You can use Surcode from Minnetonka to create the necessary .ac3 files.
You can then burn them to a DVD-V or to an audio CD(if you have a
digital out from your cd player to your decoder). I think they also make
an encoder for DTS. Both programs will encode up to 6 discrete audio
files(left, right, center, l-r surround and LFE) into one surround
file(like .ac3 for Dolby Digital).

Gene Pool wrote:
I have a bunch of quad r2r tapes from the 70's (Best of the Doors, bot
Doobies, Alman Brothers Live at Filmore East, etc.) These tapes have
material on all four tracks and some are amazing like Jim Morrison
whipering the vocals on Riders on the Storm. I also have four track
test tapes with some sonic mind blowing four channel sounds. I have
copied these to my digital tape deck (Fostex D-90) and can easily
import them to my computer on separate tracks.
What I need to know is how can I burn them to dvd and play them on my
dvd home theater system in true surround sound. If its possible to do
so on a cd that would be acceptable also. What software would I need.
I tried some application from a dvd to vcd ripping site (doom9.net)
but it yielded no sound from the rear speakers.
Would adding a subwoofer track be too much to ask? I noticed on some
video cd's of movies I burned that there were two discrete rear
channels so this must be possible.
Just for haha's I copied the four channels to a four track tape deck
(Fostex X-15 that a friend owns) and ran them through the discrete
inputs on my home dvd player and although hissy this was what I was
looking for.

Thanks

"Gene Pool" wrote in message


I have a bunch of quad r2r tapes from the 70's (Best of the Doors, bot
Doobies, Alman Brothers Live at Filmore East, etc.) These tapes have
material on all four tracks and some are amazing like Jim Morrison
whipering the vocals on Riders on the Storm. I also have four track
test tapes with some sonic mind blowing four channel sounds. I have
copied these to my digital tape deck (Fostex D-90) and can easily
import them to my computer on separate tracks.

What I need to know is how can I burn them to dvd and play them on my
dvd home theater system in true surround sound. If its possible to do
so on a cd that would be acceptable also. What software would I need.

First you need to do a 4 channel - 5.1 mix. I know that CoolEdit Pro has a
facility for doing that, as do a number of other products including Nuendo.

Then you need to encode the 5.1 channels using a Dolby Digital encoder.

Here's a list of people who have licensed the necesarry technology from
Dolby

http://www.dolby.com/digital/lcddpem.html

Then you need to burn the encoded track to DVD.

This google retrieval should give you an idea about what's available:

http://www.google.com/search?&q=dolb...rning+software

Gene Pool wrote:
I have a bunch of quad r2r tapes from the 70's (Best of the Doors, bot
Doobies, Alman Brothers Live at Filmore East, etc.) These tapes have
material on all four tracks and some are amazing like Jim Morrison
whipering the vocals on Riders on the Storm. I also have four track
test tapes with some sonic mind blowing four channel sounds. I have
copied these to my digital tape deck (Fostex D-90) and can easily
import them to my computer on separate tracks.
What I need to know is how can I burn them to dvd and play them on my
dvd home theater system in true surround sound. If its possible to do
so on a cd that would be acceptable also. What software would I need.
I tried some application from a dvd to vcd ripping site (doom9.net)
but it yielded no sound from the rear speakers.

Basically, you need to convert your signal into a Dolby Digital or dts
stream, which you can then put on a CD which can be played on any DVD
player that can decode these.

But the secret here is in the encoding. You need software or hardware
which will do the encoding.
--scott


--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

Gene Pool wrote in
:

I tried some application from a dvd to vcd ripping site

VCD only supports mono and stereo audio tracks. SVCD does have a surround
sound extension though.

To get SVCD with surround you need to have the audio encoded to a MPEG-2
5+1 audio stream and burn it to a SVCD (not VCD). I suspect surround sound
is an optional od added part of the SVCD spec.

