Dolby Atmos, Auro, and 3D audio thread

[spaceape]

One Dolby tech to rule them all!





No seriously. Good work Dolby, although having a dozen of speaker hanging from the ceiling and sides might get a little cramped for the average consumer but for the movie theater it sound like a great way of getting some more customers.

Having direct sound intentionally coming from the surround speaker do sound a bit counterproductive though.. At least in my opinion.

[ZoetMB]

Originally Posted by BozQ

That said, I've been reading through a lot about this format and it seems like most films use 7.1 as a base surround bed before enhancing it for Dolby Atmos. My question is, has there been a film where 9.1 is used as a base?

No, because there is no standard 9.1 theatrical format. And actually, most films use 5.1. I was going to say that 90% of the 7.1 films are animated films, but that's not actually true anymore.

Here's a list of 7.1 films from the last two years:
2013:
Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters (August 16, 2013)
The Wolverine (July 26, 2013)
Pacific Rim (July 12, 2013)
The Lone Ranger (July 3, 2013)
Monsters University (June 21, 2013)
Man of Steel (June 14, 2013)
Epic (May 24, 2013)
Star Trek into Darkness (May 17, 2013)
Iron Man 3 (May 3, 2013)
Oblivion (April 19, 2013)
Commando (April 12, 2013)
Jurassic Park 3D (April 5, 2013)
Chashme Baddoor (April 5, 2013)
Trance (April 5, 2013)
Himmatwala (March 29, 2013)
G.I. Joe: Retaliation (March 28, 2013)
The Croods (March 22, 2013)
Aatma (March 22, 2013)
Oz the Great and Powerful (March 8, 2013)
Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster Returns (March 8, 2013)
The Attacks of 26/11 (March 1, 2013)
Murder 3 (February 15, 2013)
A Good Day to Die Hard (February 14, 2013)
ABCD—Any Body Can Dance (February 8, 2013)
David (February 1, 2013)
Akaash Vani (January 26, 2013)
Race 2 (January 25, 2013)
Monsters, Inc. 3D (January 18, 2013)
Inkaar (January 18, 2013)

2012:
Les Misérables (December 25, 2012)
The Last Tycoon (December 22, 2012)
Jack Reacher (December 21, 2012)
Dabangg 2 (December 21, 2012)
The Guillotines (December 20, 2012)
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (December 14, 2012)
Khiladi 786 (December 7, 2012)
Rise of the Guardians (November 21, 2012)
Life of Pi (November 21, 2012)
Lincoln (November 16, 2012)
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part 2 (November 16, 2012)
Son of Sardaar (November 13, 2012)
Ah Boys to Men (November 8, 2012)
Wreck-It Ralph (November 2, 2012)
Chasing Mavericks (October 26, 2012)
Chakravyuh (October 24, 2012)
Cold War (October 16, 2012)
Bhoot Returns (October 10, 2012)
Frankenweenie (October 5, 2012)
OMG: Oh My God! (September 28, 2012)
Pat Metheny: The Orchestrion Project (September 26, 2012)
Finding Nemo 3D (September 14, 2012)
Jeena Hai Toh Thok Daal (September 14, 2012)
The Bourne Legacy (August 10, 2012)
Gangs of Wasseypur 2 (August 8, 2012)
Kyaa Super Kool Hain Hum (August 2, 2012)
Chashme Buddoor (July 27, 2012)
Ice Age: Continental Drift (July 13, 2012)
Bol Bachchan (July 6, 2012)
Gangs of Wasseypur (June 29, 2012)
Maximum (June 29, 2012)
Teri Meri Kahaani (June 22, 2012)
Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter (June 22, 2012)
Brave (June 22, 2012)
Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted (June 8, 2012)
Prometheus (June 8, 2012)
Snow White and the Huntsman (June 1, 2012)
Rowdy Rathore (June 1, 2012)
Department (May 18, 2012)
Dangerous Ishhq (May 11, 2012)
Jannat 2 (May 4, 2012)
Marvel's The Avengers (May 4, 2012)
Tezz (April 27, 2012)
Housefull 2: The Dirty Dozen (April 5, 2012)
Agent Vinod (March 23, 2012)
The Hunger Games (March 23, 2012)
Nightfall (March 15, 2012)
Kahaani (March 9, 2012)
John Carter (March 9, 2012)
Joe Satriani: Satchurated (March 1, 2012)
The Chemical Brothers: Don't Think (January 26, 2012)
Underworld: Awakening (January 20, 2012)
The Viral Factor (January 19, 2012)
Beauty and the Beast 3D (January 13, 2012)

