Dolby Digital EX takes the Dolby Digital5.1-channel setup one step further with
an additional center surround channel (reproduced through one or two speakers)
for extra dimensional detail and an enveloping surround sound effect. Feature
films originally released in Dolby Digital Surround EX (the cinema version)
carry the encoded extra surround channel in their subsequent DVD releases, as
well as onto 5.1-channel digital satellite and TVasts. [Source:
Dolby
Technologies]
Image: Example of a home theater surround sound system using Dolby 5.1
Surround set-up.
Dolby Laboratories home page Offers links to company information, news and products, as well as technical information about Dolby Digital, DVD, and Dolby Surround and multimedia.
Home Theater Magazine Featuring news, spotlights, product descriptions and reviews of today's Home Theater equipment.
How to Buy Surround Sound Sound & Vision Online provides the simple steps that will take you from just thinking about a great home theatre to actually having one.
Surround Sound Past, Present, and Future (PDF) A history of multichannel audio from mag stripe to Dolby Digital. The first commercially successful multichannel sound formats were developed in the early 1950s for the cinema. At the time, stereophonic sound, a concept new to the public, was heavily promoted along with new wide-screen formats by a film industry feeling threatened by the rapid growth of television.
Surround Sound Speaker Placement This SoundStage article discusses issues and common problems associated with surround sound speaker positioning.
