»

[rufus13th]

Hi I'm conducting a little survey. I was wondering if you could answer the following questions. Please be honest, I'm trying to examine public awareness of home cinema systems. Many thanks.

Most are "Yes" or "No" questions. If you cannot answers certain questions, just leave 'N/A' or 'not sure'.

1. Do you know who "Dolby" are?

2. Do you know who "DTS" are?

3. Do you have a surround sound system at home (5.1, 6.1)?

4. Would you consider upgrading to a 5.1 or 6.1 surround sound system or upgrading to a better model?

5. Do you have the ability to play DTS encoded discs?

6. In general, rate Dolby 5.1 encoded discs from 1-5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent).

7. In general, rate DTS 5.1 encoded discs from 1-5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent).

8. Which do you think is superior - Dolby or DTS?

9. Do you think that surround sound systems are currently cheap, reasonable or expensive?

10. In general, rate the audio quality of music through a portable device via headphones (MP3, mindisc etc) from 1-5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent).

11. Which do you think is superior - music through home entertainment system (hi-fi, DVD player etc) or music through portable device (MP3, mindisc etc)?

12. Rate the follwing idea from 1-5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent): A portable device that generates rhythmic vibrations in time with the music. It would be stored inside a rucksack. In other words, if you were to walk and listen to your MP3, you would essentially 'feel' the audio against your back or front (depending on how you wore your rucksack).

13. What would be a fair price for such a device: £40 or less, £40-£60, £60 or more

Ok cheers. Any help appreciated.

[David]

1. Do you know who "Dolby" are?
yep, makers of noise reduction technology and surround sound

2. Do you know who "DTS" are?
i know of the company, but not too much about them or their systems

3. Do you have a surround sound system at home (5.1, 6.1)?
nope

4. Would you consider upgrading to a 5.1 or 6.1 surround sound system or upgrading to a better model?
not really, i dont really watch too many movies, so probably wouldnt get too much use fomr upgrading from my tv sets sound

5. Do you have the ability to play DTS encoded discs?
dont have a clue, i have a fairly new panasonic dvd player if that helps...

6. In general, rate Dolby 5.1 encoded discs from 1-5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent).
n/a i dont have any way to utilise them properly (though to my knowledge the majority of the dvds i have have 2.1 dolby at least, if not more

7. In general, rate DTS 5.1 encoded discs from 1-5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent).
see above

8. Which do you think is superior - Dolby or DTS?
i can only really say dolby based on the fact i know more about it than dts, thats not through any real benefits

9. Do you think that surround sound systems are currently cheap, reasonable or expensive?
i think they are pretty reasonable, ou would generally want to use surround sound to bother getting one, but they arent too out of reach for most people

10. In general, rate the audio quality of music through a portable device via headphones (MP3, mindisc etc) from 1-5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent).
i am happy with the audio quality of my walkman (sony digital music player, it dosent play mp3 so cant be called an mp3 player ) the fact is that with my walkman, even if it was lower qualitythan it is, it would still do the job fine, as a lot of my listening is either done travelling (ie on the bus, walking through town) or sitting in quieter places concentrating on somethng with music in the background (ie sitting on a compute in uni) but even listiening in complete silence it is still perfectly good for me, a lot does depend on the headphones too, since buying a better pair of headphones (a £20 set of sony ones over a £5 set) i have noticed a positive difference

11. Which do you think is superior - music through home entertainment system (hi-fi, DVD player etc) or music through portable device (MP3, mindisc etc)?
i use a walkman more than home audio, though a decent home setup could undoubtably be better quality, but i tend to listen to music a lot travelling, and a lot less at home (i am sitting on a computer now, with my guitar, so no music...)

