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Dolby Stereo Technical Guidelines
for Dolby Stereo Theatres





PLEASE NOTE THIS PUBLICATION IS FROM 1994 AND MAY NOT
REFLECT THE LATEST TECHNOLOGY IN THE INDUSTRY.






Dolby and the double-D symbol are registered trademarks of Dolby Laboratories.
All other trademarks remain the property of their respective owners.
1994 Dolby Laboratories, Inc. All rights reserved. S05/16463

DN
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DOLBY STEREO
Techni cal Gui del i nes for
Dolby Stereo Theatres
0
November 1994
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R. ev 1. 33
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November, 1994
Techni cal
Gui del i nes
for Dol by
stereo
Theatres
--DRAFT
Many people
contribute
to these guidelines. particular
thanks
are due to David schwind
of Charles salter Associates
for much
of the acoustic
advice. Elizabeth
Cohen of cohen Acoustics,
John Eargl e
of
JBL
and Toml i nson
Hol man
of USC and
Lucasfilm,
provide
significant
contributions
to this ongoing
project'
From within Dolby Laboratories
there are numerous
witting and un-witting
contributors:
in particular
Tom Bruchs,
Sam Chavez, Louis Fielder,
John
Iles, Lonny
Jennings, Scott
Robinson,
Charles Seagrave and David Watts.
some
manufacturers'
equipment
is specifically
cited in this
mat eri al '
such ci t at i ons
are def i ni t i vel y
non-excl usi ve
manufacturers
are welcome
to contact Dolby Laboratories
with
information
about any equivalent
or superior
performance
equipment
that they believe
shourd be included
in future
editions
of these guidelines.
omission
of specific equipment
does not imply lack of fitness.
Ioan Al l en
September
20th 1993
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ODolby Laborato ries Inc. 1992/ 1994
s95 /9557 / 10147
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Contents
*
Architects and building
designers
should note all
construction and renovation
projects.
1.0 Introduction
2. 0 B-Chai n
2.1 Dynamic
Range Requirements
2.1.1 Power Amplifier
Size
2.1.2 Information
on New
Jiffy
2.2 Screen Loudspeakers
2. 2. 1 Locat i on
*
2.2.2Loudspeaker
Type
2.2.3 Loudspeaker
Walls
*
2.2.4 Cross-overs
2.2.5 Characteristic
Curve
2.2.6 Measurement
2.3 Surround Loudspeakers
2. 3. 1 Locat i on
*
2.3.2 Loudspeaker
Type
2.3.3 Mounting
Angles
2.3.4 Characteristic
Curve
2.3.5 Measurement
2.4 Sub-woofers
2.4.1 Location
*
2.4.2 Notional
Cross-over
2.4.3 Need for Bass Extension
2. 4. 4 Tuni ng
2.4.5 Power Requirements
items rnarked rt'ith an asterisk for new
-2-
3. 0 A-Chai n
a 1
J . l
3. 2
Analog
3. 1. 1
J. r . / -
a 1 a
J , I . J
3. 1. 4
3. 1. 5
Digital
3. 2. 1
3. 2. 2
a - t
J . L . J
a i t
1 / 4
Frequency ftesponse
Slit
Exciter Lamp/Supply
Illumination Uniformity
Wow and Flutter
Al i gnment
Wow and Fl utter
Il l umi nati on Uni formi ty
Exci ter Lamp/Suppl y
4. 0 Acoust i cs
4. 1Cri teri a
*
4. t J Noi se Fl oor
4.1.2 Reverberati on Ti me
4. 1. 3 Ref l ect i ons
4.1.4 Early Lateral Reflections
4.1.5 Rear Screen Dampi ng
New Theatre Design
*
4.2.1 New Theatre Location
4.2.2 Ceilings
4.2.3 Floors
4. 2. 4 Wal l s
4.2.5 Seats
Background Noise
*
4. 3. 1 HVAC Desi gn
4.3.2 Maintenance
4. 2
4. 3
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4.4 Sound Isolation
*
4.4.1 Ceilings and Floors
4. 4. 2Doors
5.0 Cinema Processor Updates
5. 1CP50
5.2 CP55
5.3 CP200
6.0 Picture Issues
6.1 Screen Size
*
6.2 Screen Type
6.3 Light on Screen
6.4 Color Temperature
6.5 Reflected and Ambient Light
6.6 Porthole Design
*
6.7 Shutters
7.0 Test Films
7. 1 Sound
7. 1. 1 Anal og
7.1.2Digital
7.2 Picture
7.2.1. RP40
7.3 General Purpose
7.4 Trailers
-4-
8.0 Other Information
8.1 Dolby Laboratories Equipment Manuals
8. 1. 1CP55
8. 1. 2 CP65
8.1.3 CP200
8. 1. 4 SRAs
8. 1. 5 DA10
8. 1. 6 DA20
8.2 Sound and Picture Projection Standards
8.2.1 ANSI202M (1502969)
8.2.2Light on Screen
8.2.3 Reflected/Ambient Light
8.2.4 Projected Image
QualitY
8.3 Other Information Sources
B.3.L Technical
fournals
and Magazines
8.3.2 Inter-Society Committee
8.3.3 TEA
8.3.4 THX
8.4 Dolby Technical Help
8.4.1 Training Courses
8.4.2 Technical Help Hot-Line
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Fieures
2.7: Peak power levels
--
A-type, SR, SR.D
2.2: Polver needed v. Room Size
2.3: Stage Loudspeaker Characteristic Curve
2.4: Single Microphone Equalisation Location
2.5: Multiplexed Microphones Equalisation Location
2.6: Good surround location
2.7: Surrounds too far forward
2.8: Typical Surround Characteristic Curve
2.9: Sub-woofer level setting
2.10: Sub-woofer Power Requirements
2.I1: Surround Power Requirements
3. 1:
3. 3:
Cat. No. 69 Pi nk Noi se Frequency Response
Anal og v. Di gi tal Probl em audi bi l i ty
Di gi tal Surround Del ay Setti ng
Noi se Fl oor i n whol e octaves
Noi se Fl oor i n thi rd octaves
Acceptabl e Reverberati on v. Room Vol ume at 500H2
Reverberati on Scal i ng curve for audi o bandwi dth
Juncti on
Box Treatment
Recommended demi si ng wal l desi gn
Screeni ng Room/Proj ecti on Room mi ni mum wal l desi gn
Opti mum subtended screen angl e
Adj ustabl e maski ng, 2.35:I and 1.85:1,
Adj ustabi e maski ng, 2.35:1, 1.85:1, and 1.66:1
Superi or Parti ti on
--
Mi ni mum i nternal l y refl ecti ve,
sound i sol ati on port desi gn
Opti mum Port Gl ass Proj ecti on Angl es
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1. 0 I nt roduct i on
Modern fi l m sound-tracks are provi ng i ncreasi ngl y demandi ng to
exhibitors; not only is the theatre owner being asked to buy new front-
end decoding equipment for a variety of sound-track formats, but these
new formats are pl aci ng i ncreasi ng demands on many aspects of
theatre sound.
Dol by I-aboratori es has publ i shed a seri es of documents over the years,
di scussi ng the requi rements of each progressi vel y i mproved sound-
t rack f ormat t he company has i nt roduced. Thi s bookl et provi des
gui del i nes for theatres tryi ng to take ful l advantage of the most
common exi sti ng sound-track formats at the ti me of wri ti ng, and
anti ci pates what i ncreasi ng demands the di gi tal sound-track on Dol by
SR. D pri nt s may present .
New Sound-track Formats
we shoul d begi n by re-i terati ng what seems fai rl y obvi ous to the
engi neers i nvol ved i n fi l m sound-track technol ogy, what i s frequentl y
mi ssed by some peopl e i nvol ved i n exhi bi t i on, and i s cert ai nl y
mi sunderstood bv much of the movi e-goi ng publ i c
--
the sound-track
format, mono, Dol by Stereo, Dol by Stereo SR, and now the di gi tal
sound-track of Dol by sR.D, does not i tsel f defi ne how l oud or qui et a
sound-track wi l l be, or how extended the frequency response. The
fi l m-maker determi nes the arti sti c extents of the sound-track, not the
format desi gner. The fi l m-maker deci des duri ng the post-producti on
process how loud the loudest bits of his films should be, how quiet the
quietest
--
how extended the frequency range should be, how wide the
stereo, and how l oud the surround effects. The rol e of the i nventor,
sci enti st and engi neer i nvol ved i n the technol ogy of fi l m sound i s to
make it possible for the full artistic range of the director to be carried
on the fi l m sound-track. And the rol e of the fi l m exhi bi tor i s to
ensure that thi s ful l sound-track capabi l i ty can be reproduced i n the
theatre.
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The two Dolby Stereo formats most challenging for theatre playback
are Dolby SR and the digital sound-track of Dolby SR.D release prints.
The analog SR format is in some respects less demanding of theatre
criteria, but in some areas, especially the A-chain, requires as careful
attention as the new digital sound-tracks. These guidelines discuss
these issues, and explain the minimum acceptable playback parameters
for both of these new high-fidelity sound-track formats.
- 8-
2. 0 B-Chai n
2.1 Dynami c Range Requi rements
The most obvi ous f eat ure of t he new hi gh-f i del i t y
sound-t racks,
anal og sR and di gi tal sR.D, i s a si gni fi cant i ncrease i n dynami c range.
The potenti al for l ouder sounds requi res attenti on to l oudspeakers,
power ampl i fi ers and sound i sol ati on between screens. Iteproducti on
of qui et er sounds requi res at t ent i on t o sound i sol at i on (agai n),
and
background noi se.
2. L. 1 Power Ampl i f i er Si ze
1. Each channel of t he sound syst em shoul d have a power handl i ng
capabi l i t y easi l y capabl e of pl ayi ng back an sR f i l m recorded at 100%
modul at i on l evel at al l f requenci es t hroughout t he audi o bandwi dt h.
Thi s shoul d be t he ver y mi ni mum capabi l i t y f or Dol by di gi t al
pi ayback, and a crest factor (safety
margi n) may requi re a si gni fi cant
i ncrease i n power ampl i f i er si ze.
The di al og l evel on both the anal og and di gi tal sRoD sound-tracks wi l l
be at the same acousti c l evel as that of the di al og of a conventi onal
Dol by stereo fi l m. occasi onal sound effect
"sti ngs"
and musi c, though,
can have a l evei far greater than found on conventi onal fi l ms, and
thi s i ncreased peak l evel capabi l i ty i s one of the great advantages of
both anai og sR, and the di gi tal sound-track on a Dol by stereo sRoD
pri nt. Dependi ng on the si gnal content, the peak l evel s on an anal og
sR sound-track can be 3dB hi gher, ri si ng to 9 dB hi gher at frequency
extremes, as shown i n Fi gure 2.1. The di gi tal sound-track can provi de
a peak l evel 12dB above conventi onal A-type Dol by stereo fi l ms; i t i s
al so i mportant to note that thi s peak l evel capabi l i ty (around
103 dBC
for each stage/screen ci rannel ) i s constant wi th frequency.
As a very rough gui de, anal og sR sound-tracks i n smal l and medi um
si zed theatres, peak l c' vel s wi l l requi re power ampl i fi ers for the screen
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channels with total power output ratings of at least 250 watts. The
mono surround channel for SR playback will probably need at least 400
watts.
Large t heat res wi l l requi re
i ncrement al cost i ncrease of
compared wi th a 250 watt uni t
al ways i nstal l ampl i fi ers wi th a
even more power however, t he
a 500 wat t pow-er ampl i f i er when
i s tri vi al . If i n doubt, a theatre shoul d
power safety margi n.
It i s unl i kel y that any fi l m mi x wi l l take ful l use of the sRoD di gi tal
capabi l i ty for more than an occasi onal
"sti ng".
But exami nati on
of
anal og sR tracks shows regul ar cl i ppi ng at 100%. so, for a very
mi ni mum, power ampl i fi ers shoul d be abl e to reproduce the typi cal
l evel s of anal og sR. More power i s requi red i f a safe margi n i s to be
provi ded for sR anal og, and for pl ayback of the di gi tal Dol by stereo
sound-track.
Total i nsurance of enough power for a Dol by sR.D di gi tal sound-track
can be deri ved from Fi g. 2.2. unl i ke some opti mi sti c nomograms for
power requi rements, thi s model takes no account of room vol ume
and reverberati on ti me. Transi ent sounds (of short durati on) are not
augmented by reverberati on, and the requi red power for a gi ven
sound-pressure-l evel at a speci fi c seat i s di rectl y control l ed by the di rect
sound fi el d
-
an i nverse-square l aw characteri sti c based on how far the
l i stener i s from the l oudspeaker.l
1
One of the di ffi cul ti es i n cal cul ati ng sound pressure l evel s comes from the
increased reverberation times in large rooms. This increased reverberation will
onl y be appl i ed to steady-state, or quasi -steady-state, si gnal s. Di al og i s
mai nl y made up of short staccato sounds (l i ke t' s, k' s, p' s). Consequentl y a mi x
bal ance created i n a smal l room, wi th a short reverberati on ti me, wi l i sound
different in a big room, with those music components with sustained sound.s
bei ng augmented by reverberati on. The di al og may sound rel ati vel y qtri eter
wi th respect to the musi c. sound pressure l evel s for the pl ayback of Dol by
sJereo are set up usi ng pi nk noi se, a quasi -steady state si gnal ,o,r..u.
Theoreti cal l y, thi s means that i n a bi g audi tori um (say 1000 seats or more), the
music will play at the same level as in a small room, but the staccato elements
of di al og wi l l pl ay l ower. It can be argued on a theoreti cal basi s that i n a
really big theatre, for dialog to have the same level as in a small theatre, the
reference SPL should be increased from 85dBC to (say)
86 or
g7dBC.
The result
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The power requi rement deri ved from Fi g. 2.2 i s the total power needed
for a screen channel . If the system i s bi -amped (vi rtual l y
essenti al ) the
power for each HF and LF secti on shoul d be approxi matel y two-thi rds
of that shown.
For an anal og SR sound-track, power ampl i fi er headroom capabi l i ty
can be tested by i nstal l i ng a Cat. No. 85C Dol by pi nk noi se generator
i nt o t he Dol by processor, and assumi ng Fader 7 i s t he normal
operati ng l evel , turni ng the fader up by 3 poi nts, i .e. up to Fader 10.
Exami ne the power ampl i fi er output si gnal on the osci l l oscope, and
conf i rm t hat t he si gnal i s not cl i pped, whi ch wi l l be evi denced by
squari ng of the si gnal peaks. Do not run thi s test for extended peri ods
of ti me, as l oudspeakers coul d be damaged. The test shoul d be repeated
for each stage l oudspeaker channel .
To veri fy power ampl i fi er capabi l i ty for a ful l y modul ated sR.D di gi tal
sound-track, the fol l owi ng test can be used...
A tone burst generator i s used to i nsert a si gnal i nto the theatre sound
system. The output l evel of the generator i s set such that i t woul d
generate a pl ayback l evel i n the theatre of 103 dB. Ideal l y, there shoul d
be some means of bri ngi ng t he l evel up f rom no sound t o t he
maxi mum 103 dB l evel at a reference seat two-thi rds of the way back i n
the house wi th a fader. The easi est way i s to run the si gnal i nto the
ci nema processor and then use the house fader to control the l evel .
The tone generator shoul d be abl e to output tones at the fol l owi ng
frequenci es: (for Left, Center, Ri ght, and each Surround Channel )
63H2, 200H2, IkHz, 4kHz, and (for subwoofer) 50 Hz. The different
frequenci es wi l l gi ve a better i dea of the capabi l i ti es of the system i f i t
l Las speakers t hat have a def i ci ent response and t heref ore need
excessi ve eq (whi ch l i mi ts headroom). The tone shoul d be gated wi th
a synchronous (zero crossi ng) swi tch that has an
"on"
ti me of 250 msec
(3/4 sec) and an
"off"
ti me of 2 sec. In regards to damagi ng speakers
from thi s hi gh-l evel si gnal , the short
"on"
ti me wi th a rel ati vel y l ong
woul d be a consi stent di al og
state si gnal s, sustai ned musi c
playback level, but an increase in level of steady-
or effects.
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"of f "
t i me shoul d al l ow f or a real i st i c t est of t he sound syst em
headroom wi thout damagi ng the speakers (or, l ess l i kel y, the amps) i n
the process. A storage scope i s connected to the output of the power
amp for the channel to be tested. The tone-bursts are swi tched on for
that channel and the fader turned up whi l e observi ng the scope trace.
As the fader i s rai sed to the 103 dB l evel l ook on the osci l l oscope for
si gns of the ampl i fi er cl i ppi ng. If the maxi mum l evel can be reached
wi th no si gn of cl i ppi ng and wi th no audi bl e si gn of stress from the
l oudspeaker, the channel wi l l probabl y be sati sfactory for the demands
of a di gi tal soundtrack.
2.1".2 New
|iffy
test film
An updated versi on of the wel l -known
Ji ffy
test fi l m i s now avai l abl e
from Dol by Laboratori es. The new
Ji ffy
test fi l m contai ns both an SR
soundt rack and a di gi t al soundt rack. There are si x mi nut es of
subjective audio tests, in some cases different for the analog and digital
soundtracks, whi ch i ncl ude hi gh-l evel tone bursts for checki ng power
ampl i fi er and l oudspeaker capabi l i ty. The test fi l m al so contai ns some
qui ck vi sual tests, to veri fy frami ng and checki ng for ghosti ng and
shutter probl ems.
2. 2 Screen Loudspeakers
2. 2. 1Locat i on
The Left and Ri ght screen l oudspeakers shoul d be mounted at the l eft
and ri ght ext remes of t he screen wi dt h when t he maski ng i s f ul l y
opened f or pr oj ect i on of a 2. 35: L
( Ci nemascope)
aspect r at i o
anamorphi c pi ct ure. I f screen maski ng covers t hese l oudspeakers
when a L. 85: L pi ct ure i s bei ng proj ect ed, hi gh-f requency at t enuat i on
due to the screen maski ng shoul d not exceed 2 dB at 8 kHz.
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The obvi ous i ntenti on of many el ements i n a stereo sound-track i s
that a sound shoul d seem to emanate from the same l ocati on as the
rel ated pi cture i rnage. when an actor cl oses a door at the l eft of the
pi cture, the sound of the cl osi ng door shoul d come from the same
l ocati on; when \,ve see a trumpet pl ayer cl ose to the ri ght edge of the
screen, the sound shoutrd come from the same si de of the screen. The
obj ect i ve of st ereo sound i s t o pl ace t he apparent sound source
suffi ci entl y cl ose to the i mage of the trumpet, i n a way such that sound
and pi cture together seem
"real ".
Li steni ng to musi c i n the home pl aces no speci fi c demands that stereo
wi dth be accuratel y defi ned
--
there i s no pi cture to whi ch the sound
shoul d match. Typi cal l y, though, the two l oudspeakers wi l l subtend a
total i ncl uded angl e of around 60 degrees to the l i stener. In the home
the di stances from the l oudspeakers are short, and the room surfaces
(f urni shi ngs) are absorbent
--
as a resul t t he l i st ener wi l l hear
domi nantl y the di rect si gnal frorn the l oudspeakers.
In a commerci al theatre, however
--
no matter how smal l , and no
matter how absorbent the materi al s on the wal l s and cei l i ng
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the path
l engths are so much greater that what most of the audi ence hears wi th
non-transi ent materi al i s domi nantl y reverberant i nformati on comi ng
from many di recti ons, refl ected from many room surfaces. Thi s i s
why with a typical theatre layout, measurements show that at best only
i n the fi rst row or two of seats does the near-fi el d di rect si gnal
domi nat e.
As a resul t, from a pri me seat where ,n" ,.*"., subtends an i deal
proj ecti on angl e of 45 degrees, the l i stener may hear an acousti c wi dth
of only 25 or 30 degrees from loudspeakers typically 40 degrees apart,
mount ed at t he screen ends. Furt her back, domi nance of t he
reverberant fi el d i ncreases, and acousti c wi dth therefore narrows sti l l
rnore. Indeed, i n the back rows of most theatres, so much di recti onal
i nformati on i s l ost and the sound becomes so di ffuse that few, i f any,
spot effects can be directly associated with the action on the screen.
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Thi s progressi ve attenuati on of stereo wi dth towards the rear of the
house expl ai ns t he requi rement f or maxi mum possi bl e wi dt h i n
l oudspeaker pl acement. As fi l ms are mi xed to match pi cture i n the
dubbi ng theatre, i t i s di ffi cul t to concei ve of si tuati ons where the
screen i s so l arge, and the reverberati on so short, that the sound i mage
i s too wi de for any of the audi ence not si tti ng i n the front one-or-two
rows.
Thi s requi rement for maxi mum stereo wi dth hol ds equal l y true wi th
t he narrower screen i mage of a 1. 85: 1 movi e, and t o t he maxi mum
wi dt h of a 2. 351 anamorphi c pri nt . Even t hough t he maski ng has
moved in to sharp-matte the 20"/" narrower picture image, the widest
possi bl e audi o i mage shoul d be ret ai ned i n t hi s way, t he
sound/pi cture match wi l l
"work"
for the l argest possi bl e percentage of
the audi ence.
Some years ago, narrowi ng the maski ng and coveri ng the l eft and
ri ght l oudspeakers when proj ecti ng a 1.85:1 pi cture caused maj or audi o
probl ems. (Not surpri si ngl y, when consi deri ng the hi gh-frequency
attenuati on resul ti ng from bl ack fel t!) Happi l y, new techni ques and
materi al s have been devel oped to answer the probl em. Bl ack musl i n,
or acousti cal l y-transparent, l oudspeaker gri l l e cl oth (as used for hi gh-
fi del i ty l oudspeakers) stretched over an
"open"
frame can be used for
an i nsert coveri ng the smal l area of the maski ng obscuri ng the hi gh-
frequency horns. For new theatres, maski ng cl oth (Harkness 2000M)
has been developed which appears matte blact, is acoustically virtually
transparent and i s onl y sl i ghtl y more expensi ve than the bl ack fel t i t
makes obsol ete.l
But even i f acousti cal l y transparent maski ng cl oth i s used, care shoul d
be taken that the hard mounti ng edge (typi cal l y pl ywood) whi ch
supports the cl oth does not cover any part of the horn mouth. Care
shoul d al so be taken that cl oi h fol ded back on i tsel f at the mounti ng
edge does not attenuate the hi gh-frequenci es, and that
"bunchi ng"
r
Harkness Screens, The Gate Studios, Station Road, Boreham Wood, Herts WD6 1DQ, England,
Tel: 081 953 3671,, Fax: 081 207 3657.
