1. What is the Home THX Audio System?
2. Is Home THX compatible with Dolby Digital and DTS?
3. Will Home THX Dipole Surrounds work with these 5.1 channel digital formats?
4. Are Home THX speakers suitable for music listening?
5. What are the benefits I can expect from the Home THX Audio System on 4 Channel or Digital 5.1 Channel Soundtracks?
6. What components comprise a Home THX System?
7. I have heard that 5 matched loudspeakers are recommended for 5.1. Why does THX recommend something different?
8. Do I need to buy a complete Home THX System to get the benefits of Home THX Technologies?
9. What are the differences between the various price levels of Home THX Products?

Home THX Program:

• Overview
• 5.1 Reasons Why THX Makes 5.1 Best
• THX Ultra and THX Select
• The Home THX Controller
• Home THX Speakers
• Home THX Amplifiers, Equalizers and Interconnects
• Home THX FAQ
• DVD Player Certification
• Licensee Listings

Back to THX Consumer Products

What is the Home THX Audio System?

The Home THX Audio System is the ultimate in sound for multi-channel home entertainment systems. The system incorporates a series of patented electronic and loudspeaker developments designed to reproduce all multi-channel sources accurately in the home.

The driving force behind the creation of Home THX was the observation that conventional audio components could not accurately reproduce film soundtracks in the home environment as they were originally created by filmmakers. Two basic requirements were identified:

• A need to correct the audible tonal and spatial errors caused by the playback of soundtracks designed in and for large theatres in the smaller environment of a home.
• A need to more accurately reproduce the complex and competing sound fields present in multi-channel sound playback.

The Lucasfilm Home THX Audio System standard has a firm foundation in the production processes associated with all feature film material.

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Is Home THX compatible with Dolby Digital and DTS?

Absolutely! The goal of the Home THX System is to accurately recreate the experience of the film mixing theatre. All mixing theatres are capable of creating both 4 and 5.1 channel mixes. The acoustics, equalization curves, and loudspeaker arrays used in a mixing theatre remain the same for a digital 5.1 channel soundtrack as they do for a 4 channel Dolby Surround soundtrack. Home THX Technologies are needed to reproduce these movie soundtracks accurately.

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Will Home THX Dipole Surrounds work with these 5.1 channel digital formats?

Yes. The Dipole Surrounds' design emulates the soundfield of an array of loudspeakers exactly as those found in mixing theatres and movie theatres. In movie theatres, these "surround arrays" provide a big surround sound experience. Because surround placement in the home is limited to a few speakers close to the listener, the THX Dipole Surround is the best way to provide a big surround experience. Sound effects and pans will have correct directional cues, and surround ambiences will be open and enveloping. With the newer "split surround" formats it is even more important that surround cues and pans do not "collapse into a box".

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Are Home THX speakers suitable for music listening?

Certainly. Home THX Speakers are optimized for multi-channel sound (4 or 5.1 channels), so you get better imaging and clarity from the front speakers, and more envelopment from the surround speakers. Both of these benefits are ideal for music reproduction.

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What are the benefits I can expect from the Home THX Audio System on 4 Channel or Digital 5.1 Channel Soundtracks?

• You will hear a more natural tonal balance. Many motion pictures reproduced through typical home audio systems will sound unnaturally bright.
• The dialogue will be more intelligible. In 5.1 channel mixes, all 5 main channels can be operating at once. With dense sound mixes, action effects can seriously mask subtle dialogue. In the Home THX Audio System, you will hear dialogue more distinctly, even in sequences with loud or complex sound effects.
• You will experience a more uniform sound envelope. The front and surround soundfields will merge, seamlessly putting you into the motion picture.
• Sound localization will be more accurate and focused. You will notice that sound closely follows the action on the screen.
• You will experience all of the dynamic range and frequency response of a motion picture soundtrack without distortion or other artifacts.
• The system will effortlessly reproduce the bottom two octaves of bass with clarity and precision.

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用家用THX音响系统回放4声道或5.1声道音轨的优点是什么？

• 你能听见更平衡的音调。许多电影音轨在普通的家用音响上听起来都太明亮了。
• 对白更清晰。在5.1声道混音时，所有5个主通道都可以独立运作。密集的音效可能会掩盖掉微妙的对白。使用家用THX系统，你甚至在嘈杂的场景中可以听清对白。
• 体验强烈的包围感。前方和环绕音箱合成无缝的音场，使你身临其境。
• 声音定位准确，你会注意声音随电影画面移动，和电影画面一致。
• 能不失真地回放电影音轨的全部频率范围和动态范围。
• 系统能够精确有力地回放最低沉的低音八度音阶。

What components comprise a Home THX System?

