DTS HD soundtracks the PS3 should be set to LPCM over HDMI to receive HD audio?

Sort of. With DolbyTrueHD, the PS3 decodes internally and then sends as PCM. It cannot decode DTS HD, so will simply extract the DTS Core signal, and then decode that to PCM.

So, yes, set it to PCM and not Bitstream.

[PUD the Ancient]

Originally Posted by Richard Torble

Sort of. With DolbyTrueHD, the PS3 decodes internally and then sends as PCM. It cannot decode DTS HD, so will simply extract the DTS Core signal, and then decode that to PCM.

So, yes, set it to PCM and not Bitstream.

Thank you very much for confirming that for me

I am hoping to pick up the Yamaha RX-V3800 soon to go with my PS3

[cmclean]

Just purchased a 60Gb PS3 and have a Logitech Z-5500 surround sound system in my games room.

I've always got awesome sound out of my Xbox 360 gaming and via the HD-DVD. However I'm by no means an expert in the audio area.

So could anyone suggest the best quality setup regarding the PS3 with this surround system. Btw it was recommended that I purchase the 60Gb PS3 to the best audio is this true?

Thanks in advance