Aud-X is the name of a completely new surround sound encoder and decoder created by group of audio enthusiasts and professionals joined with love to the Cinema.

For a long time people converted DVDs to Divx/Xvid with mp3 stereo sound. We have all felt that part of the orginal masterpiece was gone forever (the surround sound).

The main Aud-X project task was to bring to people an easy technology for encoding Divx/Xvid movies with 5.1 sound the same way they used to do it with the simple mp3 stereo encoders. Since Aud-X 5.1 sounds great at 128 kbps and is compatible with AVI – you can reencode DVDs the same way you are used to, but with full surround sound.

In fact Aud-X 5.1 is a whole set of software tools compatible with Windows system aiming at 5.1 compression for movies and music. It allows for very effective and easy encoding of surround (5.1) sound that is compatible with the AVI file container. In addition, the decoder is based on DirectShow interface, thus may be used in any Windows system media player supporting DirectShow filters.

The great feature is backwards mp3 compatibility for devices not supporting Aud-X format and real-time AC3 transcoding within the DirectShow filter for external home theatre systems.

Here are some key features of "aud x Surround Codec":

· Dolby Digital compatibility. Designed to work with stand alone home movie theater amplifiers (AC3 in/out compatibility)
· Full scalability. Aud-X track can be played on any speaker and sound card set-up. You can use stereo speakers (by switching the DirectShow decoder to stereo mode), use your PC 5.1 speakers set, or hook your PC to the home movie theater. If one day you will upgrade your sound system – it will cost just to change the decoder setting to enjoy surround sound,
· Mp3 backwards compatibility for older software and hardware. On machines without Aud-X decoder installed, users will still be able to enjoy stereo or mono mp3 sound (depending on the encoded Aud-X quality option),
· AVI compatible. This function makes Aud-X perfect companion for Divx/Xvid encoded movies. It must be emphasized that Aud-X works good at 128 kbps (traditional mp3 bitrate for movie encoding),
· Avi, Ogg, Matroska, Mpeg containers compatibility,
· Complete solution. Aud-X comes with a complete set of tools for movie encoding and playback. We also support users with „How to" guides at www.aud-x.com
· Wide range of encoding bitrates. Aud-X can create streams ranging from 80 to 192 kbits. You can choose preferred quality accordingly to your requirements
· 80 kbps - world record breaking compression bitrate for 5.1 sound. Such a low surround sound bitrate allows for successful multichanel Internet audio streaming,
· Easy to use interface. Designed for non experienced PC users not, only multimedia professionals and software freaks,
· Web site support. FAQ's and HOW_TO's at www.aud-x.com
· High sound quality. Tests show that Aud-X outperforms other multichannel encoding technologies at comparable bitrates,
· Built-in Pseudo Surround module. You can choose to listen to your old mp3 stereo records with Aud-X DirectShow decoder. Stereo sound will be converted on the fly to 5.1 format with sophisticated algorithm that adds new spatial feeling to your tunes / movies.

What's New in This Release: [ read full changelog ]

· [1.23] - Memory leakage problems of the Virtual Surround (VS) module fixed
· [1.23] - AC3 5.1 decoding and conversion to the VS stereo problems fixed
· [1.23] - Code optimizations of the VS module
· [1.23] - DolbyProLogicII decoder module separation filter quality adjustments
· [1.23] - Code optimizations of the PseudoSurround module