You’ve heard it often enough while viewing that hit movie – that the theatre has a Dolby surround sound system. The climax scene reverberates all around you, the sounds flitting from speaker to speaker.
However, that sound experience was being pumped in through just five or seven channels. Dolby Laboratories has now launched its new technology, Dolby Atmos, which equips a theatre with 64 channels of sound, including speakers on the roof of the theatre as well on the sides. This will deliver a natural and realistic sound field and will give theatre-goers an “immersive” experience, says Dolby.
Dolby has unveiled this technology at the Serene theatre in the Sathyam Cinemas multiplex, run by SPI Cinemas in the city, the first, it says , to have installed it in the country. Pankaj Kedia, Country Manager, Dolby Labs, said that this would redefine the experience of sound in entertainment. “The theatre can control the sound better and can address each speaker separately,” he explained.
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Kiran Reddy, CEO, SPI Cinemas, said this is the first of a series of Dolby Atmos installations planned at its various locations. SPI operates 31 screens and is poised to operate over 50 screens by early 2013. Reddy said that since it was a beta processor, and Serene was the first to install it, there was no charge, but the installation cost around Rs 20 lakh. “It’s easier to wire and pre-equip the new theatres, but difficult to retro-fit an existing theatre.”
Senthil Kumar, Co-founder, Real Image Media Technologies, which is the first studio to adopt mixing capabilities in Dolby Atmos, has done the sound for Sivaji . The movie has been recreated in 3D by Prasad EFX, a digital post production facility. “Film-makers do not have to change their production techniques, but more layers of sound have to be laid on during the post production stage. This gives the immersive experience for movie-goers,” Senthil said.