IMAX Sound :- Sonics DDP is it Lossless?

[CH108]

Hi not sure if this the right place?

I was wondering if the IMAX sound format is lossless or is it simply another impressive form of lossy in the vein of DTS, DD and SDDS?

[4Dblu]

i'm a IMAX projectionist, no it's just a ALL digital 6 discrete channels. no theater has lossless sound it's either in DTS which most movies are or THX. and i would pick IMAX sound over THX cause IMAX may hav a 6.4 system they r percisely tuned. where as THX has like 11.2 system their just equalized. and then IMAX has a more powerful audio setup. IMAX has 12,000 watts compared to THX 8000 watts. so being in a IMAX theater is like being at a rock concert.

[RiseDarthVader]

What really? Cinemas dont have lossless audio? But BDs have it. I work at a cinema as a usher and I though you could always hear more detail with cinema sound systems.

[Aerodude73]

I just wish the Local one in my area (Prov., RI) would get more IMAX & New Release movies that are listed when a new movie comes out ("In Theatres AND Imax on_____"). For the new Keanu Reeves flick, "The Day The Earth Stood Still" remake, I know that's being released in both formats, and just HOPE it is in the IMAX near my area! Love the HUGE Screens, the SOUND SYSTEM Blows me away (remember seeing APOLLO 13 in IMAX---talk about shaking the walls during the Launch scenes, good lord...)

[4Dblu]

yes, "the day the earth stood still" will b in IMAX....

[Beta Man]

I find the IMAX theaters to be loud, but that's about it..... the dialogue is drowned out because there is too much Bass in the the voices etc.....

Just my "recent" experience with it....... it takes more than loud noises to impress me.

[cinema725]

Originally Posted by Beta Man

I find the IMAX theaters to be loud, but that's about it..... the dialogue is drowned out because there is too much Bass in the the voices etc.....

Just my "recent" experience with it....... it takes more than loud noises to impress me.

Wow, that sucks, all the imax experiences I've had have been amazing, especially the dark knight!!

[CH108]

Okay thanks I had a feeling it wasn't, the way it sounds is down the extremely powerful equipment then.

During the Dark Knight I felt every punch and kick from Batman.

[4Dblu]

Originally Posted by Beta Man

I find the IMAX theaters to be loud, but that's about it..... the dialogue is drowned out because there is too much Bass in the the voices etc.....

Just my "recent" experience with it....... it takes more than loud noises to impress me.

their system needs to b tuned again. all the IMAX theaters i've been to sound different. a lot of times whoever the projectionist is they make changes to the EQ which is either to impress friends or their personal reasonon the way they like it. two places i been to sounded really bad i mean like is this even IMAX. it really depends on whos running the theater. in regular theaters u can't make the same adjustments as IMAX so they r pretty much standard.

[Beta Man]

My experience recently came from the IMAX in Vegas (in the Luxor or MGM Grand???? ) either way, it was the "Monsters of the Deep" and the narration and dialogue during the cheesy "Recreation" parts that sounded so boomy, it was hard to take..........

I haven't seen a "movie-movie" in a theater in a long time, so maybe I'll try to hit an IMAX next time something good comes along.

[JadedRaverLA]

Originally Posted by CH108

Hi not sure if this the right place?

I was wondering if the IMAX sound format is lossless or is it simply another impressive form of lossy in the vein of DTS, DD and SDDS?

IMAX Digital (DDP and DTAC, etc) is lossless (no lossy compression scheme applied) and discrete (every channel is recorded as its own independant stream. This is essentially the same as in lossless formats on Blu-ray.

Originally Posted by RiseDarthVader

What really? Cinemas dont have lossless audio? But BDs have it. I work at a cinema as a usher and I though you could always hear more detail with cinema sound systems.

You probably can hear more detail in the theatre as they often have far better speakers and equipment than most people's home theatre setups. Lossless isn't everything if the rest of the equipment isn't of similar quality. Still, the theatrical tracks are actually MORE compressed than even the lossy tracks using the same format we get on Blu-ray.

Originally Posted by 4Dblu

i'm a IMAX projectionist, no it's just a ALL digital 6 discrete channels. no theater has lossless sound it's either in DTS which most movies are or THX. and i would pick IMAX sound over THX cause IMAX may hav a 6.4 system they r percisely tuned. where as THX has like 11.2 system their just equalized. and then IMAX has a more powerful audio setup. IMAX has 12,000 watts compared to THX 8000 watts. so being in a IMAX theater is like being at a rock concert.

Huh? IMAX uses a lossless digital sound format. THX (for cinema) is just a set of specifications designed to create a better theatrical presentation. It isn't a sound format. The sound format used in "THX certified cinemas" is still lossy Dolby Digital, DTS, or SDDS. It just meets the requirements for speaker placement, sound isolation, etc. of the THX program.

