dcollins wrote on Sun, 01 June 2008 03:36 |
e-cue wrote on Sat, 31 May 2008 23:35 |
I tried checking THX's site for info on that, but their server seems to be down at this time. Anyone care to chime in that knows more info?
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K.K. Proffitt and/or Tom Hambleton may have something.
DC
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Sorry. Been busy...and not coming here much. Except to make the occasional Spinal Tap reference.
I don't know ALL that much about THX, but I DO know a few things. (and I know a smart guy who works for him.) They will give you the list of equipment and design and facility review once you are signed up with them and give them money towards certification. There are some lists floating around.... It is "supposed" to ensure predictable playback from the A to the B chain in film mixing and theatrical presentation. If the room is "certified" it means that THX says it sounds "good enough".
Here is all you need to know : I was purchasing QSC cinema amps for my new room. I had the choice between the THX certified and the not certified. The certified ones had terrible filters in them that made them sound worse than the regular ones..........
It is not about the best possible sound, it is about how to get things to translate from mix room to theater.
Seems like a waste of money to me. And I would laugh at any Mastering Room that boasted it was THX certified. For a film or TV mix room, a different story. If you could use the marketing of a THX certification, then it
might make sense.
BUT :
Most Hollywood dub stages
are not THX certified.
Directors and Producers NEVER ask if they are THX certified.
Smaller houses "think" (are led to believe) that they need it to add credibility to their operation.
Most good engineers do NOT need THX to tell them how to build a room.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences theaters? NONE of them are THX certified.
(that said, TH is a smart guy and did contribute to the understanding and improvement of film sound. In some rooms, his baffle wall was a good idea -- theaters used to have HUGE back stages behind the screen and the sound come careening back and echo in that chasm.)