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Author Topic: SDDS Michael Elam Film Handler Posts: 84 From: Clarksville, IN, USA Registered: Mar 2001 posted 05-26-2003 07:02 PM                     How much longer will SDDS prints be around?  |  IP: Logged Joe Redifer You need a beating today Posts: 12859 From: Denver, Colorado Registered: May 99 posted 05-26-2003 08:21 PM                        Few weeks maybe? After that, any print containing SDDS will dissolve into powder. But you do have a good point. Fewer and fewer studios support SDDS regularly. Sucks to be AMC (heh).  |  IP: Logged Claude S. Ayakawa Film God Posts: 2738 From: Waipahu, Hawaii, USA Registered: Aug 2002 posted 05-26-2003 10:27 PM                        Joe, I think the number supporting SDDS has been steady with the regulars-Warner Brothers, New Line Cinema, Disney, Universal, and of course their own studio, Columbia Pictures still releasing all of their pictures with a SDDS soundtrack. Every once in a while, Paramount ,Fox and MGM also release in SDDS. This releasing pattern has not changed in years. -Claude  |  IP: Logged Steve Guttag We forgot the crackers Gromit!!! Posts: 12814 From: Annapolis, MD Registered: Dec 1999 posted 05-26-2003 11:42 PM                     Claude, Actually it does seem to be getting worse for SDDS...even the "major" releases by the non-supporting studios are now SDDS free whereas they used to ensure their blockbuster films were quad format. I also don't see 8-channel films on the horizon...is HULK 8-channel? Spiderman was. Harry Potter 1 was 8-channel but Harry Potter 2 was not. Star Wars 1 was 8-channel, Star Wars II was not. Here is something to consider...if Sony would abandon their format like that on film...why would they support any DCinema endevor? I think Sony is shooting themselves in the foot for not sticking with the format until the end of film's days. Steve  |  IP: Logged Scott Norwood Film God Posts: 8146 From: Boston, MA. USA (1774.21 miles northeast of Dallas) Registered: Jun 99 posted 05-27-2003 02:39 AM                        SDDS? What's that? It's been a very long time since I've seen anything that wasn't a super-wide major-studio release that had an SDDS track. I'm doing the art-house thing right now and it's pretty rare to see anything other than SRD. SR-only releases are pretty common, too. I don't think I've ever seen even a Sony Pictures Classics title with an SDDS track. On the other hand, art houses just don't install anything other than SRD (if they have digital--or even regular Dolby Stereo--capability at all).  |  IP: Logged Michael Elam Film Handler Posts: 84 From: Clarksville, IN, USA Registered: Mar 2001 posted 05-27-2003 02:57 AM                     That's the problem with Sony, they always bail out, they make good stuff, just doesn't support it long enough. I'm wondering how much longer should I spend $$$ to keep the readers working.  |  IP: Logged Jason Whyte Expert Film Handler Posts: 132 From: Victoria, BC, Canada Registered: Sep 2002 posted 05-27-2003 03:53 AM                        I don't think there's a single cinema in Western Canada running SDDS at all at the moment...(if there IS, please correct me by PM or email) I've always found the format extremely hard to come by up in these parts. Jason  |  IP: Logged John Hawkinson Film God Posts: 2273 From: Cambridge, MA, USA Registered: Feb 2002 posted 05-27-2003 08:46 AM                     Steve, in re 8-channel films, if the DTS XD10 takes off, I suspect we'll see more films mixed for more channels. And hopefully it will be handled such that there's a natural fold-down from the XD10 to SDDS-8, such that it will be easy to mix for both at the same time. --jhawk  |  IP: Logged Paul Linfesty Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1383 From: Bakersfield, CA, USA Registered: Nov 1999 posted 05-27-2003 08:51 AM                     quote: On the other hand, art houses just don't install anything other than SRD Unfortunately, many L.A. arthouses have anything but SRD systems. Bizarre, but true. Landmark's Fine Arts Theatre only has SDDS, so most of their films play back in SR. Their Westside Pavilion had/has a DTS unit, which they may have moved to their NuWilshire which used it for Gosford Park, but get very little DTS product to show. (The Fine Arts SDDS unit is left over from when it was an AMC). Laemmle has the Fairfax triplex, with one auditorium having DTS, the res are just SR, and four screens of their Fallbrook 7 are DTS, with only 1 SRD screen and 2 SDDS. I have to agree with Scott, this makes no sense for an arthouse, except for economical reasons. But I think they are using left-over equipment from when they had aquired the theatres.  |  IP: Logged Mark Gulbrandsen Resident Trollmaster Posts: 16657 From: Music City Registered: Jun 99 posted 05-27-2003 10:11 AM                     We've had two units into Sony for repair now for quite some time. I have heard both units act up at least on several occasions and was able to easily rule out the B chain. A month or so ago I received a call from Sony repair and they said they could find no problems with either unit. I told the tech, a nice Japaneese man to keep looking as they will act up. In fact one unit already had all the boards swapped out, but the unit still acted up. One unit had a fader problem with the left channel, and the other had popping sounds in all channels. So last week we got faxed estimates for repairing both. I guess they finally did act up for the tech. But one units cost was close to 1Kand the other was closer to 2K! It'll be interesting to see if both customers get them repaired after they find out how much it'll cost them. Personally I think Sony shot themselves in the foot by even bringing these things onto the market! They developed a really bad reputation from the start. Then they shot them selves in the head by not bring out a stand alone decoder(ala DA-20) that would run through existing cinema processors the same way everyone else does. I know in both my cases that had they been stand alone decoders they would both still be running as the problems were in the processor part, not the SDDS decoder. Mark @ CLACO  |  IP: Logged John Pytlak Film God Posts: 9987 From: Rochester, NY 14650-1922 Registered: Jan 2000 posted 05-27-2003 10:26 AM                        Here's the most current list of features with SDDS tracks from the Sony SDDS website: http://www.sdds.com/news_movies.cfm And here are the SDDS-8 releases: http://www.sdds.com/news_movies.cfm?showfilms=8  |  IP: Logged Charles Everett Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1470 From: New Jersey Registered: May 2001 posted 05-29-2003 04:32 PM                     quote: It's been a very long time since I've seen anything that wasn't a super-wide major-studio release that had an SDDS track. Warner Bros.: SDDS on most if not all releases, arthouse titles (A Mighty Wind) included. Universal: SDDS if the company finances the picture, arthouse titles (The Guru) included. No SDDS if the film is a pickup (Empire, Brotherhood of the Wolf, Mulholland Drive). Sony: SDDS on all Columbia and most Screen Gems titles, including Swept Away. Sony Pictures Classics: SDDS if the company finances the picture (Sunshine State, Auto Focus). No SDDS if the film is a pickup (Talk to Her, Spider, Laurel Canyon). Buena Vista: SDDS on all mainstream and most arthouse titles. 25th Hour had SDDS; Moonlight Mile had SDDS; Spirited Away did not.  |  IP: Logged Matt Hale Expert Film Handler Posts: 123 From: Vancouver, Canada Registered: Dec 2002 posted 05-29-2003 06:06 PM                        Okay, paraphrasing my post that got lost when the drive crashed: When we build our new mix stage this year, it will only be equipped for channels up to 6.1. The design will allow for the addition of more tracks (SDDS-8, DTS-10 etc...) in the future, but we will only add them if its required for a project. Based on the demand we have seen in the past (i.e. none) we cant justify the cost of the extra equipment at the outset. It becomes a vicious circle: If there are few theatres equipped for sound format X, then producers are reluctant to spend the money for a mix in that format. And if there aren't many films released with sound in format X, then there is little justification for theatres to install the equipment. Pretty soon it will be impossible to release in format X even if you want to, becasue the production facilities are caught up in the same circle.  |  IP: Logged Ron Lacheur Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 650 From: British Columbia, Canada Registered: Feb 2002 posted 05-31-2003 02:56 AM                     Jason there was quite a few sdds units in use at the Cineplex Grande up until 2000.  |  IP: Logged Mathew Molloy Master Film Handler Posts: 357 From: The Santa Cruz Mountains Registered: Nov 2000 posted 05-31-2003 03:18 PM                     Paul, the Westside doesn't have DTS and I'm not sure if they ever did - unless it was put in for Yellow Submarine only. The NuWilshire had a DTS installed for Yellow Submarine but the last time it was used was for Hedwig & The Angry Inch. That unit was sent up to a Seattle theatre before Gosford Park I think. The Regent just picked up a DTS unit that should be up and running soon. The Regent also has SRD and so does The Nuart.  |  IP: Logged

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