[BozQ]

Just watched Thor: The Dark World in Dolby Atmos. The sixth movie I've watched in Dolby Atmos this year.

The six movies I've watched were
1. Iron Man 3
2. Star Trek Into Darkness
3. Pacific Rim
4. Elysium
5. Gravity (in 3D)
6. Thor The Dark World (3D)

Thor had its moments. But not quite as extensive as Gravity. I think you won't be missing much watching this in 7.1.

I'm watching Ender's Game next week in Dolby Atmos.

[HDTV1080P]

QUOTE

"Warner Bros. De Lane Lea has installed Dolby Atmos in its largest mixing stage, becoming the first central London facility to offer the technology." - See more at: http://www.audiomedia.com/news/0001/....Ob3z0sFW.dpuf

[HDTV1080P]

QUOTES

“A change to the Blu-ray spec wasn’t needed to accommodate Atmos soundtracks, which consist of metadata added into the substreams of a Dolby TrueHD soundtrack. TrueHD is already approved for Blu-ray use.”

“Atmos soundtracks played through home theaters that lack Atmos decoding will deliver enhanced sound. That’s because Atmos soundtracks are mixed specifically for cinemas with full-range surround speakers, enabling mixing engineers to bring more sound objects into a home theater room, said Brett Crockett, sound technology research senior director.”

http://www.twice.com/news/audio/dolby-stepping-support-atmos-rollout/49857

[BLMN]

Originally Posted by HDTV1080P

"Atmos soundtracks played through home theaters that lack Atmos decoding will deliver enhanced sound. That’s because Atmos soundtracks are mixed specifically for cinemas with full-range surround speakers, enabling mixing engineers to bring more sound objects into a home theater room, said Brett Crockett, sound technology research senior director.”

This is something at least. I invested $1.000 on my HTiaB back in 2011. Since my model is not upgradable I was not feeling like replacing pretty much everything only 3 years latter.

[Auditor55]

5 Reasons Dolby Atmos is DOA


http://www.audioholics.com/audio-tec...y-atmos-is-doa

[PeterTHX]

Originally Posted by Auditor55

5 Reasons Dolby Atmos is DOA


http://www.audioholics.com/audio-tec...y-atmos-is-doa

I read the entire stupid article in his voice:





They said similar things about Dolby Digital. Now it's the defacto standard of just how many formats now?

[Blu-Dog]

Originally Posted by PeterTHX

They said similar things about Dolby Digital. Now it's the defacto standard of just how many formats now?

That was quite a while ago. Do you think Atmos is on the same timeline?


I got my first Dolby Digital receiver, and a DVD player with Dolby, in 1996. No one knew anything about it until about six years later.


The real problem, for me, is that my living room and family room both have vaulted ceilings - a death knell for either ceiling mounted speakers without visible cabling, or reflective speakers. I doubt it would be practical to even try it.


Oddly enough, I've heard plenty of sounds go directly overhead - with one of the most impressive examples being a simple Dolby 5.1 mix on "Pearl Harbor", with planes roaring overhead during the Pearl Harbor attack sequence. I've heard it in many other films as well, in DD 5.1, as well as DTS MA and Dolby MA. Even with PCM! Some mixes were just done right.


I'm going to have to wait to see what implementation is done with real hardware, and I'm not going to throw away a receiver to do it, either.

