CINEMA AND OBJECT BASED AUDIO

An introduction to Object Based Audio   Or in other words, Dolby Atmos, DTS:X and Auro-3D.

What is OBA?

While regular home cinema systems comprise five, seven, nine or more speakers wrapped around a room to provide the surround sound experience, OBA takes this two stages further. Instead of the sound emanating from a horizontal circle of speakers, with the sounds panned around from speaker to speaker, OBA adds speakers above head height (and/or in the ceiling) which provide a third dimension to the sound experience, allowing the sound to come not just from the horizontal plane but the vertical as well.   This gives a much larger soundstage, with the addition of height and is very impressive in its own right, but where the technology really comes into its own is in the precision placement of the sounds. When the director and sound engineers are at the post production stage with their movie, they can position the sounds anywhere within a three dimensional space, so you feel like you’re right in the middle the action. In effect the sounds are freed up from the constraints of traditional channels (front, sides, rears etc.) and are now treated as individual audio objects (hence OBA) which can be placed anywhere in the room. The processing electronics then determine which combination of speakers in the room are required to position the sound exactly where the director wanted it.

Who makes OBA systems?

The first company to come to market with an OBA offering was, unsurprisingly, Dolby. As world leaders in cinema sound the company first introduced its Dolby Atmos system for use in commercial cinemas. With up to 64 independent speakers, the opportunities for creative sound design are immense. The Dolby Atmos sound objects (a total of 118) are used in conjunction with the traditional surround sound set up that features 9.1 beds of audio (nine conventional channels plus one sub-bass channel), to give a total of up to 128 independent audio tracks. You can read more about the Dolby Atmos cinema system at this link: www.dolby.com/us/en/technologies/cinema/dolby-atmos.html   Dolby then introduced a domestic version of Atmos, scaled down from the 64 speakers used in a cinema to a much more manageable number, typically seven, nine or 11 (although it is possible to use up to 34 speakers in a very large installation - 24 on the floor and 10 overhead). The nomenclature for the domestic set ups follows the familiar 5.1, 7.1, 9.1 pattern established by conventional home cinema, but also indicates the number of ceiling/elevation speakers employed, e.g. 5.1.2 (five main speakers, one subwoofer and two ceiling speakers) or 7.1.4 (seven main speakers, one subwoofer and four ceiling speakers). You can read more about the Dolby Atmos home system here: http://www.dolby.com/us/en/brands/dolby-atmos.html

Hot on the heels of Dolby was a system developed by Belgium based Auro Technologies called Auro-3D. Again taking the standard 5.1, 7.1 format, Auro-3D enhances this with both height and overhead channels. The height information recorded during production is mixed into a standard 5.1 surround PCM carrier and the Auro-3D decoder extracts the signals during playback to recreate the height channels via speakers placed around the room at 30 degrees above head height. This configuration is referred to as 9.1 (five ear-level surround speakers, four height speakers and one sub-bass speaker). A single overhead speaker (sometimes called the Voice of God speaker) adds an extra dimension and forms a link between the height layer speakers around the room for ‘fly-over’ effects. The nomenclature for the simplest system featuring this VOG speaker is 10.1. Adding an extra height centre channel speaker makes it into an 11.1 system and two additional rear surround channels make it 13.1. More information on the Auro-3D system can be found at this link: http://www.auro-3d.com/consumer/experience/ An additional technology called AuroMax expands the basic Auro 11.1 and Auro 13.1  into "zones", allowing placement of sound at discrete points around the wall or ceiling and within the three dimensional space, making it similar to the other object based audio formats.