-t4-
maski ng cl ot h i n f ront of a l oudspeaker can cause severe hi gh-
frequency attenuati on.
2.2.2Loudspeaker Type
Figure 2.2 can also be used for guidance as to suitable loudspeaker
t ypes. Manuf act urers' l i t erat ure shoul d be consul t ed as t o t he
maximum power handling capability of a given loudspeaker. While
there are several manufacturers offering a wide variety of loudspeaker
types, most quality theatres today are installing bi-amplified systems,
with a constant directivity high-frequency horn and a direct radiator
cone diaphragm-vented box low-frequency unit.
2. 2. 3 Loudspeaker Wal l s
Si nce the earl i est days of l oudspeaker desi gn, i t has been recogni sed
t hat l ow-f requency response can be assi st ed by mount i ng t he
t ransducer i n a pl ane baf f l e. An i nf i ni t e si zed baf f l e put s t he
transducer in what is termed a 2 pi space. This better bass efficiency is
why the cl assi c ci nema l oudspeaker for many years, the Al tec 44, was
provi ded wi th
"wi ngs",
pl ane wooden sheets mounted on ei ther si de
of the LF uni t. Thi s concept was extended i n the l ate seventi es, when
three or five ,A,4 units would be connected with a wooden frame with a
sol i d pl ane baffl e connecti ng each uni t. A si mi l ar i dea was used by
Toml i nson Hol man wi th the THX l oudspeaker systeml , where the
l oudspeaker syst em i s mount ed i n a wal l , covered wi t h sound
absorbent materi al . Thi s baffl e gets cl ose to the theoreti cal l y perfect 2
pi baffl e, but i f the wal l extends from fl oor to cei l i ng i t can al so
effectively cancel transmission of rear screen echoes, as discussed later.
2.2.4 Cross-overs
A bi -ampl i f i ed syst em, wi t h act i ve cross-overs, i s an essent i al
requirement of any high-quality contemporary theatre sound system.
ltHX
is a registered trademark of Lucasfilm Ltd.
-15-
The most important reason for bi-amping is the capability of power
handling of bass and treble simultaneously. In addition, an active
cross-over enables a smooth characteristic over the cross-over region,
with minimum phase discontinuity. Active cross-overs also make
possible a signal delay to the low-frequency unit, improving coherency
of arrivals of HF and LF signals in the seating area, and further
improving signal phase continuity around the cross-over region.
2.2.5 Stage Loudspeaker Characteri sti c Curve
The B-chai n frequency response of the Left, Center and Ri ght screen
channel s shoul d conform to the wi de-range characteri sti c defi ned i n
1502969. The response shoul d extend smoothl y from 40 or 50Hz at l ow
frequenci es to si gni fi cantl y beyond L0kHz, and i deal l y as far as 16kHz.
The l evel di fference between any two l ocati ons i n the normal seati ng
area, measured i n 1/3 octaves from L50H2 to 10kHz, shoul d not exceed
3dBl . See Fi gure 2. 3.
The qual i ty of a theatre' s B-chai n can be assessed i n two areas: fi rst,
how cl osel y the curve matches the requi red frequency response; and
second, how uni forml y the same response i s mai ntai ned throughout
the seati ng area. Matchi ng the requi red response al most certai nl y
requires use of bi-amplification and an active cross-over. The required
uni formi ty of response wi l l normal l y make use of constant di recti vi ty
high-frequency horns mandatory.
A compl ete di scussi on of B-chai n equal i zati on techni ques can be
found i n each Dol by ci nema processor manual .
rIn
most theatres, the reverberant field dominates in most of the normal seating
area. In small rooms, however, with a seating capacity of less than, say, 150
seats, that sector of the audience seated closer to the screen receive a signal
dominated by the direct field. ln such cases, inverse square law losses can cause
a noticeable fall-off in energy over the first few rows of the theatre, and may
make it impossible to sustain the quoted 3dB figure. In these small theatres,
the installer should verify a smooth fall-off with distance from the screen, and
an even distribution laterally across the seating area.
-76-
Note: i he USA nati onal equi val ent standard to 1502969 i s ANSI
PH22.202M, and the Bri ti sh Standard i s BS5550:7.4.1.
2. 2. 6 Measurement
There i s a di scussi on of B-chai n measurement techni ques i n each
Dol by ci nema processor manual . Unti l the l ast few years, i t was
normal practi ce to use a si ngl e cal i brated mi crophone, pl aced i n a
"normal "
seat l ocati on, asymmetri cal l y l ocated wi th respect to the
theatre's centrelines, and set approximately two-thirds of the way back
i n the theatre. See Fi gure 2.4. A consci enti ous i nstal l er woul d then
move the mi crophone to an al ternati ve l ocati on, and
"average"
the
equal i sati on for the best overal l resul ts.
In recent years, mi crophone mutl ti pl exers have come i nto i ncreasi ng
pr omi nence, t ypi cal l y wi t h f our cal i br at ed mi cr ophones.
Measurement of four l ocati ons i n the theatre resul ts i n a much more
even equal i sati on throughout the seati ng area. Practi cal experi ence
suggests that best resul ts are achi eved wi th the mi crophones pl aced
substantially in the reverberant field, in a layout such as that shown in
Fi gure 2.5. Agai n, care shoul d be taken not to pl ace mi crophones on
each central axi s of the theatre, where standi ng waves can cause
aberrant condi ti ons.
In mixdown, dubbing theatres, and small review rooms used for print
quality control, where the listening/viewing area is small with respect
to the size of the room, the microphone locations should be located
within the area of interest.
The mi crophones shoul d normal l y be mounted at l i stener' s head
hei ght. However, i f the seats have hi gh backs, the mi crophones
should be raised up so that they are at least 9 inches above the top of
the seat, thus avoiding any grazing effects.
- 17-
2.3 Surround Loudspeakers
2.3.L Number and Locati on
The fi rst step i n determi ni ng the number, type and l ocati on of
surround l oudspeakers, i s t o consi der t he l i kel y power handl i ng
requi rements. Dol by SR, for exampl e, can requi re a peak l evel i n the
mi ddl e of the audi tori um of a mi ni mum of 92 dBC wi th normal
program, and as much as 6dB more if the sound-track were used to its
f ul l l ow-f requency l i mi t s. For an SR. D di gi t al sound-t rack, t he
equi val ent l evel i s 103dBC for a mono surround pl ayback, or 100dBC
for i ndi vi dual l eft and ri ght surround stri ngs of a stereo surround
i nst al l at i on. Assumi ng no assi st ance f rom reverberat i on (i e t he
maxi mum peak l evel i s that requi red to del i ver a transi ent sound, see
sect i on 2. 1. 1 above), t he di mensi ons of t he t heat re can be used t o
cal cul ate the total l oudspeaker power requi red.
The first thing to do is to calculate the total electrical power required.
In some cases the proxi mi ty of the surround speakers to a wal l may
contri bute to thei r effi ci ency. However, thi s factor has been omi tted
from the present cal cul ati on si nce i t i s onl y val i d for l ow and mi ddl e
frequenci es and onl y i f the speakers are agai nst a wal l and not spaced
away from the actual hard surface.
The desi red maxi mum rms sound pressure l evel at the l i steners' ears
i s 100 dB per surround channel for a stereo surround confi gurati on.
The total el ectri cal power requi red from each si de' s power ampl i fi er i s
given by
/ Lp-S+20l oe r \
l - - l
wart . s
=
I o\
l o )
where
Lp
=
desired SPL (100 dB in this case)
S
=
spe;rker sensitivity
,
dB SPL at 1 meter distance for i watt input
r
=
distance from wall to centerline of theater in metres
See Fi gure 2. 11
- 18-
Havi ng determi ned the total el ectri cal power requi red per si de, we
must now fi nd out how many speakers are requi red to handl e thi s
amount of power. The number of speakers N i s cal cul ated from
N= el ectri cal power (cal cul ated above) di ui ded by the power rati ng per
speaker
Thi s i s the mi ni mum number of speakers per surround si de requi red
to handl e the necessary power. A greater number of speakers may be
requi red to secure good uni formi ty of coverage of the audi ence area.
In practi ce, the number of speakers requi red i s the l arger of the two
numbers deri ved from coverage requi rements and power handl i ng
ability.
The speakers shoul d be connected i n seri es/paral l el so that they al l
recei ve equal power and the i mpedance presented to the power
ampl i fi er i s around 4 ohms. Most wel l -desi gned modern ampl i fi ers
wi l l dri ve 4 ohm l oads wi th a somewhat hi gher power output than
they wi l l a B ohm l oad, but as thi s abi l i ty i s a functi on of the detai l s of
each ampl i fi er, the manufacturer' s data shoul d al ways be consul ted.
Some ampl i fi ers wi l l dri ve i mpedances l ower than 4 ohms; agai n,
consul t the manual or manufacturer.
It may be desi rabl e i n some i nstal l ati ons to arrange the seri es/paral l el
connecti cl n so that the rear-most speakers recei ve sl i ghtl y l ess power
than the front ones. Thi s i s done to match the l ower sound l evel
heard from the screen speakers i n the rear of the audi tori um. In
general , thi s practi ce i s most appropri ate i n l ong rooms wi th short
reverberati on ti mes.
Next, consi der that thi s power has to be shared by a gi ven number of
loudspeakers, which should be spread about the back wall, and the two
rear si de wal l s of the theatre. Opti mum sound bal ance between
channel s di ctates that surround l oudspeakers shoul d be evenl y spread
from hal f-way back from the l eft si de-wal l , through the audi tori um
back wal l , to a poi nt hal f-way up the ri ght wal l . Thi s confi gurati on
-79-
takes account of the rati o of screen to surround sound pressure l evel s,
u.,d ui ro seems subj ecti vel y opti mum when the vi sual domi nance of
screen acti vi ty i s taken i nto account. (See Fi gure 2.6). Avoi d pl aci ng
any surround speakers further forward than 50% or 60"/, of the way
from the rear to the front of the house. Pl aci ng speakers too cl ose to
the screen resul ts i n surround sound bl endi ng i nto screen sound for
audi ence i n the mi ddl e part of the house (especi al l y when the
"draw"
of vi sual screen acti on i s taken i nto account
--
see Fi gure 2.7).
2.3.2 Loudspeaker Type
Manufacturers' l i terature shoul d be consul ted for the power handl i ng
of a gi ven surround l oudspeaker, and thi s determi nes the number of
speakers requi red.
Sel ect i on of a sui t abl e t ype of l oudspeaker, t hough, demands
assessment of more than j ust power handl i ng capabi l i ty. Di ffusi on i s
al so a maj or requi rement of surround channel s, meani ng t hat
surround si gnal s shoul d never appear to come from a poi nt source.
Thi s means that a l arge number of l oudspeakers are al ways preferabl e
to a few, regardl ess of power handl i ng.
Avoi di ng l ocal i zat i on t o a l ocal speaker wi l l al so be assi st ed by
sel ecti ng a speaker wi thout too wi de a di spersi on, as an excessi vel y
wi de di spersi on wi l l cause a domi nati on of hi gh-frequenci es at the seat
cl osest, or di rectl y under, a gi ven l oudspeaker. For thi s reason, three-
way bookshel f-type uni ts shoul d be avoi ded, as wi de di spersi on i s one
of the i ntended desi gn parameters of these uni ts, pri mari l y desi gned
for the home for musi c l i steni ng.
2.3.3 Mounti ng Angl es
Some types of loudspeakers intended for surround use are mounted in
a box wi th a bui l t-i n down angl e. Care shoul d be taken not to accept
this fixed angle as correct for any given auditorium. Depending on the
mounting height, the angle should be set to achieve the most uniform
-20-
response across a l ateral row of seats. In cases where a l ow cei l i ng
resul ts i n the surround speakers bei ng mounted l ower than woul d be
desi rabl e, any downward cant woul d make a bad si tuati on worse,
enhanci ng l ocal i sat i on t o t he nearest l oudspeaker f or t hose seat s
cl osest to the wal l s. In such a si tuati on the l oudspeaker dri vers shoul d
be ai med hori zontal l y, getti ng a percentage of the domi nant di rect
si gnal above the heads of l i steners i n the cl osest seats.
2.3.4 Characteri sti c Curve
The surround B-chai n frequency response shoul d conform to ISo2959
from 125 Hz to 8 kHz, after correcti on for near-fi el d response. The
l evel di fference between any two l ocati ons i n the normal seati ng area,
measured i n 1/3 octaves from 150 Hz to 8 kHz, shoul d not exceed 3dB.
Bel ow 1. 50H2 i t may not be possi bl e t o achi eve t hi s 3dB t ol erance,
dependi ng on t he equal i zer i n use. Care shoul d be t aken, t hough, t o
achi eve the smoothest possi bl e response at these l ower frequenci es.
Mat chi ng t he surround charact eri st i c t o t he t arget curve wi l l
i nvari abl y requi re equal i zat i on, ei t her wi t h an opt i onal modul e
available from Dolby Laboratories, or in the case of the cP50, use of an
outboard free-standi ng equal i ser. Achi evi ng sati sfactory uni formi ty
requi res a moderat el y l arge number of surround l oudspeakers.
cei l i ng-mounted l oudspeakers are unacceptabl e, as al l fi l ms are mi xed
assumi ng a hori zont al surround f i el d; i n addi t i on, a very l arge
number of cei l i ng speakers woul d be needed to achi eve uni form seat-
to-seat response.
The bandwi dth of the surround channel on a stereo opti cal fi l m i s
i ntenti onal l y band-l i mi ted to around 7 kHz, to avoi d the ri sk of
operati onal probl ems such as bad sound-head azi muth, and excessi ve
i mpul se noi se wi th worn pri nts. SR.D di gi tal sound-tracks, though,
and occasi onal 70mm magneti c pri nts have ful l bandwi dth di screte
effects on the surround track, and thi s wi l l requi re anal ysi s of
surround l oudspeaker response beyond 8 kHz. Surround equal i zati on
i s more or l ess essenti al for qual i ty theatre sound, as otherwi se panned
a 1
sounds cannot move smoothl y around the theatre, or from front-to-
back. For i nformati on on updati ng ol der Dol by ci nema processors, see
Secti on 5.0 bel ow.
Several psycho-acoustic mechanisms combine to cause the perceived
response from surround speakers to differ from that of the screen
loudspeakers.
Fi rst, the surround i nformati on comes from a mul ti pl e array of
l oudspeakers, as opposed to a si ngl e source. Second, part of the si gnal
comes from behi nd the l i stener, and the ear/brai n combi nati on reacts
differently to sources behind the head. Finally, and probably of greatest
si gni fi cance, the average movi e-goer sel ects a seat two-thi rds of the
way back in the theatre, and in a conventionally shaped theatre is thus
normal l y much cl oser to the surround l oudspeakers than to the
speakers behind the screen. As a result, near-field response will be a far
greater percentage of the surround signal than the screen signal, where
far-fi el d components normal l y domi nate.
Thi s l arge number of vari abl es means t hat t he i deal correct i on
characteri sti c wi l l be uni que for each theatre. Fi gure 2.8 shows how
the X-curve of 1502969 shoul d be modi fi ed for surrouncl use i n a
typi cal theatre, where most of the audi ence i s cl oser to surround
l oudspeakers than to the screen.
2. 3. 5 Measurement
Measurement mi crophones shoul d be l eft i n the same l ocati on as
when used to measure the screen channel s. In addi ti on, they shoul d
normal l y be l eft at the same ori entati on. A stereo surround set-up
should be measured and equalized independently for the left and right
channel s.
Reference l evel (generated wi th a Cat. No. 85 Pi nk Noi se Generator) i s
85 dBC for each stage l oudspeaker. A monaural surround channel
shoul d al so be set to 85 dBC, a procedure descri bed i n each Dol by
-22-
ci nema processor manual . wi th a stereo surround i nstal l ati on, for
Dolby SR.D or Dolby Stereo 70mm, the left and right surround chains
shoul d each be set to 82 dBC at the reference pi nk noi se l evel .
2.4 Sub-woofers
The i nst al l at i on must i ncl ude sub-woof er(s), dri ven by dedi cat ed
power ampl i fi ers--anal og SR si gnal s have to be deri ved from a bass
extensi on modul e i n the ci nema processor.
Both Dol by Stereo 70mm magneti c and Dol by SR.D di gi tal have
dedicated low-frequency channels, requiring sub-woofers
--
and one of
the mai n benefi ts of Dol by sR wi th opti cal sound-tracks i s the
i mprovement i n si gnal handl i ng at frequency extremes. Fi gure 2.1
shows t he rel at i ve peak l evel capabi l i t i es of an SR sound-t rack
compared wi th those of mono and conventi onal Dol by Stereo. The
si gni fi cant i ncrease i n potenti al l ow-frequency si gnal energy requi res
the use of dedicated sub-woofers. Existing theatre bass bins (such as .{4
uni ts) are nOt acceptabl e.
Wi th a Dol by di gi tal sub-woofer track, the potenti al l evel s are even
hi gher. Moni tor l evel s are set for 10 dB of
"i n-band
gai n", as shown i n
Fi gure 2.9. Thi s l evel setti ng procedure requi res use of a real -ti me
analyzer. Attempting to use a sound-level meter for sub-woofer level
setting is extremely unreliable, for several reasons:
a) Different sub-woofers have different effective low-pass filters,
either caused by cabinet/speaker design, or by an actual low-pass filter.
Even though the frequency range of interest is only up to 120 Hz with
an SR.D track, the varying out-of-band components above I20 Hz can
lead to variations of 3 or 4 dB when read on a sound level meter.
b) There can be a substanti al vari ati on between meters at l ow
frequencies, where C-weighting is not necessarily accurately followed.
c) Room nodes can affect the l oudness percei ved by a sound
level meter, whereas the eye can easily see the effect of nodes when
vi ewi ng the anal yzer.
- 23-
As real -ti me anal yzers are al ways needed to adj ust notch-fi l teri ng of
room nodes, as descri bed i n Secti on 2.4.4, use of an anal yzer i nstead of
a sound-l evel meter does not affect i nstal l ati on ti me.
Many theatres whi ch have been equi pped wi th sub-woofers over the
l ast fev,' years have adequate rel ati ve l ow-frequency l oudness when
compared wi th stage channel s at mi d and l ow-l evel s. Some contai n
l i mi ters such that i f overl oaded go smoothl y i nto saturati on wi thout
any cl i ppi ng di storti on-i n such a case the si gnal may not sound
distorted, but the peak levels are not correctly replayed. Badly designed
sub-woofers, though, show si gni fi cant di storti on components at al l
l evel sl
,
and non-l i near frequency response. The bandwi dth of the
digital sub-woofer channel on a Dolby digital sound-track extends from
5 Hz to 720 Hz. A l i near sub-woofer acousti c response i s desi rabl e
from, say,25 Hz to 720Hz The 120 Hz sound-track cut-off is extremely
steep, so a sui tabl e sub-woofer need have l i ttl e response above thi s
frequency.
2.4.1 Locati on
Whi l e sub-woofer l ocati on i s not cri ti cal , a si ngl e uni t shoul d not be
mounted on the centre-line of the theatre. If two sub-woofer cabinets
are used, they shoul d be mounted asymmetri cal l y; i e thev shoul d nof
be mount ed equal l y spaced ei t her si de of t he cent re-l i ne as f or
channel s 2(Le) and 4(Re) of a 70mm syst em. Thi s asymmet ri c
mounti ng reduces sti mul ati on of standi ng waves deri ved from room
di mensi ons.
To achi eve maxi mum power, two sub-woofers shoul d be mounted as
cl ose together as possi bl e, thus achi evi ng cross-coupl i ng. Standi ng two
sub-woofers to one side of the centre channel loudspeaker is probably a
reasonabi e sol uti on. On the other hand, i f the target i s to reduce the
l evel of spot resonances, the two uni ts shoul d be separatel y mounted
l For
background i nformati on see Engebretson, Low-Frequency Sound
Reproducti on,
}AES
May 7984, and Fi el der and Benj ami n, Subwoofer
Perfortnance for Accurate Reproduction of Music,
|AES, |une
1988.
-24-
at, say, one-third of the way frorn the left wall, and one-fifth of the way
from the right wall, though this, of course, will require more power.
2.4.2 Need for Bass Extensi on wi th Dol bv SR
Modern mai n-channel l oudspeaker systems have better l ow-frequency
performance than systems designed a few years ago. However, extreme
l ow frequency si gnal i nformati on requi res speci al processi ng when
deri ved from an opti cal sound-track, i n order to suppress
"streaki ng"
noi se and other processi ng arti facts. Thi s ci rcui try, and a parametri c
equal i zer to smooth out the pri mary room node, i s contai ned on the
opti cal bass extensi on modul e
--
Cat. No. 160 or Cat. No. 560 i n CP50
and CP200 uni ts, Cat. No. 247 i n CP55 uni ts, and Cat. No. 441 i n CP65
uni ts. Al so, see Secti on 5.0 bel ow for i nformati on on retrofi t modul es
for Dol by SR.D di gi tal pl ayback.
2. 4. 3 Tuni ng
Al l ci nema processor sub-woofer dri ver modul es contai n a si mpl e
parametri c equal i zer. Thi s shoul d al ways be used, as every room wi l l
have at l east one domi nant resonant frequency, whi ch i f not damped
wi l l l ead to a characteri sti c l ow-frequency
"ri ngi ng"
every ti me the
sound-track contains extreme low frequency information. Instructions
for adj usti ng the parametri c equal i zer can be found i n each Dol by
ci nema processor manual .
2.4.4 P ow er Requi rements
For the pl ayback of an anal og opti cal soundtrack the subwoofer
channel power requi rements are not substanti al l y di fferent than a
stage channel , i .e. an ampl i fi er of the same power rati ng as one used
for the front stage channel should be adequate.
