New Dolby Volume Technology To Intro on Toshiba’s REGZA ZH500 and ZV500 LCD HDTVs

Dolby Laboratories have announced that their new Dolby Volume audio-processing technology will make its commercial debut on Toshiba’s new REGZA ZH500 LCD HDTV – featuring integrated 300GB hard-drive PVR - and ZV500 LCD HDTV – offering LAN and USB connectivity - which will be launched in Japan next month.

Dolby’s Dolby Volume audio-processing technology, in essence, serves to ensure that consistent volume levels are maintained from various audio sources, thus eliminating variations in loudness levels as differing sources are selected and, we hope, will also serve to lessen the annoying tendency of TV advertisements seemingly being a great deal louder that the surrounding programming (a great source of annoyance, for us at least).

According to Dolby Laboratories press release, ‘In addition to audio levelling, Dolby Volume offers another benefit. Due to the nature of human hearing, many subtleties of the content can be lost when listening at low audio levels. To address this problem, Dolby Volume continually analyzes the audio and properly balances low, middle, and high frequencies to maintain the nuances and impact of the program material regardless of playback volume. The result is improved surround imaging, enhanced dialogue intelligibility, and improved overall clarity of the audio content at lower levels’ or, to put it another way, and by way of offering further insight, Dolby Volume offers the following (as detailed in a separate Dolby press release) :

The Preferred Volume, All the Time

Dolby Volume technology maintains system playback volume at the same preferred level across all sources, from progressive programming and channel selections on a TV set or set-top box or between connected sources such as CD and DVD players, audio- or videocassette players, and portable digital media players or other playback devices. Dolby Volume technology lets the listener set the playback volume once and not have to touch the volume control again. In addition, Dolby Volume lets the listener control a program’s dynamic range. For example, with the volume turned down for late-night viewing, dynamic range can be adjusted so that dialogue remains clear, and loud effects or wide dynamic music passages retain their impact and timbre without waking up the family.

Vibrant Quality, Loud or Soft

Dolby Volume also compensates for the ear’s changing sensitivity as the volume is turned up or down. It properly balances low, middle, and high frequencies to maintain all the nuances and impact of the program material regardless of playback volume level. At high or low levels, Dolby Volume guarantees a listening experience that includes all of the dynamics of the original mix.

Dolby Volume measures, analyzes, and maintains volume levels based on how people perceive sound. It examines a variety of audio parameters to maintain consistent playback levels whether switching between channels or between multiple source inputs. A sophisticated combination of spectral- and time-based loudness analysis enables it to quickly and properly correct level differences without creating compression artefacts or undesirable pumping in the audio signal.

Dolby Laboratories