The third variant of OBA comes from DTS in the guise of its DTS:X system. This differs from the other two systems in that it isn’t tied to a particular speaker layout and will work (to a degree) with existing simple 5.1 speaker systems. In the cinema environment, the speaker array used for DTS:X is a hybrid of the Dolby Atmos and Auro-3D set ups, with a standard eight channel base layer, a five channel height layer and three rows of speakers in the ceiling. During the post production for the movie, the sound can be placed in three dimensional space using DTS:X’s Multi Dimensional Audio platform, just like the Dolby Atmos system. The DTS:X soundtrack from a Blu-ray is then decoded by the processor according to the number of speakers connected to it and their position in the room, giving the best possible results for that particular speaker set up. This makes it truly backwards compatible with existing surround sound systems, but for the best results the additional height/ceiling speakers are going to be needed. More information about the DTS:X system can be found here: http://dts.com/dtsx

What's required for OBA in the home?

Just like a traditional surround system you’ll need a Blu-ray plaver, processor and speakers. Most of the major electronics brands are now incorporating OBA into their processors, particularly Dolby Atmos and DTS:X systems. Models such as the Yamaha RXA-660 feature both formats and are a very cost effective means of getting OBA into a customer’s house. As standard Blu-ray player can be used as all the processing is done within the AV Receiver. The speakers for the main channels can be identical to the ones used for standard surround systems. For example ourCabasse Eole 3 sub/sat package is the perfect starting point for a compact OBA system. Or a more substantial installation could be done using dedicated cinema in-wall speakers such as the Atlantic Technology IW-155. The requirement for height speakers presents the installer with two possible options: install dedicated in-ceiling speakers use specially designed up-firing speakers The installation of ceiling speakers is the potentially tricky part of an OBA system. In a new build property or renovation, it’s not an issue of course, but upgrading an existing surround system or installing a whole new OBA system in a ‘finished’ house with the need to install ceiling speakers can be problematic. For that reason, it is possible to specify dedicated up-firing speakers that beam the height channel information from the walls up to the ceiling, where it is reflected back to the listening position, creating a very effective illusion of sound coming from the ceiling. The Atlantic Technology 44-DAis such a speaker, designed to sit on top of floor-standing front/surround speakers or on a wall mounted shelf. Where it is possible to install in-ceiling speakers, theCabasse Eole 3 system can be augmented with the matching dedicated Eole 3 in-ceiling version. Or for bigger systems the AtlanticTechnology IC6 OBAis a specially designed in-ceiling speaker for use with Dolby Atmos, DTS:X and Auro-3D systems. It features a frequency response and radiation pattern that has been specifically engineered to provide wide dispersion, eliminating hot spots that occur with standard in-ceiling speakers.

How do you set up the speakers for an OBA system?

Generally the setup is as per a standard 5.1, 7.1 or 9.1 system with the addition of the height channels. As DTS:X is not speaker position or number dependent, the two configurations that can be employed are specified by Dolby and Auro. For a Dolby Atmos based system the additional two or four height channel speakers are installed in the ceiling or up-firing speakers can be used as per this set up guide: http://www.dolby.com/us/en/guide/dolby-atmos-speaker-setup/index.html Auro-3D is slightly different, in that the height speakers are installed on the wall directly above the positions of the main left, right, centre and surround channels at 30 degrees above the listening position. The VOG speaker is to be installed in the ceiling, directly above the main listening position. Typical Auro-3D speaker set ups and an explanation of the three sound layers are accessible here: http://www.auro-3d.com/system/concept/

What content is available?

The film companies were a little slow to respond to the opportunities of OBA and so content has been hard to come by. Fortunately this has changed now and the number of Blu-rays being offered with Dolby Atmos soundtracks is increasing all the time. For the latest catalogue of films see this link: http://www.dolby.com/us/en/experience/dolby-atmos/bluray-and-streaming.html DTS:X movies on Blu-ray are listed here: http://dts.com/discover/dtsx-movies-at-home The limited number of Auro-3D Blu-rays can been seen at this link: http://www.auro-3d.com/consumer/ As more content is being released all the time it is worth bookmarking these links so you can check back regularly to see what new films have been released. For owners of existing collections of discs, the AV Receivers will convert existing surround sound tracks into pseudo OBA, providing a very effective soundtrack upgrade for legacy movie collections.

DATASAT APPOINT PROJECTIONDREAMS DISTRIBUTOR FOR PORTUGAL

Folks,

Projectiondreams are exceptionally proud to have been chosen as the Datasat distributors for Portugal.

