Can anyone clarify if these new formats will work on the 990. I was under the impression that the 990 wouldn't be able to take advantage of these new formats. After reading a couple different threads I thought maybe I had it wrong. Can someone please help clarify this. Thanks.

This is a very fuzzy issue right now, and the launch of both formats hasn't shed a lot of light yet.

There are three new formats that will be supported by both Blu-ray and HD-DVD. The three are Dolby Digital Plus (DD+), DTS-HD, and Dolby TrueHD. All three are very high bandwidth data bitstreams (meaning they simply won't fit across an existing coaxial or optical digital audio cable). DTS-HD will allow for either lossy or lossless audio, while TrueHD is purely a lossless format (based on the MLP format used with DVD-Audio discs). All three support 7.1 discrete channels - DD+ actually allows for up to 13.1 channels in the format's structure, although they're only working with 7.1 for now. That's as far as we get before we enter the murky domain of HD-DVD, Blu-ray, and HDMI v1.x.

The only digital output channel allowed for these formats is HDMI. Firewire could probably carry the bitstream for at least DD+ and DTS-HD, but it's not going to be allowed to. Ever since v1.0, HDMI has supported up to eight channel PCM digital audio, but no current data path (including the latest HDMI, v1.2) is allowed to carry a raw bitstream of DD+, DTS-HD, or TrueHD. The plan is for HDMI v1.3 to support bitstreams of these three formats, but HDMI v1.3 has not been finalized yet (v1.2 actually just came out last August, and added support for digital transmission of SACD).

What all of this means is that the only ways to get a DD+, DTS-HD, or TrueHD signal out of a Blu-ray or HD-DVD player is as multichannel PCM over HDMI (which means the player has to decode the bitstream and all the processor does is bass management, time delay, channel trim, and D/A) or over 7.1 analog output from the player to the processor or receiver's 7.1 analog input (which means the player handles decoding, processing, and D/A). The 990 (and all but perhaps two processors currently available, both costing $5000) must rely on the latter approach.

If all that isn't murky enough, here are two more head-scratchers. Toshiba's two HD-DVD players only support TrueHD for two-channel playback (not multichannel), and they only offer 5.1 analog outputs...

Don't forget that Toshiba's 2 launch units also won't support 1080p output. For about $1000, how could anyone resist?

TrueHD, from what I've read, intends to use the extra 6 channels as "vertical" effects channels, to add height to the sound. I just knew they'd find some way to make us all buy more speakers...

I love that they're rushing the HD formats to market, without a care for whether or not it makes sense to do so. Launching BD and HD-DVD without the proper HDMI sound support is like launching DVD without optical or coax digital outputs. Why bother?

Rant over.

It really is a shame how this whole thing is panning out. The real looser is us the consumers. Especially us Home theater buffs. Instead of all these companies working together and putting out a great technology that everybody supports we are stuck with a mess. Nobody knows exactly how it is going to work. Nobody knows how long it is going to be before we are able to enjoy this technology. Nobody knows if there equipment is going to be compatable. Personally I'm sitting this one out. I will continue to watch DVDs and HD movies on DirecTv. I will buy a player when I can get a universal player that can actually do 1080p for $500.00, or when one format is the clear winner and I can get a 1080p player for $500.00.

I'm pretty much doing the same thing you are, John - I have no intention of buying into either format for the foreseeable future. Once one format or the other wins or we reach a stalemate similar to the DVD-A/SACD format war, I'll probably buy a player and some discs, but I intend to happily watch discs from my DVD library for a long time to come.

What I can't understand is the lack of vision on the part of the CE companies. I don't think there's ever been a technology launch for the HT market that gave so little reason for early adoption as the HD formats do. If you look at the proposed specs for either format, there's a lot of WOW factor there - but it's way too dependent on vaporware.

I am looking forward to these formats and I think they'll be a great move forward, but there are too many balls still in the air, and it annoys me that they are rushing these things to market, because it's only the consumer that loses in this situation.

You can pretty much blame the studios and content owners for this mess.

Since they keep insisting on putting DRM into everything and complicated DRM schemes at that, that still won't stop the people they are designed to stop from doing whatever they want with media, it greatly complicates everything.

Same thing happened to launch of DVD in mid 90s as well.

Someday the studios and other media/content owners will realize that all DRM does is hurt people who buy content and use it in accordance with legal and ethical principles. Once they realize that, they will stop with the nonsense once and for all, but until that day, we end up with crap like HDMI and the latest batch of HD DVD hardware.

Not possible. While the DD+, DTS-HD and Dolby TrueHD codecs are capable of many more channels than current DD/DTS codecs, the BluRay Disc and HD-DVD delivery media are limited to 8 channels. No one is going to "make" you buy any more speakers ever again (except maybe those voices...)

Those aren't "voices", Sanjay, it's the government. And believe me, they will make you buy more speakers. And those extra channels will carry their orders to the chosen ones with full 13.1.

Count me in as one of those that won't be adopting early. And to echo Blogging - all this does is hurt the vast majority of consumers. Those that are going to violate copyright are going to figure out a way to get past any of their protection mechanisms. It's just like gun laws - punish the law abiding citizens, without really doing anything to stop the law breakers.