For pl ayback of an SR.D soundtrack however, the power requi rements
for the subwoofer become more demandi ng. Two factors work
together to rai se the requi red ampl i fi er si ze. One factor i s the
-25-
headroom avai l abl e i n t he subwoof er channel . Li ke t he boom
channels on a Dolby Stereo 70mm mag print, the subwoofer channel is
recorded 10 dB l ower than the other channel s on a di gi tal soundtrack.
The ci nema processor i s then adj usted to pl ayback 10 dB hi gher, thi s
provi di ng 10 dB more headroorn to produce effects l i ke expl osi ons and
sti ngs at more real i sti c l evel s. Thi s l evel requi rement i rnpl i es an
ampl i fi er power requi rement 10 dB or 10 ti mes more than any other
channel .
In addi ti on, though, the subwoofers normal l y used for ci nemas are
l ess effi ci ent than the stage speakers. Most of the model s used are at
l east 3-5 dB l ess effi ci ent than contemporary di rect radi ator stage
speakers. Thi s means at l east an addi ti onal 3 dB or two ti mes more
power because of the lower efficiency of these speakers. Combined, the
requi rements become di ffi cul t
-
13 dB or 20 ti mes the power rati ng of
one of the screen channel amps. Fi gure 2.10 i s an outl i ne of the power
requi rments of the subwoofer channel dependi ng on the si ze of the
audi tori um and can be used to determi ne the amps needed. As can be
seen from the chart, i t makes sense to use a model of subwoofer that
has good effi ci ency si nce thi s wi l l keep the power requi rements
smal l er. However, be aware of cl ai ms of unusual l y hi gh effi ci ency for
subwoofers.
In l oudspeaker desi gn the l aws of physi cs l i mi t the maxi mum amount
of effi ci ency i mprovement that can be achi eved wi thout a tradeoff i n
ei ther l ow frequency response or encl osure si ze. In other words, for a
gi ven si ze of speaker encl osure the effi ci ency of a system can be
i ncreased but onl y at a l oss to the l ow frequency performance of that
system. This is why bass bins for stage speakers that are about the same
si ze as subwoofers are more effi ci ent but they cannot reproduce the
deep bass that can be produced by a true subwoofer design.
Fortunatel y, there are ways to make the ampl i fi er demands more
reasonabl e. Someti mes i t can be rel ati vel y easy to get i ncreased
headroom from the exi sti ng system. For exampl e; i f the system
presently has two subwoofers each rated at 8 ohms and one stereo amp
-26-
with each half driving one sub, it may be possible to wire the two subs
i n paral l el and connect them across the amp runni ng i n a bri dged
mono mode. If the ampl i fi er i s of good professi onal qual i ty wi th the
capabi l i ty of dri vi ng the equi val ent of a 2 ohm l oad on each channel , i t
i s possi bl e to get as much as 4-5 dB more headroom by si mpl y rewi ri ng
the subwoofers i n thi s fashi on.
As menti oned earl i er, mul ti pl e subwoofer uni ts can be grouped to take
advantage of mutual coupl i ng. If the uni ts are pl aced together i deal l y,
doubl i ng the number of subwoofers gi ves an extra 3 dB of output
Ievel due to effi ci ency gai ned by mutual coupl i ng. Fi gure 2.10 shows
t he reduct i on i n t he ampl i f i er power needed i f more t han one
subwoofer i s used, assumi ng that they are mutual l y coupl ed. As an
exampl e, i f the system i s as above wi th each hal f of a stereo amp
dri vi ng a si ngl e 8 ohm subwoofer, two more subwoofers can be
i nstal l ed (mounted cl ose to the other two for coupl i ng) each wi red i n
paral l el wi th each of the other two, i t can provi de as much as 6 dB
more headroom than before. Hal f of the gai n i s due to the effi ci ency
i ncrease of doubl i ng the number of uni ts and the other 3 dB comes
from the greater power output of the amplifier when driving a 4 ohm
load on each channel instead of 8 ohms. Of course, one can always just
buy more and/ or bi gger amps. Thi s however, qui ckl y becomes
unwi el dy i f the system i s somethi ng l i ke 10 dB defi ci ent, and i t i s
usually more practical to increase the efficiency of the system as well.
The pl acement of the subwoofer can al so be cri ti cal i f i ncreasi ng the
effi ci ency of the system i s needed to keep the ampl i fi er requi rements
practi cal . General l y speaki ng the uni ts shoul d be mounted as cl ose as
possi bl e to as many boundary surfaces (read wal l s and fl oor) as
possible. This means that the subwoofers should be installed (coupled
together) at l east on the fl oor and i f possi bl e next to the back wal l
and/or the si de wal l behi nd the screen. Unl ess the back wal l behi nd
the screen i s appreci abl y greater than 10 feet behi nd the screen i t i s
more desirable to have the subs back up against the wall on the floor
i nstead of up next to the maski ng. The i ncrease i n effi ci ency i s
preferabl e to the smal l del ay i n the bass si gnal because of the
-27-
subwoofer being slightly behind the stage speakers. Corner mounting
of sub-woofers in this way, however, may lead to a more pronounced
primary room resonance. A further increase in efficiency would result
from havi ng the uni t on the fl oor, and mounted i n a baffl e wal l that
extends to the dirnensions of the screen, this of course would help the
bass response of the stage channels in their proper locations as w-ell.
-28-
tl D
i l 0
- l - r - t - I -
I
- I - r - - t - l - t - r -
I
- t - r _t - r _- l _I _r __l _l _
I _I *l _I
_r _r _
I
?- \ l I t ' -r--F-l
-l--Fl-
|
-
t-t- 1--H- |
-j-H-Hi-F---
\-
-o-c --o-r+
rr.'Hr--.{FO-..+ O-tt-cHH.--o_
31. 5 63 12s 250 500 t K 2K 4K 8K 16K HZ
Dotby stereo A-type
-l -
pol by
stereo sR
-r-
Dol by stereo Di gi tal
Figure 2.1 Peak power levels
-
A-type, SR, SR.D
100
90
1 1 0
ALTEC A4
+108
106
104
ALTECAS +
102
JBL 46758,4670C
_>100
EV T59040D, TS940D
98
JBL4673A +
96
SPEAKER
94
SENSITIVITY
SPL @ 1w/ l M
g2
90
200 w
315 W
500 w
800 w
1250 W
2000 w
Power required for each screen
l oudspeaker channel .
lf bi-amped, use at least 2/3 of
quoted power for each section.
25 30 40 sO 60 80 100 120
7.s 10
' t2
1s 18 25 30 35
Length ot House trom Screen to Back Wall
150
rts
(FEEr)
(METERS)
SINGLE SCREEN CHANNEL POWER REQUIREMENTS FOR 103 dB SPL @ 2/3 BACK FROM SCREEN
Ftgure 2.2 Power Needed versus Room Size
ot o
2
0
- 2
- 4
- 6
- 8
- 1 0
- 12
- 14
- 1 6
- 1 8
-20 r-
3 1 . 5 6 3 125 250 8 K 4 K 2K 1 K 500 1 6 K
Hz
/ ! \
t l
t l
/
r t t t r t t t t t l
Not es:
a)adjustment to curve for smaller theatres
--
see
l so2969
b)adjustment to curve for very large theatres
l l l l l t t t t t r r r r r r r l
\
S\!'t
]N
\
\
\
\
\
\
\
\
\
\
Figure 2.3 Stage Loudspeaker Characteristic Gurve
Fi gure 2.4 Si ngl e Mi crophone Equal i zati on Locati on
SCREEN
Figure2.5 Multiplexed Microphones Equalization Location
I
l
I
I
I
SCREEN
I I I I
Good Surround Location
I
I
I I
Fi gure 2.6
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
t
I
I
; t i l t ; ;
Figure 2.7 Surrounds Too Far Forward
dB
4
2
0
-2
4
6

- 10
-12
-14
- 16
- 18
-20
31. 5 125 4K
Fi gure 2.8 Typical Surround Characteristic Curve
1 K 16K
Hz
.a
/
\
\
/
7
\
\
f.
a
i.
f,
1
L
h
t
Figure 2.9 Sub-Woofer Level Setting
6
-'->
20
HO. OTUHTTS
4 + 25
MUTUALLYCOUPLED
2 + 50
. 1 - > 1 0 5
106
30
40
85
165
45
65
130
250
70
100
200
400
110 170 265
160 260 400
323 500 800
6s0 1000 1600
..-.._->
SPEAKER
SENSITIVITY
s P L @1 w/ l M
(srNGLE UNrT)
MEYER 650-R2
JBL4642
+
EV TL88OD &
BAG END ELF Q18E+,
JBL 4645 & E-V 3512+
BAG END ELF D18E
+
BOSECANNON+
104
102
92
90
/vt/t/ / /
/
/
/
7
7
7 ry
/
7
7
/
/
7
/
7
7
/
7
7
/ / /
/VA/V/ /
/i/l/v /
/ll//v
2500w 1250W
4000w 2000w
6KW 30(X)W
9.6KW 4.8KW
625W 415W
r000w 660w
1500w 1000w
2400w 1500w
Power requirements may vary depending
on room gai n. Consul t Dol by
Laboratori es tor i nformati on regardi ng
i mpedance rati ngs of vari ous model s.
25 30 40 50 50 80 100
',t20
1s0 (FEET)
7.s 10 12 15 18 2s 30 3s 4s (METERS)
Length of House from Screen lo Back Wall
POWER REOUI REMENTS FOR SUBWOOFERS FOR 113 dB SPL @ 2/ 3 BACK FROM SCREEN
Fi gure 2.10 Subwoofer Power Requi rement
Speaker Sensitivity
dB/l watt at
1 meter
EV FR200B
*
HPS SR70 -{>
u$$
.9o
\o """ &
(dB)
100
98
6s
{watts)
$""
^"".
Example:
-
Step 1: Surround
l oudspeaker
sensi ti vi ty 90 dB.
Move hori zontal l y to
house wi dth (i n thi s
exampl e, 32 feet), and
then move up
di agonal l y to fi nd
mi ni mum power
needed,250 watts.
Step 2 See text on
how to fi nd number of
l oudspeakers needed.
EV FRl 2. 2B
JBL 8340
Kintek 340
JBL 8333 d>
JBL 8330
Boston A70
+
EV TS8_2 {>
94
92
90
88
86
84
-l
20 100
30
24 32 'rc
50 63
8 1 0 1 2 1 4 1 6
80
18 24
(Feel)
(Meters)
Wi dth ot House
Fi gure 2.11 Power needed for a si ngl e surround channel (l eft or ri ght) for
100 dB SPL at center of house. (See text, Section 2.3.1)
=-
s6
,/1,/1,/
/
/
,/
7 7 7
7
/
7
,/
/VV
,n#
,/1,/1,/1,/
,/1,/1,/1,/
,/1,/1,/
,/ l,/
3.0 A-Chain
3.1. Analog
3.1.1 Frequency Response
The equalized A-chain frequency response, measured at the Lt and Rt
pre-amplifier outputs, should be flat to within +1 dB from 30 Hz to
' l.4kHz.
When a pink noise test film is used, and the pre-amplifier
response measured i n t hi rd-oct aves, t he out put shoul d be f l at up t o
and i ncl udi ng t he 12. 5 kHz band, and no more t han 3dB down i n t he
'l.6kHz
band.
Later versi ons of opti cal pre-ampl i fi er boards i nstal l ed i n Dol by theatre
equi pment exhi bi t i mproved stabi l i ty, and better l i neari ty and phase
response at hi gh-frequenci es. CP50 and CP200 uni ts shoul d i deal l y be
updated wi th CN108 pre-ampl i fi er cards of Revi si on C. Al l CP55 and
CP65 uni t pre-ampl i fi ers have adequate performance. See Secti on 138
bel ow.
A compl ete di scussi on of A-chai n al i gnment can be found i n each
Dol by ci nema processor manual .
3.1".2 Sl i t
Thi s bandwi dth speci fi cati on i deal l y requi res a proj ector sound-head
sl i t hei ght of around 0.00075". A sl i t hei ght of 0.00100" i s unacceptabl e
as i mpossi bl y l arge amounts of hf boost are needed to achi eve a fl at
response above 10 kHz. A sl i t hei ght of l ess than 0.00050" performs
better at high frequencies, but the need for increased pre-amplifier gain
may make the system more prone to spuri ous i nterference resul ti ng
from stray l i ght l andi ng on the sol ar cel l .l
r
Most prrojector manufacturers offer retro-fit slit lens assembleies with a slit height of 0.00050 or
0.00075'. In addition, slit-lens assemblies for a variety of projectors are manufactured by Sankor Ltd.,
distributed by Marble Company Incorporated, P.O. Box 150080, 427Hart Lane, Nashville, TN 37276,
T el: 675
-227 -7
77 2, 800-7 29
-5905,
Fax : 6 1 5-228-1 301.
-29-
The pink noise on current Cat. No. 69 optical test film has a frequency
response nearly flat up to 16 kHz, as shown in the calibration chart in
Fi gure 3. 1. The ol d bl ack and whi t e Cat . No. 69 t est f i l m has been
replaced by two new test films. Cat. No.69T (Dolby Tone) and Cat.
No. 69P (pi nk noi se) are bot h now pri nt ed on col or st ock, whi ch
represents release print behavior more accurately. The color stock
fades, however, so the test films should be replaced after about six
months of use.
3.1.3 Exciter Lamp/Supply
The exciter lamp supply should have a regulated output.
An unregulated exciter lamp supply results in gain variations, bad
decode tracking, and can cause audible hum.
A well-designed regulated supply will have a ripple level of less than
3%.
3. 1. 4 I l l umi nat i on Uni f ormi t v
The proj ect or sound-head opt i cal assembl y shoul d provi de uni f orm
i l l umi nat i on across t he sl i t . when measured wi t h a snake-t rack t est
f i l m, out put vari at i ons shoul d not exceed + 2dB f rom t he average
l evel .
l Jneven i l l umi nati on al ong the sl i t i s frequentl y the cause of bad
-
qual i ty opti cal sound pl ayback. Level -dependent di storti on and bad
stereo imaging are the two most obvious results.
The most likely causes of uneven illumination are:
Dirty optics or slit
Misaligned optics
Dirty or carbonized exciter lamp
Insufficient voltage for exciter lamp
-30-
and less likely:
Uneven slit width resulting from bad machining
One method of checking illumination uniformity is to run a scanning
beam uniformity test film (snake-track) loop (SMPTE Test Film No.
P35-SB or equivalent), and to evaluate the summed Lt and Rt pre-
amplifier outputs (or the center channel processor output with the
unit set to mono, Format 01) with an AC milli-voltmeter, or preferably
an oscilloscope.
A new test fi l m i s al so avai l abl e from Dol by Laboratori es to check
i l l umi nat i on uni f ormi t y qui ckl y and si mpl y. The Cat . No. 566 t est
fi l m provi des an i nstant vi sual di spl ay of any i l l umi nati on probl ems
and onl y requi res the use of a real -ti me anal yzer.
3.1..5 Wow and Fl utter
The proj ector shoul d exhi bi t no audi bl e wow or fl utter.
Most contemporary fi rst-cl ass proj ectors have sound-heads desi gned
and manufactured to a qual i ty such that wow and fl utter wi l l not
prove a probl em. Badl y mai ntai ned ol der proj ectors and some i nferi or
contemporary desi gns, though, can have severe sound-head transport
speed probl ems
--
detectabl e speed vari ati on i s one of the few fai l i ngs
that can render a wel l -al i gned A-chai n pl ayi ng an SR opti cal fi l m
audibly inferior to a 16-bit digital system.
It i s general l y accepted that fl utter shoul d be l ess than 0.15% DIN
wei ghted to be i naudi bl e. Measurement methods
I
are descri bed i n IEC
386, and a sui tabl e test fi l m i s avai l abl e from the SMPTE
(No. P35-FL).
A subjective test for wow and flutter is contained in the
Jiffy
test film
from Dol by Laboratori es, Cat. No. 251.
1A
sui tabl e meter for measuri ng wow and fl utter i s
Instruments,
]apan-Model
Number LFM-39A
- J l -
avai l abl e from Leader
If cl eani ng and l ubri cati on of the sound-head i s carri ed out accordi ng
to the manufacturer' s recommendati ons, and the measured fl utter i s
sti l l unacceptabl e, a ski l l ed mechani c shoul d be consul ted. In some
cases, machi ni ng and bal anci ng the fl ywheel and sound-drum, or the
rebui l di ng of beari ngs, can reduce the probl ems to an acceptabl e l evel .
3.2 Di gi tal
It i s i mpcl rtant to note that factors such as mechani cal al i gnment,
i l l umi nat i on uni f ormi t y, and pri nt cl eanl i ness whi ch af f ect sound
qual i ty of anal og pl ayback i n a more-or-l ess l i near way, may have no
i mmedi ate audi bl e effect i n di gi tal pl ayback, but serve to reduce the
margi n f or error when def ect s such as scrat ches or di rt are
encount ered.
Fi gure 3. 2 shows, i n symbol i c f orm, t he ef f ect s of mi sal i gnment ,
uni formi ty of i l l umi nati on, wear, and cl eanl i ness on the reproducti on
of anal og and di gi tal pri nts.
3. 2. 1 Al i gnment
Di gi tal soundheads manufactured by Dol by Laboratori es are factory
al i gned, and no on-si te adj ustments to the soundhead shoul d be
requi red. Veri fi cati on of correct al i gnment i s descri bed i n the DA10
di gi t al f i l m sound pr ocessor i nst al l er ' s manual . Mechani cal
al i gnment of the Soundhead wi th respect to the proj ector fi l m path
may be veri fi ed by threadi ng a l ength of fi l m through the Soundhead
and observi ng equal tensi on on each edge.
3.2.2t/Vow and Fl utter
The el i mi nati on of fl utter components at frequenci es greater than 96
Hz whi ch are not present i n the master recordi ng i s i nherent i n the
reproducti on of sound by the di gi tal processor. Thi s i s because the
output sampl e rate i s hel d constant for the durati on of a perforati on.
-32-
Lower frequency fl utter and wow from mechani cal i nperfecti ons are
attenuated by di gi tal fi l teri ng of the sampl e rate generator control
functi on. Steps i n sampl e rate are l i mi ted to approxi matel y 0.005%, a
factor of around 30 bel ow the audi bl e mi ni mum. A much hi gher
"sl ew
rate" of about 6.4%
/
second (about L semi tone
/ second) i s
permi tted duri ng proj ector ramp-up to speed i n order to avoi d getti ng
out of synchroni zati on wi th the pi cture.
Al though di gi tal processors from Dol by Laboratori es are desi gned to
track projector speed variations with a range from
-7"/"
at 24 fps to +7oh
at 25 fps, best performance wi l l be obtai ned by mai ntai ni ng proj ector
speed as cl osel y as possi bl e to the i ntended speed as recorded.
3. 2. 3 I l l umi nat i on Uni f ormi t v
The i l l umi nati on source for Dol by Di gi tal Soundheads i s a tungsten-
hal ogen proj ector bul b. Uni formi ty of i l l umi nati on may be veri fi ed by
observi ng t he vi deo si gnal at t he DA10 on a 25MHz osci l l i scope,
tri ggered by any Dol by di gi tal si gnal ; the process i s ful l y descri bed i n
t he DA10 and DA20 I nst al l i on manual s. I l l umi nat i on shoul d be
uni form over the wi dth of the perforati on area to wi thi n +0.5 Vol t.
3.2.4 Exci ter Lamp / Suppl y
The di gi tal soundhead exci ter l amp suppl y shoul d be a DC regul ated
power suppl y set for 11 Vdc, suppl yi ng approx. 6 Amps for each l amp
and fan. Pol ari ty must be observed, not for the l amp, but to ensure that
fan rotati on i s correct. In an emergency, any DC suppl y wi th adequate
capaci ty and regul ati on of 3"/" or better wi l l serve.
3. 2. 5 Soundhead and Surround Del av
Proper adj ust ment of Soundhead Del ay and Surround Del ay are
cri ti cal to setup of the Di gi tai I' rocessor. Compl ete procedures for del ay
adj ustments are contai ned i n the DA10 and DA20 Instal l er' s Manual s.
It shoul d be noted that the opti mum surround del ay setti ng for a
-33-
di gi tal processor i s di fferent from that for surround pl ayback of an
anal og surround track. The requi rement for pl ayback of a di gi tal
surround channel i s t o achi eve coherent arri val s of screen and
surround sounds over t he opt i mum seat i ng area. For an anal og
sound-t rack, sl i ght l y great er del ay i s requi red, so as t o achi eve
maski ngl of any crosstal k from front channel s to the surrounds.
Fi gure 3.3 provi des a tabl e of approxi mate del ays for di gi tal surround
del ays. Aproxi matel y 15mSec shoul d be added to these numbers for
anai og surround del ay setti ngs. In a smal l theatre, the hei ght of the
surround speakers shoul d be taken i nto account, beari ng i n mi nd that
the tabl e i s based on the di fference i n path l engths at the opti mum
seat i ng area t o t he screen channel s and t he cl osest surround
l oudspeakers.
rFor
a discussion of how acoustic masking is used to suppress crosstalk in 4:2:4
matrix systems, see
"MultiChannel
Audio and Surround Sound in the Movie
Theatre and in the Home," Dolby Pub. No. 588/8292
-34-
I' l [t::l t=l [:!j . .1
Fl r=I.a...