[datlocolatino]

Ive been thinking a lot about Atmos lately, especially after seeing guardians of the galaxy at the Johnstown PA theater. I loved how smooth the transitions were. And so, Of course, im geeked about this coming to home theater. Itll probably be a while before the price drops enough for me to pick one up, but I actually started picking up some matching speakers for when I do.
My concern is that this will probably go the way of 3D. Those of us that are in the know will spend the money. But for Joe SChmo off the street guy, it probably sounds really unreasonable. It gets a little crowded going from 5 speakers to 13. Not to mention pricey. Then, like 3D, theres going to be completely uninformed people claiming its just a gimmick, never giving it a chance. Or theyll see one Atmos movie, perhaps one of the many shit ones sure to come, where it seems the director has no clue how to utilize the extra channels, and base their opinion on that. So the product wont sell, people will ***** with their uninformed opinions, and like 3D, we ll see the manufacturers slowly opt out of it and return to 5.1. Not even 7.1!! Most movies STILL arent utilizing THAT!!

Again, im geeked about this, but I almost feel like it really is deztined to fail.

[PeterTHX]

Originally Posted by Blu-Dog

That was quite a while ago. Do you think Atmos is on the same timeline?

No, but it's an evolution in audio.

I got my first Dolby Digital receiver, and a DVD player with Dolby, in 1996. No one knew anything about it until about six years later.

Just a nit: the first DVD players came out in early 1997.

The real problem, for me, is that my living room and family room both have vaulted ceilings - a death knell for either ceiling mounted speakers without visible cabling, or reflective speakers. I doubt it would be practical to even try it.

So far a lot of the demos have used the add-on speaker modules and the Atmos enabled speakers that fire at the ceiling, and impressions are they work quite well. Dolby realizes that (like you) ceiling mounted speakers are impossible for a lot of setups.


Even in setups without overheads at all, Atmos soundtracks still have objects in the main speakers and an overall better soundstage.

[AudioWarrior]

I see they already listed the price for the Pioneer Elite Andrew Jones Atmos speakers.






SP-EBS73-LR Bookshelf Speakers - $749 (Pair)

SP-EFS73 Floorstanding Speaker - $699 (Each)

SP-EC73 Center Channel Speaker - $399

SW-E10 Subwoofer - $599

Seems nice for my bedroom!

[Blu-Dog]

Originally Posted by PeterTHX

No, but it's an evolution in audio.

Just a nit: the first DVD players came out in early 1997.

Memory fail...I can't believe how much time has passed.

Originally Posted by PeterTHX

So far a lot of the demos have used the add-on speaker modules and the Atmos enabled speakers that fire at the ceiling, and impressions are they work quite well. Dolby realizes that (like you) ceiling mounted speakers are impossible for a lot of setups.

So many people are chasing what they see as a cash cow that they've forgotten to bring a bucket. I'm using fairly sophisticated gear, nicely arranged, and I'm not interested in some strap-on HTIB-looking gear. It's going to be a while before it can be properly integrated, in a modular format, to work with existing equipment.


The usual "Why don't you just replace all that old stuff? What's the matter, can't afford it?" type of taunting sale just isn't going to work for something this non-essential.

Originally Posted by PeterTHX

Even in setups without overheads at all, Atmos soundtracks still have objects in the main speakers and an overall better soundstage.

Nothing wrong with that!

[Mr.Twinks]

For me Dolby Atmos already has my head thinking about ideas! Granted I am not ready to upgrade for a few years but by that time, there should be some AVR/processors that are more 'affordable'. I already have four 6.5" two way speakers in my ceiling, and I have two old klipsch bookshelf speakers I can put on the back shelf of my HT room. So technically I can have a 5.1.4 (I think that would be correct). Right now I have two crown X1000 amps being shipped to me ($99 ea!) from guitar center, that will handle my fronts so a midlevel Atmos AVR should be able to push the smaller speakers with ease. Although, I would probably buy the Denon/Marantz that will have XT32 Audyssey. I never heard an Atmos equipped commercial theater but I have heard that it is worth the admission to experience it!

[BozQ]

Oh hell yes! Dolby Atmos in cinemas is awesome.