You might find info both about the standards and tools for VCD/SVCD/DVD
authoring and converting at:
http://www.dvdrhelp.com/

/Jonas

that is not entirely true. You can encode 5.1 .wav files with software
called Surcode from Minetonka(there are plug ins for ACID and Nuendo and
other programs too). You can burn these files onto a regular audio CD
but, you can only play them through a digital output from a CD player or
DVD player into a Dolby Digital or DTS decoder. Both Dolby and DTS
support this. The decoder will "recognize" the 5.1 stream and decode. If
you listen to the cd on a regular cd output you will hear digital noise.
These programs also support creation of .ac3 files which can be burned
onto DVD media and played on your DVD player. I don't believe that any
of these are mpeg2 audio streams. In fact I believe if you burn your own
DVD;s you have to import 2 seperate files, one for video(mpeg)and one
for the audio(.ac3)and the player will play back both the video and
audio stream together. I am not sure what the DTS file is called but it
works similar to the Dolby in how it is created.

Jonas Eckerman wrote:
Gene Pool wrote in
:


I tried some application from a dvd to vcd ripping site


VCD only supports mono and stereo audio tracks. SVCD does have a surround
sound extension though.

To get SVCD with surround you need to have the audio encoded to a MPEG-2
5+1 audio stream and burn it to a SVCD (not VCD). I suspect surround sound
is an optional od added part of the SVCD spec.

You might find info both about the standards and tools for VCD/SVCD/DVD
authoring and converting at:
http://www.dvdrhelp.com/

/Jonas

VCD only supports mono and stereo audio tracks. SVCD does have a surround
sound extension though.

Dolby Surround -- as played back through Pro Logic and Pro Logic II
systems -- can be carried through any two-channel audio source.
That's how CDs, stereo VHS tapes, and even stereo TV broadcasts are
capable of providing Surround Sound -- all the necessary rear channel
and front center channel information is carried within the
conventional Left and Right stereo audio channels.

Thus, there is no reason why Dolby Surround cannot be encoded into MP2
(as used by VCD), MP3, WMA, or whatever. The quality of the results
will simply be a factor of how accurately the compression system you
use encodes the regular stereo audio. I have quite a few music video
discs in VCD format, and while the quality of the Dolby Surround Sound
as put through its 224 kbps MP2 compression isn't perfect, most of the
time it is at least acceptable, and sometimes even very good.

However, in this case, you'll have to use Dolby Pro Logic II, because
it's the only one of the "stereo-compatible" systems which preserves
full audio response and left-to-right separation of the rear channels.
Conventional Dolby Surround and first-generation Pro Logic only
provide a single limited-response rear surround channel.

BTW, a surprisingly high amount of what is broadcast on TV is encoded
for Dolby Surround Sound. Even commercials, station IDs, and the
background music during news programs are usually in Surround Sound.
Even the "laugh track" in sitcoms is reproduced so that the audience
"surrounds" you! Unfortunately, the majority of TV sets in use today
are still monophonic, and out of those who *do* have stereo
televisions, only a fraction have theirs set up through a complete
Surround Sound home entertainment system.

"Andrew M." wrote in
:

To get SVCD with surround you need to have the audio encoded to a
MPEG-2 5+1 audio stream and burn it to a SVCD (not VCD). I suspect

that is not entirely true.
[...]
You can burn these files onto a regular audio
CD but,
[...
which can be burned onto DVD media and played on your DVD player.

Note that I was writing about *VCD* and *SVCD* above. I didn't say anything
at all about audio CD or DVD.

*SVCD* has extensions for surround sound using MPEG-2.

The fact that DVD supports other formats does not change the specs for
SVCD.

/Jonas

The encoders that I have seen and used make no provision for creating
mpeg2 files. I don't believe that you can create mpeg2 files that will
have discrete 5.1 audio playback. I noticed that someone mentioned in an
earlier reply to check out the Dolby Pro Logic and Pro Logic 2 formats.
These encoders will create a STEREO file that can be "decoded" into
"discrete" channels on playback, though I don't know how the encoding
will stand up to an mpeg encode process. Dolby Digital and DTS produce
true discrete 5.1 channel playback. Pro Logic does not. You will hear
VCA's slamming your audio front and back because it's not a discrete or
precise process(although I am sure Dolby will take issue with this).
Just listen to any ProLogic encoded matereial on television to hear
this. There isn't really much cost savings going with ProLogic, the
encoder costs about the same as Dolby Digital and DTS which is around
$1000 US. If you go the ProLogic or ProLogic2 route, you will hear
things bleeding front and rear. I don't feel SVCD or VCD will do your
material justice as I think they only support mpeg 1 and 2 files with
the audio and video encoded together. If you go this route I don't think
there is any way of achieving true discreet multichannel playback.

