NTI Newsletter

The Digirator DR2 and Acoustilyzer AL1 optimize the surround sound performance of home cinema installations. You can measure and improve the sound pressure level, the frequency response and verify the correct polarity and delay settings of all surround speakers.

The basic room architecture of home cinema installations is important for positioning of the speakers and optimizing the sound experience. The popular 5.1 digital surround sound describes a multi-channel audio system with five full range audio channels and one LFE channel for low frequency effects.

The NTI Digirator DR2 generates defined surround sound test sequences in the professional Dolby ® or DTS® format. The AL1 Acoustilyzer in combination with the MiniSPL measurement microphone measures the resulting acoustical performance. With these portable instruments together audio engineers achieve optimized audio settings following the individual customer requirements. The measurement guidelines are listed step-by-step in the application note “Improving the Sound of Home Cinema Installations”.

Download the application note
“Surround Sound in Home Cinemas”.

Free Protection Cover for NTI TalkBox customers

The NTI TalkBox generates acoustical test signals for speech intelligibility testing and microphone or level settings in conference systems. A new hard cover for transport protection is available now.

The hard cover protects the speaker grill against dents during transport and whenever the TalkBox is moved around without the carrying bag. The protection cover will be included with all new products. All existing customers may receive the new protection cover.

Kindly contact NTI at info@nti-audio.com and report your product serial number, listed on the rear side sticker (e.g. TTNxxx) and full style contact details, and you will receive the free protection cover in return.

Surround Sound Systems in Broadcasting Stations

Dolby ® Surround technology moved already in various broadcasting stations. Radio Guangdong in China, XM-HD Satellite Radio in the US or Germany’s ARD Radio Network - they all belong to the slowly but ever increasing number of radio broadcasters transmitting in 5.1 surround. For commissioning and servicing such studios the signal generator Digirator DR2 perfectly suits the requirements. It generates the Dolby®- and DTS® reference test signals.

Surround sound is an enhancement for jazz and classical. Even radio broadcasters, which are currently not on air in 5.1 yet, produce and archive a growing part of their content as multi-channel audio - e.g. live recordings of concerts for later release on DVD. Mr. Karl M. Slavik, a certified consulting- and trainings partner of Dolby Laboratories reports: “Handheld digital instruments, such as the Acoustilyzer AL1 and Digirator DR2, are perfectly suited for the job. Each time that audio signals must be sent across a given, but rather unknown channel infrastructure (such as a digital network or a satellite link)it makes good sense to check for latencies (delays) and bit transparency with the DR2.” These measurements are especially important for all coded multi-channel signals.Due to their very nature, all digital encoding and decoding processes introduce latencies which largely depend on the bit rate efficiency of the coder.

The basic principles of surround sound have been summarized in an application note, thus you know how to solve very special surround sound issues in the broadcast industry.

Download the application note “Surround Sound in Broadcasting Stations”.