[Auditor55]

Originally Posted by PeterTHX

I read the entire stupid article in his voice:





They said similar things about Dolby Digital. Now it's the defacto standard of just how many formats now?

They didn't say that about Dolby digital because people had already adopted Dolby pro-logic systems. People already had the prerequisite 5.1 system. They had a two fronts, a center channel, rear surrounds and a sub in pro-logic systems, so all they needed was the Dolby Digital 5.1 processing.

With Dolby Atmos, you need a complete overhaul. I don't see consumers in mass putting 4 direct radiating speakers on top of their ceilings. This is madness!!

Let us not forget that 90% of home theaters are still 5.1 based, they haven't even adopted 7.1 DTS and Dolby Digital systems. Now you expect 11.1 Dolby Atmos to be a consumer success.

Dolby Atmos isn't really a commericial success, only few installed exclusive theaters are so equipped. It haven't even taken off in commercial cinemas.

Furthermore, where will Dolby Atmos encoded software come from? The current Blu Ray is only equipped for 8 channels. Is there a new Blu Ray standard coming? I doubt that since optical disc is going the way of the Do Do Bird.

Dolby Atmos should be thrown right in there with 4K TV, 3D TV, SA-CD etc., another superfluous format designed to drain dollars out of consumers, nothing more nothing less. Next thing they will have Dolby Atmos EX with speakers on the floor.

I can't believe some folks are taking this seriously as a home application. Some people already have their rooms and crowed and congested with big bloated sub woofers all over the place, now your telling me you are convinced that you need to add speakers on the ceilings.

Also, DTS or Datasat is coming with their version of such a system, so you're going be asked to upgrade again. After that it will be some company that will be championing an 11.2 uncompressed audio system to gullible consumers.

[kong73]

Originally Posted by BozQ

Oh hell yes! Dolby Atmos in cinemas is awesome.

Ive never seen a DA film because they are always in 3D and i hate 3D. One day Ill get to hear it. Saw Guardians in IMAX 3D but of course it wasnt Atmos

[ZoetMB]

Originally Posted by kong73

Ive never seen a DA film because they are always in 3D and i hate 3D. One day Ill get to hear it. Saw Guardians in IMAX 3D but of course it wasnt Atmos

That is a problem, but I was lucky with "Dawn of the Planet of the Apes" because my local Atmos theatre alternated between 2D and 3D showings on that screen. I wish more theaters would do that.

As far as Atmos for the home is concerned, I think it will be a niche format, almost by definition. 5.1 isn't actually even that common - most people, if they have anything beyond the TV at all, have only a sound bar. And by definition, fewer people have 7.1 than 5.1. And fewer people will install Dolby Atmos than 7.1.

But having said that, we've seen very inexpensive 5.1 or higher receivers come to market. And there are many moderately priced speakers out there. So within a few years, I think we'll see some low-end receivers that support Atmos and we'll see moderately priced fronts and surrounds with the 4 Dolby Atmos overhead speakers built-in. Dolby was very smart about this - they realize that many people won't want to put additional physical items in their living rooms, so these dual-purpose speakers solve that problem. Those systems on the low-end may not actually sound that great, but Atmos will eventually show up there.

The systems with actual ceiling speakers and/or with additional channels (I believe I read that Atmos for the home is going to support up to 35 channels) will be reserved for the dedicated home theaters where price isn't much of a restriction. Rich boys must have their toys and all that.

Personally, I would have been just as happy if they had kept Dolby Atmos just for theaters, but that's not how Dolby makes most of their revenue - most of the money is in licensing for the home market. You'll notice that Dolby only manufactures their own devices for pro markets. Everything in the home market is licensed.

[BozQ]

Originally Posted by Auditor55

They didn't say that about Dolby digital because people had already adopted Dolby pro-logic systems. People already had the prerequisite 5.1 system. They had a two fronts, a center channel, rear surrounds and a sub in pro-logic systems, so all they needed was the Dolby Digital 5.1 processing.