Jonas Eckerman wrote:
"Andrew M." wrote in
:


To get SVCD with surround you need to have the audio encoded to a
MPEG-2 5+1 audio stream and burn it to a SVCD (not VCD). I suspect


that is not entirely true.

[...]

You can burn these files onto a regular audio
CD but,

[...

which can be burned onto DVD media and played on your DVD player.


Note that I was writing about *VCD* and *SVCD* above. I didn't say anything
at all about audio CD or DVD.

*SVCD* has extensions for surround sound using MPEG-2.

The fact that DVD supports other formats does not change the specs for
SVCD.

/Jonas

Sonic Foundry has a 5.1 Surround Plug-in Pack available for use with either
Vegas 4 or Acid Pro 4 and also includes support for DVD burning. The only
problem is that it isn't cheap ($280) and if you don't already own Vegas or
Acid it works out even more costly (cheapest way is competitive crossgrade
to Vegas+DVD @ $500).

http://www.sonicfoundry.com/products...ct.asp?PID=772

W


"Gene Pool" wrote in message
...
I have a bunch of quad r2r tapes from the 70's (Best of the Doors, bot
Doobies, Alman Brothers Live at Filmore East, etc.) These tapes have
material on all four tracks and some are amazing like Jim Morrison
whipering the vocals on Riders on the Storm. I also have four track
test tapes with some sonic mind blowing four channel sounds. I have
copied these to my digital tape deck (Fostex D-90) and can easily
import them to my computer on separate tracks.
What I need to know is how can I burn them to dvd and play them on my
dvd home theater system in true surround sound. If its possible to do
so on a cd that would be acceptable also. What software would I need.
I tried some application from a dvd to vcd ripping site (doom9.net)
but it yielded no sound from the rear speakers.
Would adding a subwoofer track be too much to ask? I noticed on some
video cd's of movies I burned that there were two discrete rear
channels so this must be possible.
Just for haha's I copied the four channels to a four track tape deck
(Fostex X-15 that a friend owns) and ran them through the discrete
inputs on my home dvd player and although hissy this was what I was
looking for.

Thanks

Dolby Digital and DTS produce
true discrete 5.1 channel playback. Pro Logic does not. You will hear
VCA's slamming your audio front and back because it's not a discrete or
precise process(although I am sure Dolby will take issue with this).
Just listen to any ProLogic encoded matereial on television to hear
this.

Actually, that effect is caused by the dynamic range compression that
TV stations (or cable or satellite channels) use, rather than a flaw
of the Pro Logic system itself. When you take source audio that is
Pro Logic-encoded and run it through a multi-band
AGC/compressor/limiter that was only designed for 2-channel stereo
audio -- just like TV stations do -- that will cause a degradation in
the accuracy of the surround sound playback.

The way to avoid this would be to extract the 5.1 channels, apply the
audio processing to them individually, and then re-encode the
dynamically compressed audio -- but I don't think such a process
exists, because accurate Pro Logic playback is not so much of a
concern to TV stations that they would go through such great expense
and complexity... especially since 85% of their viewers are only
listening through the built-in 3-inch mono speaker of their
television.

My point was just that ProLogic is NOT a discrete encoding system.

WBRW wrote:

Dolby Digital and DTS produce
true discrete 5.1 channel playback. Pro Logic does not. You will hear
VCA's slamming your audio front and back because it's not a discrete or
precise process(although I am sure Dolby will take issue with this).
Just listen to any ProLogic encoded matereial on television to hear
this.


Actually, that effect is caused by the dynamic range compression that
TV stations (or cable or satellite channels) use, rather than a flaw
of the Pro Logic system itself. When you take source audio that is
Pro Logic-encoded and run it through a multi-band
AGC/compressor/limiter that was only designed for 2-channel stereo
audio -- just like TV stations do -- that will cause a degradation in
the accuracy of the surround sound playback.

The way to avoid this would be to extract the 5.1 channels, apply the
audio processing to them individually, and then re-encode the
dynamically compressed audio -- but I don't think such a process
exists, because accurate Pro Logic playback is not so much of a
concern to TV stations that they would go through such great expense
and complexity... especially since 85% of their viewers are only
listening through the built-in 3-inch mono speaker of their
television.