I have a Pioneer Elite VSX 52 TX and it is capable of doing THX processing. I have been listening to Dolby Digital EX (6.1 setup) and lately have been pressing the THX button just for the heck of it. When I do this all voices come out of the center channel. I mean all. I hear background stuff out of the 2 fronts as well as the rears. In Dolby, voices come out of all 3 fronts. I really don't know which to like. Both I think have their advantages and disadvantages.

In terms of movies which one makes more sense? Normal TV watching? Or just the general theory behind it, which one makes more sense and why? Sometimes I think that the center was suppose to supply the voice audio but if I were to have so big mains and a nice center ... would I be wasting my huge mains? What are those suppose to be used for then?

Thank you.

EDIT: BTW the audio coming out of the 2 fronts seem to be very low compared to the center. Not only the voice audio comes out of the center. Should I be turning up fronts?

No one? Am I in the wrong forum?

Normally centred dialogue will just come out of the centre speaker. I don't know why in your normal mode you're getting it out of all 3 fronts. Are you sure you're actually in the correct sound mode? It sounds almost as if you're applying a "6-channel stereo" mode to the soundtrack, forcing the use of all speakers, rather than using the original soundfield.

The reason for having dialogue come only out of the centre is to localise it on the screen. If you were sitting to one side, and it was coming out of the side speakers, you'd hear it coming from the speaker closest to you, rather than where the image of the person talking is. If you're sitting exactly centrally, then this is less of an issue. Still, if you have your left and right front speakers wide apart (as you generally should - they should form an equilateral triangle with your primary listening position), the effect of the dispersed dialogue would still be a little unnatural.

As for levels, you should use test tones on a disc, in your receiver, or in your player to equalise the level of all the speakers. Ideally, get a sound level meter from Radio Shack/Maplins or similar.



Thank you for your response. I have calibrated my system and the Pio states that it is in Dolby Digital Ex. But the dialog is not coming out of only the center channel. It is quite odd. I don't know how to fix this issue. I guess I should just leave it in THX processing mode.

Does anyone now how to fix this issue?

Any comments would be appreciated.

What thx does is that it tames soundtracks that are too bright and harsh and brings down the highs that can hurt and strain your ears,I hope this helps you understand.

When you go to the movies frequently, you've probably encountered THX at some point. The lights dim, the screen lights up and you see the THX logo, accompanied by earthshaking sound. The phrase "The audience is listening" appears and you know you are in for an aural, as well as visual, experience.

The common assumption is that THX is simply another movie sound format, but it turns out THX is not a sound format at all but something else entirely. In this article, you will learn just what THX is, how it works and how theaters acquire it.


http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/thx.htm

What thx does is that it tames soundtracks that are too bright and harsh and brings down the highs that can hurt and strain your ears,I hope this helps you understand.

When you go to the movies frequently, you've probably encountered THX at some point. The lights dim, the screen lights up and you see the THX logo, accompanied by earthshaking sound. The phrase "The audience is listening" appears and you know you are in for an aural, as well as visual, experience.

The common assumption is that THX is simply another movie sound format, but it turns out THX is not a sound format at all but something else entirely. In this article, you will learn just what THX is, how it works and how theaters acquire it.


http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/thx.htm

I know what the problem is ... Dialog Enhancement was turned on.