Alistair Bourne of Projectiondreams having completed all the training is now certified on Datasat and Dirac equipment to Cinema level one.

http://www.datasatdigital.com/consumer/info-center/press-and-awards/


Our Almancil Cinema has now had a major revamp to include a new 14 channel Dolby Atmos/Auro 3D Datasat RS20i system using M AND K SOUND speakers with Parasound amplification.

IF you want the best possible Cinema in your home ..come and see whats possible...

Datasat RS20i 

Built by audiophiles for audiophiles, no expense has been spared in producing the most versatile, customizable and feature-rich audio processor available today in the high end consumer space.

With sleek, elegant looks designed by Neal Feay Company, an award-winning designer of consumer electronics, the Datasat RS20i makes an attractive component of any luxury home entertainment system. 

With great looks comes real power.

Developed on the same Datasat platform as our audio processor systems for professional cinema, the RS20i delivers a new dimension in surround sound excellence. Audio is transparent and true-to-source to ensure that the listening experience is every bit as stunning as the visuals.

Designed by the Datasat engineering team, the circuitry design and audio quality is second to none. Including such features such as memory profile settings, stackable multiple EQs, room optimisation/correction and extensive automation controls (not previously seen in high end audio processors) the RS20i is a cut above the competition.

Dialog is crystal clear, sound tracks sound like they are being played from the original mixing desk and features such as HDMI v1.4a mean the RS20i can also seamlessly handle 3D video content.

The RS20i is a professional sound solution. Once configured, it is easy to manage with all the power of a cinema audio processor available at your fingertips through your smartphone, iPad or laptop.

Datasat’s entrance into the high end consumer market is a natural progression based upon its many years in the professional cinema market. 

Click here to download a recent product review

YOUVE BOUGHT THIS EXPENSIVE NEW VILLA..BUT WHAT HAVE YOU GOT REALLY?..and WHAT DO YOU NEED?

Dear Folks,

Somethings wrong with the system...

...Ill expand...

Youv`e bought this shiny new mega expensive villa with 5 bedrooms and a pool in Quinta De Lago..wow it overlooks the lake (**That means masses of Mosquitos in the evening)..or the golf course.( **Duck from stray balls and get used to that knocking sound all day long)...

..Still its defined as a prestige location and the house (*invariably built by a herd of Romanians or Russians and designed by an Interior Designer unknown outside of Almancil) looks great...

Its got a really expensive looking kitchen (* Daft really because youll eat out most of the time) and a terrific swimming pool..

Now,in most instances its a couple who buy such villas..kids grown up..or a couple with a couple of kids still at home at 25..(*As seems to be the case nowdays)..

So heres a question?..Are those five bedrooms occupied all year?..I can tell you the answer..no..even IF the villa is just used for holidays..there are always spare bedrooms....in fact,a recent survey said only 2 out of 5 bedrooms are used with regularity in ANY 5 bedroomed house....

So heres my main point..youve spent a lot of money for 3 unused bedrooms and a kitchen..AND the ability to crap in one of five toilets at any time whilst rubbing cream on your mosquito bites..

Still..youve got loads of overpriced furniture through the villa and youve had the pleasure of taking that world renowned "Interior Designer"..(**Who 2 years ago lived in a council estate in Uxbridge) out to lunch..

Add into the mix the proliferation of back handers ensuring duff recommendations to the client and...

Well..I dont think this is the be all and end all for those with the sweet small of success...and who--through the fruits of their labours-deserve something special...

So what do i define as special...simple answer...ENTERTAINMENT....whatever the customer loves..be it a Music Room...Custom Cinema ...Outdoor Cinema..Games room..safe room...Wine cellar...Cine Lounge.....

How about a lift to the Entertainment basement..how about one of those empty bedrooms turned into a gaming room for the young son?...How about a Dance floor..or a bowling alley...or your own ice rink?......

Anythings possible...and IF you have a basement..even more is possible...