Also, in digital cinema, DCI has included lossless PCM as a supported sound format. So, its possible to have lossless audio in digital cinemas, though for now, they almost always use DD, DTS, or SDDS soundtracks depending on how the theatre is equipped. But, in the future, if its something people really want, they can switch relatively easily.

[BD4Life]

Originally Posted by JadedRaverLA

IMAX Digital (DDP and DTAC, etc) is lossless (no lossy compression scheme applied) and discrete (every channel is recorded as its own independant stream. This is essentially the same as in lossless formats on Blu-ray.



You probably can hear more detail in the theatre as they often have far better speakers and equipment than most people's home theatre setups. Lossless isn't everything if the rest of the equipment isn't of similar quality. Still, the theatrical tracks are actually MORE compressed than even the lossy tracks using the same format we get on Blu-ray.



Huh? IMAX uses a lossless digital sound format. THX (for cinema) is just a set of specifications designed to create a better theatrical presentation. It isn't a sound format. The sound format used in "THX certified cinemas" is still lossy Dolby Digital, DTS, or SDDS. It just meets the requirements for speaker placement, sound isolation, etc. of the THX program.

Also, in digital cinema, DCI has included lossless PCM as a supported sound format. So, its possible to have lossless audio in digital cinemas, though for now, they almost always use DD, DTS, or SDDS soundtracks depending on how the theatre is equipped. But, in the future, if its something people really want, they can switch relatively easily.

Thanks for typing all this as it is ALL true! IMAX is lossless, 12,000 watts on the B-Chain, and the audio is stored on Encrypted Hard Drives.

[BD4Life]

Originally Posted by JadedRaverLA

IMAX Digital (DDP and DTAC, etc) is lossless (no lossy compression scheme applied) and discrete (every channel is recorded as its own independant stream. This is essentially the same as in lossless formats on Blu-ray.



You probably can hear more detail in the theatre as they often have far better speakers and equipment than most people's home theatre setups. Lossless isn't everything if the rest of the equipment isn't of similar quality. Still, the theatrical tracks are actually MORE compressed than even the lossy tracks using the same format we get on Blu-ray.



Huh? IMAX uses a lossless digital sound format. THX (for cinema) is just a set of specifications designed to create a better theatrical presentation. It isn't a sound format. The sound format used in "THX certified cinemas" is still lossy Dolby Digital, DTS, or SDDS. It just meets the requirements for speaker placement, sound isolation, etc. of the THX program.

Also, in digital cinema, DCI has included lossless PCM as a supported sound format. So, its possible to have lossless audio in digital cinemas, though for now, they almost always use DD, DTS, or SDDS soundtracks depending on how the theatre is equipped. But, in the future, if its something people really want, they can switch relatively easily.

When I saw Wall*E in Digital Cinema, it was in Lossless audio. Wondering how I could tell? You could hear the clarity experienced with Blu Ray at home in Lossless as well, plus I saw Wall*E the very next 3 days in a row in Lossy Audio on 35MM. You could hear the difference.

[Midnightsailor]

Originally Posted by cinema725

Wow, that sucks, all the imax experiences I've had have been amazing, especially the dark knight!!

Me too! The sound is so incredible.

[RiseDarthVader]

It probably sounds better at my cinema because we are currently using Digital Cinema. Infact we are the cinema complex that is testing it out in Australia. Right now the all except one of the screens (which is 25 meters across) are switching back the 35mm print projectors because they stuffed up on the original installation of the digital projectors. I'm suspecting instead of having many brands of projectors and several 2k and 4k projectors they are just gonna make em all sony 4k projectors. I notice the sound during the digital presentations is much better. 35mm gives off this grainy sort of sound and you dont seem to hear as much detail because there seems to be constant static.

[CH108]

Ok so IMAX DTC or Sonics DDP is lossless another reason why the Dark Knight sounded so good.

This is what I have heard, do correct me if I am wrong:-

Dolby Digital tracks run at a lower bitrate then DVD at 320kb\s and are stored on the actual film reels themselves.

DTS tracks come on multiple CD's and have to be syncronised with the projector.
The bitrate is a little bit over 1 mb\s.

SDDS I'm not sure about.

Sonics DDP or other types of IMAX sound is stored on hard drives could well be uncompressed PCM.

Digital Cinema 2K\4K also stores the sound on hard drives in uncompressed PCM.

[4Dblu]

ur, right it is Lossy,
i haven't showed a movie their in a couple years i do the maintance on the projector. don't really fiddle with the sound much only to listen to misic while i work.