Just how real is home cinema anyway?
paul packer
RIGHT heading)
Here's one to ponder---just how real is home cinema? Before it became
popular I was one of those who was always trying to play TV sound
through his stereo to get better sound. When HT came along I welcomed
it as an enlightened entertainment breakthrough. Yet now I'm not so
sure. The sound I'm hearing from most home cinemas just isn't what I
had in mind all those years ago. What I was after was increased
realism, yet what I'm hearing these days is the antithesis of realism.
I go into shops where HT is being demonstrated and the sounds I hear
are so laughably exaggerated I can't relate them to real life at all.
Not just action scenes, though God knows they're laughable enough.
Even ordinary, everyday sounsd are blown out of all proportion.
Someone slams a door and your hair blows back. Someone starts a 4
wheel drive and the floor shakes. The slightest action is cause for
sub-woofers to start rumbling like long dormant volcanoes. The other
day I walked past a shop demoing HT and paused a moment to compare the
sounds from the shop on the one side and the ordinary street sounds on
the other. Needless to say I could find no point of comparison: the
HT sounds were just overblown, fake, thumping nonsense. Whatever
happened to the notion of realism? Whaever happened to proportion, for
that matter? I don't own a HT, and frankly I won't be considering one
until the industry adopts a more adult philosophy of more than just
effect for effect's sake.
Trevor S
news:3c47eede...@news.terrigal.net.au...
> Sorry, got my title and NG confused above. Here's the post under the
> RIGHT heading)
>
> that matter? I don't own a HT,
I think that sums it up nicely :)
>and frankly I won't be considering one
> until the industry adopts a more adult philosophy of more than just
> effect for effect's sake.
Just because "someone" has turned the volume knob on the subwoofer up past
the stupid level and is attempting + 120dB SPL does not mean some of us
can't balance our systems and listen to the sounds tracks "as" intended. I
often try and surreptitiously point this out in A.A-V.H-C when someome posts
about shaking the glass of there <insert dwelling tye> and making the floor
tiles crack etc. Unless the sound track is that of an earthquake that
should not happen :)
If your sole expereince with music was (in)Sanity et al you would most
likely never listen to music either.
Buy a decent receiever, boorrow/bludge an SPL meter, balance your system and
enjoy :)
Of course if people want to listen to it that way, that's their
prerogative.. which is why I like HT it doesn't bother me :)
Trevor S
JohnP
> that matter? I don't own a HT, and frankly I won't be considering one
> until the industry adopts a more adult philosophy of more than just
> effect for effect's sake.
A properly set up HT will sound the same as the original sound editor
intended. If somebody then customises it to suit their own taste then the
sound may indeed become unrealistic. However that doesn't change the fact
that the HT should sound the equivalent or better than the cinema that it is
emulating.
Obake
>Sorry, got my title and NG confused above. Here's the post under the
>RIGHT heading)
>
>Here's one to ponder---just how real is home cinema? Before it became
>popular I was one of those who was always trying to play TV sound
>through his stereo to get better sound.
its not really about trying to recreate 'reality'. its more like creating a
atmosphere or environment. and its sure better then tv speakers :)
i think all those DSP and reverb makes thing sound 'fake' but its making the
sound image 'larger'.
Gary Quinton
wrote:
> The other
>day I walked past a shop demoing HT and paused a moment to compare the
>sounds from the shop on the one side and the ordinary street sounds on
>the other. Needless to say I could find no point of comparison: the
>HT sounds were just overblown, fake, thumping nonsense.
The other day I was crossing a bridge in my car when a Harrier Jump
Jet opened fire with two stinger missiles, blowing the bridge apart
and dumping myself and two trucks into the water.
My ordeal wasnt over.
As I struggled to free myself from my seat belt, I beheld in horror a
brace of depth charges pluming bubbles towards me.
I closed my eyes and braced for impact, but I was saved when Godzilla
surfaced under car and took the force of the explosion instead.
I was able to reach up and grab the extended ladder of a helicopter
that was being swung overhead by a wooden man in a long black coat and
dark superfly sunglasses.
He deposited me safely on the beach, the sound of the waves softly
crashing in my ears.
On my way home, I passed a HT store, and thought the sounds emanating
from within were terribly juvenile, unrealistic and laughably tame.
GaryQ
Shane Lord
"Gary Quinton" <ga...@alphalink.com.au> wrote in message
news:3c487779.813718@news...
Andrew Paschetto
For me Movies are an ESCAPE from reality, so therefore what HT has done for
Movies and Entertaiment is Right on!.
I am at the point now where I cringe if asked to go to the VHS section of
the video store or heaven forbid asked around to someone's place to watch a
movie and there is no sign of a DD/DTS Amp.
:)
Again my opinion, but it's everything I was hoping for.
Regards
Andrew
TT
for one do not want to re-create a *boring* mediocre real life experience in
my HT I want *unreal* entertainment with the adrenalin rush.
Paul you have missed the point here of what these "entertainment" systems
can do. Take for instance in every Star Wars film when the big battle
cruiser goes by there is noise and rumbling. Bzzzzzz! No noise in a
vacuum. But who cares? It adds ambience and enhances the viewing
experience and tries to *simulate* the experience of being there by adding
another dimension. Sound! Who cares if it is not accurate or technically
correct? I don't and judging by the success of these movies not many other
people as well.
Everyday life has a tendency to dull the senses so when people are
*entertained* it is *always* bigger, brighter and better than real life.
Now if we start to talk about the re-creation of music it then becomes a
totally different scenario I then want (no demand) absolute "realism of
being there" at the performance. So it is vital to distinguish what *your*
criteria is for you. It's same difference in reading a history book as
opposed to a novel set in the same era.
So hands up all those other people that love all the booms, crashes and
rumblings. Exaggeration, Yeah! But then you should listen to me tell
stories after a couple beers to ;-))
My $0.02 TT
"paul packer" <pac...@terrigal.net.au> wrote in message
news:3c47eede...@news.terrigal.net.au...
John Robinson
Quinton) wrote:
>The other day I was crossing a bridge in my car when a Harrier Jump
>Jet opened fire with two stinger missiles, blowing the bridge apart
>and dumping myself and two trucks into the water.
>
>My ordeal wasnt over.
But did you manage to save Tia Carrera though? I'm sure that she would
be eternally grateful :-)
Regards
John
Gully Foyle
wrote:
}Sorry, got my title and NG confused above. Here's the post under the
Are you aware that in most feature films are not the "real" sounds but
those created by a professional called a Foley Artist? You should also
be aware that you can adjust the settings of your HT to suit your
tastes. Running ear splitting sound levels is what sells these systems
to the average pleb, just like the really shitty music they put on to
demo hi-fi systems.
Maybe you just want a reason not to part with the dollars?
Indecisive
"TT" <swa...@geo.net.au> wrote in message
news:Zv428.10$yl....@vicpull1.telstra.net...