- !11 r
"i l i j
rj r,l :
:i l :l !
rSri
f.:tt' l
[,.][::.::;]"f;:E:,'': 1,..':i f,l I L
:!:L
1l'
t:tt:.1-f
E.,a 5:,1i
-
t-.i:i*-;
Fi gure 3.1 Gat. No 69 Pi nk Noi se Frequency Response
t
Audi bl e
Qual i t y
t
Audi bl e
Qual i t y
Pr obl em*
DI GI TAL
I ncr easi ng I ncr easi ng
Fi gure 3.2 Anal og versus Di gi tal Probl em Audi bi l i ty
Wi dth
(i n
20 30 40 50 60 7A 80 90 100 1 1 0 120 130 140
20 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 10
l n
1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0
30 1 0 1 0 I \ J 1 o 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0
40 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 2A 20 z v
50 30 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 z v z v
60 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30
?n
70 40 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30
80 50 40 40 40 40 40 40 40 40 40 40 4A 40
90 50 50 40 40 40 40 40 40 40 40 40 40 40
100 60 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50
trn
1 1 0 70 60 60 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50
120 70 70 60 60 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50
130 80 80 70 70 60 60 60 60 60 60 60 60 60
140 90 80 80 70 70 60 60 60 60 60 60 60 60
150 90 90 80 80 80 70 70 70 70 70 70 70 70
160 100 100 90 90 80 80 70 70 70 70 70 70 70
170 1 1 0 100 100 90 90 80 80 80 80 80 80 80 BO
180 1 1 0 1 1 0 100 100 100 90 90 80 80 80 80 80 BO
190 120 120 1 1 0 1 1 0 100 100 90 90 90 90 90 90 90
200 130 120 120 1 1 0 1 1 0 100 100 100 90 90 90 90 90
Length
(i n
feet)
Length
(i n
metres)
width
1 0 1 5 20 25 30 35 40 45 50
1 0 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20
1 5 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20
2A 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30
25 40 40 40 40 40 40 40 40 40
30 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50
35 60 60 50 50 50 50 50 50 50
40 BO 70 60 60 60 60 60 60 60
45 90 BO 70 70 70 70 70 70 70
50 100 90 80 80 80 BO 80 80 80
55 1 1 0 100 90 90 80 80 80 80 80
60 120 1 1 0 1 1 0 100 90 90 90 90 90
65 130 124 120 1 1 0 100 100 100 100 100
70 140 140 130 120 1 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 0
75 150 150 140 130 120 120 1 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 0
Fi gure 3.3 Di gi tal Surround Del ay Setti ng
4.0 Acoustics
4.l Criteria
4. 1. 1 Noi se Fl oor
The steady-state theatre noi se fl oor shoul d preferabl y be bel ow NC25,
wi t h NC30 t he worst case accept abl e. I nt ermi t t ent i ncreased noi se
fl oors shoul d not exceed NC35.
Dol by SR and SR. D sound-t racks can
wel l as l ouder peaks than conventi onal
these subtl e components requi res extra
l evel s i n the theatre.
contain very quiet sounds, as
film sound-tracks. Playback of
attention to background noise
Background noi ses can be broken i nto two types: steady-state noi se,
caused by HVAC equi pment, refri gerators, proj ector noi se and di stant
traffi c rumbl e; and i ntermi ttent noi se, caused by adj acent traffi c noi se,
ai rcraft noi se, footfal l and adj acent screen breakthrough.
Figure 4.1 details the frequency characteristics of a family of NC curves
in the range of interest. It should be noted that these curves show the
NC fi gures for noi se measurements made i n whol e octave bands, as
conventi onal l y used for background noi se measurements. Fi gure 4.2
shows a family of curves for use in third-octave bands.
Normal techni ques for background noi se measurements are i ntended
to quanti fy steady-state noi ses, and may not adequatel y defi ne the
annovance of
"chatter"
noi se, such as runni ng proj ectors. Such noi ses
shoul d be subj ecti vel y i naudi bl e i n the seati ng area.
Reference: SMPTE RP141
--
Background Acousti c Noi se Level s
-35-
4.L.2 Reverberati on Ti me
The reverberat i on charact eri st i c f or a t heat re shoul d be wi t hi n t he
ranges shown i n Fi gures 4.3 and 4.4.
Cert ai n acoust i c paramet ers di f f er dependi ng whet her a space i s
i ntended for musi c performance (a concert hal l ), or fi l m sound-track
reproducti on (a ci nema). The most obvi ous of these i s reverberati on,
whi ch i n the ci nema shoul d be effecti vel y as l ow as possi bl e, and i n
the concert hal l may consci ousl y be extended i n the desi gn, to i mprove
t he subj ect i ve l oudness of t he musi c, and t o make a more pl easnnt
sound. I n t he ci nema, t he pri me requi rement i s a more accurat e
sound; reverberat i on needed t o make t he sound more pl easant i s
added duri ng t he mi x duri ng sound-t rack product i on. As most
dubbi ng theatres are now moderatel y smal l , wi th short reverberati on
times, the mix will add adequate reverberation for all replay theatres.
Wi thi n reason, the reverberati on characteri sti c of a theatre shoul d be
as short as possi bl e. Excessi ve reverberati on resul ts i n col ori ng of the
sound and reduced i ntel l i gi bi l i ty of the di al og. Assumi ng a theatre i s
bui l t wi th sound absorbent materi al on al l surfaces, the resul tant
reverberat i on charact eri st i c wi l l i ncrease wi t h room si ze, i n
consequence of greater reflection time delays caused by increased path
l engths. Fi gure 4.3 shows the recommended reverberati on ti me at
500 Hz for varyi ng room vol umes.
In normal rooms, absorbency is lowest at low frequencies and greatest
at hi gh frequenci es, especi al l y as attenuati on i n ai r i ncreases wi th
frequency. As a resul t, reverberati on ti me wi l l normal l y i ncrease at
l ow frequenci es, and become i ncreasi ngl y shorter at hi gh frequenci es.
Thi s changi ng characteri sti c shoul d be smooth, and above 150 Hz, i f
measured i n thi rd-octaves, there shoul d be no reversal s; i .e. no hi gher
band should show a higher reverb-time.
Fi gure 4.4 shows the acceptabl e range of reverberati on ti me change
wi th frequency. Thi s i s a scal i ng curve, and the val ue at a gi ven
-36-
frequency should be multiplied by the optimum reverberation time at
500 Hz found from Fi gure 4.3.1
4.1..3 Refl ecti ons
Opti mi zati on of reverberati on ti me, though, i s not enough to ensure
good acousti cs. A good theatre desi gn wi l l al so avoi d resonances and
refl ecti ons. Good practi ce di ctates that the front of the l oudspeaker
wal l shoul d be heavi l y damped wi th sound absorbi ng materi al , and
even more i mportant, that the rear wal l of the audi tori um shoul d be
heavi l y damped. Any theatres sti l l usi ng ,A.4 type l oudspeakers wi th
wi ngs shoul d appl y sound absorbi ng materi al to the front surface.
Acoustically absorbent material can be added to an existing theatre, but
new theatre desi gns shoul d al so consi der i ssues such as mi ni mum
port gl ass si ze (see bel ow), as too l arge a gl ass area i n the proj ecti on
room wal l can cause bot h pi ct ure and sound-ref l ect i on probl ems.
Ot her sound ref l ect i on probl ems can come f rom convert ed ol d
theatres wi th prosceni um arches whi ch face the screen, and cei l i ng
beams and vertical column faces reflecting sound from the screen.
4.1.4 Earl y Lateral Refl ecti ons
Another di fference i n acousti c requi rements between ci nema and
concert hal l s rel at es t o t he desi rabi l i t y of earl y l at eral ref l ect i ons
(sounds that refl ect off the si de wal l s at the front of the audi tori um).
In a concert hal l , wi th a musi c performance, these refl ecti ons can be
attracti ve, addi ng to stereo wi dth, and gi vi ng the musi c more
"body".
But the same effect wi th di al og i n a ci nema can be di sastrous to speech
i ntel l i gi bi l i ty, as the central speech i mage becomes di ffuse, and there
are mul ti pl e del ayed refl ecti ons. For thi s reason, the si de wal l s at the
f ront of a ci nema shoul d be as absorbent as possi bl e, and t he
l oudspeakers shoul d have a spati al response tai l ored to mi ni mi se the
amount of signal which can hit the side walls (especially at frequencies
above, say, 500H2). The control l ed di recti vi ty from use of horns i s the
I
Reverberation time measurement techniques are discussed in ISO3382.
-37-
onl y pract i cal way t hi s can be achi eved. Di rect radi at or cone
loudspeakers are not suitable for stage loudspeaker use, as not only
will energy be reflected off the side-walls, but signals will also be
reflected off the ceiling, further muddying dialog clarity.
4. L. 5 Rear Screen Dampi ng
No behi nd-screen acousti c refl ecti ons shoul d be audi bl e i n the seati ng
area.
Behi nd screen echoes have hi stori cal l y been responsi bl e for many of
the i ntel l i gi bi l i ty probl ems wi th ci nema sound. The most effecti ve
met hod of achi evi ng screen f ront / back i sol at i on i s t o mount t he
l oudspeakers as i ntegral el ements wi thi n a wel l -damped wal l ; thi s wi l l
bl ock al l but the l owest frequency back-screen audi o. The front surface
shoul d be covered wi th acousti c absorbent materi al , dampi ng any
front/back refl ecti ons i n the audi tori um.
A wal l al so creat es a perf ect pl ane baf f l e, as descri bed i n cl assi c
l oudspeaker desi gn l i terature, thus si gni fi cantl y i mprovi ng extreme
l ow-frequency response and l i neari ty. Thi s i s one of the reasons that a
l oudspeaker wal l i s one of the maj or el ements of the THX l oudspeaker
system.
Wi thout an i sol ati on wal l , attenuati on of behi nd-screen refl ecti ons
becomes much more difficult. The first and most obvious requirement
i s that the hi gh-frequency horns shoul d be mounted as cl ose as
possi bl e to the rear of the proj ecti on screen, mi ni mi zi ng acousti c
reflections off the screen surface itself. (The front of the horn should
never be more than an i nch or two from the screen.) Next, each
l oudspeaker assembl y shoul d be draped wi th substanti al acousti cal l y
absorbent materi al , wrappi ng the enti re assembl y up agai nst the
screen. Finaliy, as much of the cavity surface area behind the screen as
possi bl e
--
rear wal l , si de-wal l s and cei l i ng
--
shoul d be covered i n
absorbent materi al .
-38-
One further consi derati on rel ati ng to systems wi thout a l oudspeaker
wal l i s that the front surface of any l arge area bass bi ns, (and even
more i mportant, i f fi tted, the speaker wi ngs), shoul d have absorbent
materi al mounted on front surfaces wi th cut-outs for the woofers.
Wi thout such materi al , si gni fi cant refl ecti ve
"pi ng-pong"
echoes can
bui l d up between the screen and the paral l el rear wal l of the theatre.
4.2 New Theatre Desi gn
Interi or acousti cs are of most i mportance for di al og i ntel l i gi bi l i ty.
Excess refl ected sound can resul t i n fl utter echoes or reverberati on
whi ch di mi ni shes di al ogue i ntel l i gi bi l i ty.
It i s not necessary to provi de speci fi c sound-refl ecti ng surfaces i n
moti on pi cture theatres. Most of the surfaces can be sound-absorbi ng.
Some mi ght argue that i t woul d become di ffi cul t to sustai n adequate
l oudness; sui t abl e modern power ampl i f i ers and l oudspeakers,
however, can easi l y be sel ect ed whi ch provi de enough power.
Experi ence i ndi cates that sound-absorbi ng rooms promote excel l ent
speech i ntel l i gi bi l i ty provi ded they are reasonabl y qui et.
Sound-absorbi ng materi al can be used to reduce reverberati on and
control echoes. Standi ng waves can resul t i n l ow-frequency room
resonances whi ch accentuate a
"boomy"
qual i ty. Standi ng waves can
be control l ed usi ng sound-absorbi ng materi al wi th an ai r space behi nd,
such as a l ay-i n cei l i ng.
4.2.1 New Theatre Locati on
Sel ect a qui et i ocati on to reduce the costs of constructi on to prevent
noi se i ntrusi ons. Areas and adi acenci es to avoi d:
a) Next to wi ndow gl azi ng.
b) Bui l di ng servi ce areas such as toi l ets, mechani cal
el ectri cal rooms and el evator equi pment rooms.
-39-
c) Other noi se generati ng adj acenci es.
Remember to review the use of spaces above and below the theatre for
pot ent i al noi se generat i on. Avoi d l ocat i ons beneat h equi pment
rooms, and dance and exerci se studi os, or above parki ng garages or
subway trai n l i nes. Ai rport fl i ght paths, truck l oadi ng areas, and busy
traffi c i ntersecti ons shoul d al so be consi dered duri ng si te sel ecti on, as
the i ncreased cost of adequate sound i sol ati on may be si gni fi cant.
Never l ocate a theatre bel ow a curb-mounted ai r handl er wi th di rect
bottom i nl et and di scharge, unl ess the ductwork i s ful l y encl osed i n
speci al sound attenuati on constructi on.
4.2.2 Cei l i ngs
In order to avoi d excessi ve bass, speci fy a l ay-i n cei l i ng wi th sound-
absorbi ng ti l es havi ng an NRC rati ng of 0.90 or greater. The ti l es are
typi cal l y compri sed of 1.5" thi ck fi bergl ass wi th a pai nted gl ass cl oth
faci ng.
4.2.3 Floors
Unl ess absol ut el y i mpossi bl e, ai sl es and f l oors shoul d al ways be
carpeted.
4. 2. 4 Wal l s
Sound Transmission Design Criteria
Walls, doors and floor/ceiling constructions are rated for their sound
transmission properties according to ASTM Standards 890, E336, and
C413 which result in a single figure of merit rating system known as
Sound Transmission Class, or STC.
The selection of appropriate STC ratings needs to be made on the basis
of the background noise criteria selected in the theatre and the level of
-40-
noi se anti ci pated i n the adj oi ni ng spaces. Conti nuous background
noi se can pl ay an i mport ant rol e i n percei ved sound i sol at i on by
maski ng transmi tted sound. The sum of the STC rati ng pl us NC
rati ng shoul d al ways equal or exceed 95 at common wal l s between
theatres. Other sources of i ntrusi ve noi se shoul d be eval uated.
Al l sound-rat ed part i t i ons must i ncorporat e f ul l hei ght sl ab-t o-
structure frami ng contai ni ng fi brous i nsul ati on and gypsum board
seal ed ai rti ght at the head and si l l wi th a bead of acousti c seal ant. Al l
penetrati ons must be seal ed ai rti ght and recessed boxes ful l y encl osed.
Four-gang and smal l er j unct i on boxes can be seal ed usi ng sheet
caul ki ng on the back and si des, as shown i n Fi gure 4.5. Larger boxes
can be effecti vel y seal ed usi ng one-hour fi re-rated gypsum board
constructi on. Compl y wi th the standards outl i ned i n ASTM Standard
8497,
"Instal l ati on
of Fi xed Parti ti ons of Li ght Frame Type for the
Purpose of Conservi ng Thei r Sound Insul ati on Effi ci ency."
Fi gure 4.6 shows mi ni mal and typi cal mul ti pl ex demi si ng wal l desi gns
necessary to achi eve acceptabl e audi tori um i sol ati on.
Tabl e 2 bel ow present s sui t abl e STC rat i ngs. Not e t hat hi gher
numeri cal STC rati ngs transmi t l ess sound, and hi gher NC rati ngs
permi t l ouder background sound due to the venti l ati on system.
Tabl e 2: STC Rati ngs for Common Wal l s Between Theatres
Mi ni mum i n-si tu
STC Rati ng Noi se Cri teri a Descri pti on
STC 60 NC 35 Mi ni mum Standard
STC 65 NC 30 Typical
STC 70 NC 25 Desirable
-47-
In order to avoi d sound
"fl anki ng"
the wal l s, conti nuous metal roof
decks ar e di scour aged wi t hout gypsum boar d cei l i ngs, and
independent floor slabs with an elastic joint are required at srC 65 and
greater wal l s.
Fi gure 4.7 shows a more sophi sti cated wal l desi gn, used to ensure
i sol ati on between proj ecti on rooms and audi tori um
--
a constructi on
of t hi s t ype can be a maj or el ement i n i sol at i ng proj ect or and
machi nery room noi se.
Sound-Absorbi ng Wal l Treatments
The wal l behi nd the audi ence shoul d be covered i n sound-absorbi ng
materi al enti rel y.
Typi cal sound-absorbi ng panel s are compri sed of 1.5" thi ck gl ass-fi ber-
core wrapped i n porous f abri c havi ng i nherent f l ame-resi st ant
properti es. Panel s are avai l abl e wi th fabri c edge wrapped condi ti ons
and with resin hardened edges, metal, or wood frames. Complete pre-
fabri cated sound-absorbi ng panel s are avai l abl e.
If the si de wal l s are not angl ed, avoi d hard fl at paral l el gypsum board
surfaces faci ng one another across the room, parti cul arl y i n the
audience area at ear height, in order to avoid flutter echoes.
4.2.5 Seats
Choice of seat design can have a significant effect on acoustic quality,
especi al l y i n the smal l theatre. Thi s becomes obvi ous when standi ng
at the screen and l ooki ng at what the l oudspeaker
"sees"
--
a maj or
part of the sound field will be seats, or optimistically, audience.
First, a seat should be chosen which will be sufficiently damped as to
offer no refl ecti ons to the screen. If the seats have fol d-up bases
(squabs), the undersurface shoul d be damped. Never use seats wi th a
pl asti c or metal refl ecti ve undersurface.
-42-
Next, an i deal seat has acousti c properti es that do not change when a
person si ts i n i t; i e the absorpti on wi th respect to frequency does not
change. In this way, regardless of what percentage of the house is filled
with audience, the frequency response wili be the same. Better quality
seat manufacturers wi l l provi de i nformati on on thi s subj ect; contact
Dol by Laboratori es for i nformati on on testi ng procedures i f you wi sh
to carry out your own eval rrati <i n.
The most sophi sti cated seat sel ecti on wi l l al so consi der hi gh-frequency
grazing at the top of the seat, and low-frequency aberrations caused by
the potenti al l y resonant chamber under a row of seats.
4. 3 Background Noi se
4. 3. 1HVAC Desi gn
General Layout
Mechani cal equi pment havi ng rot at i ng part s shoul d not have any
di rect physi cal contact wi th the wal l s or cei l i ngs of theatres.
Do not l ocate ai r-movi ng devi ces i n the cei l i ng pl enum di rectl y above
the theatre. Thi s i ncl udes heat pumps, fan-powered boxes, vari abl e ai r
vol ume boxes (VAV), f an coi l uni t s (FCU),
exhaust f ans, and ai r
handl ers (AHU).
VAV boxes may be l ocat ed above t heat res onl y i f t he cei l i ng i s
compri sed of at l east one l ayer of 5/8-i nch thi ck gypsum board. Other
equi pment shoul d be revi ewed for i ts radi ated sound l evel i f i t must
be l ocated above the space. Avoi d usi ng fan-powered VAV boxes due
to hi gh l evel s of radi ated noi se.
Locate ai r-movi ng devi ces above storage rooms, corri dors or the
proj ecti on room. If for some reason they nrttst be l ocated over the
audi tori um, pl acement at a corner where they are supported by two
l oad-beari ns wal l s or a structural col umn wi l l be of great benefi t.
-43-
consi derati on coul d al so be gi ven to the use of stanchi on supports on
the roof. Noi se from the ai r-handl er i s transmi tted i n two ways: di rect
transmi ssi on of rumbl e through the bui l di ng structure, and ai rborne
noi se through the ducted ai r. If ai r-handl ers have to be mounted on
the roof at audi tori um corners as descri bed, extend the ducti ng as far as
possi bl e before a downturn to reduce ai rborne noi se.
Al l ai r handl ers and proj ector exhaust fans must be vi brati on i sol ated.
Agni n, never l ocate ai r-handl i ng devi ces on the roof di rectl y over the
theatre.
Ai r Handl i ng and Di st ri but i on
Revi ew suppl y ai r di ffuser sel ecti ons and speci fy an NC rati ng fi ve
poi nts l ess than requi red.
Lav out suppl y ai r ductwork and regi sters to have equi val ent duct
lengths between diffusers and the fan.
Onl y those ducts, pi pes and condui ts essenti al to serve a speci fi c
audi tori um space shoul d be al l owed to penetrate i ts wal l s.
Suppl y Ai r Ductwork
Provi de an excl usi ve duct branch and zone system to serve each
audi tori um/screen so as to avoi d crosstal k.
Si ze ductwork mai ns over the theatre to have one-i nch thi ck i nternal
duct l i ner.
The di scharge sound l evel of the suppl y fan bei ng used shoul d be
reviewed in order to specify the appropriate duct length and/or sound
attenuator.
-44-
Excess turbulence generated noise may be avoided by
turns; provide long radius elbows. If unavoidable,
turning vanes.
Dampers
using 90
o
duct
specify air-foil
Dampers shoul d never be l ocated di rectl y behi nd the face of the ai r
di st ri but i on devi ce.
Pl umbi ng and Pi pi ng Systems
Avoi d l ocati ng pl umbi ng and rai nwater l eaders i n the wal l s or cei l i ng
spaces of the theatre.
Any pi pi ng l ocated i n the wal l s or cei l i ng of the theatre space shoul d
be attached wi th resi l i ent mounti ngs.
Provi de a cl earance between pi pes and gypsum board or other fi ni sh
surfaces. Do not al l ow pi pes to make ri gi d metal -to-metal contact
between cei l i ng hanger wi res, supports, frami ng, or other structure to
whi ch fi ni shes are attached.
Penetrati ons
Ducts penetrati ng the sound-rated wal l or fl oor/cei l i ng constructi on
shoul d be i n an i nsul ated sl eeve packed wi th one-i nch thi ck mi neral
wool fi re safi ng and seal ed on both si des usi ng backer rod and
acousti cal seal ant.
Pi pi ng penetrati ons l ess than three i nches i n di ameter shoul d be
seal ed usi ng acousti c seal ant fi l l i ng a 1/4-i nch cl earance. Larger pi pes
should be treated similar to ducts.
Avoi d any back-to-back penetrati ons, such as el ectri cal panel boards,
j uncti on boxes or fi re exti ngui sher cabi nets. Offset penetrati ons two
stud cavi ti es.
-45-
4.3.2 HVAC Mai ntenance
Regul ar HVAC mai ntenance i s essenti al to ensure the mi ni mum
noise level the system is capable of. Bearings should be lubricated, and
bel t tensi on and condi ti on veri fi ed, at manufacturers' recommended
i nterval s; most i mportant, fi l ters shoul d be cl eaned on a schedul ed
basi s. Di rty fi l ters have been found responsi bl e for a theatre noi se
f l oor 10dB above t he measured f i gure at t he t i me of syst em
i nst al l at i on.
4. 4 Sound I sol at i on
4.4.L Cei l i ngs and Fl oors
A suspended gypsum board cei l i ng must be speci fi ed i f:
a) Ai r-handl i ng equi pment i s l ocat ed above t he room (a
concrete floating floor may be necessary in the equipment room).
b) The floor above the theatre is uncarpeted.
c) The floor slab above is not at least six inches of regular weight
concrete.
d) The Sound Transmi ssi on Cl ass of t he f l oor/ cei l i r, g
construction will be inadequate using a lay-in tile (i.e., lightweight
wood frame construction).
