For split surround we do 83 for left and right and when brought together becomes 86.
We do 79 for subwoofers to prevent bleed over int other auditoriums. 91 may be a little hot but depends on the size of auditorium and how many subs that are in use.
Really the subs are supposed to be set up using an analizer to achieve the proper frequency output not a sound preasure meter.

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I presume you ment to say that any TWO channels will sum to 85dB not all channels sum to 85dB...add three stage channels at 82dB each should yield you 86.77dB

Steve

If your theater is no longer receiving complaints on trailer volume levels, then clearly the problem is you are not presenting your features at their proper level. Simply turning the fader down (or resetting the levels) does nothing but turn the feature down too. Then again, some theaters are so poorly EQ'd that I wouldn't want to hear them at reference level! That is more likely your problem.

Randy,
LEFT 85db
CENTER 85db
RIGHT 85db
LS 82 1/2db
RS 82 1/2db
SUB (set this with your RTA and a multiplexer)

If the auditorium is properly EQ'd and the levels are set properly, features should play at 7 on the fader. If after doing that they are still playing below 6 1/2, your EQ needs work. (Assuming the acoustics of the room are decent.) The most common problem I see with EQs is OVER-EQing (the tech being hung up on making that line perfectly flat on the RTA and turning adjacent controls wildly in either direction to make it appear flat). Nothing sounds worse than that. I'd rather listen to the system flat. Also, the reason you feel the need to lower the center channel is because the surrounds are too loud in respect to the stage channels. This just ends up creating a mono/surround effect.

In answer to your original question (on the trailer volume). I would say things are still in very poor shape. We recently had a request to put compressors/gain riders on an entire chain of theatres to control the volume of the trailers (and even some features).

What TASA has to do is stop monkeying around and come up with a real number and not gradually move to it. If the goal is to have the previews and features at the same level then DO IT...don't gradually do it..... It should be something like...as of 5/1/01....all previews WILL meet sucha and such criteria or they will NOT be approved and won't be played in theatres.

Next, feature levels need to be looked at. Particularly, the dialog to Music/Effects level. In order to have the dialog at a reasonable level, the music and effects are too damn loud. An occational "sting" is fine but sustained high levels are turning people away from theatres. It is amazing that the industry survived so long on mono with very limited dynamic range except those engineers got the balance right. Even when 70mm 6-track (or 35mm 4-track) came into being and multi-channel wide dynamic range tracks were available, the recording eningeers used them to improve the films, no blast the crap out of everybody.

Steve

I've personally found nothing wrong with the mixes of features. This only seems to be an issue in large and inparticularly "live" acoustic environments. In an auditorium with good acoustics that is properly calibrated, things are fine and dandy as far as I am concerned. My issue is with the trailers. I am also considering going back to what we did back at GCC Northpark 1&2, being that we programmed in a format to turn the subwoofers and surrounds off. Some theaters I know of are actually going back to running the trailers in mono. Yes, everyone read that correctly...MONO! I suppose that's one way of handling it.

Why don't you set up some form of trailer fader for this theater chain?

I seem to be having a bout of dyxlesia here. I'm getting my mords all wixed up!

This is why they don't let me go downstairs and help the ushers: I keep offering to sew people to their sheets!

Because that is not good enough for them (it has been discussed). They complain that some trailers are too loud while others are too soft so if a lower trailer level was set, then the soft trailers would be hard to hear. They run a lot of art film, chain wide. My guess is that the Holywood product are the loud trailers and the art films are the soft trailers.

I'm glad you like the current mixes Brad (an I presume others too) but I sure don't. Now that is a general statement. There are certainly some really good mixes but I find them few and far between.

I agree with you on the liveliness on the room affecting how bad things seem. In order to curtail some of this, in live rooms, I will often drop left and right from 2-4dB to keep the music from drowning out the dialog. Depending on the RT-60 times in the bass, the subs will also get dropped. The worse shape the room is in, the more "hand-tweeking" that I do....I hate it. There is no substitute for a properly made room and quality speakers.

Steve

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another possability is that the crowds we have been geeting lately are older and are probably becoming deaf.

I have the sound set to what I think it should be to my ears. I like movies to have a punch. I personaly checked the EQ's and was told to fill in the holes and try to get the best I could out of it. Our theater is 11 years old and acustics are not the same as they were origonaly so that can play a part in the RE-EQ. The reason we do not set the subs above 79 on DTS houses is because of bleed over into other auditoriums. The faders do run a little over six not exactly six. The last few times I have screened movies I have been pleased with the sound. I am very picky about sound.

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Already been a standard prodcedure (analog previews and digital feature)....still not good enough. Even played with mono previews and digital feature.

Steve