Surround Sound

(1996-2006)


Nicknames: "The Blue S", "S from Purgatory", "Blue S of Doom"

Logo: On a black background, we see three sets of spherical lights curving together and combining to form an S made out of lines. Then underneath that, the words "SURROUND SOUND" appear in a thin font.

Variants: On some tapes, the logo and the music cuts off earlier than usual, or alternately, when the logo cuts off, the music remains (in particular, a handful of Columbia TriStar VHS releases that are THX-certified contain the latter variant due to it immediately proceeding the THX "Broadway" logo).

Trivia: This logo, created by Rod Dyer Design, was intentionally designed alongside Sony's "Maximum Television" ad campaign, which featured a similar logo, animation and music; one of these ads can be seen on the 1996 VHS of Jumanji (which, ironically, lacks this logo).

FX/SFX: The two lines combining to form the S, the words "SURROUND SOUND" appearing underneath the S.

Music/Sounds: A triangle ding, a faint sweeping sound, then a "CLANG!" and an echoing female choir.

Music/Sounds Variant: On monophonic VHS tracks (ironically enough), some of the sounds, such as the sweeping sound, were omitted.

Availability: Fairly common.
 * Seen on most Columbia TriStar/Sony Pictures VHS tapes of movies made from 1996-2006 that are compatible with Dolby Surround, such as Big Daddy, Close Encounters of The Third Kind, The Adventures of Elmo in Grouchland, and Thomas and the Magic Railroad.
 * It was not seen on the 1996 Jumanji VHS (see above), but a print version exists in the back cover. It was also absent from the VHS of Spanglish.
 * While this doesn't usually appear on promotional tapes, it does appear on the demo VHS of As Good as It Gets.
 * Also seen on a few DVDs from the time, mostly from the logo's early years.

Editor's Note: This logo has been fairly popular among Sony fans, but has also been known for its eerie audio scaring some.