Dolby Headphone

Background
Dolby Headphone is a surround sound technology invented by Australian company Lake Technology, with it's marketing rights later being sold to Dolby Laboratories. It's main goal is to simulate a 5.1 or 7.1 surround sound experience in real-time using stereo (2.0) headsets or earbuds. The technology has been implemented onto in-flight movies, DVDs, gaming headsets, cellphones, among others. In 2003, Dolby ended up buying the entirety of Lake Technology, along with the Dolby Headphone technology itself (Before then, they just had marketing rights). Today, the technology has since been replaced by Dolby Atmos for Headphones, a similar technology that simulates Dolby Atmos' object-based sound on stereo headphones, which outside of the headsets themselves is available for Windows and Xbox users under an additional fee.

(January 1999-2006)
Logo: We zoom out of the City trailer where the camera pans through the facade of the Dolby movie theater as the helicopter flies, to reveal we're inside a theater of our own. We pan through the theater and lights go off at certain angles to illustrate virtual surround sound when listening. The lights shine toward the ceiling to flash, from which comes down a golden [D(I] with headphones. "DOLBY HEADPHONE" appears in its corporate font by flashing letter. The theater fades out to a black background and the logo shines.

Variant: Usually presented in a matted 1.78:1. A 4:3 variant is available on the Dolby "Explore Our World" demo disc.

Technique: CGI animation by Sunset Digital.

Music/Sounds: A synth theme with drums and sci-fi sounds that sound like it's coming from certain angles, by Paul Klingberg.

Availability: Rare. It appeared before in-flight movies starting with its public launch on Singapore Airlines flights in May 1999. It was also seen on the DVDs that came with the second-edition and third-edition copies of the book DVD Demystified, the DVDs of Pearl Harbor (including the Director's Cut) and the Explore Our World demo disc from Dolby. Originally premiered behind closed doors at CES 1999 in Las Vegas.