..And remember..Projectiondreams are the distributors for 12 of their main 14 brands..that means the BEST prices..Projectiondreams part own a furniture and sofa manufacturing facility in the North of Portugal..we have our own builders/electricians/Automation/Interior design people.....

Our skills are at the very highest and proven level..I have many years of Operational Project experience and was considered one of the best in the world-and have awards to prove it from major companies like ARRI,U.S.ROBOTICS and HONEYWELL.

Im not modest..im honest..

Add into the mix the fact that Projectiondreams have existed as a company for 17 years..and have numerous world firsts....

This means a COHESIVE final project .....as customisable as you require...

So take with a pinch of salt that "iffy" recommendation from that "Interior Designer" or "Builder recommending some bizzarre A.V. company nobody has ever heard of and runs from Pedros mums bedroom in Porto...and come and see us at Projectiondreams..with two REAL showrooms..one in Almancil..one in Luz.. great products..great ideas..great service..REAL recommendations....great pedigree..great portfolio...



Rgds,

Vincent Myers M.D.



P.S.

I realise some of my comments will enflame the dodgy Interior Designers etc...tough..if the cap fits -wear it..if it doesnt--dont...

There are a few Interior designers and English speaking builders that i consider excellent and would recommend in a heartbeat..

Keep it real..dont get tucked up..come to Projectiondreams..OUR recommendations of trades will be based on experience/excellence and customer service...not back handers..

Heres our work....

ITS ALL ABOUT THE PEDIGREE...THE BEST CINEMAS,THE BEST VALUE,THE BEST INTELLIGENT HOME,THE BEST CINE LOUNGES,THE BEST ENTERTAINMENT ROOMS..THE BEST PRICES

Dear Folks,

Projectiondreams are distributors for D BOX,M AND K SOUND,PIEGA,SOUND AND LEISURE,ATLANTIC TECHNOLOGY,PARASOUND,DATASAT,SCREEN EXCELLENCE,VISUALINT,STREAM T.V. to name a few.....

At Projectiondreams,we have our own interior Design team,our own Building team,Electricians,Network specialists..

We have over 30 combined years of years of Project Management skills and are THX (7 years) and ISF acredited (17 years)-the two highest "degrees" in Audio Video.

We custom build our own Cinema chairs and furniture,

We built the first themed Cinema in Portugal..the Stargate..

We built the first circular Cinema in Portugal-the Matrix..

We hold the record for the largest Entertainment basement conversion..

We were the first company in Europe to sell 2.35.1 ratio/Anamorphic lens Cinema systems

We were the largest seller of modified CRT projectors outside of the U.S. for over 5 years.

We calibrated the first 4K projector in Portugal for European shows.

Projectiondreams has traded with no company debt-self funded-with no company name changes for over 17 years..

We are the only Audio Video company with two Dolby Atmos Cinema..one in each of our showrooms..which means we can SHOW the customer what they will get....

World first in Bitwise automation.

What does this mean for the customer?..This means Great Prices..the best mix of Equipment and aesthetic-professionally managed projects...

Below..a recent example of a Basement conversion..


Heres what the customer said...

"After purchasing our dream holiday home in the Algarve we wanted to make better use of our basement by converting it into an Entertainment room. We don’t speak Portuguese and we don’t know anybody locally so where do we start?

We were fortunate to find Projection Dreams website on the internet and my initial meeting with English speaking Alistair Bourne was very positive, he listened to our requirements and gave us the confidence we could work with him.

Projection Dreams delivered our entertainment room, gym, wine cellar and much more to an excellent standard, within budget and to a challenging timescale.

Despite various clients changes the costs were well managed and the final account was agreed quickly and amicably. 

What I liked about the Projection Dreams team was no job ( big or small ) was a problem and it made managing the project remotely from England very easy.  

I found the Project Dreams experience a very good one and would not hesitate in recommending them."

AR...March 2016..

THE GREATEST DAYS IN AUDIO VIDEO.........ARE NOW!!!!

Dear Folks,

As a huge Movie and Music fan I always lamented one thing...

