5.1 Film not mapping correctly at theatre

Just wondering if anyone else has encountered mapping issues when exporting a DCP in 5.1 F. In our case, the audio tracks are correctly mapped to LCRLsRsLFE (image below) but our local theater's sound system shows (on a control monitor) and plays through their speakers as if the audio was mapped primarily to center, right and Rs.

The theater system does still also play through the L, C, and R speakers behind the screen, so we are getting a kind of simple LCR sound -- but the bizarre duplication of tracks to Rs channel in particular makes the sound lopsided and weighted to the right.

The DCP is setting up under the Custom format, using the Main 5.1F bus for audio output and saved for SMPTE ingesting. The theater's Christie interface is an Adobe program.

Two other notes: Ours is a simple stereo mix for the most part, with mono dialogue tracks mapped for center and the stereo automatically mapping to the L and R channels when importing in our exported 5.1 F .wav files and placing them in the master sequence's 5.1 F timeline.

Maybe the idea is to just mute the unused 5.1 tracks?

Here's the image of the whole movie timeline -- any insights much appreciated.

Assuming the “F” refers to a Film configuration for the Output Track?

Both "Wild Track" and “5.1” Configuration preferences with SMPTE mappings as required by DCP Compositions with Kakadu J2K result in compliant deliverables from Resolve 18.0.4

Film mappings also produce compliant deliverables from Resolve 18.0.4

easyDCP also outputs compliant deliverables with both SMPTE and Film mappings.

Which Deliver settings are configured?

Hi. Thanks for replying. The "F" does refer to Film configuration, and the mapping was for "film" as per the Resolve 17 manual (p. 3167). We had to stick with Resolve 17, as we were too close to our theatrical exhibition deadline time to risk potential upgrading issues.

On the Deliver page, we chose:

DCP
Kakadu jpeg 2000
2k DCI Scope

Use Interop packaging option was left UNCHECKED

Composition settings:

All appropriate identifying information, plus -- SMPTE for the Standard, and OV for the Package Type. These are settings used by other films playing correctly on this theater's system.

Again, for audio configuration the Output track was Main 1 (5.1 Film).

Hope that helps.

The 5.1 Film Setting is the old setting.
Correct mapping should be L R C LFE Ls Rs

Herr Niessner. Ehrlich?? Seit wann? I have seen it go by online NOT to use 5.1 Film and instead use the regular 5.1 surround config as you list. But I didn't take it seriously because the Resolve manuals are pretty clear about the 5.1 Film being the cinema config AND the Dolby gear at my local theatre has a monitoring panel in the 5.1 Film (LCRLsRsLFE) config that let's the projectionist know where the sound is mapping to.

Can you confirm from actual cinema theatre experience?

Vielen Dank

Yeah, you want 5.1, NOT "5.1 Film". I've made dozens of DCPs (tested in theaters and screened widely) and the channel order is always L R C LFE Ls Rs. I'm not sure why the "5.1 Film" order exists.

Mark, yes I’ve made the sound mix for two feature films and several DCPs played in cinemas.

Have a look into the manual of DCP-o-magic:

https://dcpomatic.com/manual/html/ch06s05.html

Herr Niessner. Ehrlich?? Seit wann? I have seen it go by online NOT to use 5.1 Film and instead use the regular 5.1 surround config as you list. But I didn't take it seriously because the Resolve manuals are pretty clear about the 5.1 Film being the cinema config AND the Dolby gear at my local theatre has a monitoring panel in the 5.1 Film (LCRLsRsLFE) config that let's the projectionist know where the sound is mapping to.

Can you confirm from actual cinema theatre experience?

Vielen Dank

i'm in Vancouver, have made 100 + DCP's, made three this week alone
all of them... Every. Single. One is 5.1
every single one of them runs properly anywhere in the world
Resolve's manual is obvious crap
second DCP-0-Matic as resolve native DCP's will gag older DCi servers

Also from the book "Surround Sound Up and Running" by Tomlinson Holman (developer of THX Sound):

Track Layout of Masters
Due to a variety of needs, there is more than one standardized method of laying out tracks with an 8-channel group on a DAW or a DTRS-style tape. One of the formats has emerged as preferred through its adoption on digital equipment, and its standardization by multiple organizations. It is given in Table 4-1.

Table 4-1 Track Layout of Masters

Code: Select all

Track     1    2    3    4    5    6    7    8
Channel   L    R    C   LFE   LS   RS  Opt  Opt

This layout is standardized within the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) and Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) for interchange of program content accompanying a picture.

Got it. Much appreciated. Also found this previous forum post, quite by accident. Also clears up the issue:

viewtopic.php?f=21&t=122356

I've tested at my local theatre already using a single sequence of scenes output straight to DCP using 5.1 config and it performed perfectly. I'm assuming the simple way is to likewise just export each SCENE sequence as its own 5.1 DCP (for initial testing of both video and audio) and then import the audio clip only back onto a 5.1 audio track in the MASTER (whole film) timeline that's already got the video sequences in place and where the MASTER timeline audio is bussed for 5.1 Output Track output for final final project rendering in the deliver page.

Fairlight version 17 seems able to handle the incoming multi-channel single audio track from the scene DCP output and map it all correctly into a single 5.1 track on the master timeline, as revealed by viewing the master timeline in Fairlight and seeing the 6 mono stems appear as an automatically linked group in the proper 5.1 order. This contradicts much that I've scene in this forum that says a single 5.1 audio track won't work for final project delivery. Am i still missing something?

And yes, it would have been bloody handy if the manual had mentioned that, oh by the way, 5.1 Film will not work with current Christie/Dolby IMS theater gear.