IEC 62574:2020
(Main)Audio, video and multimedia systems - General channel assignment of multichannel audio
Audio, video and multimedia systems - General channel assignment of multichannel audio
IEC 62574:2020 specifies the general channel assignment and the metadata for multichannel audio format. This document, with its channel mapping and labelling content, provides the unified usage of channel assignments for source devices, digital audio interfaces and sink devices. The general channel assignment excludes the specification of the exact position of each loudspeaker. The metadata has the exact position of each loudspeaker; however, since the position of the loudspeaker is different in various surround sound formats, the position information of the metadata is not standardized. It is aimed at consumer applications; it is not targeted at theatrical environments. Up to 65 labels for loudspeaker positions and 15 labels for loudspeakers on the display are specified, which can be used for all current multichannel audio formats. The channel assignment concept is room centric and listener centric. This general channel assignment specifies the position of the loudspeaker as seen from the listener.
IEC 62574:2020 cancels and replaces the first edition published in 2011. This edition constitutes a technical revision.
This edition includes the following significant technical changes with respect to the previous edition:
a) model of channel assignment spaces is changed;
b) definition of channel maps and labels is changed;
c) metadata is newly specified;
d) channel maps and labels from the first edition are included in Annex A.
Systèmes audio, vidéo et multimédia - Affectation générale des voies des systèmes audio à voies multiples
L'IEC 62574:2020 spécifie l'affectation générale des voies et des métadonnées pour le format audio à voies multiples. Le présent document, avec son contenu de mapping et d'étiquetage des voies, uniformise la pratique de l'affectation des voies pour les dispositifs sources, les interfaces audionumériques et les dispositifs récepteurs. L'affectation générale des voies exclut la spécification de la position exacte de chaque haut-parleur. Les métadonnées contiennent la position exacte de chaque haut-parleur; leur information de position n'est toutefois pas normalisée, car la position du haut-parleur est différente dans les divers formats d'ambiophonie. Il est destiné aux applications grand public et non aux salles de spectacle. Jusqu'à 65 étiquettes de positions de haut-parleurs et 15 étiquettes pour les haut-parleurs sur l'affichage sont spécifiées, lesquelles peuvent être utilisées pour tous les formats audio à voies multiples actuels. Le concept d'affectation des voies est centré sur la pièce et centré sur l'auditeur. Cette affectation générale des voies spécifie la position des haut-parleurs telle qu'elle est perçue par l'auditeur.
L'IEC 62574:2020 annule et remplace la première édition parue en 2011. Cette édition constitue une révision technique.
Cette édition inclut les modifications techniques majeures suivantes par rapport à l'édition précédente:
a) le modèle spatial d'affectation des voies est modifié;
b) la définition des mappings ou affectations des voies et leurs étiquettes est modifiée;
c) les métadonnées sont nouvellement spécifiées;
d) les mappings ou affectations des voies et leurs étiquettes de la première édition sont inclus dans l'Annexe A.
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IEC 62574 ®
Edition 2.0 2020-01
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INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
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Audio, video and multimedia systems – General channel assignment
of multichannel audio
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International Standards for all electrical, electronic and related technologies.
