Film-Tech Forum ARCHIVE: What is the problem with Dolby and the "D" word?

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Topic: What is the problem with Dolby and the "D" word?

Claude S. Ayakawa
Film God

Posts: 2738
From: Waipahu, Hawaii, USA
Registered: Aug 2002

posted 09-20-2002 03:04 PM

When movies were first released with SRD soundtracks, the word DIGITAL was proudly featured in Dolby's logo. By the time Dolby Digital caught up with DTS with more theatres featuring the sound process, Dolby decided to drop the digital word from their logo and only used the double D and the word DOLBY to the right as their new official design. Studios such as Disney, Dreamworks, Universal, Warners & Newline among others still continued using the standard Dolby Digital logo but Fox, Paramount and Columbia have been using the plain Dolby logo for some time now. To confuse matters more, I just saw a print ad for "BALLISTIC:ECKS vs SEVER" with a "New" logo that features the double D, the word Dolby to the right and the word "Stereo" below it. Here I always thought Dolby Stereo was for films with Dolby A soundtracks!

Dolby did the same thing when the first laserdisc with Dolby 5.1 sound was released. Instead of proudly using the well established Dolby Digital logo, they decided to call the new home video 5.1 sound process, AC-3. It did not take them too long to realize that this was a very stupid mistake. The Dolby Digital logo replaced AC-3 and has been that way ever since. It would not surprise me to see the "NEW" Dolby Stereo logo on DVDs in the coming months.

SRD is one of my favorite sound process and from what I have been told, the harware you guys use in the booth has been very reliable. It is unfortunate that the people in Dolby's advertising department is not as inovative as the people who developed the digital sound process.

-Claude

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Aaron Sisemore
Flaming Ribs beat Reeses Peanut Butter Cups any day!

Posts: 3061
From: Rockwall TX USA
Registered: Sep 1999

posted 09-20-2002 04:41 PM

If you are talking about logos on theatrical prints, the reason you see only the 'Dolby' (non-digital) logo on Sony prints is because the vast majority (but not all) of Sony releases DO NOT carry SRD tracks. The plain 'Dolby' logo is licensed for use to identify both A-type and SR analog tracks.

if you are referring to video, I have no idea who's doing what.

-Aaron

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Claude S. Ayakawa
Film God

Posts: 2738
From: Waipahu, Hawaii, USA
Registered: Aug 2002

posted 09-20-2002 05:02 PM

Aaron,

You fail to understand my point and I am very sorry about that. I was not only talking about Sony. By the ways, almost all of Sony's pictures now have SRD tracks beside their SDDS format. I can understand the use of the current plain Dolby logo but to go back and feature a logo that says Dolby Stereo in print advertising for a new feature that has an SRD soundtrack is confusing. By the way, whenever a film is in Dolby SRD, SR or A, there used to be a tag that said "In Seleced Theatres" under the logo.

-Claude

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Martin Brooks
Jedi Master Film Handler

Posts: 900
From: Forest Hills, NY, USA
Registered: May 2002

posted 09-20-2002 06:11 PM

In New York City, the papers do distinguish with appropriate logo the difference between "Dolby", which I assume refers to "A" or "SR" and "Dolby Digital." The surprise however is that more and more, I'm seeing theatres that I know are equipped to play Dolby Digital advertising only a Dolby presentation. I don't understand this because there's only single inventory of these prints, right?

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Bill Gabel
Film God

Posts: 3873
From: Technicolor / Postworks NY, USA
Registered: Jan 2002

posted 09-20-2002 06:31 PM

Not all studios distinguish the appropriate Dolby Logo. Look at
Fox & Fox Searchlight. On some of the big pictures Fox will list
SRD / SDDS / DTS formats in the papers. But most of the times Fox
uses the plain wrap Dolby Logo in the papers. Most of the time the
booker and the studio reps and the people at the home office have
no idea of what Digital formats are on their screens now. At some of the plexs I worked the units stayed in that auditorium. And the
booker and the studio knew with format was in every screen. Then
later we started moving them from screen to screen and theatre to
theatre. One week this small plex has SRD or DTS, then it gets moved
to another theatre. So no one know except the Booth.

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Michael Brown
Phenomenal Film Handler

Posts: 1522
From: Bradford, England
Registered: May 2001

posted 09-21-2002 06:28 AM

I agree. If the film has an SRD track then the Digital logo should be used. I've think I've seen a print add somewhere with the plan Dolby logo in use for Men in Black II. The films is SRD-EX.

Twister and Mask of Zorro were both quad films. The end credits had the corect DTS and SDDS logos' but only the plane Dolby logo.

And What is up with the end credits for Jerry Maguire and Space Jam? They both had the plan Dolby logo AND the DTS Stereo (not digita) logo. There carn't be two analog tracks!!

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Claude S. Ayakawa
Film God

Posts: 2738
From: Waipahu, Hawaii, USA
Registered: Aug 2002

posted 09-21-2002 06:14 PM

As long as films such as "MY FAT GREEK WEDDING" is released in SR and a few others come with only a Dolby A track, Dolby should instruct all studios to use their proper sound logos on print ads and at the end of film credits. Dolby is very notorious about the way they promote their sound systems. Take the Dolby Digital EX system for example. As I understand, there is no indication that a film is in EX on the shipping container, paper film bands or on the film leader. The only way one can tell if a film is in EX is by the serial number on the DTS discs and sometimes at the end credits. Dolby's website also lists the proper sound process but why should a projectionist have to go to all that trouble when all that information can be printed on the film leader?

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David Stambaugh
Film God

Posts: 4021
From: Eugene, Oregon
Registered: Jan 2002

posted 09-21-2002 06:31 PM

Dolby probably does have guidelines for the use of their logos, but if nobody's paying attention to the guidelines, who's going to "police" the problem? Films often have the wrong sound logos in the credits. Others have said that sometimes EX prints are labeled EX, but not always. Regal here is advertising MBFGW (SR-only) in Dolby Digital on their marquee and "Digital" in their stack ad. Their marquee always has the "Dolby Digital" logo for every feature, regardless of sound format actually being used (they are equipped with SR-D, SDDS, and DTS). They actually have the SDDS and DTS logo-things for the marquee but I guess it's easier to just leave the Dolby logo up all the time.

The battle for using accurate sound format information was lost a long time ago.

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Frank Angel
Film God

Posts: 5305
From: Brooklyn NY USA
Registered: Dec 1999

posted 09-21-2002 08:29 PM

I just ran SKINS and the paper (1-sheets) had the standard Dobly Digital logo and then to the right of the word Digital was the word "Surround" sticking out, unbalancing the logo, obviously just stuck there by some drunk graphic artist.

Precision in communication from the sound department and the production department is flakey at best (I've seen SR prints that had the Digital logo in the credit crawl and mono prints with Dolby Stereo in the credit crawl) and more times than not, it is worse between production and marketing -- what goes on the paper and in print ads is, well, not what we could call accurate to a scientific certainty. Worst part is, it seems we are the only ones who worry about it.

Frank

I have seen the light.....and it is Carbon Arc.

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