As I recently got my hands on an AC3 demodulator, I've been rediscovering some titles I have that had a 5.1 track.
Some are impressive, watching The Phantom Menace in dolby ex was really astounding, like I was rediscovering the movie itself.

Anyway, I just finished watching Perfect Blue: Limited Edition Box (1997) [PILA-9001] and the mixing was really weird, apart from the Dolby intro at the begining, all surround effects came exclusively from the right surround speaker.

I know it's not my speaker as the standard dolby surround comes from both surround speaker as expected.
So I am left wondering why is that the case, is the AC3 track really 5.1 on this movie ?

Are you sure your stuff is hooked up right? Does a channel check on another LD work?

There are some more non-standard implementations of 5.1 from non-Hollywood movies but having all FX come from one speaker isn’t something I can’t imagine being intentional. Perhaps it’s a defective pressing.

I don’t have this movie so I can’t check.

Well, I tested again Episode 1 and everything is perfect sound wise.
Put back the first side of first disc of Perfect Blue, the dolby digital intro deliver surround effect to both speakers, so it's definitely the movie itself that's like that.

Now is my particular disc faulty in some way ?
Or might all copies of the movie be in some weird dolby digital with only mono surround ?

It could be that there was a defective run. A lot of people have this disc so I’m sure someone will chime in. If they were all bad I think it would be common knowledge around here.

Have you listened to the Dolby Stereo track?

Could be defective, more than likely just a poor surround mix.
Some Dolby mixing is just average.
Titles with impressive AC-3 Dolby

If literally all FX come from the right front this is well below “average”, it’s unlistenable.

All the front speakers (L,C,R) delivers really great sound in ac3, with nice spatialization from left to right but the few times a sound is supposed to come from behind, it only comes from the right surround (like rain effects for exemple, or the subway moving when the character is in it)

The dolby stereo track is really good though, watched the movie 4 or 5 times already since I got my hands on it in stereo.

So, yeah, bad mix or bad run ? Hope someone with the movie will be able to test his own copy to clear things up.

The impressive ac3 thread was interesting to read, definitely will pickup some of them as time passes.
Thanks for your answers guys.

I only have the non-boxset release Perfect Blue: Regular Edition (1997) [PILA-99001].

All 3 editions have different masters (PILA-9001, PILA-9002, PILA-99001) per the mint marks.

I can also test the very early DVD edition in AC3 on PIBA-3001 which is likely the same master as the LD transfer.

Julien

Is Episode 1 the only other thing you’ve tested it with? Does your receiver support more than two rear channels? Have you run any kind of channel check other than these two movies?

I ask because Episode 1 is a 6.1 movie and if you didn’t have your channels hooked up right you’d have a still convincing performance with E1 and the exact thing you’re describing with all other 5.1 movies. If you have your L Rear speaker hooked up to Center Rear that speaker will fire in Episode 1 but will be dead in any 5.1 movie.

I didn't know the other editions were different masters, that's quite interesting to know Julien, I just thought it was the same one, just put on a regular clv disc.



Well yeah, I tested a few others I have, it's only perfect blue that has it, and it's not my hooking up or the receiver, mine is a yamaha rx v671, it goes up to 7.1 + 2 "presence", I have it in a 6.1 configuration right now.
Trust me, it's not the setup the culprit.

Have you tried to set it to 5.1 to match the source?

Just tried a few scenes and, although there is not much coming from rear left and rear right, I get effects on both.

There is no Dolby intro on the Perfect Blue: Regular Edition (1997) [PILA-99001].

Ex: chapter 7 (the dance/rape) with the music starting around 32:00 on all speakers and continues on both rear speakers equally.

Julien

Actually, I don't turn on the rear surround unless a 6.1 source, So I've watched it in 5.1

Tested the disc again and turned up the volume a bit, the surround left actually isn't muted, it's just mixed with a way way lower (had to get my ear close to it) volume than the surround right is.

So it's a mixing issue then, right ?

Same level for me, but quite a low level.

Julien

I had a surround receiver once whose amps were flaking out. On one of the surround channels you needed a sustained input to keep them alive. So when a movie got loud (like Star Wars) that would keep it going but if the movie had very low sound in the surround it would often stay dead.