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IEC 62574 ®
Edition 2.0 2020-01
REDLINE VERSION
INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
colour
inside
Audio, video and multimedia systems – General channel assignment
of multichannel audio
INTERNATIONAL
ELECTROTECHNICAL
COMMISSION
ICS 33.160.30 ISBN 978-2-8322-7839-0
– 2 – IEC 62574:2020 RLV © IEC 2020
CONTENTS
FOREWORD . 4
INTRODUCTION . 2
1 Scope . 7
2 Normative reference . 7
3 Terms and definitions . 7
4 General channel assignment . 16
4.1 General . 16
4.2 Model . 16
4.3 Channel maps and labels . 19
5 Metadata . 21
5.1 General . 21
5.2 Metadata list . 22
5.3 Definition of loudspeaker position . 23
Annex A (normative) Channel maps and labels in edition 1 . 25
A.1 General . 25
A.2 Terms and definitions. 25
A.3 General channel assignment . 29
A.3.1 General . 29
A.3.2 The model . 29
A.4 Channel maps and labels . 30
Annex B (informative) Comparison table . 32
B.1 General . 32
B.2 Comparison table for each edition of IEC 62574 . 32
B.3 Comparison table for numbering of the channel . 33
B.4 Comparison table for surround sound amplifier in consumer market . 34
B.5 Comparison table between this document and ITU-R BS2051-1 . 38
B.6 Comparison table between this document and ITU-R BS2094-1 . 40
B.7 Comparison table between this document and ISO/IEC 23001-8 . 46
Bibliography . 49
Figure 1 – Model of channel spaces . 17
Figure 2 – Overhead layer . 17
Figure 3 – High layer . 18
Figure 4 – Middle layer . 18
Figure 5 – Bottom layer. 19
Figure 6 – Channel assignment on the display . 19
Figure 7 – Scope of metadata . 22
Figure 8 – Loudspeaker location . 23
Figure A.1 – Model of channel spaces . 29
Figure A.2 – Top layer . 29
Figure A.3 – Middle layer . 30
Figure A.4 – Bottom layer . 30
Table 1 – General channel assignment . 20
Table 2 – Metadata . 23
Table 3 – Definition of loudspeaker angle . 24
Table A.1 – General channel assignment table in IEC 62574:2011 . 31
Table B.1 – Comparison table for each edition of IEC 62574 . 32
Table B.2 – Comparison table for numbering of the channel . 33
Table B.3 – Comparison table for surround sound amplifier in consumer market (1 of 3) . 34
Table B.4 – Comparison table between this document and ITU-R BS2051-1 (1 of 2) . 38
Table B.5 – Comparison table between this document and ITU-R BS2094-1 (1 of 6) . 40
Table B.6 – Comparison table between this document and ISO/IEC 23001-8 (1 of 3) . 46
– 4 – IEC 62574:2020 RLV © IEC 2020
INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION
____________
AUDIO, VIDEO AND MULTIMEDIA SYSTEMS –
GENERAL CHANNEL ASSIGNMENT OF MULTICHANNEL AUDIO
FOREWORD
1) The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is a worldwide organization for standardization comprising all
national electrotechnical committees (IEC National Committees). The object of IEC is to promote international co-
operation on all questions concerning standardization in the electrical and electronic fields. To this end and in
addition to other activities, IEC publishes International Standards, Technical Specifications, Technical Reports,
Publicly Available Specifications (PAS) and Guides (hereafter referred to as “IEC Publication(s)”). Their preparation
is entrusted to technical committees; any IEC National Committee interested in the subject dealt with may
participate in this preparatory work. International, governmental and non-governmental organizations liaising with
the IEC also participate in this preparation. IEC collaborates closely with the International Organization for
Standardization (ISO) in accordance with conditions determined by agreement between the two organizations.
2) The formal decisions or agreements of IEC on technical matters express, as nearly as possible, an international
consensus of opinion on the relevant subjects since each technical committee has representation from all interested
IEC National Committees.
3) IEC Publications have the form of recommendations for international use and are accepted by IEC National
Committees in that sense. While all reasonable efforts are made to ensure that the technical content of IEC
Publications is accurate, IEC cannot be held responsible for the way in which they are used or for any
misinterpretation by any end user.
4) In order to promote international uniformity, IEC National Committees undertake to apply IEC Publications
transparently to the maximum extent possible in their national and regional publications. Any divergence between
any IEC Publication and the corresponding national or regional publication shall be clearly indicated in the latter.
5) IEC itself does not provide any attestation of conformity. Independent certification bodies provide conformity
assessment services and, in some areas, access to IEC marks of conformity. IEC is not responsible for any services
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This redline version of the official IEC Standard allows the user to identify the changes
made to the previous edition. A vertical bar appears in the margin wherever a change has
been made. Additions are in green text, deletions are in strikethrough red text.
