AC3 filter...to pass thru or no pass thru

[rwc]

I've got a question,

WHen I use AC3 and I have it use the S/PDIF pass thru, the "surround" sounds really good, but the center channel is hardly audible.

When I uncheck "use SPDIF pass thru", the center channel sounds great, but doesn't feel as "open".

How come? Which way is better? Am I mixing up my channels? (Boosting the center and loosing the surround portion?)

thanks,

rwc

[up2ng]

Let your A/V receiver do the hard work of decoding and just raise the center channel manually.
To decode a compressed audio stream and re-compress it is going to use cpu cycles and mess with the sound (it will sound worse because it is re-encoded)

[Taddeusz]

Yea, ac3 pass-through is definitely better. Is this a surround-sound receiver your hooking to? If so, do the tone test on your speakers and make sure the relative loudness of the tone is the same on all speakers from your listening position. It's possible the loudness of the center channel is too low.