When you look at the excitement that Dolby Digital and dts 5.1-channel soundtracks from DVDs can generate played over a good home theater system, it's not surprising that Sony/Philips and the DVD developers decided that an upgraded multichannel audio format was overdue. After all, the CD is stereo, limited to two channels. And despite Sony's original claim, in 1983, of CD's "Perfect Sound Forever," complaints have surfaced over the years about certain limitations in the CD's technical standards.

eCoustics