Requested Response: Penteo Status

[penteosurround]

A member asked me privately to do an update on Penteo(R) and penteosurround.com.

As with most surround formats, the times are somewhat dormant, although I do continue to build up an archive of surround masters, which will hopefully be released by someone, someday.

Because (in my day job) I'm personally employed by a multi-national corporation which happens to own a major movie studio, I am in talks with that studio for the integration of Penteo into their production flow.

The algorithm continues to become more and more artifact free, and Hollywood mixers (the people who originally mixed these hits that I've processed) have given me a lot of kudos.

For those of you who aren't familiar with Penteo, it's a mastering-level process in which a 2-track stereo master is time-base corrected then sent through a FHT which does a pan-based split of the stereo mix into components.

It's still being used for the HDRadio Surround testing at WZLX in Boston.

You're very welcome to hear some of the extracted component tracks at the website, www.penteosurround.com.

-John

 

[Old Quad Guy]

Hello John,

Has the plug-in for listening to the multi-channel broadcasts at WZLX over the internet been released yet? Whatever happened to that…

Thanks.

 

[penteosurround]

Hello John,

Has the plug-in for listening to the multi-channel broadcasts at WZLX over the internet been released yet? Whatever happened to that…

Thanks.

Good question. As things are right now, most people in the business are just waiting for things to "age" a bit more with the education of the listening public before forcing "surround" down people's throats.

I would keep on checking out the Fraunhofer website (http://www.iis.fraunhofer.de/EN/index.jsp) who are actually the coders. They are responsible for all things mp3 and aacPlus.

 

[Old Quad Guy]

Cool. Keep us posted.

What started (although I’m sure there we’re cars from earlier decades that must have had this) and still survives from the 1970’s are speakers in the front and in the back of cars. Although stereo it gave us somewhat of a surround field. Certainly many car tape decks back then - even if they we’re not Quad still had the ability for 2 sets of stereo speakers and most people used them for that effect.

Since most new cars still have these features, including some with DVD-A / DTS surround, it makes sense to go the next step and add true discrete surround to all new cars. Perhaps Penteo(R) can find its place and get the ball rolling to help surround become mainstream. As I understand it, the Fraunhofer system is the only one out of the four systems being considered now by the FCC to offer discrete surround broadcasting.

Of course there already is a discrete broadcast surround system that was approved by the FCC in the 1970's. I'm surprised some company has not bought an option for this system since it could be used now, as I understand it.

If surround becomes mainstream then perhaps the industry standard will demand both Stereo / discrete Surround releases for each new release and rereleases.