The greatest equipment was always ridiculously expensive-for example in 1999 the Vidikron Vision One crt projector (based on the Marquee 9500LC) was on sale at Absolute Sounds in London for £60,000...

Now,a projector like the Sony VPL VW520ES comfortably outperforms for 10% of that cost!!

So the high end HAS become affordable-which means people can by using top A.V. receivers and sensibly priced 4K projectors etc..have a Cinema for the price you would have paid for just the projector 16 years ago..Fantastic eh?....

Of course the high end is even higher now in terms of performance and to step the equipment up you can still pay a lot of money BUT the difference is you can get a lot more for your money..

..Of course there is always "cheaper"..i talk not of this,I talk of better quality at every pricepoint..thats the skill of Projectiondreams..no compromise whatever the budget...

How so you ask?...

Its very simple,4K is 4K ..But the larger the screens to be illuminated the brighter the projector needs to be..so the larger rooms need larger screens-and of course these are more expensive..and brighter projectors (also more expensive)...

Its about RETAINING the quality whatever size the room..planning correctly to ensure the screen is bright enough,the projector focused correctly to drag out every last bit of resolution..correct viewing angles and so on....

Its about using ones knowledge to advance the medium and technical "starting points"....

I call therm starting points because ALL technical criteria is there to be,by the skill of the calibrator/installer,improved.

Real skill in Video calibration for example,is knowing what not to change,what that display device does correctly..what it doesnt ..to squeeze that last bit out..this last bit is that extra mile that should be traversed to establish the difference between a decent setup and a great setup..

..Exactly the same with Audio...

One must never under estimate the importance of correct setup..correct setup can ensure that a 50k system well setup outperforms a 100k system poorly setup...

At Projectiondreams,as ISF and THX guys,setup is EVERYTHING for us....the surroundings encapsulate the performance-and should be planned to take account of such...only then can the true synergy between equipment performance and design aesthetic work ...a successful cinema is one in EVERY way.;-)

Of course,this knowledge is essential to ensure that our customers money is well spent -whatever they may choose-very quickly their trust is in us-our passion in ensuring we deliver the results that are then expected,makes sure our customers get the very best for their money ..whatever the budget..

We set the standards that others can only aspire to and to be fair that aspiration can help to make other mediocre companies ultimately reasonably decent..because they copy us..how we work..our process...even down to how we communicate ..some may say its flattering..?-  For myself,im a little despondent that original thought is lacking and uniquety wanting until we have done it first...nevertheless I applaud anyone that tries to be better..

For the customer though,thankfully they want the best,they dont want to be an R & D platform for an embyonic (in terms of knowledge) company  that over charges (not intentionally im sure..) the customer by selling them the wrong equipment or wrong solution for the given task...

I come from an era when one learnt their trade ..when pedigree was everything..when success depended on integrity and knowledge of ones given profession...so of course i lament the "shisters" out there with their two day courses and assumed knowledge in the same way that Elvis or Sinatra would resent a pub singer actually saying he was as good a singer and indeed a viable alternative when he hadnt proven such...:-)


My whole ethos is that Projectiondreams do the best work possible for the given customers budget and what we display in our showrooms and our body of work takes it always out of the hand of the judges and makes Projectiondreams the clear choice for the discerning..however much they have to spend...

Best Regards,
Vincent Charles Myers M.D.

.

OUTDOOR LIVING....WHAT ARE YOU MISSING?....

Dear Folks,

Well ..you have the swimming pool,just had a nice little drink..relaxing..maybe read a book...

Kind of gets a little boring after a while...

But what IF..you floated in the pool listening to Dark Side of the Moon?...or relaxed round the pool at dusk watching a fabulous Movie..or had your friends round for the big match or that Vegas fight?

Then had a drink..:-)

What about external custom loungers that automatically recline?..

Then have another drink....

Outdoor swim up bars,,outdoor kitchens...outdoor gyms ..outdoor hot dog machine even...in the good weather you need more options outside..not less..

