Need some help with Audio problem

Ok i have a PS3 hooked up hdmi to an Onkyo 606. Now when watching dts-hd its sound nice and loud. Today i was watching Dark Night witch is Truehd and noticed it sounded low. Not loud like dts-hd. So i went into the settings under audio and switched back and fourth from DD To DD True HD and noticed a high difference DD Sounded better. Louder.Now on my receiver it say Multich. I dont understand what the problem is the ps3 and Onkyo both encode TrueHD. Thanks

Unless you have a new PS3 slim model just released the PS3 models prior cannot bitstream the HD audio for a receiver to decode. The PS3 must do the decoding and then it sends the (basically unzipped) soundtrack to the receiver to actually hear the HD audio codecs.

Louder does not make a soundtrack better, but most people do erroneous think that. Many of the DtHD audio tracks are recorded at a lower level, so you may have to bump the volume up more. That is all.

Hope this helps!

The older PS3 models convert TrueHD and Master Audio into Linear PCM and then send the signal to your receiver. As PFC stated above the new PS3 slim sends the signal just as it is through a process called bitstreaming. According to the techies there is no difference between Linear PCM, Dolby TrueHD, and DTS-HD Master Audio since they are all lossless.

Soundtracks encoded with the various audio codecs DTS-HD MA, DtHD, DD+, DD, & DTS are basically just a zipping method like compressing files on a computer. For the Lossless encoded tracks, you end up with the same unzipped file regardless of where it is decoded or unzipped. The original file was LPCM before the encode and after decoding it is still LPCM so it doesn't matter where it is decoded or unzipped. The only variations would be if post processing is done in a receiver for the bitstreamed (undecoded/unzipped) signal but not for a LPCM track already decoded. That would depend on the receiver mfg/model. Many tend to output the volume louder when the receiver does the decoding, but that has no effect on sound quality and be compensated for by simply adjusting the volume on the receiver.

Lossless is lossless. Of course when the receiver does the decoding, that little light for DTS-HD MA or DtHD lights up on the receiver. :D

Now this all was assuming that the connection was left in the digital domain and connected via an HDMI connection. If a analog output is connected then it depends on how good the DAC (Digital to Analog Converter) chips are in each device as to which is better. Another potential drawback of using analog 5.1/7.1 output is that nearly no post processing can be done in most receivers (except maybe in the most expensive models), so for many, HDMI is the better choice for the connection type.

Ok my ps3 isnt encoding the Dolby True Hd but my Onkyo is correct

Ok my ps3 isnt encoding the Dolby True Hd but my Onkyo is correctNeither does any encoding. Encoding happens when the soundtrack is put on the disc. The original PCM recording is encoded using a codec such as DD 5.1 or DTS (lossy formats) or TrueHD or dts-HD Master Audio (lossless). That's done to save space on the disc. Multichannel PCM tracks are rather large.

Players and receivers decode soundtracks back into PCM so that they can be played to produce sound. An encoded soundtrack needs to be decoded in either the player or the receiver, it doesn't matter which. But, that only happens in one device or the other, not both.

The PS3 can decode any format and send the resulting PCM to your Onkyo. But, it cannot send encoded TrueHD or dts-MA to your Onkyo for decoding there. That's a limitation of the PS3 hardware. So, the HD decoders in your Onkyo will never be used with a player like your PS3.

As for loudness, most TrueHD tracks are attenuated by about 4dB by the decoder. Simply turn up the volume a bit more on your receiver to compensate.

Ok so am i hearing the truehd or should i get another bluray player so i get the full effect. Thanks

Ok so am i hearing the truehd or should i get another bluray player so i get the full effect. Thanks
When your PS3 is set to PCM it will decode the TrueHD soundtrack. You may need to turn up the volume some because the PS3's PCM output tends to be a bit low and because Dolby decoders usually lower the volume based on dialnorm values. But, your PS3 is giving you the full effect and the audio quality would be no better if the decoding were being done by your receiver.

Thank You

Right. The PS3 will DECODE any audio format currently on the market, and then send it to your Onkyo. Just make sure you have the audio output of the PS3 set to PCM, not bitstream. Then make sure that you have the audio on the Onkyo set to " Direct " under the " Multich PCM " option. When the Onkyo receives the decoded TrueHD or MasterAudio from the PS3, it will show " Multich Direct ", or something similar, on its display panel. This is correct, as the PS3 has already done the decoding. And, I am assuming, that you ARE using HDMI for the connection between the PS3 and the Onkyo, as the optical audio output will NOT carry the lossless audio signal. :)