Provide mineral wool or fiberglass insulation above all gypsum board
ceilings.
The above analysis should also be conducted on the floor/ceiling
assembly below the theatre. Gypsum board ceilings are generally
necessary in lightweight wood frame construction where concrete is
not used.
-46-
4.4.3 Doors
Doors are among the most l i kel y paths of noi se i ntrusi ons. Vesti bul es
are t he most rel i abl e means t o obt ai n adequat e noi se reduct i on
wi t hout ext ensi ve care i n speci f i cat i on and qual i t y assurance
procedures duri ng constructi on, i ncl udi ng performance veri fi cati on of
t he act ual i nst al l at i on. The vest i bul e shoul d be carpet ed, have a
sound-absorbi ng l ay-i n cei l i ng, and have ful l -hei ght wal l s whi ch are
i nsul ated and faced wi th wal l carpet.
A very si mpl e t est f or obvi ous sound l eakage i s t o swi t ch of f
auditorium lights and look for any visible light leakage around the
doors.
Tabl e 3: Typi cal STC Rati ngs for Sound-Rated Doors
STC 35 1-3
/
4 i nch thi ck sol i d-core
r,r.'ood door with double
gasketi ng at the head and
fambs
and fi xed threshol d
wi th door bottom.
Use only at vestibule or
guarded entry conditions.
STC 412 2-1/ 4 i nch thi ck sound-rated
wood door and adj ustabl e
neoprene head and j amb
gasketing with flat threshold
and automati c door bottom.
Use only at carpeted
corridors which are
designated as quiet zones.
STC 49 2-L
/
4 i nch thi ck i nsul ated
steel door havi ng tandem
offset magneti c gaskets at the
head and
i ambs
wi th cam-l i ft
hi nges and fl at threshol d.
Requi re manufacturer' s
authori zed representati ve to
supervi se i nstal l ati on and
prepare punch l i st.
-47-
Thi s page i ntenti onal l y l eft bl ank.
-48-
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Fi gure 4.1
He
Noise Floor in Whole Octaves
o c o
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NOTE: Historically, noise floors have been measured with a sound
level meter with adiustable tilters swilched in whole octaves. This one-
third octave figure is intended for use with 1/3 octave real-time
analysers. Care should be taken that eleclrical noise floors do not limit
accuracy of measurements, especially at high frequencies where
microphone preamplitier noise may exceed acoustic noise levels.
NC-65
ilc-oo
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Figure 4.2 Noise Floor in Third Octaves
?
E 1. 0
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3
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tr
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CUBIC FEET
Figure 4.3 Acceptable Reverberation versusRoom Volume at 500 Hz
factor
2.25
2
1. 75
1. 5
1. 25
1
0.75
0.5
0.25
0
31. 5 125
4K 2K 1K 16K
Hz
q
50"
ca
ah
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t
aa
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t t t r l
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Lower Limit
l l t r r l
t t t t t l
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Fi gure 4.4 Reverberation Scaling Curve for Audio Bandwidth
Fi gure 4.5 Junction Box Treatment
GYPSUM BOARD
1/4" GAP. CAULK AIRTTGHT
ALL AROUND PERIMETER
OUTLET BOX PADS WRAPPED
AROUND JUNCTION BOX TO
SEAL AIBTIGHT
NOTE:
SEPARATE JUNCTION BOXES ON
OPPOSITE SIDES OF THE WALL
BY 16" MI NI MUM.
MASONRY
GROUT SOLID AND SEAL SURFACE
1-112" SEPARATION
BATT INSULATION
GYPSUM BOARD
a) BETTER THAN MASONRY ALONE
b) PREFERRED FOR SR. D
Fi gure 4.6 Recommended Demi si ng Wal l Desi gn
_
1 r 0 r l
wPtcAL
I
2 LAYERS
5/8" GYP. BD.
BATil INSULATION
TYPICAL C4x16 MTL
STUDS C 16" o/c
Fi gure 4.7 Screeni ng Room/Proj ecti on Room Mi ni mum Wal l Desi gn
Height ot Room
Divided by Widlh
1. 0 1_1 1. 2 1. 3 r . 4 t . 5 1. 6 1. 7 1. 8 1. 9 2. 0
Length of Room Divided by Wirfth
Note: Enter drawing with ratio of length to width of room. Proceed up to black line, and
then move hori zontal l y to fi nd rati o of hei ght to wi dth. Exampl e l ength to wi dth i s 1.5:1.
Move from 1.5 up to bl ack l i ne, then hori zontal l y to 0.65. Hei ght shoul d be 0.65 of wi dth.
Black dot represents good cinema practice. Bad acoustics may well result from any
design outside the hatched area.
0.95
0.90
0.85
0.80
0.75
0.70
0.65
0.60
0.50
\ O
p
I
W
\
4 ?h
7
ffi
\ '.W
Figure 4.8 Optimum Theatre Shape
5. 0 Ci nema Processor Updat es
5. 1CPs0
While theoretically the CP50 could be updated for the playback of the
Dolby SR.D sound-track, the cost of labour and material necessary
approach the cost of a new Dolby CP65, and so such an update
approach is strongly discouraged.
5.2 CP55 and CP200
Many boards in cinema processors manufactured by Dolby Laboratories
have been repl aced f rom t i me-t o-t i me wi t h new versi ons wi t h
superi or performance. Taki ng ful l advantage of the speci fi cati ons of a
Dol by SR and SR.D fi l m wi l l requi re updati ng sel ected boards.
Matri x decoders. Si gni fi cant i mprovements have been made by Dol by
engi neers over the years i n the technol ogy used to decode the four
channel s (L,C,R and S) from the two tracks on the fi l m. Current
rnodul es provi de st abl e i nt er-channel separat i on adequat e t o be
i ndi sti ngui shabl e from di screte sound-tracks wi th much program
materi al . As
"di screteness"
i s frequentl y quoted to be superi or wi th
70mm magneti c when compared wi th si mpl e matri x decoders used
wi th 35mm stereo opti cal , updati ng to the l atest technol ogy i s wel l
worthwhile for SR
plavback.
Current (si nce 7992) producti on versi ons of the Cat. No. 150 decoder
modul e are Revi si on E. Currentl y acceptabl e modul es date back to
Revi si on D, whi ch was i ntroduced at Seri al Number 12000. In addi ti on
t o superi or decodi ng perf ormance, t he current modul es have
i ncreased headroom for al l channel s, and a l ow-noi se surround del ay
ci rcui t
--
both of benefi t wi th the wi der dynami c range of Dol by SR
f i l ms. Cat . No. 150 modul es of revi si ons A, B, and C shoul d be
repl aced; ol d Cat. No. 116 decoders are certai nl y unacceptabl e for SR
playback.
-49-
Opti cal pre-ampl i fi ers. Later versi ons of opti cal pre-ampl i fi er boards
i nstal l ed i n Dol by theatre equi pment exhi bi t si gni fi cantl y i mproved
hi gh-frequency response, i mproved stabi l i ty and better l i neari ty and
phase response at hi gh frequenci es. CP50 and CP200 uni ts shoul d be
updat ed wi t h CN108 pre-ampl i f i er cards of Revi si on C, whi ch was
i nt roduced wi t h Seri al Number 11570. Al l CP55 and CP65 uni t pre-
ampl i fi ers have adequate performance.
Dynami c range. Dol by SR and Dol by SR.D pl ayback may al so j usti fy
updati ng other modul es i n ol der CP50 and CP200 ci nema processors.
Some earl y boards have perf ormance speci f i cat i ons more t han
adequate to pl ay back conventi onal mono and Dol by Stereo fi l ms, but
exhi bi t headroom and noi se f l oor charact eri st i cs whi ch coul d be
i mproved for the new sound-tracks. Cat. No. 64 equal i zer modul es of
Revi si on B, for exampl e, have a si gni fi cantl y l ower noi se l evel than
earl i er vari ants.
Cat. No. 441. Thi s surround/sub-woofer card provi des two channel s of
surround equal i zat i on and t he requi red capabi l i t i es f or st ereo
surrounds and a sub-woofer channel for the pl ayback of an SR.D
sound-track. Thi s modul e i s for use i n a CP55, r,vhere i t repl aces the
Cat . No. 241 modul e.
Cat. No. 560. Provides the same functions as the Cat. No. 44L above, for
use in a CP200, where it replaces the Cat. No. L60.
Cat. No.517. Repl aces the Cat. No. 1,L7 i n a CP200. Essenti al to handl e
the greater dvnami c range of modern sound-tracks. Provi des greater
dynamic range, lower distortion and additional features for playback of
Dol by SR and SR.D.
Cat. No.
"t37L.
Link card required for use with Cat. No. 517 output
card
--
replaces Cat. No. 1.37 in a CP200.
-50-
6.0 Pi cture Issues
Pi ct ure proj ect i on qual i t y shoul d conf orm t o exi st i ng publ i shed
standards.
Needl ess t o say, i nst al l at i on of a Dol by SR decoder t o achi eve
i mproved sound qual i ty i n a theatre wi l l not affect the qual i ty of the
pi ct ur e i mage. But as a l ar ge- scr een hi gh- def i ni t i on pi ct ur e
presentati on can be damaged by i nadequate sound, the ful l fi del i ty of
Dol by SR sound can onl y be achi eved wi th the compl ement of a wel l
-
proj ect ed pi ct ure. The movi e-goi ng experi ence can onl y be f ul l y
real i sed when pi cture qual i ty and sound qual i ty are matched.
Selection of state-of-the-art lenses, non-reflective angled port glass, and
t he i nst al l at i on of t hr ee- bl aded shut t er s can pr ovi de r adi cal
i mprovements i n percei ved pi cture qual i ty.
6. 1 Screen Si ze
There are obvi ous trade-offs wi th sel ecti on of too smal l or too l arge a
screen. As t he pi ct ure get s l arger, t he audi ence becomes more
i nvol ved i n the story, begi ns to feel they are parti ci pati ng and not j ust
wi tnessi ng. But as the pi cture gets l arger, the vi si bi l i ty of pi cture fl aws
--
grai n, j r*p and weave, become more apparent. Back i n 1953,
Twenti eth Century Fox di d some fundamental research i nto screen
si ze, duri ng the devel opment of Ci nemascope (wi th i ts 2.35:1 aspect
rati o). Whi l e granul ari ty has been i mproved si nce the fi fti es wi th
modern f i l m st ocks, j ump and weave of t he pi ct ure i mage remai n
essenti al l y unchanged, even wi th modern proj ectors. The concl usi on
t hen was t hat t he i deal pi ct ure si ze shoul d be t hat whi ch subt ends a
l nri zantnl nngl e of 45 degrees at the pri me seat. Gi ven an empty
theatre, a movi e-goer by-and-l arge sel ects a seat two-thi rds of the way
back, on the centre-l i ne of the house, and as resul t the i deal geometry
i s set as shol vn i n Fi gure 6.1. Obvi ousl y, di scussi on of screen si ze i n
t erms of f eet or met res becomes a secondary di mensi onal i ssue,
-51-
dependi ng on the si ze of the theatre. The key di mensi on i s the angl e
subtended at a pri me seat.
Thi s i s one area where sel ect i on of a pi ct ure paramet er i n a new
theatre desi gn di rectl y affects the sound. Assumi ng the l oudspeakers
are mounted at the i eft and ri ght extremes of a Ci nemascope screen
i mage, thi s 45 degree angl e makes possi bl e a fai rl y smooth sound fi el d,
wi th reasonabl e stereo i magi ng throughout the theatre (assumi ng
a
sensi bl y short reverberati on ti me, as di scussed i n Secti on 4.1.2 above).
screens much wi der t han t hi s aspect rat i o wi l l not onl y exhi bi t
excessi ve pi cture fl aws at seats i n the front of the theatre, but wi l l
exhi bi t subj ecti vel y excessi ve stereo
"pi ng-pong".
screens wi th an
aspect rati o narrower than thi s i deal 45 degree fi gure wi l l l ead to a
sound essenti al l y mono i n the back of the house, especi al l y i f there i s
excessi ve reverberati on. Thi s effect can easi l y be detected i n ol d
theatres badl y twi nned a few years ago, wi th a di vi di ng wal l bui l t
strai ght down the mi cl dl e of the house.
No l ayout of surround speakers, mono or stereo, can compensate for
an i ncorrect stereo bal ance, l eft to ri ght, across the screen.
If the i deal Ci nemascope screen subtends an angl e of 45 degrees at the
pri me seat , and granul ari t y, j ump and weave are t he cont rol l i ng
parameters, the i deal screen rati os for other formats can be deri ved. In
t he USA, 1. 85: 1i i s t he most popul ar shoot i ng f ormat , but i t i s
apparent that thi s rati o i s very i neffi ci ent i n terms of use of the fi l m
f rame. Bl own up t oo l arge, a 1. 85: 1 f i l m wi l l reveal excessi ve
granul ari ty. For thi s reason, a best compromi se wi th
' scope
and 1.g5
screen sizes is to set the picture height the same, and only to adjust the
hori zontal maski ng, as shown i n Fi gure 6.2. Mai ntai ni ng the same
wi dth and adj usti ng verti cal maski ng, wi l l degrade the qual i ty of the
1.85 i mage, showi ng up every pi cture fl aw and excessi ve granul ari ty.
iThe
ANSI standard for picture
dimensions is PH22.I95.
-52-
In Europe, 1.66:1, i s a popul ar shooti ng format. Thi s i s cl earl y a much
more effi ci ent use of the fi l m frame, and here the screen hei ght can be
i ncreased wi thout excessi ve pi cture probl ems. Fi gure 6.3 shows how a
theatre woul d equi p for an i deal presentati on of
' scope,
1.85:1 and
I . 66: 7 aspect rat i os. Obvi ousl y t hi s requi res bot h vert i cal and
hori zontal adj ustabl e maski ng.
I n t he US, where normal l y onl v 2. 35: 1
' scope
and 1. 85: 1 f i l ms are
presented, onl y adj ustabl e hori zontal maski ng i s needed to ensure
opti mum pi cture qual i ty. The speaker l ocati on shoul d be set at the
extremes of the
'scope
screen, so care should be taken that neither the
masking nor the masking edge-mounting damage the high-frequency
response when a 1.85:1 movi e i s presented.
Over the l ast few years, a few theatres i n the USA have i nstal l ed
screens wi th a fi xed 2:1 aspect rati o, choppi ng off the si des of a
' scope
pi cture, and tl ' re top and bottom of a 1.85:1 pi cture. Thi s bad practi ce
shoul d be strongl y di scouraged, as wi th a 1.85:L pi cture, i n parti cul ar,
si gni fi cant pi cture acti on i s l i kel y to be cl i pped.
6.2 Screen Type
Many of the deci si ons taken i n theatre desi gn are based on cost
--
not
surpri si ngl y when consi deri ng the bui l di ng and operati on expense of a
modern mul ti pl e-screen compl ex. But when one consi ders that the
purpose behi nd movi e-goi ng i s to see a pi cture, compromi ses i n the
qual i ty of the i mage on the screen seem i nappropri ate. The cost of a
l arger l amphouse may seem si gni fi cant duri ng theatre bui l di ng, but
wi l l soon seem tri vi al on an ongoi ng basi s, especi al l y wi th i mproved
patron recogni ti on of superi or presentati on.
Gai n screens provi de i mproved i l l umi nati on, but onl y on a refl ected
aris from the projector lens" Someone sitting on the centre-line of the
theatre wi l l see a bri ghter i mage on the centre of the screen, but the
i l l umi nati on wi l l fal l off towards the edges. Vi ewers seated to one si de
of the theatre wi l l see a bri ghter i mage towards the si de of the screen
-53-
on whi ch they are seated, but the i l l umi nati on wi l l fal l off si gni fi cantl y
on the opposi te si de of the screen.
Onl y matt-whi te, non-gai n screens can achi eve uni form i l l umi nati on
across t he ent i re screen n' i dt h, regardl ess of t he ui ewer' s l ocat i on.
Cai n screens onl y make sense f or speci al appl i cat i ons where t he
vi ewer i s seat ed on axi s (such as sl i de or vi deo one-on-one AV
presentati ons). Dependi ng on theatre shape, matt-whi te i ;creens may
place an additional requirement that the wall surfaces by the screen are
dark, and do not allow excessive reflection. See scetion 6.5 below.
Next, modern good qual i ty l enses have been devel oped over many
years to achi eve an i n-focus i mage over a fl at screen. Curved screens
i n a si ngl e di mensi on (i e a hori zontal wrap) woul d requi re vi rtual l y
i mpossi bl e l ens geometry to achi eve opti mum focus throughout the
screen area. And whi l e l enses coul d be devel oped t o achi eve
approxi mate focus throughout the area of a two-di mensi onal l y curved
screen, such a shape may wel l have several sound and pi ct ure
probl ems; fi rst, the i l l umi nati on wi l l not be uni form throughout the
seating area, and, more pertinent for this document, such a screen has
to be sol i d (wi thout perforati ons) requi ri ng separati on of hi gh and
l ow-frequency l oudspeaker uni ts, wi th consequent di spersi on and
damage to the sound i mage.
6.3 Li ght on Screen
For many years, the nomi nal screen l umi nance fi gure i n the USA has
been defi ned as 16 foot-l amberts. Many theatres fal l short of thi s
figure, by design or accident
-
with inadequate lamp-house capability,
worn-out l amps, or mi s-al i gned equi pment. A few fi l ms have been
rel eased
"ti med"
assumi ng theatres proj ecti ng at 12 foot l amberts. A
very simplistic analysis of this trend shows a most obvious fl,aw
-
16
l eads to 12, then 8, 6 etc, and sooner or l ater no l i ght on the screen at
al l ! But more seri ousl y, 16 foot-l amberts was not a random sel ecti on.
The nature of current fi l m stocks i s such that a proj ecti on l umi nance
of 16 fL ideally balances between black and white saturation conditions.
-54-
For example, films timed for 10 fL and projected at i.0 fL will look
correct at mid-density, but the film is so light that all bright shots will
loose graduation, and will tend towards clear film.
Not onl y shoul d the centre-screen l umi nance be 16 fL, but the
l umi nance across the screen shoul d be uni form, as descri bed i n the
rel evant standards. A fal l -off of 20% at the screen edges i s the
maxi mum acceptabl e.l
6.4 Col or Temperature
The optimum screen color temperature is 5400oK, with a good theatre
tolerance of +200oK. See SMPTE 196M, attached.
6.5 Refl ected and Ambi ent Li ght
Reflected light should not exceed 0,25%.
6.6 Forthol e Desi gn
Porthol e desi gn affects both pi cture and sound. Fi rst, good desi gn
practi ce makes the si ze of the porthol e and vi ewport the very
mi ni mum necessary. Large port apertures act as acousti c refl ectors
bounci ng sound back towards the screen, and can al so resul t i n a l arge
amount of ambient light leakage from the booth worklights.
Good acousti c practi ce requi res a doubl e-stud i sol ati on wal l between
audi tori um and proj ecti on booth. Wi th such a wal l desi gn, there
must be no hard coupl i ng between the two wal l s, as typi fi ed i n the
design shown in Figure 4.7. Both projection and viewing ports should
be doubl e-gl azed to achi eve sound i sol ati on. Regardl ess of the wal l
structure, proj ector noi se wi l l escape through any si ngl e sheet of
proj ecti on gl ass.
lsee
ANSI PH22.796:screen Luminance, included in Appendix.
-55-
Port gl asses shoul d be angl ed to reduce l ateral refl ecti ons; as a worst
case exampl e, i nternal refl ecti ons from a si ngl e port gl ass set at 90o to
t he l i ne f rom l ens t o screen wi l l resul t i n numerous ref l ect i ons
l eadi ng to a soft screen i mage apparentl y out-of-focus. A good resul t
will be a front glass set at perhaps 70 forward from the lens angle, and
a rear (audi tori um si de) gl ass set at 15o backwards.
Care shoul d be taken over the qual i ty of gl ass used, and opti mum
proj ecti on requi res coati ng to further avoi d i nternal refl ecti ons.l
Fi gure 6.4 shows a front-and-back pai r of port gl asses opti mi sed to
avoi d i nternal refl ecti on probl ems.
6.7 Shutters
Three-bladed shutters raise the flicker frequency such that white skies
on the screen wi l l seem essenti al l y fl i cker-free. Whi l e pan fl i cker wi l l
sti l l occur, the stabi l i ty of whi te areas i s si gni fi cant i n terms of
reducti on of
"pi cture
fati gue". Whi l e the cost pof purchase of three-
bl aded shutters i s rel ati vel y l ow, i ncreased i l l umi nati on i s requi red to
compensate for the shorter
"on"
ti me. Thi s coul d become real l y
si gni fi cant i f the exi sti ng l amp-house i s runni ng near i ts maxi mum
rati ng, and a l arger l amphouse i s requi red.
IIn
the US, a sui tabl e materi al i s
"Water
Whi te Gl ass," avai l abl e from Schott
Glass, 400 York Avenue, Duryea, Penn. Both sides of the glass should be coated
wi th
"Photopi c
HEA--Mul ti l ayer Anti -refl ecti on Coati ng #6035001" by
Optical Coating Laboratory, Santa Rosa, CA, or by approved equivalents.
-56-
SCREEN
T
a3
I
T
1t3
I
Fi gure 6.1 Opti mum Subtended Screen Angl e
2. 35: 1
1 . 85: 1
Fi gure 6.2 Adj ustabl e Maski ng 2.35:1 and 1.85:1
1 . 66: 1
Fi gure 6. 3 Adj ust abl e Maski ng 2. 35: 1, 1. 85: 1, and 1. 66: 1
112"
WATER WHITE
CROWN GLASS
ffi
SOUNo ISOLATION
SOUND ABSORPTION
<-- PROJECTION DIRECTTON
u8'
WATER WHITE
CROWN GLASS
Fi gure 6.4 superi or Parti ti on
-
Mi ni mum Internal l y Refl ecti ve,
Sound lsolation Port Design
15e
70
Projection
Direction
Fi gure 6.5 Opti mum Port Gl ass Proj ecti on Angl es
7.0 Test Films
7. L Sound
7.1".L Analog
Cat 69P
Pink Noise on color stock
Cat 697
Dolby Tone on color stock
Cat97
Leftlright test film for solar cell alignment
Cat 1.51 and Cat 1518
The Cat. No. 1518 i s an opti onal al ternati ve to the
exi sti ng Cat. No. L51. Unl i ke the 151, the L5LB uti l i zes
band l i mi t ed f requency pi nk noi se on f ront and
surround channels, making it easier to achieve timbre
matching. Engineers may find this film easier to use in
practice than the Cat. No. 151., though both films will be
available for the time-being.