12. Rate the follwing idea from 1-5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent): A portable device that generates rhythmic vibrations in time with the music. It would be stored inside a rucksack. In other words, if you were to walk and listen to your MP3, you would essentially 'feel' the audio against your back or front (depending on how you wore your rucksack).
it seems pretty pointless to me, the audio i get from headphones does well enough, and there could be a lot of problems getting a system like that to work (ie getting enough contact between me and the system) for not too much gain

13. What would be a fair price for such a device: £40 or less, £40-£60, £60 or more
it would depend on what it is like in use and how it really affects the users experience of music

hope that has been of some use...

David

[rufus13th]

Thanks, that's fantatstic. Much appreciated.

[Neil]

Can you please tell me what the purpose of this questionnaire is? Because if it is market research then this thread is getting closed right now.

I wouldn't worry Neil, i'm pretty sure he's just a nerd that's genuinely interested on the subject...


1. Do you know who "Dolby" are?
Yes

2. Do you know who "DTS" are?
No

3. Do you have a surround sound system at home (5.1, 6.1)?
No

4. Would you consider upgrading to a 5.1 or 6.1 surround sound system or upgrading to a better model?
I've been considering installing one for a while.

5. Do you have the ability to play DTS encoded discs?
Don't know, probably. My DVD player's all unlocked and stuff...

6. In general, rate Dolby 5.1 encoded discs from 1-5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent).
n/a

7. In general, rate DTS 5.1 encoded discs from 1-5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent).
n/a

8. Which do you think is superior - Dolby or DTS?
n/a

9. Do you think that surround sound systems are currently cheap, reasonable or expensive?
Surely depends on the quality...

10. In general, rate the audio quality of music through a portable device via headphones (MP3, mindisc etc) from 1-5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent).
That's far too vague to answer.

11. Which do you think is superior - music through home entertainment system (hi-fi, DVD player etc) or music through portable device (MP3, mindisc etc)?
Again too vague.

12. Rate the follwing idea from 1-5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent): A portable device that generates rhythmic vibrations in time with the music. It would be stored inside a rucksack. In other words, if you were to walk and listen to your MP3, you would essentially 'feel' the audio against your back or front (depending on how you wore your rucksack).
2, seems a tad OTT.

13. What would be a fair price for such a device: £40 or less, £40-£60, £60 or more
No idea

[Tony Marlin]

1. Do you know who "Dolby" are?

Yes.

2. Do you know who "DTS" are?

Yes.

3. Do you have a surround sound system at home (5.1, 6.1)?

Yes, 5.1.

4. Would you consider upgrading to a 5.1 or 6.1 surround sound system or upgrading to a better model?

No.

5. Do you have the ability to play DTS encoded discs?

Yes.

6. In general, rate Dolby 5.1 encoded discs from 1-5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent).

4

7. In general, rate DTS 5.1 encoded discs from 1-5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent).

4

8. Which do you think is superior - Dolby or DTS?

My surround sound speakers cheap and crappy, so there is no noticeable difference between Dolby and DTS. I'm led to believe DTS is better quality, but is supported by fewer players

9. Do you think that surround sound systems are currently cheap, reasonable or expensive?

All three. In general you get what you pay for. A cheap £50 system is going to sound far worse than a reasonable £200 System, and an expensive £1500 will sound even better.

10. In general, rate the audio quality of music through a portable device via headphones (MP3, mindisc etc) from 1-5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent).

This depends entirely on the quality of the equipment used.

11. Which do you think is superior - music through home entertainment system (hi-fi, DVD player etc) or music through portable device (MP3, mindisc etc)?

Again this depends on the quality of the equipment. Generally, any system with a separate amplifier (hi-fi separates) should sound better than a system with a built in amp (portable or personal hi-fi)

12. Rate the follwing idea from 1-5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent): A portable device that generates rhythmic vibrations in time with the music. It would be stored inside a rucksack. In other words, if you were to walk and listen to your MP3, you would essentially 'feel' the audio against your back or front (depending on how you wore your rucksack).

