Can anyone tell me when films started to be made in Dolby Digital 5.1? I am building up an ever increasing dvd collection of 5.1/dts dvds but have noticed that the quality of the sound of older films is not as good as newer films originally made in 5.1 even though they are both in that format now.

If I knew the year then I would have a better idea of whether the film would use 5.1 more effectively, if you know what I mean.

Thanks

Wicket

Hmm. I know that THX started with Star Wars, and DD EX & DTS EX started with Star Wars - The Phantom Menice.

But as to DD5.1, try dolby.com

I'm not sure how much this will help (1992 is the answer) as it took a long time before DD 5.1 became universally used.

In the same way that even though 1977 (Star Wars) saw the first Dolby Stereo in theatres it doesn't tell you much - because many big movies prior (and after this) to this were released in 6 track 70mm which can be converted. And there are others after this date still in mono.

Check out the IMDb.com or similar for details of what was originally releassed in DD.

there is an interesting article at:

http://www.dolby.com/tech/evolve.html

If you are interested.

ALan

One of the Batman sequels was the first DD 5.1 film.
I think it was Batman Returns.

True, the older 'remixed 5.1' films aren't as good as the newer ones.
BUT for widescreen presentations you can't beat those pioneering films back in the 50s and 60s when directors made FULL use of the frame, unlike their modern day counterparts where everything is centralized and/or open matted.

So don't ignore those older films, just because of their sound.

Thanks for your replies. I will have a look at the websites you mention. I think there should be something on dvds to say that they have been remastered to 5.1. It would give a clearer idea of what to expect from the dvd. Still I can read dvd reviews to get a better idea.

Alan, just had a look at that link you recommended, it is interesting, thank you for pointing me in that direction - Wicket