E&E installs first Dolby Atmos system in South East Asia
Published: ASIA
SINGAPORE: Electronics and Engineering has recently equipped the Golden Village VivoCity Cinema in Singapore with the first Dolby Atmos system in South East Asia, courtesy of a complete 64.2 channel EAW speaker system.
Golden Village’s GVmax 602-seat movie theatre reportedly boasts the widest cinema screen in Asia, measuring 22.4m, which is complemented by a 4K digital projection system. E&E deemed the EAW system as a suitable solution for the cinema’s needs due to the fact that it complies with the Dolby Atmos requirements for speaker configuration, and was capable of positioning metadata for the audio stream to optimise 64.2 channels of playback.
Working closely with the team at Dolby, E&E conceptualised the project over a period of five months, however the implementation itself took only four days, with all tuning and calibration completed in the three days that followed.
‘The biggest challenge for the installation was the tight time frame, as we had to install five EAW CB523z three-way cinema speaker systems behind the 22.4m perforated screen, mount 32 CR72i surround speakers on the side and rear walls, install four front and rear SB284z subwoofers, and set up the scaffolding required,’ said C. H Khor, E&E senior project manager.
This was for mounting the two rows of 12 ceiling-mounted MK2396 600W two-way speakers in the cinema hall and to support the racking for all 27 units of CAZ 2800 and 16 CAZ1700 power amplifiers. ‘The massive deployment of these speakers, amplifiers and 64.2 channel termination had to be installed over a four-day period, and the E&E team worked close to 24 hours a day to ensure the completion of the project,’ he explained.
‘Dolby Atmos is regarded as the most significant development in the history of cinema audio since the introduction of surround sound,’ said Ronald Goh, managing director for Electronics & Engineering Pte Ltd. ‘Taking a unique layered approach to sound design, it gives content creators total control over the placement and movement of sound for moviegoers and gives audiences a whole new reason to go to the movies. Together with the EAW third generation cinema speaker systems, it will undoubtedly pull moviegoers in – as the sound is absolutely profound.’
‘Golden Village is delighted to be the first exhibitor in Asia to introduce the latest groundbreaking audio technology in one of the largest cinema audio installations in the world with Dolby Atmos,’ said Kurt Rieder, chief executive officer of Golden Village. ‘We look forward to offering our audiences the sound of the future with the latest cinema technologies available today.’
‘Dolby is honoured that Golden Village has chosen Dolby Atmos in their largest premier theatre, GVmax,’ added Mahesh Sundaram, vice president, Asia Pacific, Dolby Laboratories. ‘With Dolby Atmos and GVmax’s amazing sound system, we are demonstrating an unwavering commitment to advancing the cinema experience with ground-breaking new technologies.’
‘The Dolby Atmos project is a great success,’ Mr Goh enthused. ‘We are proud to have been part of the team that has made this installation possible.’
Moviegoers can already experience the new Dolby Atmos auditory experience at the GVmax cinema, as the first Asian film to be mixed in Dolby Atmos, Ah Boys to Men, is currently being screened.