At CinemaCon 2014 in booth 213F, QSC
Audio Products is demonstrating a versatile processing platform that can
accommodate any object-based or channel-based immersive sound format. Q-Sys,
the company’s network audio platform, now has the capability to directly accept
a network connection from a Dolby® CP850 processor, and it can also function as
the rendering engine for MDA, the multi-dimensional audio format developed by
DTS®, Inc.
Immersive
sound, which features a three-dimensional array of loudspeakers and the ability
to place sounds anywhere in the cinema, offers filmmakers more creative freedom
in the production of a cinema soundtrack. It also offers cinemagoers a much
greater sense of engagement with the action on screen. Although standards are
still being proposed, there are several formats which have been developed to
produce the immersive audio experience. Leading formats today include Dolby
Atmos® and Barco Auro 11.1. MDA is a newer, non-proprietary, open platform
solution, proposed by the MDA Cinema Proponents Group (of which QSC is a
member).
“Q-Sys
offers a complete solution that is compatible with any format,” says Barry
Ferrell, Senior Vice President and Chief Strategy Officer for QSC Audio
Products. “Since it’s a complete digital audio network platform, it has the
processing power and functionality to accomplish whatever the format requires,
from complex signal routing to multiple loudspeakers and amplifiers, all the
way to rendering and mapping of object-based audio files.”
In
their booth 213F at CinemaCon, QSC demonstrates Q-Sys with Dolby Atmos and MDA
format object-based sound, through a scaled-version of a complete QSC cinema
audio system.
With
Q-Sys, an all-digital connection is maintained from the D-Cinema server all the
way to the power amplifiers. This minimizes unnecessary digital-to-analog and
analog-to-digital conversions, which can add cost and compromise sound
quality. From a Dolby CP850 Atmos Cinema
Processor, a simple Ethernet cable is all that’s required to connect to a Q-Sys
Core processor, which then connects to QSC DPA-Q network amplifiers over Q-LAN,
QSC’s media distribution technology. Combined with the appropriate QSC DCS
loudspeakers, a complete QSC system with Q-Sys provides the most cost-effective
solution for Dolby Atmos and other immersive sound applications.
Q-Sys
Core processors also provide audio signal processing including Intrinsic
Correction™, QSC’s proprietary method for optimizing the performance of QSC
loudspeakers.
“All
loudspeakers have certain inherent anomalies that affect the sound quality to
some degree,” explains Ferrell.
“Intrinsic Correction corrects these behaviors in cinema loudspeakers,
removing any anomalies from the equation of factors that affect measured response
and, ultimately, the quality of sound.”
Support
for object-based audio within the Q-Sys platform is expected to be available
beginning in April 2014. Technicians or cinema operators considering Q-Sys for
object-based formats are encouraged to contact QSC Cinema Technical Support at
cinematechsupport@qsc.com.
Visit
QSC at CinemaCon in booth 213F.
