Dolby Atmos

[jjennings2510]

So I went to the movies last night to check out Man of Steel and was surprised to see that my theater had the new Dolby Atmos system installed. Unfortunately you have to choose what you want. 3d OR great sound or neither. lol. All in all I was impressed with the presentation. Basically Dolby Atmos is a scalable system that uses position based sound and processing instead channel processing. So instead of saying "Hey I need this sound to come from the right rear channel" the sound engineer instead says "hey I need the sound to come from this area" and the processor uses what it has to get the sound to come from that area depending on how many speakers you have. Its scalable up to 64 speakers. I remember when AVS did a huge writeup on it last year when the Kodak Theater became the Dolby Theater.....that was where the very first Atmos system was installed. They were very excited about the technology. So was I but I figured I wouldn't hear it because it is a hefty investment.....Boy am I glad I was proved wrong....

When I walked in the first thing I noticed was the addition of a ton of speakers. There were 2 rows of speakers installed on the ceiling from front to back....the side walls had added more speakers in addition to the ones behind the screen. Unfortunately my date was late so I missed the previews that flexed the muscles of the system (women don't understand our fascination with new sound tech, lol) but all I can say is wow while watching the movie....It was definitely more immersive......Our favorite speakers led the charge (Klipsch) Sound came from all around me....even overhead and it wasn't gimmicky at all! It all fit in very well with the movie. The sound at the movies hasn't brought a smile to my face in awhile (since Klipsch home theaters seem pretty comparable in sound) but I was giddy and had a huge smile the entire movie. I was more focused on the sound than the movie so I'll have to go back and actually focus on the movie. Lol. But on a serious note it all worked together extemely well. I will go check out any movie that has Atmos from now on. Only complaint is the fact that I think the sound was turned up an extra 20dbs. You definitely shouldn't sit in the first row!

DTS is working on their own version of this position based processing. The cool thing about them is the fact that they want to bring the technology to homes. A similar scalable system that works with what you have and doesn't process based on a channel per se but a position. I would jump at the chance to have this tech at home! I don't know how I would install speakers on my ceiling though, lol. But the DTS guy in the article was saying imagine having a 11.1 or even 15.1 system.....sounds pretty amazing but I can only imagine the nightmare of wires etc you will have hooking up all of those speakers not to mention the WAF. Lol. The main key though is the fact that since sound is not defined per channel the folks that don't have typical setups won't be left out anymore. Since the processor will adjust accordingly. Right when I thought I was done upgrading for a lifetime this stuff hits the press. lol. I'm still not sold on 4k but this new sound processing I'm really digging. Can't wait until it makes it to the household.

For anyone in the mid south the theater that has Atmos is the Malco Paradiso....its the only one in our area that has it....or at least the only one advertising it. I haven't seen any other theater say that they have it yet. So if you guys have an Atmos theater near you...check it out! Its worth it....As I said though unfortunately (at least here) you have to choose....new upgraded sound....or 3d....can't get them together yet. Which is good I guess because my head probably would have exploded from excitement with both together.

All in all I think this a win for everyone. A win for us the enthusiasts because it gives us a reason to leave our great home setups and actually go to the movies. Its a win for the theaters because the ones that have it will drag people like me there where I'll be stupid and come hungry and end up spending $40 on food and wine, lol. And its a win for Klipsch....because they are selling even more speakers. As I said the system supports up to 64 speakers.....and the theater I went to damn near had that amount jam packed in the theater.....and that was their biggest screen there.

Nonetheless if you go see an Atmos movie or know people that have leave your experiences here!

[derrickdj1]

Thanks for sharing. I wanted to see The Hobbit with Dolby atmos but missed it. I did see the movie and was not impressed with it's regular version. Frodo and Sam were to old, lol. I will look for The Man of Steel in Dolby atmos in my area. That seems like a great movie for this technology. I wonder how the avr companies will display all the speakers for Dolby atmos on the avr display or GUI, lol.

[Audio Android]

I will look for The Man of Steel in Dolby atmos in my area.

Haven't you seen Star Trek yet......What are you waiting for....Go now before it leaves the theatre.

[derrickdj1]

Haven't you seen Star Trek yet......What are you waiting for....Go now before it leaves the theatre.

I better hurry! I definetly enjoyed the first one with the all new cast. I've seen the new Ironman so, I am a little behind in getting to the theater this spring.

[swapface]

Thanks for sharing!!

I am sure we all will be searching the www for theaters in our area with Atmos. I cant't wait to hear it.

[CECAA850]

Does it feature noise cancelling to deadden sounds from noisey theater goers?

[Audio Android]

Watched Oblivion a few weeks ago.....[Y]....There was 2 guys, guessing they were about 18 years old, who talked through 80-90% of the movie. They weren't talking loud but you could hear their high frequency whispers.... psss,sss,psss.ss,psss,pss.....Drove me nuts!!

[Dr Morbius]

Does it feature noise cancelling to deadden sounds from noisey theater goers?..................... Boy I would pay extra for that!!!

[jjennings2510]

Lmao no it doesn't...but then again it doesn't need it....Its so much louder than normal....so if the person isn't right next to you I doubt you would hear them. Nonetheless I haven't really had too many problems with noisy moviegoers....but then again this theater I went to asks for ID after 6. No one under 18 allowed to see a R Rated movie after that time. That eliminated a lot of the rowdy crowd. True you still have the fresh out of high school and over 18 crowd but I don't hesitate to call security in there if the folks just won't shut up. I've only had to do hat twice....one it worked..once it didn't so I emailed corporate and they sent me free tickets and really upped security there. At $11 a ticket I'm not afraid to complain and use my resources....$11 a ticket plus however much I spend in their wine bar area drinking glasses of wine and making sundaes. That's too much money for me to be unhappy....So if someone won't shut up don't be afraid to use your resources...Theaters want us there and happy....they want our money...so let your dis pleasures be known. But enough on that

I still haven't seen Star Trek either.....it's still at that same theater...even though its available in Atmos they are not showing it in Atmos. Man of Steel is the first and only one thus far but I'm sure there will be more. I know that new Wolverine movie is supposed to have Atmos mixing in addition to numerous other movies coming out this summer. I really don't want to watch any more movies without it, lol.

[ivanhurd]

Sounds pretty awesome, I'd love to check it out. The 3D was a bit too intense in that movie anyways. edit: Looks like there are theaters in Denver that offer it. I'm about to move up there so I will definitely go see what it's all about.