THX made a name for itself, er, EARNED a name for itself standardizing quality
in exhibition. I applaud everything they have done for their first 10 years. There is
no doubt that what they have done improved the industry by leaps and bounds.
But then the hype began to fade as did the quality control. Now upon visiting a
brand new theatre here in Colorado with every single screen THX certified, you
are treated to low, unbalanced sound, unintelligible dialog, a dim picture, and
overall a horrible presentation. What has THX come to? Put simply, THX doesn't
mean anything anymore.

I began noticing THX's descent when the Mann Bowles Crossing 12 opened up
in Colorado...every screen THX. The Mann tech EQ'd the sound before the THX
guy arrived on scene, and the reports are that it sounded absolutely incredible!
But then the THX guy arrived and re-EQ'd everything. He lowered the surround
levels to a whisper, you could hear the projector behind you and the projectionist
talking or even threading leader VERY clearly, and you would swear that they
forgot to install the subwoofers. It was bad. And not only that, but no 2
auditoriums in the complex sounded alike. They all had their goofy twirks.
Eventually the Mann tech would fix some of the more serious problems in the EQ,
but what does this say for THX now? At several newer UA theatres, the
non-THX houses sound much BETTER than the certified houses. At the last THX
installation for UA (the Denver West) the sound was so bad in the THX houses
that UA stopped doing THX altogether. It wasn't just that, though...UA felt they
weren't getting their $$$ worth with THX. It didn't bring in audiences anymore.

THX must be hurting. Now they "certify" LaserDiscs, VHS videotapes and DVDs
that look and sound no better (but sometimes worse) than normal LD's, tapes,
and DVDs. Obviously they are doing this for additional revenue because the
exhibition gig just ain't payin' the bills anymore. I wonder why.

Now THX is saying that they WILL certify digital masters of movies to be
released and exhibited via digital projection. As if it is a requirement for the
format. The last good thing they did/helped out with that I applaud is Dolby Digital
EX, which in itself is not phenomenal, but it is kinda cool.

I still think it's a bonus to advertise it if you can, but THX should keep an eye on who is displaying their name and make sure it is still up to scratch.

Has anybody had any run-ins with the T.A.P? I see that on the end of select films with the 800 #. A normal movie goer I don't even think would fool with it. Most are usually happy if the film doesn't break more than once.

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I have been trying to get THX to send me their specifications, especially regarding the frequency response and sound pressure level that THX certified cinemas need to be able to reach. I want to be able to say to the designers, I don't care what you do for live show sound, for cinema we need to be able get a sound pressure of 125db from 20 to 20 with a rolloff from 8K at such and such per octave with such and such amount distortion. THX sent me EVERYTHING else....air conditioning noise baffle charts, slope drawings, wall construction plans, everything but what I would think would be the simplest starting point for any sound system....the audio bandwidth and sound pressure levels it needs to reproduce.

Does anyone know of any literature where these specs can be found? I mean besides THX since they keep telling me they don't have those specs.

Also, does anyone know if THX has eliminated their original spec for point-of-sound surround speakers. Years ago when they first started and published an article in the SMPTE Journal, I read they prefered that the surrounds NOT be multiple wall speakers but point-of-source speaker systems in both corners of the theatre. In fact, I designed our surround based on that preference. We have JBL dual woofer/90 degree HF compression horns in each corner of the theatre and multiple smaller speakers in the center of the rear wall that I used to fill in the center orchestra (luckily now I can use them for the center surround). But I no longer see any reference to corner p-o-s surrounds, and what's more, I think mine is the only theatre I have ever seen with this configuration, except for the Zigfeld in NYC which had them for a time but I believe now has gone back to multiple side speakers.

Another theatre I work at has a dozen multiple speaker built in the ceiling for the surround channel. Very weird.

------------------
Frank Angel,
Brooklyn Center Cinema

The baffle does not have to extend the whole area behind the screen if flown and there are several companies that make add onm Baffeletes

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Also, might I add the continuing problem of people "over-eqing"! Show me an auditorium that has a perfectly flat line on the RTA and I'll show you an auditorium that sounds bad. Cutting frequencies should be done as needed but boosting frequencies should be reserved for when absolutely necessary.

One last point, a "digital" eq does not really mean frequencies are perfectly limited to that control. There is leakage same as is in analog eq cards. I've seen B-chains where the controls were up and down and up and down and up and down. Needless to say the sound was less than adequate. I see this happen all the time on SDDS machines in particular "because it's a digital eq, blah, blah, blah..."

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