International Standard IEC 62574 has been prepared by technical area 20 of IEC technical
committee 100: Audio, video and multimedia systems and equipment.
This second edition cancels and replaces the first edition published in 2011. This edition
constitutes a technical revision.
This edition includes the following significant technical changes with respect to the previous
edition:
a) model of channel assignment spaces is changed;
b) definition of channel maps and labels is changed;
c) metadata is newly specified;
d) channel maps and labels from the first edition are included in Annex A.
The text of this International Standard is based on the following documents:
CDV Report on voting
100/3198/CDV 100/3246/RVC
Full information on the voting for the approval of this International Standard can be found in the
report on voting indicated in the above table.
This document has been drafted in accordance with the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2.
The committee has decided that the contents of this document will remain unchanged until the
stability date indicated on the IEC website under "http://webstore.iec.ch" in the data related to
the specific document. At this date, the document will be
• reconfirmed,
• withdrawn,
• replaced by a revised edition, or
• amended.
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IEC 62574 ®
Edition 2.0 2020-01
INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
NORME
INTERNATIONALE
Audio, video and multimedia systems – General channel assignment
of multichannel audio
Systèmes audio, vidéo et multimédia – Affectation générale des voies
des systèmes audio à voies multiples
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, no part of this publication may be reproduced or utilized in any form
or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and microfilm, without permission in writing from
either IEC or IEC's member National Committee in the country of the requester. If you have any questions about IEC
copyright or have an enquiry about obtaining additional rights to this publication, please contact the address below or
your local IEC member National Committee for further information.
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les coordonnées ci-après ou contactez le Comité national de l'IEC de votre pays de résidence.
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About the IEC
The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is the leading global organization that prepares and publishes
International Standards for all electrical, electronic and related technologies.
About IEC publications
The technical content of IEC publications is kept under constant review by the IEC. Please make sure that you have the
latest edition, a corrigendum or an amendment might have been published.
IEC publications search - webstore.iec.ch/advsearchform Electropedia - www.electropedia.org
The advanced search enables to find IEC publications by a The world's leading online dictionary on electrotechnology,
variety of criteria (reference number, text, technical containing more than 22 000 terminological entries in English
committee,…). It also gives information on projects, replaced and French, with equivalent terms in 16 additional languages.
and withdrawn publications. Also known as the International Electrotechnical Vocabulary
(IEV) online.
IEC Just Published - webstore.iec.ch/justpublished
Stay up to date on all new IEC publications. Just Published IEC Glossary - std.iec.ch/glossary
details all new publications released. Available online and 67 000 electrotechnical terminology entries in English and
once a month by email. French extracted from the Terms and Definitions clause of
IEC publications issued since 2002. Some entries have been
IEC Customer Service Centre - webstore.iec.ch/csc collected from earlier publications of IEC TC 37, 77, 86 and
If you wish to give us your feedback on this publication or CISPR.
