Recommend me some specific scenes to test out Atmos height speakers?

[callahan09]

I've just got some Atmos height speakers and I'm looking for some specific scenes (timestamps preferable) to check out so I can see if I've got them set up right, and just to showcase what they can do. I tried googling for some of the best Atmos movies, but most of them I either don't have, or they don't give a specific scene reference so I'm not sure where to jump to in the movie to get a good example, OR I did try it and didn't really hear much height activity so I'm looking for alternatives (the example I did try was Blade Runner 2049, there's a scene early on in the rain that didn't sound all that "height effecty" to me, but a little, and a scene later that was recommend where they fly to the orphanage, which I didn't get any height activity from at all, though the scene did sound cool!). I've experienced some awesome sounding scenes, and Blade Runner 2049 in general sounds AMAZING, but it's mostly just nice deeps, atmospherics, and great usage of stereo imagine and the surround channels, I didn't hear much from the heights.

Bonus appreciation if you click my 4K collection on the side there and pick some discs that I've got in my collection for me to try out!

Thanks!

[witheygull]

Originally Posted by callahan09

I've just got some Atmos height speakers and I'm looking for some specific scenes (timestamps preferable) to check out so I can see if I've got them set up right, and just to showcase what they can do. I tried googling for some of the best Atmos movies, but most of them I either don't have, or they don't give a specific scene reference so I'm not sure where to jump to in the movie to get a good example, OR I did try it and didn't really hear much height activity so I'm looking for alternatives (the example I did try was Blade Runner 2049, there's a scene early on in the rain that didn't sound all that "height effecty" to me, but a little, and a scene later that was recommend where they fly to the orphanage, which I didn't get any height activity from at all, though the scene did sound cool!). I've experienced some awesome sounding scenes, and Blade Runner 2049 in general sounds AMAZING, but it's mostly just nice deeps, atmospherics, and great usage of stereo imagine and the surround channels, I didn't hear much from the heights.

Bonus appreciation if you click my 4K collection on the side there and pick some discs that I've got in my collection for me to try out!

Thanks!

Top Gun: Maverick gives you some good Atmos height effects in the action scenes. A specific spot to check is the launching of the Darkstar--at 8:28 you get a nice audio pan from the front to back speakers with an overhead sweep as the plane passes over Ed Harris.

They can sometimes be tough or expensive to track down, but retailer demo discs are frequently fairly impressive. Here's the Atmos one I have and enjoy:

[callahan09]

Originally Posted by witheygull

Top Gun: Maverick gives you some good Atmos height effects in the action scenes. A specific spot to check is the launching of the Darkstar--at 8:28 you get a nice audio pan from the front to back speakers with an overhead sweep as the plane passes over Ed Harris.

They can sometimes be tough or expensive to track down, but retailer demo discs are frequently fairly impressive. Here's the Atmos one I have and enjoy:

Great suggestions, thank you very much! Actually just got Top Gun Maverick in the mailbox 2 days ago so I need to pop that one, it should be a big hit on my new sound system.

I'll try to track down a demo disc as well.

[CompleteCount]

Ghostbusters (1984): (1.29:30) "Subcreatures - Gozer the Destructor, Volguus Zildrohar, the Traveller has come! Choose and perish!" The dialogue comes from the height speakers and really sounds like the voice is booming from above.

Blade Runner 2049: (2.16:51) "Hello, handsome - what a day, huh?. You look lonely. I can fix that...". Ana de Armas' voice from the holographic pop-up switches positions to match camera placement, and uses every space of the soundstage.

No Time to Die: (0.49:09) Ana de Armas again - when she and Bond infiltrate the ill-fated SPECTRE meeting, they are both on coms, with their dialogue piped through the height speakers to literally lift it above everything else and keep it all separate.

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974): (1.08.45) When Sally is brought into the house and tied to a chair, the Hitchhiker goes upstairs to get Grandpa. The scraping and bumping of furniture travels across the ceiling in completely convincing fashion.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol 2: (1.41:08) The famous "tape" sequence, which has been used in many demo-rooms to shift Atmos setups. Chris Pratt takes an off-screen flight around the soundstage, stopping off at various points to ask characters if they have any tape. It was designed to show off the format, and it really does.

Rambo: Last Blood: (1.21:02 - Extended Edtion) When the Mexican baddies infiltrate Rambo's lair, he springs the trap as Five-To-One by The Doors blasts out of the PA system to thrown them off-guard. The placement of the song follows the characters' location in the bunker.

Star Trek: The Motion Picture: (5:20) The V'ger cloud has its own electric-strings-based leitmotif, which the Atmos mix puts into the height speakers to disconcerting effect.

[CSM101]

American Psycho, his narration literally comes from the height channels

[CSM101]

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows.
THe movie is full of them but one of my favs:
Chapter 9: 53 min 8 seconds Raphael angrily walks through some hanging nunchucks top front right speaker clangs and makes his way to the left through some chains which rattle to the front top left height.

Edit: Just saw this was on your wishlist. You should get. Very great Atmos track

[CompleteCount]

Addendum: I just watched a recent purchase, and it has a bit which certainly fits this category.

The Exorcist (1973): (1.41:08) "Merrin!!!!"

It comes right from the height speakers, placing it overhead and REALLY loud, completely catching you off-guard, no matter how many times you've seen it.

I wrestled to get the resulting turtlehead back up afterwards.