Cat 556
Lack of illumination uniformity along the slit is a major
cause of di storti on and i nadequate hi gh-l evel hi gh-
frequency response with analog soundtracks. Until now
the only method of measuring uniformity was with a
snake track, a difficult and cumbersome procedure. This
new test film only requires use of a real-time analyzer,
-57-
and pr ovi des an i nst ant vi sual di spl ay of any
illumination
problems.
7tl,.2Digital
Cat 1010: Synchronization
test film
Enables setting of sound deray to match picture sync
wi t h di gi t al sound reader varyi ng proj ect or mount i ng l ocat i ons.
Cont ai ns di gi t al
"pi p",
anal og
"pi p",
pi ct ure sync mark, and
frame/sprocket markers for visual verification.
Cat 101L: Channel Identification
test film
Contains verbal identification for each main channel
(Left,
Centre, Right, Left Rear and Right Rear), and a low frequency
tone for sub-woofer.
7.2 Picture
7. 2. 1RP40
35mm picture test film, manufactured by the sMprE. used for
checking focus, lens resolution and aspect ratios.
[SMPTE
RP105: Picture
Jump
and Weave]
7.3 General Purpose
7.3.7|iffy
This is an updated version of the well-know n
llffy
test film,
now containing both an sR sound-track, and a digital sound-track.
There are six minutes of subjective audio tests in some cases different
for the analog and digital sound-tracks. The test film also contains
-58-
some quick visual tests, to verify framing and check for ghosting and
shutter problems.
7.4 Trailers
7.4.LCat. No.451 Mancini trailer. Dolby Stereo SR, 1.85:1 aspect
ratio. A one minute helicopter journey across the Columbia Gorge
with a stirring orchestral score written by Henry Manicini.
7.4.2Cat. No. 3185/3235 Train Trailer. Dolby Stereo SRrD for
use in Digital equipped theatres. A 60-second sound effect fanfare to
introduce a Dolby Stereo digital feature.
-59-
This page intentionally left blank.
-60-
8.0 Other Information
8. 1 Equi pment Manual s
The following manuals are equipment manuals are available from
Dolby Laboratories:
8. 1. 1CP55
8.1.2 CP6s
8.1.3 CP200
8.1..4 SRA5
8. 1. 5 DA10
8.1.6 DA20
8.2 Standards
8.2.1 ANSI202M 0502969)
8.2.2 Li ght on Screen and Refl ected/Ambi ent Li ght. SMPTE
196M-1993
8.2.3 Measurement of screen l umi nance SMPTE RP98
8.2.4 Proj ected Image
Qual i ty
of 70-, 35- and 16-mm Moti on-
Pi cture Proj ecti on Systems
SMPTE EG }].994
-67-
SMPTE and ANSI documents can be ordered from:
SMPTE: 595 West Hartsdale Ave.
White Plains, NY 10607
(I n t he USA, t he SMPTE can al so provi de I SO and I EC
document s)
ISO documents can be ordered from:
ISO: Central Secretariat, Case Postale 56
CH-1211 Geneve
Switzerland
IEC documents can be ordered from:
IEC: 3 Rue de Varembe, Case Postale 13L
CH-1211 Geneve
Switzerland
8.3 Other Information Sources
8.3.1 Technical
|ournals
and Magazines
Technical information on motion picture sound, and theatre
sound systems and installation can be found in a wide variety of
journals and magazines. The best known are:
SMPTE
Journal:
Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE)
595 West Hartsdale Ave.
White Plains. NY 10607
Film
|ournal:
244tNest 49th Street, Suite 305,
New York. NY 10019
-62-
Box-Office Magazine:
6640 Sunset Blvd., Suite L00
Hollywood, CA 90028
Image Technology (incorporating
Cinema Technology):
tsritish Kinematograph, Sound and Television Society (BKSTS),
547-549 Victoria House, Vernon Place
London WC1B 4DT
England
Journal
of the Audio Engineering Society:
AES
60 East 42nd Street, Room 2520
New York, NY 10165-2520
8.3.2 Inter-Soci ety Commi ttee
This committee meets irregularly, and has a membership from
al l aspects of the moti on pi cture i ndustry, producers, theatres, and
equi pment manufacturers. Di scussi ons are of techni cal i ssues of
current i nterest
--
for exampl e, the commi ttee has been heavi l y
involved in discussions relating to the adoption of 6000 feet shipping
reels for motion picture distribution in the USA.
Contact:
]ohn
Mason
Eastman Kodak Company
6700 Santa Monica Boulevard
Hollywood, CA 90038
Tel.: 213-464-6131.
8.3.3 TEA
The Theatre Equipment Association provides a forum for the
interchange of information between equipment manufacturers and
-63-
equipment dealers. The membership is largely from the USA, with
increasing representation from overseas. The TEA also hosts an
annual semi nar seri es coveri ng mot i on pi ct ure i ndust ry i ssues
ranging from theatre sight lines to crowd control at the concession
stands. Communication is by mail, and at an annual convention held
each summer at a different location in the USA.
Contact: The Theatre Equipment Association
244\Nest 49th Street, Suite 305
New York, NY 10019
8.3.4 THX
THX is a division of LucasArts Ltd which publishes a set of
criteria for theatre performance. They provide regular training courses
for the measurement of theatre performance, and for the installation
of THX loudspeaker systems.
Contact: THX Division
LucasArts Ltd.
PO Box 2009
San Rafael. CA 9491.4
8.4 Dolby Technical Help
8. 4. 1Trai ni ng Courses
Dolby Laboratories provides regular training courses for theatre
equipment installers, theatre operations staff, and studio personnel.
Course mat eri al cont ai ns speci f i c i nf ormat i on about t heat re
equipment installation, and much of the material discussed in these
guidelines. The courses are held several times a year, in different
locations in the USA. and in London.
-64-
Contact:
US Address:
UK Address:
Dolby Laboratories Marketing Department:
100 Potrero Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94L03
Phone (415)558-0200
Fax (415)863-1373
Wootton Bassett
Wiltshire SN4 8QJ England
Phone 01793-8421,00
Fax01793-842101
8.4.2 Dolby Technical Help Hot-Line
In the USA, technical help is available:
Monday-Friday 8.00am
-
5.30pm (Pacific Time) (415)558-0200
(Outside
of business hours
for
theatre emergencies
caII: (415)554-8537)
Reference test films for measurement of illumination uniformity,
scanning beam location and picture test films are available from
several sources, including:
SMPTE:
595 West Hartsdale Ave.
White Plains, NY 10607
DEFA: OPTRONIK GMBH
August-Bebel-Strasse 26-53
D 14482 Potsdam
Tel: 49-331-9652472
Fax: 49-331
-9652471.
-65-
Theatre Check List
B-Chai n
Stage Power
Stage Loudspeaker Locati on
Stage Characteristic Curve
Surround Speaker Number/Locati on
Surround Power
Surround Characteri sti c Curve
Sub-woofer Power
/
Linearity
Sub-woofer Locati on
A-Chai n
Analog Frequency Response
Anal og Wow-and-Fl utter
Anal og Il l umi nati on Uni formi ty
Di gi tal Il l umi nati on Uni formi ty
Digital Exciter Lamp Voltage
Digital Projector Delay Set
Di gi tal Surround Del ay Set
Acoust i cs
Noise Floor:
Reverberati on Ti me
Refl ecti ons/Dampi ng
Maski ng Cl oth
Measured
OK
il
tl
t
t
t
t
t
Checked
OK
t
t
n
D
D
D
t
t
D
t
il
t
-66-
Measured
OK
Checked
OK
Processor Updates
Cat. No. 108C
Cat . No. 648
Cat. No. 150E
Cat. No. 441
Cat . No. 560
Cat . No. 517
tl
t
tl
t
t
t
-67-
Dolby Laboratories acknowledges with thanks permission from the SMPTE to reprint the
documents in the appendix to this manual.
SMPTE STANDARD
for Moti on-Pi ctures
-
B-Chain Electroacoustic Response
-
Dubbi ng Theaters, Revi ew Rooms,
and Indoor Theaters
ANSI/SMPTE 2O2M-1991
Revi si on and Redesi gnal i on ol
ANSt PH22. 202M- . t 984
1 Scope
This standard specifies the measurement methods
and char act er i st i c el ect r oacoust i c f r equency
response of the B-chain of motion-picture dubbing
theaters, review rooms, and indoor theaters whose
room volume exceeds 150 m3 (5297 ft1. lt is intended
to assist in standardization of reproduction of motion-
picture sound in such rooms. lt does not apply where
the recorded sound is intended for reproduction under
domestlc listening conditions, i.e., for radio broadcast-
ing, television broadcasting, tape, or disc. This stan-
dard does not cover that part of the motion-picture
sound system from the transducer to the input termi-
nals of the main fader, nor does it cover the electro-
acoustic response characteristic of motion-picture
theater subbass loudspeakers (subwoofers).
2 Normative reference
The following standard contains provisions which,
through reference in this text, constitute provisions of
this standard. At the time of publication, the edition
indicated was valid. All standards are subject to
revision, and parties to agreements based on this
standard are encouraged to investigate the possibility
of applying the most recent edition of the standard
indicated below.
ANSI 51 . 13-1971 (R1986), Met hods f or t he Measure-
rnent of Sound Pressure Levels
3 Defi ni ti ons
3.1 complete sound reproduction system: Rep-
resent ed di agrammat i cal l y i n f i gure 1 and used
i n i ndoor t heat er s and r evi ew r ooms and i n
mot i on-pi ct ure sound post -product i on f aci l i t i es
Page
' l
of 9 pages
such as dubbi ng t heat er s, mi x r ooms, and ADR
st udi os. The compl et e syst em i s gener al l y con-
si der ed t o consi st of an A- chai n and a B- chai n.
3. 2 pr eemphas i z ed audi o t r ac k : An audi o
r ecor d, ei t her magnet i c or phot ogr aphi c, con-
t ai ni ng hi gh- f r equency boost equal i zat i on whi ch
i s i nt ended f or pl ayback over deemphasi zed
t heat er pl ayback syst ems t o curve N of t hi s st an-
dard. A deemphasi zed t heat er pl ayback syst em
makes use of a combi nat i on of proj ect or sl i t -
hei ght l osses, el ect r i cal f i l t er s, l oudspeaker
frequency response, screen losses, and auditorium
acoust i cs t o rol l of f hi gh-f requency noi se due t o
t he magnet i c or opt i cal sound t rack.
3. 3 wi de- r ange audi o t r ack: An audi o r ecor d,
ei t her magnet i c or phot ogr aphi c , whi c h i s
i nt ended f or pl ayback over t heat er pl ayback
syst ems al i gned t o curve X of t hi s st andard.
Such a t rack i s t ypi cal l y recorded wi t hout f i xed
pr e- and deemphasi s. Fr equent l y, compandi ng
noi se reduct i on i s empl oyed, and i s used wi t h
compl ement ary decodi ng i n pl ayback, t o reduce
t he ef f ect s of noi se due t o t he magnet i c or opt i -
cal sound t rack.
3.4 A-chain (transducer system): That part of a
mot i on-pi ct ure audi o syst em, as shown i n f i gure
1, ext endi ng f r om t he t r ansducer t o t he i nput
t ermi nal s of t he mai n f ader.
3.5 B-chain (finalchain): That part of a motion-
pi ct ure sound reproduct i on syst em, as shown i n
f i gur e 1, commenci ng at t he i nput t er mi nal s of
t he mai n f ader and t ermi nat i ng i n t he l i st eni ng
area def i ned i n f i gures 3 and 4 at whi ch sound
pressure measurement s are t aken.
CAUTION NOTICE: Thi s Standard may be revi sed or wi thdrawn at any ti mo. Tha procadures of the Sl andard Oev6l oper toqui re thal acl i on be takon to reatl i rm, rovi so,
or wi thdraw thi s standard no l atgr than ti ve ysars trom the date of publ i cati on. Purchaso6 ol standards may recoi vs cuttent i nformal i on on al l standards by cal l i ng ot
wri ti ng the Standard Devel oper. Pri nl ad In USA.
Copyright O 1991 by THE SOCIETY OF
MOTION PICTURE ANO TELEVISION ENGINEERS
595 W- Hartsdala Avs., While Plains, NY
'10607
{91 4} 761
-1 1 00
.-, Anerican llalional Slandard
ANSl 7 C1 2 9 1 / 1 6
Approved
Oct ober 30. 1991
ANSYSMPTE 202M. 1991
Noi se
source
Non-s:mc
lEi
-..
I
Magnet i c
Photographic
Preamplifiers
and equalizers
Figure 1
-
Complete theatrical
3. 6 pi nk noi se: A st ochast i c si gnal havi ng a
cont i nuous spect r um wi t h equal ener gy per
equal l ogar i t hmi c i nt er val of f r equency, and wi t h
a Gaussi an pr obabi l i t y di st r i but i on of i nst ant a-
neous ampl i t ude. ( See 4. 4. )
3. 7 wi de-band pi nk noi se: Pi nk noi se havi ng a
bandwi dt h exceedi ng t he nor mal acoust i c f r e-
quency r ange. A sui t abl e t est si gnal shoul d
have a f r equency r esponse f l at t o wi t hi n t 0. 5 dB
when measur ed i n
14 - oct ave
bands wi t h cent er
f r equenci es f r om 25 Hz t o 20 kHz wi t h an i nt e-
gr at i ng aver agi ng t echni que.
3. 8 el ect roacoust i c response: The el ect ro-
acoust i c r esponse of t he B- chai n i s t he spat i al l y
aver aged sound pr essur e
l evel measur ed i n 1/ 3-
RMS
Screeu
Auditorir::n
acor:stics
sound reproduction system
oct ave bands expressed i n deci bel s wi t h respect
t o r ef er ence l evel when wi de- band pi nk
noi se i s
appl i ed t o t he i nput t er mi nal s of t he mai n f ader ,
pr ecedi ng t he power ampl i f i er . ( See f i gur e 1. )
The ref erence l evel i s t he average l evel of t he
el ect r oacoust i c r esponse of t he 1/ 3- oct ave
bands over t he f requency range f rom 400 Hz t o
2 kHz. The el ect roacoust i c response i s com-
put ed as a spat i al aver age over t he l i st eni ng
ar ea usi ng one of t he met hods gi ven i n annex
4. 4.
4 Method of measurement
4, 1 The el ec t r oac ous t i c r es pons e s hal l be
measur ed wi t h t he equi pment ar r anged i n accor -
dance wi t h f i gur es 2, 3, and 4. ( See annex A. )
Screen
Speaker
Measuring
microphone
F
-
H
L _
Such as
real-time
analyzer, etc.
B-chai n
equallzer
voltmete
{ , V )
Y
Power
amplifier
T - - ' l
L _ J
Filter
Main Crossoner
fader network
NOTE
-
Optional equipment is shown with dotted lines.
Measuring
instrumeut
-'l
H \ )
J \ /
Page2ot 9pages
Figure 2
-
Method of measurement of B-chain
Filter
r/ 3 A
Figure 3
-
Theater auditorium
4. 2 Sound pressure l evel (SPL) vs. f requency
measur ement s ( see annex A) shal l be made as
f ol l ows:
(a) I n dubbi ng t heat ers or mi x rooms, at each of t he pri nci pal
l i st eni ng posi t i ons, such as at t he posi t i on of each ol t he
mi xi ng personnel , and at t he producer' s l ocat i on.
(b) I n revi ew rboms and revi ew t heat ers, at a sut f i ci ent
number of posi t i ons t o cover t he l i st eni ng ar ea and t o r educe
t he st andar d devi at i on of measur ed posi t i on- t o- posi t i on
response t o l ess t han 3 dB, whi ch wi l l t ypi cal l y be achi eved
wi t h f our posi t i ons.
(c) I n i ndoor t heat ers, at posi t i on S as shown i n f i gure 3 and
posi t i on R as shown i n f i gure 4 shoul d i t exi st , and at a
suf f i ci ent number of ot her posi t i ons t o reduce t he st andard
, devi at i on ot measwed posi l i on-t o: posi t i on response t o l ess
t han 3 dB, whi ch wi l l t ypi cal l y be achi eved wi t h f our posi -
t i ons, but avoi di ng t hose aber r ant l ocat i ons descr i bed i n
A. 4.
4. 3 l t i s recommended t hat measurement s be
made at a nor mal seat ed ear hei ght bet ween
1. 0 m and 1. 2 m ( 3. 3 f t and 4. 0 f t ) , but not cl oser
t han 150 mm (6 i n) f rom t he t op of a seat , and
not cl oser t han 1. 5 m ( 4. 9 f t ) t o any wal l and
5. 0 m ( 16. 4 f t ) f r om t he l oudspeaker ( s) ,
4. 4 A sui t abl e si ngl e l oudspeaker audi t or i um
sound pressure l evel wi t h wi de-band pi nk noi se
i s 85 dB SPL C-wei ght ed and sl ow readi ng (See
annex A. 10) . The measur ed l evel i n any 1/ 3-
oct ave band can be used di rect l y i f i t exceeds
the background noise in the band by at least 10 dB.
l f t he background noi se i s bet ween 4 dB and 10
dB bel ow t he t est si gnal , t he measurement may
be correct ed usi ng t he t echni ques descri bed i n
ANSI S1. 13- 1971, t abl e 4. ( See annex A. 4. )
ANSySMPTE 2o:lM-1991
Figure 4
-
Theater balcony
4. 5 A syst em f or pl ayi ng cont emporary st ereo
f i l ms wi l l general l y empl oy f our wi de-range chan-
nel s: screen l ef t , cent er, and ri ght l oudspeaker
syst ems, and a sur r ound channel l oudspeaker
syst em gener al l y empl oyi ng a number of i ndi vi d-
ual l oudspeakers spaced around t he room f or
uni f orm coverage. Each of t hese channel s i s t o
be measured and adj ust ed i n t urn.
5 Characteristic amplitude responses
with respect to frequency
5. 1 Wi t h t he sound syst em set f or pl ayback of
preemphasi zed audi o t racks, t he el ect roacoust i c
response of t he B-chai n shal l be t o curve N i n
t abl e 1 and f i gure 5 wi t hi n t he t ol erances gi ven.
5. 2 Wi t h t he sound syst em set f or pl ayback of
wi de- r ange audi o t r acks, t he el ect r oacoust i c
response of t he B-chai n shal l be t o curve X i n
t abl e 1 and f i gure 6 wi t hi n t he t ol erances gi ven.
5. 3 l t i s recogni zed t hat many ol der sound sys-
t ems current l y
present i n t heat ers cannot meet
t he cent er l i ne of t he st andar d over t he f ul l y
ext ended f requency range. The response st an-
dard has been updat ed over t he years t o account
f or t he changes i n t echnol ogy whi ch permi t a
wi der f requency range, but not e t he precaut i on
on excessi ve equal i zat i on of t hese ol der sys-
t ems i n A. 8.
Page3ol 9pages
ANSySMPTE 202M-l991
Table 1
-
B-chain characteristics
Cent er f requenci es
of 1i 3-oct ave bands
Hz
Level
Curve N
d B
Cur ve X
I
- 1
0
U
0
0
0
0
U
0
0
0
0
0
0
U
n
0
- 1
-2
-3
-4
- 5
-6
-7
-9
- 1
1
Tol er ances
+ d B
40
50
63
80
1 0 0
125
1 6 0
200
250
3 1 5
400
500
630
800
1 000
1 2s0
1 600
2000
2500
31 50
4000
5000
6300
8000
10 000
12 500
1 6 0 0 0
-8
-5
-3
-1
0
0
0
0
n
0
0
n
U
0
0
0
0
0
- l
-2
-3
-5
-8
- 1
1
_:
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
\'
,5
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
3
o
o
3
3
3
7
b
4
a
'J
e
2
J
3
.t
J
.t
.t
3
3
.t
4
5
o
dB
+ 4
+ 2
0
- 2
- 6
- 8
- l u
- t <
-
t +
- r o
- 1 8
-24
40 63 100
Hz
50 80
L 2 3 . 1 5 5 8 1 0
kHz
2 . 5 4 6 . 3
NOTE
-
Tolerances are based upon 1/3-octave measurements. lf 1/'l
-octave
measurements are used, reduce the tolerance
by 1 dB.
/
Page4ol 9pages
Fi gure 5
-
Curve N of B-chal n
dB
+4
+2
0
- 2
- 4
- 10
-t2
-t4
- 16
- 18
-20
40 63 100
Hz
50 80
Annex A (informative)
Addi t i onal dat a
A.1 Factors outslde the scope ol thls standard
Compl i ance wi t h t hi s st andard i s a necessary but not suf f i -
ci ent condi t i on f or t he achi evement ol hi gh- qual i t y sound
reproduct i on i n revi ew rooms and t heat ers. Subj ect i ve j udg-
ment s of sound qual i t y ar e i nl l uenced not onl y by t he
f requency response of t he B-chai n whi ch i s t he subj ect of
t hi s st andard, but al so by such f act ors as:
( a) A- chai n per f or mance, i ncl udi ng f r equency r espons,
si gnal - t o- noi se, wow and f l ut t er , and t he l i ke;
(b) el ect ri cal perf ormance ol t h sound syst em, i ncl udi ng
headr oom t o cl i ppi ng, hum and noi se, and t he l i ke;
( c ) r oom ac oust i c s, i nc l udi ng r ev er ber at i on t i me vs .
l requency, echoes and behi nd screen rel l ect i ons, back-
gr ound noi se, and i nt r usi ve noi se;
(d) pl acement ol l oudspeaker sources vs. pi ct ure;
(e) l oudspeaker di st ort i on, and many ot hers.
Theref ore i t i s essent i al t hat t he A-chai n be correct l y al i gned
wi t hi n t h t ol erances of exi st i ng st andards by t he use ol t he
appropri at e phot ographi c or magnet i c t est f i l m and t hat
rel evant el ect ri cal deemphasi s be appl i ed (see annex B).
