DTS:X

The DTS:X system is an audio format released by Digital Theater Systems in 2015 that is partly object-based like Dolby Atmos. A realistic soundscape within a three-dimensional room with flexible sound configuration is made possible this way. Unlike Dolby Atmos, however, DTS:X is not limited to high-resolution audio quality and offers a higher overall compatibility with different sound systems.

Additional channels and native playback

Compared to other DTS standards, which have a comparatively small bandwidth, DTS:X can output up to 32 separate audio channels organized in multiple layers. This also includes so-called up-firing channels, which direct the sound to the ceiling. This provides a Z-coordinate to the sound carpet and therefore includes height as a variable.

It allows for precise and detailed placement of sounds within a room, creating an even more immersive listening experience than older surround sound solutions from DTS. For this purpose, the system uses permanently assigned channels as well as object-dependent positioning of audio sources based on metadata. A particular advantage is the flexibility, since no predefined number of channels or special speaker configurations is required.

Although the format is lossless in general, it can also be operated via a so-called “Lossy Mode“, which puts the data stream through a compression. This function is especially interesting for streaming content and a very limited bandwidth.

Furthermore, DTS:X is backwards compatible, just like Dolby Atmos too.. As soon as your receiver is not able to decode a corresponding signal, a purely channel-based format is automatically selected as a fallback solution.