To perform the job of translating a motion picture soundtrack accurately into a home environment, three Home THX product groups must be employed.

Home THX Controller - includes multi-channel circuitry and the necessary electronic enhancements (Re-equalization™, Timbre Matching™, and Decorrelation™, and more) to successfully render the film sound experience in a home.

Home THX Loudspeakers - Left, Center, Right, Left Surround, Right Surround, and Subwoofer loudspeakers reproduce the clarity, localization, spaciousness, and timbre found in complex multi-channel soundfields. The Front speakers contribute proper tonal balance, intelligibility, and imaging, while the Surround speakers provide good envelopment and a sense of spaciousness.

Home THX Amplifiers - built and tested to exacting specifications for distortion, noise, stability, and dynamic power required in a multi-channel sound system.

Other categories of Home THX Product include the THX Room Equalizer, Acoustically Transparent Projection Screen, Laser Disc Player and Interconnect Cable.

Home THX Room Equalizer - corrects room acoustic problems. While not always necessary for best performance, a Home THX Equalizer can significantly improve the perceived frequency response and timbral accuracy of a system.

Home THX Acoustically Transparent Projection Screen - gives top-notch front-projection video performance and yet permits behind-screen speaker placement with no audio degradation.

Home THX Laser Disc Player - performs to the highest audio and video standards. Consumers can expect to see improved resolution and color fidelity, finer detail, and reduced noise on any laser disc. In addition, the audio performance of a THX Laser Disc player will please the most demanding audiophile. This THX Laser Disc Player includes the ability to provide a direct output for multi-channel digital audio, such as Dolby Digital and DTS.

THX Interconnect Cables - built to exacting specifications which ensure the truest audio performance and avoid sound coloration, even over the great lengths often used in home theatre systems.

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家用THX系统有那些部分构成?

I have heard that 5 matched loudspeakers are recommended for 5.1. Why does THX recommend something different?

In a movie theatre, the surround speakers and the front speakers are different because they do different jobs. The front speakers provide clear dialogue and are designed to localize sounds to match the picture. The surround speakers create diffuse and enveloping surround ambiences with occasional effects like pans or "fly-overs." If you decide to build a 5.1 channel home theatre system out of conventional loudspeakers, using 5 matched speakers plus a subwoofer is the minimum requirement. Home THX Speaker Systems are designed specifically for multi-channel sound. THX LCR Speaker and THX Dipole Surround designs psychoacoustically match the best surround sound performance of a movie theatre or mixing stage. The THX subwoofer keeps the size of all of the speakers small while allowing for peak dynamic range and bass performance.

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Do I need to buy a complete Home THX System to get the benefits of Home THX Technologies?

No. Each Home THX Product; Controller, LCR Speaker, Surround Speaker, Subwoofer, Amplifier, Equalizer, Laser Disc Player, Interconnect and Speaker Wire, and Acoustically Transparent Screen solves specific problems in Home Cinema sound reproduction. You can use any Home THX product in any home theatre system. When used all together, these components work synergistically to produce an ultimate surround sound experience.

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要达到THX的效果，必须购买一整套THX系统么？

What are the differences between the various price levels of Home THX Products?

While the THX Division assists in the development of licensed products and thoroughly tests all aspects of performance against strict technical and quality control standards, each manufacturer brings their own special perspective and expertise to the design and construction of their products. Some of the differences between products can be: a) ability to play in very large rooms; b) additional DSP sound processing modes; c) exotic construction techniques and the use of more expensive parts or materials, and d) complexity in design and construction. Customers can choose from a wide variety of Home THX certification guarantees these products which share a common purpose and design. Home THX products reflect the best multi-channel playback systems possible in each price range.

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不同价位的家用THX系统有什么不同？

虽然THX进行了严格全面的技术规格和质量控制认证，但每一个厂商的产品都容入自己的设计制造的观点和经验。产品之间的不同点可以是: a) 在特大房间中使用的能力; b) 额外的 DSP 声音处理模式；c) 使用特别的技术和更贵的部件；d) 更复杂的设计和制造。在大量的THX产品中，THX保证了一致的设计效果，消费者可以自由选择。在每一个价位都，家用THX系统是表现最佳的多通道回放系统。

Home THX Program:

• Overview
• 5.1 Reasons Why THX Makes 5.1 Best
• THX Ultra and THX Select
• The Home THX Controller
• Home THX Speakers
• Home THX Amplifiers, Equalizers and Interconnects
• Home THX FAQ
• DVD Player Certification
• Licensee Listings

Back to THX Consumer Products