Dolby Laboratories DP570 - Manual (Page 96)

84 Dolby ® DP570 Multichannel Audio Tool User’s Manual
A Guide to Dolby Metadata Metadata Overview
Dolby E is a professional technology used for broadcast applications, such as program
origination and distribution; the Dolby E bitstream carries the entire metadata parameter
set. Dolby Digital, used for consumer applications, such as transmission to the home or for
DVD authoring, employs a subset of the full metadata parameter set called Dolby Digital
metadata; the Dolby Digital bitstream carries only those parameters necessary for proper
decoding by the consumer.
Metadata is first inserted during program creation or mastering, and is carried through
transmission in a broadcast application or directly onto a DVD. The metadata provides
control over how the encoded bitstream is treated at each step on the way to the consumer’s
decoder.
This control, however, requires the producer to set the metadata parameters correctly, since
they affect important aspects of the audio—and can seriously compromise the final
product if set improperly. Although most metadata parameters are transparent to
consumers, certain parameters affect the output of a home decoder, such as downmixing
for a specific speaker configuration, or when the consumer chooses Dynamic Range
Control to avoid disturbing family and neighbors.
Figure D‐1 shows a 5.1 + 2 Program Config, consisting of a 5.1‐channel program and a
two‐channel secondary audio program (SAP).
Figure D-1 Metadata Flow from Production to Consumer