Can Dolby Pro Logic be decoded VIA a PC or MAC line in socket?

Question

Case in point, I would like to get some estimation of Surround Sound (Pro Logic is better than Stereo) out of my 5.1 speakers but they do not have a Pro Logic decoder. Is it possible to connect the stereo RCA cables to a 3.5mm adaptor, plug the adaptor into a PC/MAC then decode the pro logic signal out into the 5.1 speakers?

Answer 1

First it depends on what sort of speakers you have. Most sound cards don't amplify the signal too much so if you were to connect the speakers directly to the sound card the volume levels would be very low. Typically computer speakers have their own amplification.

Second, Dolby Pro Logic is not an encoding scheme like Dolby Digital. Dolby Pro Logic merely takes a source and matrixes it across 5.1 or 7.1 channels.

Your Mac or PC's sound card may have software that can do this or the Audio/Video program you are using might have that capability. It would be a software thing unless you have a sound card that has hardware support for it like the ASUS Xonar or some of the Creative Labs sound blasters.