For moni t ori ng duri ng recordi ng, where magnet i c mast ers
are prepared wi t h preemphasi s f or maki ng phot ographi c
negat i ves, see ANSI / SMPTE 214M- 1984. The ot her f act or s
l i st ed above shoul d al so be gi ven due at t ent i on.
- 6
- 8
ANSUSMPTE 202M-1991
\
\
2. 5 4 6. 3 10 16
NOTE
-
Tolerances are based upon 1/3-octave measurements. lf 1/1-octave measurements are used, reduce the tolerance
by 1 dB.
Fi gure 6
-
Curve X of B-chai n charact eri st i c
t 2 3 . 1 5 5
kHz
8 t2.5
Thi s standard was prepared i n the bel i ef that an extended
and uni form frequency response i s a fundamental compo-
nent of good sound qual i ty.
A.2 Prellmlnary checks
Prel i mi nary checks for gross acousti c errors shoul d be made
pr i or t o measur i ng t he el ect r oacoust i c r esponse as de-
scri bed i n thi s standard. Typi cal checks i ncl ude veri fi cati on
t hat t he l oudspeaker bei ng measur ed i s cl ose enough t o t he
screen to avoi d any behi nd-screen echoes, and veri fi cati on
of speaker pol ari ty. A wi de-band pi nk noi se test si gnal can
be sent to combi nati ons of l oudspeakers (L and C, L and R,
C and R) as a si mpl e veri fi cati on ol consi stent l oudspeaker
pol ari ty. The correct pol ari ty (i n-phase) condi ti on i s the one
produci ng the greatest bass response trom the sum.
Eval uati on ol uni l ormi ty of l oudspeaker di stri buti on patterns
can be crudel y eval uated by ear usi ng a wi de-band pi nk
noi se test si gnal . A more exhausti ve numeri cal anal ysi s.of
uni formi ty can be deri ved by anal yzi ng th poi nt-to-poi nt
respons as measured i n A.5.
A-3 Theater changes trom curve N to curvo X
l f a theater wi shes to change l rom curve N to curve X, i t i s
necessary to make sui tabl e adj ustments to the photographi c
A-chai n i n order to reproduc conventi onal l y recorded audi o
records. A compandi ng noi se reducti on system i s normal l y
used for recordi ng and reproduci ng photographi c tracks
when used wi th curve X.
Page5of 9pages
I
ANSYSMPTE 2O2M-1991
A,4 Oualifying the accuracy of measurements
A.4,1 Type of measurement
Measur ement s of sound f i el ds f r om l oudspeaker s i n r ooms
can t ake many f or ms. Tone bur st , f ast Four i er t r ansf or m,
t i me- del ay spect r oscopy, and maxi mum l engt h sequence
anal ysi s may al l pr ove usel ul , especi al l y dur i ng t he desi gn
phase of a l oudspeaker syst em, Much of t he anal ysi s con-
duct ed wi t h t hese met hods has t he obj ect ol r educi ng t he
ef f ect of room acoust i cs on t he measurement s. Anal ysi s of
pi nk noi se wi t h a const ant - per cent age bandwi dt h r eal - t i me
spect r um anal yzer , such as a 1/ 3- oct ave r eal - t i me anal yzer ,
on t he ot her hand, i ncl udes t he i nf l uence of r oom acoust i cs
and has been f ound t o be most usel ul i n day- t o- day al i gn-
ment of sound syst ems. Tr adi t i onal r eal - t i me anal ysi s has
been i mpr oved i n r el i abi l i t y by t he met hod out l i ned i n t hi s
st andar d t hr ough t he use of spat i al and t i me aver agi ng,
whi ch can yi el d t ypi cal di f f er ences as smal i as
* 1 dB f r om
one set up of t he equi pment t o anot her .
A.4.2 Background noise
See 4. 4.
A,4.3 Maximum sound pressure level cautlon
The sound pr essur e l evel shal l not be so gr eat as t o r i sk
damage t o l oudspeaker s.
A4.4 Microphone response, directivlty, and mounting
The mi cr ophones. used f or t heat er measur ement s ar e sub-
j ect ed t o t hr ee sound f i el ds, al l of whi ch must be measur ed
appr opr i at ei y. They ar e t he di r ect sound f i el d f r om t he l oud-
speaker , ear l y r ef l ect i ons, and t he r ever ber ant sound f i el d.
Subst ant i al er r or s can be i nt r oduced by usi ng mi cr ophones
whi ch have l ar ge di aphr agms, or whi ch have cavi t i es i n f r ont
of t he di aphr agm, pr i mar i l y because t hei r r esponse t o di r ect
sound f i el ds and di f f use sound f i el ds i s di f f er ent . Ther ef or e,
smal l di amet er cal i br at ed mi cr ophones ar e pr ef er r ed f or
accur acy over l ar ge di amet er t ypes, but l ar ge di amet er ones
can be used f or appr oxi mat e condi t i ons so l ong as t hei r
cal i br at i on i s known, and t he angl e of i nci dence of t he di r ect
sound i s equal t o t hat of t he cal i br at i on condi t i ons. ( But
t here may wel l be a di f f erence i n cal i brat i on f or screen vs.
surround l oudspeaker syst ems due t o t he di f f erent nat ure of
t he sound f i el ds l r om t hese sour ces. )
Pr essur e cal i br at ed measur ement mi cr ophones ar e pr e-
f erred t o f ree-f i el d t ypes, si nce f ree-f i el d mi crophones are
gener al l y used f or measur ement s wher e sound f r om one
di r ect i on
pr edomi nat es, such as i n anechoi c measur ement s.
Pressure measurem6nt mi crophones are t ypi cal l y adj ust ed
f or f l at response f or di f f use-f i el d sound, and t hei r response
ri ses on axi s. Si nce many measurement s are made of t ypi cal
syst ems at around t he cri t i cal di st ance, where t he sound
pressure
cont ri but i on of t he di rect and reverberant sound
f i el ds are equal , i t i s i mport ant t o f i nd t hat angl e bet ween
t he di rect sound and t he di aphragm l or whi ch t he response
i s t h f l at t est . Thi s angl e i s 90' i n t ypi cal 12. 5 mm ( 0. 49 i n)
pr essur e measur ement mi cr ophones, so t hey woul d nor -
mal l y be used poi nt ed at 90' rel at i ve t o t he di rect sound.
Usi ng even smal l er di amet er mi crophones has t he advan-
t age of r educi ng t he di f f er ence i n r esponse of on- axi s sound
and di f f use- f i el d sound. Usi ng t ypi cal r ecor di ng mi cr o-
phones causes pr obl ems, si nce t hei r cal i br at i on l or mi xed
sound f i el d condi t i ons i s usual l y unknown.
Some mi cr ophon mount i ng har dwar e and conf i gur at i ons i n
common use may cause er r or s up t o i 2 dB i n measur ed
f r equency r esponse of t he di r ect sound, due t o sound r e-
f l ect i ons f r om t he mount i ng equi pment ent er i ng t he capsul e.
The best mount i ng hardware has smal l di mensi ons and i s
ar r anged so t hat f i r st or der r ef l ect i ons f r om i t ar e r ef l ect ed
away l r or n t he mi cr ophone capsul e.
The f r equency r esponse of t he measur ement mi cr ophone
shal l be known t hr ough cal i br at i on under condi t i ons si mi l ar
t o i t s use. I n par t i cul ar , t he measur ement mi cr ophone shal l
be adequat el y omni di r ect i onal and cal i br at ed t o be f l at when
measur i ng a mi xt ur e of di r ect and di f f use sound f i el ds usi ng
t he same mount i ng ar r angement used i n pr act i ce, and t he
angl e ol l l al t est di r ect f i el d r esponse shal l be known f r om
t he cal i br at i on pr ocedur e and empl oyed i n maki ng measur e-
ment s.
A.4.5. Spatlal averaging
A spat i al average of di f f erent posi t i ons wi t hi n t he room, yet
t al l i ng wi t hi n t he pl acement s gi ven i n 4. 2 and 4. 3, gr eat l y
i mpr oves t he r el i abi l i t y ol equal i zi ng t he sound syst em, due
t o l esseni ng t he i nf l uence of speci f i c r oom modes i n t he
bass, and r educi ng t he ef f ect of l ack of uni f or mi t y of hi gh-
f r equency out put of l oudspeaker s i n t he t r ebl e.
Car e shoul d be t aken t hat none of t he mi cr ophone pl ace-
ment s used i n cal cul at i ng t he spat i al average are ext raordi -
nar y. Posi t i ons shoul d be avoi ded whi ch ar e exact l y on
l at eral or t ransverse t heat er cent erl i nes, or are under t he l i p
of a bal cony. Mi cr ophone posi t i ons empl oyed i n a spat i al
average shal l be di st ri but ed among a range of posi t i ons i n
l at er al and t r ansver se di r ect i ons t o mi ni mi ze t he i nl l uence
of any par t i cul ar r oom mode, but t he poi nt s shoul d l i e wi t hi n
t he r equi r ement s ol 4. 2 and 4. 3. The mi ni mum spaci ng of
t he mi cr ophones i n an aver age shal l be 1. 0 m ( 3. 3 f t ) .
The cal cul at i on of a spat i al average shal l be done by t he
sum of t he squares ol t he sound pressure l evel s as f ol l ows:
N
. 1 - / L k \ -
L- l 0l ogr oI
x , )
ant i l ogl ol ;
I
f
' t
r : i \ ' t /
where N i s t he number ol posi t i ons and L1 i s t he sound
pressure l evel at each posi t i on. For f our posi t i ons, t he %-
oct av by 7g-oct ave average woul d be comput ed as f ol l ows:
. , t t l s k 1 4
S P L - l o l o g t O [ (
1 )
( t O
1 0 +
1 O
1 0 +
1 0
1 0 * 1 s 1 0 1
1
where L1 equal s t he sound pressure l evel i n a
l 2! -oct ave
band at posi t i on 1, L2 equal s t he sound pressure l evel i n t he
same
yg-oct ave
band at posi t i on 2, et c. l l t he range ol sound
pressure l evel s i s wi t hi n 4 dB, si mpl e ari t hmet i c averagi ng
may be used. Large st andard devi at i ons may i ndi cat e si g-
ni l i cant acoust i c or l oudspeaker coverage probl ems.
Page6of 9pages
I
A.4.6 Temporal averaging
St ochast i c si gnal s such as pi nk noi se cause a f l uct uat i ng
sound pr essur e l evel . The l evel f l uct uat i ons become mor e
sever e as t he bandwi dt h of measur ement i s decr eased and
as t he cent er f requency of t he measurement i s l owered. I n
order t o obt ai n hi gh accuracy wi t h such a nonst eady-st at e
t est si gnal , i t i s usel ul t o perf orm t emporal averagi ng on t he
dat a obt ai ned f rom a
l r! -oct ave
band spect rum anal yzer. At
l east t wo met hods are wi del y used f or t emporal averagi ng,
RC-t ype averagi ng i n t he det ect or ci rcui t of t he anal yzer,
and cal cul at ed averagi ng i n an i nt egrat i ng real -t i me an-
al yzer. Wi t h a cal cul at ed averagi ng met hod, accuracy can
be ver y hi gh i f t he measur ment i s adequat el y l ong. The
mi ni mum aver agi ng t i me of a convent i onal r eal - t i me an-
al yzer shoul d be such t hat measur ement s even at l ow f r e-
quenci es are readabl e wi t h an accuracy bet t er t han t he
t ol er ances of t he st andar d. l t i s r ecommended t hat measur e-
ment s be t i me- aver aged over a per i od ol not l ess t han 20 s
i n t he l owest f r equency bands l or accur acy wi t hi n: 1 dB.
A.5 Methods of measurement
At l east t wo met hods of measurement are recogni zed as
provi di ng appropri at e dat a f or t he eval uat i on of t he el ect ro-
acoust i c r esponse of t he B- chai n. For each of t he met hods,
gener at e wi de- band pi nk noi se, and appl y t o each l oud-
speaker channel , l ef t , cent er , r i ght , and sur r ound, i n t ur n.
The met hods of measur ement ar e:
(a) Measure t he el ect roacoust i c response wi t h a set of f our
t ypi cal l y cal i br at ed mi cr ophones connect ed t o a mi cr ophone
mul t i pl exer swi t ch ( not a mi xer ) , t he out put of whi ch i s
connect ed t o an audi o-f requency
l 23-oct ave
band spect rum
anal yzet . Posi t i on t he set of cal i brat ed mi crophones accord-
i ng t o A. 4. 5. Temporal l y average t he dat a f or a suf f i ci ent
amount of t i me t o or oduce a st andar d devi at i on under 1 dB.
( b) Measur e t he el ect r oacoust i c r esponse wi t h a cal i br at ed
mi crophone and an audi o-f requency 7s-oct ave-band spec-
t r um anal yzer at each of a number of l ocat i ons and comput e
t he spat i al aver age, as speci f i ed i n A. 4. 5.
Ot her met hods whi ch conl orm t o t he accuracy of t he gi ven
met hods may be empl oyed, such as use of a l t -oct ave band
f i l t er set and a vol t met er, measuri ng each
l / e-oct ave
band
l evel f or each response posi t i on i n t urn and mat hemat i cal l y
comput i ng t he averages. Measurement i n whol e-oct avo
bands i s now rarel y empl oyed, because of t he ready avai l -
abi l i t y of }3-oct ave anal ysi s equi pment .
Not 6 t hat t he pi nk noi se sour ce shoul d be an el ect r i cal noi se
generat or, not an opt i cal or a magnet i c pi nk noi se t est f i l m,
si nce t he use ol t est f i l ms i n al i gni ng t he B- chai n wi l l cause
accumul at i ng errors, and i n many t heat ers, t he act i ve or
passi ve A-chai n deemphasi s cannot easi l y be di sabl ed.
4.6 Acoustlcal and psychoacoustlcal offects
The el ect roacoust i c response resul t i ng f rom a l oudspeaker
si t uat ed behi nd a mot i on-pi ct ure screen, or f rom an array of
l oudspeakers used f or t he surround sound channel i n t he
audi t ori um, i s af f ect ed by vari ous f act ors bel ore t h sound
i s per cei ved by a l i st ener . These i ncl ude t he f ol l owi ng
acoust i cal and psychoacoust i cal ef t ect s:
ANSUSMPTE 2O2M-1991
( a) At t enuat i on of hi gh f r equenci es caused by t he scr een f or
t he wi de- band scr een channel s. Wi t h convent i onal t heat er
l oudspeaker s and nor mal l y per f or at ed scr eens, t he at t enu-
at i on on axi s i s 3 dB bet ween 5 kHz and 8 kHz, wi t h a 6
dB/ oct ave charact eri st i c rol l of f at hi gher f requenci es. Thi s
hi gh- f r equency at t enuat i on i s t ypi cal l y t ess ol f axi s by a
smal l amount . Ol d scr eens, wher e acousl i c t r ansmi ssi on i s
degr aded by ai r - bor ne par t i cul at e mat t er cl oggi ng t he per -
f or at i ons, can sever el y degr ade hi gh- l r equency per f or -
mance.
( b) A r oom gai n r ever ber at i on component added t o t he di r ect
si gnal . l t shoul d be not ed t hat si nce r ever ber at i on i n l ar ge
r ooms t akes a f i ni t e t i me t o bui l d up, t hi s component i s onl y
measur abl e wi t h quasi - st eady- st at e si gnal s, such as pi nk
noi se. For accur at e measur ement , t he sound f i el d must
have r eached st asi s f or t he r ever ber ant component t o add
f ul l y t o t he di r ect sound. Thi s component has a f r equency
r eSponse pr opor t i onal t o l he r ever ber at i on t i me vs. f r e-
quency char act er i st i c, and wi l l be most si gni f i cant on sus-
t ai ned pr ogr am mat er i al l i ke hel d musi cal chor ds.
( c) Hi gh- f r equency at t enuat i on
i n
t he ai r , pr opor t i onal t o
si gnal pat h l engt h. Thi s pr ocess appl i es t o di r ect sound
t hr ough onl y one pat h, and t o i he r ever ber ant component
t hr ough t he aver age composi t e pat h l engt h of sound. The
r esul t i s t hat wi t h al l ot her f act or s hel d const ant , l or st eady-
st at e si gnal s i n mor e r ever ber ant spaces, t he sound wi l l be
dul l er , wi t h r ol l ed of f hi gh f r equenci es, si nce t he aver age
pat h l engt h ol t he r ever ber at i on component i s l onger i n t he
more reverberant room.
( d) Rows of seat s have been shown t o cause di ps i n t he
f r equency r esponse of sound f i el ds at near gr azi ng i nci -
dence. The di p i s usual l y i n t he r ange of 80 Hz t o 125 Hz,
dependi ng on t he di mensi ons.
( e) Al l publ i shed exper i ment er s have l ound t hat i n a l ar ge
r oom, a f l at r esponse near - f i el d l oudspeaker i s subj ect i vel y
best mat ched by a di st ant l oudspeaker havi ng a rol l ed-of f
hi gh- f r equency r esponse i n st eady- st at e measur ement s.
The source of t he need f or t hi s measured rol l of f appears t o
be t he di f f er i ng i nt er act i on of t he sound f i el d wi t h t he head,
pi nnae, and ear canal bet ween a di st ant l y or i gi nat i ng sound
f i el d, and one or i gi nat i ng cl ose by, or by di f f er ences be-
t ween t r ansi ent and st eady r esponses caused by t he mech-
ani sm descr i bed i n ( b) above. Si nce t he need f or such an
apparent rol l of f wi t h st eady st at e si gnal s i s shown, t hi s
st andard document s t he response f or best i nt erchangeabi l -
i t y of product across many audi t ori ums.
To account f or (b) and (c) above, t he measured charact er-
i st i c t o mai nt ai n subj ect i vel y i dent i cal response wi l l di l f er
sl i ght l y accor di ng mai nl y t o audi t or i um si ze and r ever ber a-
t i on t i me. The measured response by t he met hod of t hi s
st andard shoul d have a sl i ght l y at t enuat ed hi gh-f requency
charact eri st i c i n a l arge t heat er when compared wi t h t abl e
1 and f i gur es 5 and 6, when compar i ng audi t or i a usi ng t he
same absorpt i on/ f requency charact eri st i cs, due t o t he nat -
ural l y l onger rvrberat i on t i me of t he l arger t heat er. I n t he
same way, t her e shoul d be a sl i ght l y el evat ed r esponse i n
a smal l t heat er. Tabl e A. 1 gi ves approxi mat el y sui t abl e
correct i on f act ors whi ch shoul d be added numeri cal l y t o t he
charact ri st i c gi ven i n t abl 1 and f i gures 5 and 6.
Corrct i ons f or audi t ori um si ze are not normal l y requl red
bel ow 2 kHz, as a resul t of a l l at t er reverberat i on vs. f re-
PageTof 9pages
I
ANSYSMPTE 2O2M-1991
quency char act er i st i c t ypi cal at mi d- r ange f r equenci es, and
t he l onger i nt egr at i on t i me oi t he ear at l ow f r equenci es.
Mor e accur at e det er mi nat i on of t he above cor r ect i on f act or s
f or a par t i cul ar audi t or i um can be deduced l r om measur e-
ment of t he r ever ber at i on t i me vs. f r equency char act er i st i c.
Whenever possi bl e, t he el ect r oacoust i c r esponse shoul d be
measur ed wi t h t he audi t or i um' s t ypi cal oper at i onal humi di t y,
si nce humi di t y var i at i ons ar e a si gni f i cant component of
day- t o- day var i at i on i n pr oper l y oper at i ng moder n sound
syst ems.
Table A.1
-
Approximate correction factors for
audi t ori um si ze, dB
A. 7 Troubl eshoot i ng
Wi t h good acoust i c desi gn and moder n l oudspeaker s wi t h
uni f or m cover age, not onl y shoul d t he over al l spat i al l y aver -
aged el ect r oacoust i c r esponse f al l wi t hi n t he t ol er ances
speci f i ed i n cl ause 5, but t he r esponse f or each posi t i on
shoul d al so f al l wi t hi n t hose t ol er ances.
Pr ovi ded t hat t he B- chai n meet s t he t ol er ances speci f i ed,
t he el ect r oacoust i i f r equency r esponse f or sound r epr oduc-
t i on shoul d be sat i sf act or y f or al l t ypes ol phot ogr aphi c and
magnel i c r ecor di ngs, pr ovi ded t he addi t i onal i t ems out l i ned
i n A. 1 ar e gi ven at t ent i on.
Car e shoul d be t aken t hat devi at i ons f r om t he cur ve, al -
t hough wi t hi n t he t ol er ance ar ea, do not cause a t onal
i mbal ance. Broad, l ow-Q ef f ect s have been shown t o be of
mor e per cept ual si gni f i cance t han nar r ower , hi gh- Q ef f ect s,
whi ch have even gr eat er ampl i t ude. For exampl e, a si t uat i on
wher e t he over al l bass r esponse i s at one ext r eme ol t he
t ol er ance, and t he t r ebl e r esponse at t h ot her , shoul d be
avoi ded.
l f ext r eme amount s of el ect r i cal equal i zat i on ar e r equi r ed t o
br i ng t he r esponse i nt o conf or mi t y wi t h t he st andar d, or
el ect r i cal equal i zat i on i s r equi r ed whi ch i s si gni f i cant l y at yp-
i cal f or t he l oudspeaker syst em i n use, each el ement of t he
B- chai n shoul d be exami ned t o det er mi ne t he cause ol t he
pr obl em, whi ch may be i ncl uded i n t he f ol l owi ng l i st :
(a) f aul t y power ampl i f i er;
(b) i ncorrect or l aul t y l oudspeaker perf ormance;
(c) i ncorrect l ocat i on, ori ent at i on, or di rect i vi t y of t he l oud-
speaker ;
(d) room acoust i cal def ect s;
(e) i ncorrect adj ust ment of t he l oudspeaker crossover net -
work (rel at i ve l evel of t he bass and t rebl e l oudspeaker
dri vers), crossover wi ri ng pol ari t y reversal , rel at i ve t i me
di spl acement s bet wen dri vers due t o di f f erent geomet ri es;
PageSof 9pages
(t ) obscured perf orat i ons i n t he screen;
( g) dat ed l oudspeaker desi gn, unabl e t o per f or m accor di ng
t o current soeci f i cat i ons.
l f t he B- chai n cannot be br ought i nt o conf or mance wi t h t he
cur ve X char act er i st i c descr i bed i n t hi s st andar d, but i t i s
f ound possi bl e t o achi eve conf ormance t o t he curve N char-
act eri st i c, t here st i l l may be pl ayback probl ems when pl ay-
i ng mat eri al i nt ended f or a curve N envi ronment . Sound,
r ecor ds ar e pr eemphasi zed accor di ng t o t he i nt ended pl ay-
back envi r onment
-
t hose i nt ended f or pl ayback over cur ve
N syst ems wi l l have gr eat er hi gh- f r equency pr eemphasi s
t han t hose i nt ended f or cur ve X syst ems. Thi s i ncr eased
pr eemphasi s may r eveal power ampl i f i er or l oudspeaker
de{ i ci enci es i n a B- chai n whi ch ar e not evi dent when t he
syst em i s bei ng t est ed wi t h a f l at f requency response t est
si gnal such as pi nk noi se.