With Dolby Atmos, you need a complete overhaul. I don't see consumers in mass putting 4 direct radiating speakers on top of their ceilings. This is madness!!

Let us not forget that 90% of home theaters are still 5.1 based, they haven't even adopted 7.1 DTS and Dolby Digital systems. Now you expect 11.1 Dolby Atmos to be a consumer success.

Dolby Atmos isn't really a commericial success, only few installed exclusive theaters are so equipped. It haven't even taken off in commercial cinemas.

Furthermore, where will Dolby Atmos encoded software come from? The current Blu Ray is only equipped for 8 channels. Is there a new Blu Ray standard coming? I doubt that since optical disc is going the way of the Do Do Bird.

Dolby Atmos should be thrown right in there with 4K TV, 3D TV, SA-CD etc., another superfluous format designed to drain dollars out of consumers, nothing more nothing less. Next thing they will have Dolby Atmos EX with speakers on the floor.

I can't believe some folks are taking this seriously as a home application. Some people already have their rooms and crowed and congested with big bloated sub woofers all over the place, now your telling me you are convinced that you need to add speakers on the ceilings.

Also, DTS or Datasat is coming with their version of such a system, so you're going be asked to upgrade again. After that it will be some company that will be championing an 11.2 uncompressed audio system to gullible consumers.

Dolby Atmos was not a major overhaul. For cinemas, their current 5.1 or 7.1 speaker placements can remain. All they had to do is install an array of overhead speakers and wire them up on to a Dolby Atmos processor.

For home theater, there are two levels.

1. The Blu-ray player requires no changes. A new standard or specifications revision is not necessary. Dolby Atmos content on Blu-ray will be presented as either Dolby TrueHD or Dolby Digital Plus 5.1 or 7.1.

As long as your current Blu-ray player is able to bitstream the raw Dolby stream to an Atmos receiver and you're halfway there.

2. The second part is your receiver. If you have a compatible Atmos receiver, great! If it doesn't, then it will just play the regular TrueHD 7.1 soundtrack without breaking a sweat.

3. In most cases, if you already have an elaborate setup, then at minimum, you're required to only purchase two additional speakers for height information. You have a choice of installing speakers onto the ceiling itself, like in Atmos cinemas, or you could purchase an Atmos add on module that projects the sound upwards and bounce off the ceiling.

The thing about Dolby Atmos is you are not required to get a fixed amount of speakers. Even in cinemas, there are many varying configurations and that's the beauty of object based surround. You not limited to a standard configuration. It adapts to the size and configuration of your setup. It's just like video games. You lose nothing if you have 5.1 or 7.1 speakers.

Dolby's own theater has a 26.3 configuration. Here in Singapore, we have two cinemas. One in 61.3, the other looks like 43.1. The number of speakers don't matter too much. But the height speakers definitely adds a crazy new dimension of audio entertainment.

While yes it does seem like this will appeal to a very niche market, but that doesn't mean we should stop advancing the technology. In the past, we had attempts in trying to introduce height channels to home theater systems. But none of them made any impact. Barco had Auro 9.1, but as far as I know, only two music Blu-ray ever used that format. The other was DTS: NeoX 11.1, but I call foul on that because the few Blu-ray titles encoded in NeoX didn't even have a 7.1 theatrical release. Of course Dolby did try with Pro Logic IIz, but like the rest, it fizzled out.

Dolby Atmos is the first legitimate attempt in introducing height surrounds to home theater. And unlike the rest, Dolby is pushing hard to make it happen. And I'm very impressed at how they managed to pull this off without a major overhaul to current owners. I believe Dolby will find moderate success with this. It will be slow, but it will find its way to enthusiasts homes. Just like how stereoscopic 3D made its transition from cinemas to home.

[BozQ]

Two other things

1. It seems like the PS3 might be a problem. The older 'fat' models are unable to bitstream TrueHD because of older HDMI specs.

2. I honestly expected HFR 3D to make its way to Blu-ray before Dolby Atmos.

Still, it's mighty exciting to see this coming to home theaters. I personally think this is a far more exciting technology to embrace over 3D.