SoftEncode is an AC-3 encoder and decoder created and marketed by Sonic Foundry based on the official Dolby libraries, with a pleasing and featureful interface.

AC-3 (also known as Dolby Digital) is a compression format created by Dolby Laboratories originally to provide digital sound in cinemas, with the encoded track stored optically in 35mm film prints.

The format had its big breakthrough when it was selected as a mandatory audio format (next to LPCM) in the DVD standard. It single-handedly brought surround sound to the masses - LPCM could only be stored in DVDs in stereo mode and DTS, another multichannel audio format, was not mandatory so only high-end DVD players supported it.

The compression performance is similar to MP2: AC-3 achieves transparency around 192kbps for stereo streams and 448kbps for 5.1 streams. Streams are always constant bitrate - there is no VBR option.

The version hosted here is a demonstration. It allows full access to the interface, but disables AC-3 encoding. SoftEncode was very expensive - USD 995 for the multichannel version and 495 for the stereo one, in late nineties dollars - because the format was never meant to be encoded by end users, but by DVD authoring facilities.

The SoftEncode web page can still be seen at the Internet Archive, and you can see Dolby's page about AC-3 at their web site.


Date: 1998-01-22
Version: 1.0
Interface: Graphical
Platform: Win32
Download: softendemv10x86.exe - 675kB