How can I play DTS-HD and Dolby TrueHD through my home theatre system supporting DTS and Dolby Digital ?

Adan Alipio: It is impossible to stream audio soundtracks from Blu-ray Discs (and HD DVDs) that have been encoded using any of the new high-resolution, high bitrate multichannel audio compression codecs such as DTS-HD Master Audio, DTS-HD High Resolution Audio, Dolby TrueHD and Dolby Digital Plus over S/PDIF connections. S/PDIF cannot support the high data rates that result from the use of these new high-resolution audio codecs. You will need to use high data-rate, DRM-compliant interfaces such as HDMI or IEEE 1394 (FireWire) to pass data-streams encoded with these audio codecs. To the best of my knowledge Creative Labs does not currently produce any audio/sound cards that support the aforementioned audio codecs; however ASUS and Auzentech claim to currently have audio cards that do. (Please see the resources listed below for more information.) You will also need to address the software content protection requirements as well. Specifically you will need to use the appropr! iate playback software such as PowerDVD, WinDVD or ArcSoft’s TotalMedia as well as an operating system such as Windows Vista that have been designed to offer AACS and 5C DTCP compliance through support of output content protection mechanisms such as code signing (including signed drivers) for protected media components as well as Protected User Mode Audio (PUMA) / Protected Audio Path (PAP). ######################## RESOURCES ######################## “Hi-Def Audio on a PC?”http://www.crn.com/article/printableArticle.jhtml?... “Mastering HD PC Audio, Part 1: You Can’t Always Get There From Here”http://www.tomsguide.com/us/high-def-audio-hdmi,re... “Mastering HD PC Audio, Part 2: Following the PC Audio Chain for Blu-Ray Playback”http://www.tomsguide.com/us/HD-PC-Audio,review-110... Signal to Noise - Dolby TrueHD & DTS-HD MA vs. Uncompressed PCMhttp://www.hemagazine.com/node/Dolby_TrueHD_DTS-MA... Follow Up: High Resolution Audio and HDMI 1.3http://guide.pri! ntthis.clickability.com/pt/cpt?act... Nvidia HDMI with audio?! http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=200810... Surround sound card for home theater PC?http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=200812... What is the best sound card for 5.1 A4 Tech 5.1 theater surround sound?http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=200708... ASUSTeK Computer (PCI-Express) Audio Cardshttp://www.asus.com/products.aspx?l1=25&l2=150 Auzentech Audio Cardshttp://www.auzentech.com/site/products/cards.php ATI Radeon HD 4600 & 4800 series support 7.1 channel HDMI audio!http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=10... Audio Processing in Vista Explainedhttp://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=71... Output Content Protection and Windows Vistahttp://www.microsoft.com/whdc/device/media/output_... [PPT] TWEN05005 - Longhorn Output Content Protectionhttp://download.microsoft.com/download/9/8/f/98f3f... ...Show more

Clement Viscarro: Actually, the answers given already are moot, though correct. To answer your question directly... technic! ally, you will hear sounds with your connection, but they will not be "TrueHD" or "DTS-HD" sounds. Essentially, your receiver will throw away information for the extra two speakers. So, ANY receiver that handles 5.1 channels well will pretty much be equivalent. You are smart to think that a small room doesn't need all 7 channels. So, just get the best 5 channel receiver you desire and don't sweat the other stuff... your concerns are actually irrelevant - except for wondering whether the connection will produce sounds....Show more

Matt Tiry: Good question, my dear!