damacman
Resident Psycho
I've had Atmos in my space for a few years now. I've also amassed quite a collection of Dolby Atmos titles on Bluray. It's becoming increasingly apparent to me that the technology surpasses the ability of the sound engineers in many cases. There are some real standouts:
Everest
MI5
Only the Brave
xXx: Return of Xander Cage
etc.
Each of these films makes really good use of the height channels to make you feel as if you were on set. These films simply have to be experienced in Atmos to be believed.
In addition, there are some music discs that are simply mind blowing:
Roger Waters The Wall
Kraftwerk 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
I find that many of the films mixed in Atmos have two shortcomings:
1 - Some films make gimmicky use of the height channels, while others sound as if they've been converted from some other format into Atmos just to get the label on the box. I guess I don't understand the latter as most quality AVRs or AVPs have the ability to upconvert non-Atmos soundtracks via Dolby Surround, which is really quite good. Soundtracks that are mixed from the word go to maximize the use of the object based format really standout - which seems to be the exception rather than the norm. Why is that?
2 - LFE channel isn't nearly what it could be. Loud? Yes. Boosted at 60-80Hz? Yes. My shit can play flat to 15Hz. Give me an LFE channel that will shake my foundations and let my gear be the determining factor of whether or not I get the full effect. I'm disappointed that the LFE track on so many movies (generally speaking) is recorded in such a way so that all the fake bass can be reproduced by those with cheap little black boxes outfitted with plate amplifiers that won't play a lick below 35Hz so they don't feel left out. The INXS Kick Box set is the worst offender here - the LFE is so grossly boosted and exaggerated on the normal music tracks that you'll think you got a defective disc. The video tracks are much better in regard, but the center frequency of the boosting is still unnaturally high. Give me the natural mix, as it was recorded please.
If you want to see exactly what I'm talking about, just pop in the Dolby Atmos sampler Bluray and surf through it. OMG - the folks that produced it at Dolby Laboratories did so in effort to showcase the format's capability. The LFE track will flap your pant legs and shake the foundation of your home on nearly every single excerpt. Height and surround channels are utilized in such a way that you don't feel like sound is coming from them. Rather, the sound comes from the space between all of the speakers in an incredibly convincing fashion.
Rumor has it that The Matrix release on 4K has an epic Atmos mix. So, I can't wait to check that out. In the meantime, I'll try to be patient as the sound engineers get their hands around this format - but stop catering to those with Atmos soundbars and mid-woofers posing as subwoofers!
Everest
MI5
Only the Brave
xXx: Return of Xander Cage
etc.
Each of these films makes really good use of the height channels to make you feel as if you were on set. These films simply have to be experienced in Atmos to be believed.
In addition, there are some music discs that are simply mind blowing:
Roger Waters The Wall
Kraftwerk 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
I find that many of the films mixed in Atmos have two shortcomings:
1 - Some films make gimmicky use of the height channels, while others sound as if they've been converted from some other format into Atmos just to get the label on the box. I guess I don't understand the latter as most quality AVRs or AVPs have the ability to upconvert non-Atmos soundtracks via Dolby Surround, which is really quite good. Soundtracks that are mixed from the word go to maximize the use of the object based format really standout - which seems to be the exception rather than the norm. Why is that?
2 - LFE channel isn't nearly what it could be. Loud? Yes. Boosted at 60-80Hz? Yes. My shit can play flat to 15Hz. Give me an LFE channel that will shake my foundations and let my gear be the determining factor of whether or not I get the full effect. I'm disappointed that the LFE track on so many movies (generally speaking) is recorded in such a way so that all the fake bass can be reproduced by those with cheap little black boxes outfitted with plate amplifiers that won't play a lick below 35Hz so they don't feel left out. The INXS Kick Box set is the worst offender here - the LFE is so grossly boosted and exaggerated on the normal music tracks that you'll think you got a defective disc. The video tracks are much better in regard, but the center frequency of the boosting is still unnaturally high. Give me the natural mix, as it was recorded please.
If you want to see exactly what I'm talking about, just pop in the Dolby Atmos sampler Bluray and surf through it. OMG - the folks that produced it at Dolby Laboratories did so in effort to showcase the format's capability. The LFE track will flap your pant legs and shake the foundation of your home on nearly every single excerpt. Height and surround channels are utilized in such a way that you don't feel like sound is coming from them. Rather, the sound comes from the space between all of the speakers in an incredibly convincing fashion.
Rumor has it that The Matrix release on 4K has an epic Atmos mix. So, I can't wait to check that out. In the meantime, I'll try to be patient as the sound engineers get their hands around this format - but stop catering to those with Atmos soundbars and mid-woofers posing as subwoofers!