Star Wars: Episode II in IMAX... Height Channels? (1 Viewer)

[Stephen Hopkins]

I just got in from the premiere of Star Wars: Episode II in IMAX at the Regal IMAX theater at the mall of Georgia. Now 9 times out of 10 i prefer home theater to the real thing, because most theaters aren't that good. Episode II in IMAX has changed my mind. This is the first feature (non-documentary type) movie that i've seen in IMAX, and i was simply blown away. The screen size was awe inspiring. My 43" HDTV looks so tiny now (it wasn't THAT big in the first place, but now...). And the sound was amazing. In most theaters, the surround channels are so diffuse that you rarely hear them at all. In this IMAX theater the surrounds were quite directional while still maintaining a wide rear sound stage.

That said, the reason for this post is to pose a question:

Does IMAX have a height element added? Perhaps it's just my eyes and ears teaming up, but i swear i could here ships and light sabers panning from the bottom of the screen to the top. I can see where this would add to the effect, especially on such a large visual format.

If a height channel has been added, is it part of a Dolby format? DTS? SDDS? Is it a discrete channel? Matrixed? Or some other type of DSP?

I'd love to know more about this, and didn't quite know where to post it.

Thanks, and I hope more studios release features in IMAX/70mm.

 

[Antonio_B]

hi Stephen,i agree that the IMAX experience is much better than normal theater(extremely big screen and huge sound make the diff.).BTW,most of the new theaters use SDDS.
Later.

 

[Stephen Hopkins]

I've read about SDDS, and I know it has extra front channels, but are these used for panning up and down in relatio to the screen? or are the just used to widen the front soundstage and make for more realistic left to right panning?

Thanks

 

[Mike Sloan]

Yes I have read where Imax does pan vertically in relation to the Screen. I hope Imax has that in Dallas....I will check today!!!!!!!