Hey Mike...you and me both! I am of the breed that I don't like using any type fo DSP that is not true to the disc...ie Dolby Digital/DTS for a DVD for 5.1. CDs 2 channel PCM or 5.1 if using a DTS or DVD audio disc I also don't listen to TV using any DSP fields (I use Sony as an example of how ludicrous it can get).
I think Yamaha also has a 7 channel DSP mode that does matrixing of some sort as well. I don't believe (I haven't had the time to check) that higher end Pre/Pros don't include stuff like 7.1. I know according to Rotel, they will not even be going to DTS ES or Dolby Digital 6.1 until all this 6.1 7.1..etc shakes out.
IMHO I think that we may eventualy get 3 Fronts (L,C,R), 3 Rears (L,C,R) and a Left Side and Right Side for a total of 8 discreet channels with a LFE channel the .1.
I agree 100% that things change too rapidlly, but I for one don't think that I will get enough improvement from a 6.1 to justify the cost of a new Pre/Pro or receiver. I didn't even buy Dolby Digital until it had been out for 2 years and 6.1 is still very very new.
Does anyone know for sure about the new formats and wether they will be encoded discretely?