Music should be experienced through your ears, feeling it through your body may be a bit uncomfortable or unnatural. Although this idea could find a use in movies, to 'feel' the force of an explosion etc, or in computer games like a rumblepack.

13. What would be a fair price for such a device: £40 or less, £40-£60, £60 or more.

Depends on the quality of the experience, at a guess I'd say around £50 would be a fair price.

[Paulscoconutass]

1. Do you know who "Dolby" are? Yes

2. Do you know who "DTS" are? Yes

3. Do you have a surround sound system at home (5.1, 6.1)? Yes, 5.1

4. Would you consider upgrading to a 5.1 or 6.1 surround sound system or upgrading to a better model? Yes

5. Do you have the ability to play DTS encoded discs? Yes

6. In general, rate Dolby 5.1 encoded discs from 1-5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent). 3

7. In general, rate DTS 5.1 encoded discs from 1-5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent). 4.5

8. Which do you think is superior - Dolby or DTS? DTS

9. Do you think that surround sound systems are currently cheap, reasonable or expensive? Reasonable

10. In general, rate the audio quality of music through a portable device via headphones (MP3, mindisc etc) from 1-5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent). 4

11. Which do you think is superior - music through home entertainment system (hi-fi, DVD player etc) or music through portable device (MP3, mindisc etc)? Home

12. Rate the follwing idea from 1-5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent): A portable device that generates rhythmic vibrations in time with the music. It would be stored inside a rucksack. In other words, if you were to walk and listen to your MP3, you would essentially 'feel' the audio against your back or front (depending on how you wore your rucksack).
2 - Seems pretty pointless, listening with your stomach? You don't need to feel music to enjoy or appreciate it.

13. What would be a fair price for such a device: £40 or less, £40-£60, £60 or more
£50 max

[rufus13th]

Originally Posted by Neil

Can you please tell me what the purpose of this questionnaire is? Because if it is market research then this thread is getting closed right now.

It's for a report I'm submitting to one of my University classes - nothing to gain whatsoever apart from two credits (is that ok?).

Ahd yes - it's also a coincidence that I'm a nerd who's genuinely interested in the subject *sigh*.

Anyway - I'd like to express my sincere thanks to everyone who contributed. You have helped a poor student out who's only trying to get through his final year in one piece.

[MarkJDelaney]

1. Do you know who "Dolby" are?
Yes

2. Do you know who "DTS" are?
Yes

3. Do you have a surround sound system at home (5.1, 6.1)?
Yes, 5.1

4. Would you consider upgrading to a 5.1 or 6.1 surround sound system or upgrading to a better model?
Probably

5. Do you have the ability to play DTS encoded discs?
Yes, I think so.

6. In general, rate Dolby 5.1 encoded discs from 1-5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent).
5

7. In general, rate DTS 5.1 encoded discs from 1-5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent).
4

8. Which do you think is superior - Dolby or DTS?
Dolby

9. Do you think that surround sound systems are currently cheap, reasonable or expensive?
Reasonably priced. It varies.

10. In general, rate the audio quality of music through a portable device via headphones (MP3, mindisc etc) from 1-5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent).
4. My last two Sony Mp3 Network Walkmans have sounded perfect. Good enough for its uses and direct to my ears anyway.

11. Which do you think is superior - music through home entertainment system (hi-fi, DVD player etc) or music through portable device (MP3, mindisc etc)?
Home Entertainment System

12. Rate the follwing idea from 1-5 (1 = poor, 5 = excellent): A portable device that generates rhythmic vibrations in time with the music. It would be stored inside a rucksack. In other words, if you were to walk and listen to your MP3, you would essentially 'feel' the audio against your back or front (depending on how you wore your rucksack).
Fantastic idea. Would be interesting to 'feel' the results. We always feel music, but rarely feel bass in portable music.

13. What would be a fair price for such a device: £40 or less, £40-£60, £60 or more
It depends on the final outcome of the product, size, quality and usability.

All I know is you don't do heavy metal in dobly.