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Release Date: August 05, 2009
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iTunes New Music Releases

Release Date: September 29, 2009
Genre: Rock
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  • Playing the Angel

    • 8 out of 10
    • Depeche Mode
    • Oddly enough, Playing The Angel is a return to form for Depeche Mode, even though it may well be argued that they never truly deviated from their roots in their more recent offerings. In the

  • Plans

    • 8 out of 10
    • Death Cab for Cutie
    • With the introduction of Plans, Death Cab for Cutie became a new addition to many user's Artist list after the single "Soul Meets Body" became a hit on iTunes. Offering a fresh alternativ

  • De Nova

    • 10 out of 10
    • The Redwalls
    • Wow! Perhaps my 5-star rating is simply because the Redwalls are not only new and fresh (none of them older than 22!), or perhaps its because -- despite their ages -- they are able to totally capture
  • Velocifero

    • 6 out of 10
    • Ladytron
    • "Back to the future" isn't the right turn of phrase for Ladytron's newest album,

  • The Life Pursuit

    • 8 out of 10
    • Belle & Sebastian
    • The Life Pursuit is a sort of Reeses Peanut Butter Cup. You get Belle & Sebastian's peanut butter (its wistful, often irresistible pop) dipped in a 'Have A Nice Day!' and glam 70s chocol

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A Tutorial on Apple TV 5.1 Audio

Misconceptions regarding the audio capabilities of the Apple TV were addressed by RoughlyDrafted Magazine on Tuesday.

Some analysts have suggested that the Apple TV cannot generate 5.1 audio. Daniel Dilger promptly put the issue to rest.

Mr. Dilger explained, "In addition to stereo cables, Apple TV also features a Toslink digital optical port. Since we can send raw digital audio data over the Apple TV's optical output, can't we send DTS digitally encoded 5.1 as well?

"Of course we can. Download a DTS sample file in WAV format, drop it into iTunes, and Apple TV will happily sync it and play it. Unlike Pro Logic audio, it will sound like static over regular stereo speakers, but hooked up to a DTS receiver, it is decoded into 5.1 channels of sound and played back in real DTS 5.1 surround.

"The only limitation with DTS 5.1 sound right now is that Apple isn't offering it on its own movie downloads. The Apple TV can certainly “do it,” because it doesn't have to “do” anything; it merely passes it on to the 5.1 DTS decoder that anyone with 5.1 surround speakers already has."

The net result of this is that, after all the complications are sorted out, the Apple engineers have cleverly set things up to make the audio output simple for the less sophisticated users who only know about stereo right- and left audio. However, retained in the hardware is the pass-through so that the full 5.1 decoding capability is available for audiophiles who have more advanced equipment.

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