Will Dolby's New Atmos 62.2 Format Redefine Surround Sound?

CIStud writes "Anyone who goes to see Pixar's new animated Brave film might come home with their ears ringing. Why? because Brave is the debut of Dolby Lab's new 62.2 surround sound format called Atmos, which adds new developments such as pan-through array and overhead speakers. With 62 speakers and 2 subwoofers, only a handful of theaters nationwide will be able to show the film at its full throttle. Dolby has produced a new highly informative video that talks about how movie sound has progressed from mono to stereo to LCR (left/center/right) to 5.1 and 7.1 surround sound and now Atmos. The big question is will the 62.2 format system be adapted for home theaters intent on emulating the immersive movie experience?" I've seen some busy input/output panels on home stereo equipment, but 62 channels is too many for my interconnect budget. Still, overhead sound seems like a good idea for some kinds of movie.

Re:...overkill...?

[smooth wombat]

They'll make a good killing off those morons.

And that's before you include the Monster cables.

Re:...overkill...?

[Russ1642]

The vast majority of home theater setups have the rear speakers positioned terribly. Many people want their seating as far back as possible so they put the back speakers up high where you can only hear them through reflection off the front wall anyways. This problem is worse when extra side speakers come into play.

Re:...overkill...?

[lgw]

You mean 2.1

No, really, 2.0. Subwoofers are a compromise.

I'm no audiophile, but I prefer a simpe 2-speaker setup myself - if you have full range speakers (so no need for a subwoofer) and decent enough speakers to get proper stereo imaging (so no need for a center channel), you're done. There's nothing interesting on the rear speakers anyhow.