Some hi gh- f r equency l oudspeaker dr i ver s exhi bi t mor e di s-
t or t i on t han ot her s; t hi s may cause a subj ect i ve change i n
hi gh- f r equency r esponse whi ch wi l l not be evi dent f r om t he
t est or ocedur es descr i bed i n t hi s st andar d.
Because t he measur ement s deal onl y wi t h t he st eady- st at e
pr oper t i es of t he audi t or i um, acoust i cal del ect s such as
backst age or audi t or i um echoes ar e not account ed f or i n t he
measur ement pr ocedur e. At t empt s t o use t hese measur e-
ment r esul t s as a basi s f or maj or equi pment r edesi gn i n a
t heat er Jound def ect i ve have t o be preceded by ascert ai ni ng
t hat no gr ave acoust i cal f aul t s ar e pr esent . Possi bl e pr ob-
l ems ar e l i st ed i n A. 1. Met hods l or f i ndi ng or el i mi nat i ng
such f aul t s are not covered i n t hi s st andard.
A.8 Equallzatlon
Adj ust ment of t he el ect roacoust i c response t o curve X f or
r ecor d moni t or i ng and pl ayback of wi de- r ange sound t r acks
wi l l nor mal l y r equi r e some el ect r i cal equal i zat i on, t ypi cal l y
rr3-oct ave,
whi ch approxi mat el y corresponds t o t he cri t i cal
bands of human hear i ng. The f ol l owi ng poi nt s shoul d be
not ed:
( a) A cr ossover net wor k, i f used, shoul d be adj ust ed, i f
adj ust abl e, t o t he smoot hest r esponse bef or e equal i zat i on
i s at t empt ed. l f an el ect roni c crossover i s empl oyed bef ore
t he power ampl i f i er s, i t s gai n, and t he gai n of t he f ol l owi ng
power ampl i f i er s, shoul d be set wi t h a due consi der at i on l or
t he best headroom and si gnal -t o-noi se rat i o.
(b) Equal i zat i on above 8 kHz shoul d not normal l y be at -
t empt ed wi t h ol der l oudspeaker desi gns whi ch exhi bi t r api d
rol l of f beyond 8 kHz.
(c) Ext reme equal i zat i on Jor l ow-f requency modes shoul d be
avoi ded, si nce t he l ow f requency modes, part i cul arl y bel ow
100 Hz, are. of t en very narrow response anomal i es whi ch
cannot normal l y be correct ed wi t h t he rel at i vel y broader
l r' 3-oct ave-band
equal i zer wi t hout audi bl e consequences at
f requenci es away f rom t he modal one.
(d) A correct i on may be necssary t o t he basi c curve prom-
ul gat ed by t hi s st andard when equal i zi ng t he surround chan-
nel due t o t he di f f erences bet ween screen and surround
l oudspeakers. Among t hese di f f erences are t he l act t hat
surround channel l oudspeakers are rout i nel y pl aced cl oser
t o t ypi cal sat i ng l ocat i ons, i ncreasi ng t he rat i o of di rct -t o-
Number of seat s
1so 500 1000
' t 500
2o0o I
r ever ber ant sound f i el ds; t he scr een l oudspeaker s appr oxi -
mat e a poi nt sour ce, wher eas t he sur r ound channel uses an
array of l oudspeakers; and t he radi at i on pat t erns of t he
l oudsoeakers are di f f erent bt ween screen and surround
l oudspeakers. The correct i on necessary wi l l t end t oward an
i ncr ease i n t he measur ed hi gh- f r equency r esponse ol sur -
round l oudspeakers compared t o screen l oudspeakers.
A.9 Uniformity ol sound pressure level from dlflerent loud-
speakers
Appl yi ng t he same vol t age ol wi de- band pi nk noi se at t he
i nput of t he B-chai n f or each l oudspeaker syst om i n t urn
shoul d yi el d spat i al l y aver aged sound pr essur e l evel s whi ch
ar e equal wi t hi n : 1 dB ( see A. 4) as measur ed on a C-
wei ght ed and sl ow-readi ng sound l evel met er. l n t he event
t hat t he audi t or i um exhi bi t s st r ong l ow- f r equency r oom
modes whi ch coul d si gni l i cant l y af l ect wi de-band noi se l evel
measur ement s, A- wei ght i ng shoul d be used when mat chi ng
l oudspeaker l evel s.
A.10 Spectrum level
Whi l e 85 dBC i s commonl y used as a wi de- band si gnal l evel
r ef er ence ( see 4. 4) , on some anal yzer s i t may be conveni ent
t o use as a pref erred sound pressure a decade l evel such
as 70 dB SPL i n each 1/ 3- oct ave band i n t he range 50 Hz
t o 2 kHz. I n t hi s case, wi t h t he overal l response on curve X,
t he sum of al l t he 1/ 3-oct ave bands wi l l add t o approxi mat el y
83 dBC.
Annex B (informative)
Bibliography
ANSI S1. 11- 1986, Speci f i c at i ons f or Oct av e- Band and
Fract i onal Oct ave-Band Anal og and Di gi t al Fi l t ers
ANSI PH22. 208M- 1984, Mot i on- Pi ct ur e Fi l m ( 35- mm)
-
Magnet i c Audi o Reproduct i on Charact eri st i c
ANSUSMPTE 2O2M-1991
A.11 Future work
As f i rst not ed i n A. 6, i t i s recogni t ed t hat more uni f orm
percei ved l oudness and spect ral bal s6qg f rom i nst al l at i on
t o i nst al l at i on woul d be pr omot ed by account i ng f or t he
f ol l owi ng f act ors:
(a) reverberat i on t i me vs. f requency;
( b) l oudspeaker r adi at i on pat t er n vs. f r equency;
(c) t he consequent di rect -t o-reverberant rat i o at l i st eni ng
posi t i ons wi t hi n t he space due t o ( a) and ( b) ;
(d) an accurat e met hod t o quant i f y t he measured di f f erence
i n f r equency r esponse bet ween sur r ound and scr een chan-
nel s as descr i bed i n A. 8.
The goal i s t o have const ant percei ved l oudness and f re-
quency r esponse f r om i nst al l at i on t o i nst al l at i on, and f r om
posi t i on t o posi t i on wi t hi n an i nst al l at i on, usi ng t hi s st andar d
and cont emporary dubbi ng st age pract i ce as a ref erence.
Thi s goal may be pr omot ed by keepi ng const ant wi t hi n t he
ear canal t he spect r um l evel and r esponse t hr oughout one
and across many i nst al l at i ons. As equi pment becomes avai l -
abl e capabl e of maki ng r ever ber at i on t i me measur ement s,
t he resul t s of such measurement s. combi ned wi t h i nf orma,
t i on on t he l oudspeaker s, may be used t o add cor r ect i on
f act ors t o t he curves t o promot e great er uni f ormi t y.
ANSI / SMPTE 214M- 1984, Mot i on- Pi ct ur e Fi l m ( 35- mm)
-
Phot ographi c Audi o Reproduct i on Charact eri st i c
ANSI / SMPTE 2 1 7 - 1 9 8 5 ( R1 9 9 1 ) , Mo t i o n - Pi c t u r e Fi l m
(70-mm)
-
Magnet i c Audi o Reproduct i on Charact eri st i c
Pago9ol 9pages
SMPTE STANDARD
for Motion-Picture Film
-
Indoor Theater and
Review Room Projection
-
Screen Luminance and Mewing Conditions
ANSYSMPTE 196M.1993
,urtr ?r"Jl'll3#
1 Scope
This standard specifies the screen luminance level,
luminance distribution, and spectral distribution (color
temperature) of the projection light.for theatrical, re-
view-room, and nontheatrical presentation of 16-, 35-,
and 70-mm motion-picture prints intended for projec-
tion at 24 frames per second. This standard also
specifies review-room viewing conditions. lt is the
purpose of these specifications to achieve the tone
scale, contrast, and pictorial quality of the projected
print that will be of the quality intended during its
production.
2 Normative reference
The following standard contains provisions which,
through reference in this text, constitute provisions of
this standard. At the time of publication, the edition
indicated was valid. All standards are subject to revi-
sion, and parties to agreements based on this stan-
dard are encouraged to investigate the possibility of
applying the most recent edition of the standard indi-
cated below.
Cl E 5002-1 986, Colorimetric Observers
3 Projector operating conditions
Measurement of screen luminance shall be made with
the projector in normal operation (with shutter run-
ning), with its lens set at focus position, but with no
film in the aperture. The measurement of spectral
distribution (color temperature) of the projection light
is best made with the shutter momentarily stopped
and held open, and with no film in the aperture.
Page' t ol 3 pageg
4 Photometer type
Screen luminance shall be measured with a spot
photometer having the spectral luminance response
of the standard observer (photopic vision), as defined
in CIE 5002 (see annex A.4). The acceptance angle
of the photometer shall be 2' or less. The photometer
response to the alternation of light and dark on the
screen shall be to integrate over the range of 24 Hz
to 72 Hz and display the arithmetic mean value.
5 Luminance level
5.1 Measurement location
To si mul ate audi ence vi ewi ng, screen l umi nance
measurements shall be taken from the center of the
seating area at a height of approximately 1 m (39 in)
above the floor. To ensure reasonable luminance at
other seating locations, measurements shall also be
taken from the center and each end of the middle row,
and shal l be wi thi n the l i mi ts gi ven i n 5.3 or 5.4.
5.2 Theater nominal luminance
Theater screen l umi nance shal l be nomi nal l y 55
cd/m2 (16 fL) measured at the screen center. The
luminance of the screen sides and corners shall be
measured at a distance of 5% of the screen width from
the screen edges. The readings shall be taken from
each location specified in 5.1.
5.3 Theater luminance limits
Theater screen luminance at the screen center shall
be between
q1
cdlmz (12 fL) and 75 cdlmz (22tL).
Luminance at the screen sides shall be 75% to 90%
of the screen center l umi nance.
CAUTION NOTICE: Thi s Standard may be r6vi s6d or wi thdrawn at any ti me. Tho procedures ol the Standard D8vetopor rsqui rs that acti on be takn to reatti rm, revi ss,
or wi thdraw thi s standafd no l ater than l i vs yars trom the dato of publ i cati on. Purchassrs ot standards may rgcei ve currant i ntormal i on on al l sl andards by cal l i ng or
wnti ng th6 Sl andard Ovel opor Pri ntgd i n usA.
Copyright O 1993 by THE SOCIETY OF
MOTION PICTURE ANO TELEVISION ENGINEERS
595 W. Hartsdalo Ave.. White Plains. NY 10607
(91 4) 761 -1
1 00
Approved
May 14, 1993
.s, Anerican llationel Standard
ANSI/SMPTE 196M-1993
5.4 Revi ew room l umi nance and l l mi ts
Revi ew room screen l umi nance shal l be 55 cd/ m2 t
I cdlm2 (16 fL t Z tL) at the screen center. The
l umi nance of the screen si des and corners, measured
as described in 5.2, shall be at least 80olo of the screen
center readi ng.
6 Lumi nance di stri buti on
The screen l umi nance shal l be symmetri cal l y di stri b-
uted about the geometri c center of the screen. The
l umi nance of any poi nt on the screen between the
center and the edges, as measured from any seat in
the mi ddl e row, shal l not exceed the screen center
readi ng (see annex A.2).
7 Spectral di stri buti on
7. 1 For 35- and 70- mm pr i nt s, t he l i ght r ef l ect ed
f r om t he scr een i n r evi ew r ooms and pr i mar y
t h e a t e r s s h a l l h a v e a s p e c t r a l d i s t r i b u t i o n
appr oxi mat i ng t hat of a bl ackbody at a col or
t emperat ure of 5400 K t 200 K, t he use of short -
ar c or car bon- ar c l i ght sour ces bei ng assumed.
For gener al t heat er s, t he col or t emper at ur e shal l
be 5400 K t 400 K.
7. 2 16- mm pr i nt s ar e made f or pr oj ect i on wi t h
ei t her ar c or t ungst en i l l umi nant . When t he i n-
t ended i l l umi nant cannot be speci f i ed uni quel y,
16-mm pri nt s shoul d be eval uat ed at 5400 K.
8 Multiple proiector adjustment
8.1 Same format
The resultant luminance from all projectors intended
f or use i n t he cont i nuous sequent i al vi ewi ng of
material of the same format shall not vary by more
than 7 cd/mz (2 fL).
Annex A (informative)
Addi t i onal dat a
A.' t Luminance level llmlts
Accept abl e l umi nance l evel s ar e l i mi t ed by a mi ni mum
val ue bel ow whi ch t he vi sual
gr ocess
becomes l ess ef t i -
c i ent and by a maxi mum val ue abov e whi c h ( as sumi ng
a s hut t er f r equency of 48 f l as hes / s ) f l i c ker bec omes
obj ect i onabl e. The per mi ssi bl e l umi nance r ange i s l i mi t ed
by t he cr i t er i on t hat a good r el ease pr i nt must pr ovi de
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8.2 Different formats
The resul tant l umi nance from proj ectors i ntended for
use i n a sequenti al system of vi ewi ng materi al of
different formats shall not vary by more than 14 cdlm2
(4 fL) (see annex A.5).
8.3 Temperature
The apparent col or temperature of the proj ecti on l i ght
from proj ectors i ntended for conti nuous sequenti al
operati on shal l be consi stent wi thi n a total range of
400 K. For 16-mm proj ecti on wi th l i ght sources wi th a
col or temperature of l ess than 3500 K, the range shal l
be limited lo 7o/o or 200 K.
9 Revi ew room vi ewi ng condi ti ons
Al l observers i n a revi ew room shal l be l ocated wi thi n
a standard observi ng area whi ch shal l be:
-
wi thi n the l i mi ts of a 1S' angl e on ei ther si de of a
perpendi cul ar to the center of the screen, i n both
the horizontal and vertical planes;
-
at a di stance of 3 pi cture hei ghts t 1 pi cture hei ght
from the screen.
10 Stray l i ght
10. 1 No st r ay l i ght or i l l umi nal ed ar ea wi t h l umi -
nance gr eat er t han 3. 4 cdl mz ( 1. 0 f L) shal l be
vi si bl e f r om t he nor mal obser vi ng ar ea of t he-
at ers or revi ew rooms.
10. 2 Scr een l umi nance due t o st r ay l i ght , as
descr i bed i n annex A. 6, shal l be l ess t han 0. 257o
of t he scr een cent er l umi nance f or r evi ew r ooms
and pri mary t heat ers and l ess t han 0. 50% f or
ot her t heat ri cal proj ect i on f aci l i t i es.
accept abl e qual i t y when pr oj ect ed at any l umi nance wi t hi n
t he s pec i f i ed r ange. Us er s ar e r emi nded t hat s c r een
l umi nance may dec r eas e as a f unc t i on of bul b age, di r t
o n o p t i c s , d i r t o n s c r e e n , e t c . Pr o j e c t i o n e q u i p me n t
s houl d be c hosen t o hav e mor e t han s uf f i c i ent l i ght
out put t o meet t he speci f i cat i ons i n t hi s st andar d over a
per i od of t i me. Us ual l y , ar c c ur r ent i s adj us t ed t o c om-
pensat e f or changes i n l i ght out put .
I
A.2 Light incident on the screen
Mi sadj ust ment of t he pr ol ect or i i ght sour ce opt i cal syst em
may cause l umi nance r eadi ngs t aken at var i ous l ocat i ons i n
t he seat i ng ar ea and on var i ous ar eas of t he scr een t o
exceed t he scr een cent er r eadi ng t aken as descr i bed i n
cl ause 5 ( hot spot s) . To avoi d t hi s possi bi l i t y, i t i s desi r abl e
t o measur e di r ect l y t he l i ght f r om t he pr oj ect or f al l i ng on t he
scr een. Thi s may be done by measur i ng t he i nci dent l i ght
acr oss t he scr een sur f ace wat n a f oot candl e met er and
adj ust i ng t he l i ght sour ce opt i cs t o ensur e t hat no ar ea on
t he scr een r ecej ves i nci dent l i ght gr eat er t han t he scr een
cenl er .
A. 3 Normal pri nt
To pr ovi de i nt er changeabi l i t y i n mot i on- pi ct ur e pr oj ect i on, i t
i s desi r abl e t hat pr i nt qual i t y conf or ms t o t hat of a nor mal
pr i nt so t hat t heat er s can oper at e at known pr oj ect i on con-
di t i ons and wi l l , t her eby, be abl e t o exhi bi t pr oj ect ed pi c-
t ur es of good pi ct or i al qual i t y. l t has not been possi bl e t o
speci f y t hi s nor mal pr i nt i n t er ms of i t s' opt i cal densi t y and
ot her obJect i ve measur ement s because of t he di f f i cul t i es of
speci f yi ng ar t i st i c qual i t y i n sci ent i f i c t er ms. Accor di ngl y, t he
nor mal pr i nt i s def i ned as t hat pr i nt whi ch conveys t he
desi r ed ar t i st i c i mpr essi on when pr oj ect ed under r evi ew
r oom condi t i ons as descr i bed bv t hi s st andar d.
A,4 Meter acceptance angle and riesponse
A phot omet er wi t h a phot opi c spect r al r esponse al l ows use
of a wel l known st andar d r esponse f or al l phot omet er man-
uf act ur er s. A mesopi c ( par t i al l y dar k adapt ed) r esponse
mi ght be bet t er but no st andar d has been set f or t he mesopi c
obser ver undei t ypi cal scr een vi ewi ng condi t i ons. When
ent er i ng a t heat er f r om dayl i ght , we f i nd i t di f f i cul t t o see
ot her s i n t he audi ence al t hough t hey see us because t hey
ar e par t i al l y dar k adapt ed. The degr ee of adapt i on var i es
wi t h t he f i l m subj ect mat t er . A t ypi cal
^f i l m
r educes t he
aver age scr een l umi nance f r om 55 cd/ m2 t o 5. 5 cd/ m2 ( 16
f L t o 1. 6 f L) . The r est of t he t heat er i s much dar ker . Because
of i ncr eased bl ue sensi t i vi t y of t he eyes ( Pur ki nj e ef f ect ) as
Annex B (i nformati ve)
Bi bl i ography
SMPTE RP 1 2 - 1 9 9 2 , Sc r e e n L u mi n a n c e f o r Dr i v e - l n
Theat er s
SMPTE RP 94- 1989, Gai n Det er mi nat i on of Fr ont Pr oi ect i on
Scr eens
ANSVSMPTE 196M.1993
one Decomes somewhat dar k adapt ed, a phot omet er
wi t h a
phot opi c r esponse may gi ve r eadi ngs on a xenon i l l umi nat ed
scr een and a car bon- ar c i l l umi nat ed scr een t hat ar e t he
same, al t hough many obser ver s see t he xenon i l l umi nat ed
scr een as t he br i ght er . The xenon- ar c spect r um has a peak
i n t he bl ue r egi on wher e, because of t he Pur ki nj e shi f t , t her e
i s i ncr eased sensi t i vi t y. A r epr esent at i ve mesopi c cur ve
may be devel oped and adopt ed I n t he f ut ur e.
A.5 Matching luminance of different formats
I t may be necessar y t o adj ust pr oj ect or l i ght out put t o com-
pensat e f or t he di f f er enl aper t ur e si zes and magni f i cat i ons
used when pr oj ect i ng
di f f er ent f or mat s. The pr oj ect or l i ght
sour ce shoul d be capabl e of achi evi ng t he speci f i eo scr een
l umi nance f or t he f or mat wi t h t he l east l i ght ef l i ci ency ( usu-
al l y nonanamor phi c wi de scr een) . Adj ust ment may be made
by changi ng ar c cur r ent or by t he use of at t enuat or s i n t he
l i ght beam t o r educe t he scr een l umi nance t o t he r ecom-
mended val ue when pr oj ect i ng mor e l i ght - ef f i ci ent f or mat s.
4.6 Stray llght
St r ay l i ght i s measur ed by compar i ng t he cent er scr een
l umi nance descr i bed i n cl ause 5 wi t h t he l umi nance of t he
i mage of an opaque t est obi ect pl aced i n t he cent er of t he
proj ect or apert ure. The t est obj ect pref erabl y shoul d have a
di amet er ol 5o/ o of f rame wi dt h, and shoul d not exceed 1Ool o.
The bal ance of t he prol ect ed beam i s at t enuat ed by any
sui t abl e neut r al densi t y f i l m t hat pr oduces t hr ough t he nor -
mal pr o. i ect i on syst em an aver age scr een l umi nance equal
t o 10% of t he l umi nance of t he scr een as def i ned i n 5. 1. Al l
sour ces of i l l umi nat i on i n t he audi t or i um, such as exi t and
ai sl e l i ght s, shoul d be used i n t hei r nor mal manner whi l e
st r ay l i ght i s bei ng measur ed. Excessi ve st r ay l i ght or f l ar e
shoul d be cor r ect ed t o ensur e pr oper pr i nt cont r ast .
A.7 Other applications
Speci f i cat i ons f or dr i ve- i n t heat er scr een l umi nance ar e
cover ed i n SMPTE RP 12.
SMPTE RP 95- 1989, I nst al l at i on of Gai n Scr eens
SMPTE RP 98- 1990, Measur ement of Scr een Lumi nance i n
Theat ers
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