So come and talk to me at Projectiondreams..let me plan an outside living environment for you unique for YOU....

..And however good that book is...theres always bedtime with the hot milk..:-)




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SAVE YOURSELF A FORTUNE IN AUDIO VIDEO..ANYONE CONSIDERING A CINEMA..YOU MUST READ THIS...!!!!

Dear Folks,

Projectiondreams have traded for 15 years..7 years as the top install company in Europe-based in Portugal with two large showrooms in Almancil and Luz.

We are the ONLY company in Portugal with TWO fully functioning  real THX/DOLBY ATMOS Cinemas on demonstration.

Now IF you are considering a project you have a variety of choices of company in Portugal and this is where your problems begin...most are antiquated and buy from the same  distributor based in Spain.

Thats why they all offer the same things.Control 4 being a great example..Control 4 is the poor mans Crestron with one major difference..Control 4 "dealers" are rushed through training-charged through the nose for the priviledge and continually "summoned" in for more training..each time of course the Distributor cash registers KER CHING....

Of course this is where the money is..for the distributor..large margins applied..the dealer is finished before he starts.....

Soon I expect to see the local butcher after having finished his one day training course, selling Control 4 along with the bacon..;-)

These dealers depend heavily on the distributor to "advise" them what products they should be using-all theirs of course..all expensive -most Audio Video lemons -and by the time they hit the customer.. daft money....

Now heres the really funny thing..the distributor in this instance has little real world install experience and of course proposes that which has the greatest margins for them..thats all...NOT WHATS DETERMINED TO BE THE BEST..

Its a con involving limited experience dealers who know no better..

So how do you know these folks?..and you should steer away from them like the plague..because they know not what they do to the level of what they charge..

Well,its simple..these folks are NOT Projectiondreams..


Projectiondreams are their own distributor..for M &K speakers,for Denon CI ,D BOX,Piega,Bitwise etc..etc..,We are the ONLY Audio Video seller in the Algarve allowed to sell Sony professional products..we are one of the very few custom install companies in Europe that writes their own automation programs..completely custom..using Bitwise..something for which we have a world first ...

We custom build our own Cinema chairs and are the ONLY a.v. seller allowed by D BOX in Portugal to be able to put motion products in our own chairs..

We have developed our own "Flush Fit" panel system...  our own star ceilings..and so on...

What does this mean for our customers?

NO dealers in the mix..no extra link in the chain..no inflated costs...

When you deal with Projectiondreams..you come to the source..the innovators..the originators...ISF qualified for 16 years..THX qualified for 7 years...

Go and visit whatever company you like..save us till last...then you will see what we mean...get better service, better knowledge,better results..better aesthetic and technical...and save money..

You will get an Aston Martin for Jaguar money..OR..you could go to the others and pay Aston Martin money for a Lada...the choice is yours....

As of now..we are the ONLY install company in Portugal to publish their prices because we have confidence they are fair....ask yourself why the "others" do not?..ask yourself why some have no showrooms..no pedigree..no quality work to show you...

IF these "others" cannot show  you a Cinema in their showrooms..what does that tell you?

Projectiondreams do get the lions share of the business in Audio Video terms BUT i dont want to lose one job to a lesser purveyor..to a worthy rival..dont mind at all..but Projectiondreams have nobody close to us in Portugal..thats a fact and in no way meant to be ostentatious..I denigrate no one but im proud of my trade..proud of what I have learnt and what has been achieved on behalf of our customers....

Only ONE thing stops Projectiondreams taking every job-and we take most-and thats the good old system of desperate back handers perpetrated by the inept Audio Video sellers...

..What this means is one builder who has always had a nice drink from this "other" wont change because he wont rock the boat..does he care about the finished result for the client..of course not...therefore under these circumstances i urge ALL end customers to doubt what they are told when recommended an Audio Video company ..

Go and find out for yourself..dont pay inflated prices and get a lesser job..come to the experts..Projectiondreams..and see the best....

Best Regards,

P.S..

Heres our Luz Cinema ..the current best in Portugal...

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