need further assistance, please contact the Customer Service
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IEC 62574 ®
Edition 2.0 2020-01
INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
NORME
INTERNATIONALE
Audio, video and multimedia systems – General channel assignment
of multichannel audio
Systèmes audio, vidéo et multimédia – Affectation générale des voies
des systèmes audio à voies multiples
INTERNATIONAL
ELECTROTECHNICAL
COMMISSION
COMMISSION
ELECTROTECHNIQUE
INTERNATIONALE
ICS 33.160.30 ISBN 978-2-8322-7762-1
– 2 – IEC 62574:2020 © IEC 2020
CONTENTS
FOREWORD . 4
INTRODUCTION . 6
1 Scope . 7
2 Normative reference . 7
3 Terms and definitions . 7
4 General channel assignment . 16
4.1 General . 16
4.2 Model . 16
4.3 Channel maps and labels . 19
5 Metadata . 21
5.1 General . 21
5.2 Metadata list . 22
5.3 Definition of loudspeaker position . 23
Annex A (normative) Channel maps and labels in edition 1 . 25
A.1 General . 25
A.2 Terms and definitions. 25
A.3 General channel assignment . 29
A.3.1 General . 29
A.3.2 The model . 29
A.4 Channel maps and labels . 30
Annex B (informative) Comparison table . 32
B.1 General . 32
B.2 Comparison table for each edition of IEC 62574 . 32
B.3 Comparison table for numbering of the channel . 33
B.4 Comparison table for surround sound amplifier in consumer market . 34
B.5 Comparison table between this document and ITU-R BS2051-1 . 38
B.6 Comparison table between this document and ITU-R BS2094-1 . 40
B.7 Comparison table between this document and ISO/IEC 23001-8 . 46
Bibliography . 49
Figure 1 – Model of channel spaces . 17
Figure 2 – Overhead layer . 17
Figure 3 – High layer . 18
Figure 4 – Middle layer . 18
Figure 5 – Bottom layer. 19
Figure 6 – Channel assignment on the display . 19
Figure 7 – Scope of metadata . 22
Figure 8 – Loudspeaker location . 23
Figure A.1 – Model of channel spaces . 29
Figure A.2 – Top layer . 29
Figure A.3 – Middle layer . 30
Figure A.4 – Bottom layer . 30
Table 1 – General channel assignment . 20
Table 2 – Metadata . 23
Table 3 – Definition of loudspeaker angle . 24
Table A.1 – General channel assignment table in IEC 62574:2011 . 31
Table B.1 – Comparison table for each edition of IEC 62574 . 32
Table B.2 – Comparison table for numbering of the channel . 33
Table B.3 – Comparison table for surround sound amplifier in consumer market (1 of 3) . 34
Table B.4 – Comparison table between this document and ITU-R BS2051-1 (1 of 2) . 38
Table B.5 – Comparison table between this document and ITU-R BS2094-1 (1 of 6) . 40
Table B.6 – Comparison table between this document and ISO/IEC 23001-8 (1 of 3) . 46
– 4 – IEC 62574:2020 © IEC 2020
INTERNATIONAL ELECTROTECHNICAL COMMISSION
____________
AUDIO, VIDEO AND MULTIMEDIA SYSTEMS –
GENERAL CHANNEL ASSIGNMENT OF MULTICHANNEL AUDIO
FOREWORD
1) The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is a worldwide organization for standardization comprising all
national electrotechnical committees (IEC National Committees). The object of IEC is to promote international co-
operation on all questions concerning standardization in the electrical and electronic fields. To this end and in
addition to other activities, IEC publishes International Standards, Technical Specifications, Technical Reports,
Publicly Available Specifications (PAS) and Guides (hereafter referred to as “IEC Publication(s)”). Their preparation
is entrusted to technical committees; any IEC National Committee interested in the subject dealt with may
participate in this preparatory work. International, governmental and non-governmental organizations liaising with
the IEC also participate in this preparation. IEC collaborates closely with the International Organization for
Standardization (ISO) in accordance with conditions determined by agreement between the two organizations.
2) The formal decisions or agreements of IEC on technical matters express, as nearly as possible, an international
consensus of opinion on the relevant subjects since each technical committee has representation from all interested
IEC National Committees.
3) IEC Publications have the form of recommendations for international use and are accepted by IEC National
Committees in that sense. While all reasonable efforts are made to ensure that the technical content of IEC
Publications is accurate, IEC cannot be held responsible for the way in which they are used or for any
misinterpretation by any end user.
4) In order to promote international uniformity, IEC National Committees undertake to apply IEC Publications
transparently to the maximum extent possible in their national and regional publications. Any divergence between
any IEC Publication and the corresponding national or regional publication shall be clearly indicated in the latter.
5) IEC itself does not provide any attestation of conformity. Independent certification bodies provide conformity
assessment services and, in some areas, access to IEC marks of conformity. IEC is not responsible for any services
carried out by independent certification bodies.
6) All
...
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