Digital Sound Plus

Background: Following Digital Sound, DigiGaming Sound and Digital RealD, the company decided to make an "experimental" 7.1 format for DVDs called Digital Sound Plus in 2007. It was an unexpected success and was adquired by various companies. In 2013, the brand started to be used for 13.1 sound formats on Blu-Rays.

1st Logo

(2007)

Digital Sound Plus (2007)

Nicknames: "Splash", "It All Begins Here"

Logo: On a pitch-black screen, the words: "Since the dawn of DVD-Video, audio formats weren't extremely impressive." fade in and fade out. Then more words appear: "Digital Sound has made the perfect 7.1 solution for DVDs...". It also fades out, then after 4-5 seconds, the Digital Sound Plus logo (the DS logo with a "plus" sign next to it. Below the sign, there's "plus"), in blue, wipes in. The point light slightly moves around so it plays with the logo's brightness. Copyright info fades in below after some seconds, and the whole logo disappears instantly on reversed cymbal crash.

Trivia:

This logo was used to tribute the THX "Wings" and HAL "Casablanca" logos.

Some names of the DSP logos were taken from famous 80's movies.

FX/SFX: The text/copyright fading, logo wiping, and point light.

Music/Sounds: A quiet pad is heard. After the second text fades out, an explosion sound (that sounds a lot like a sub) plays, followed by "panning" reverse/forward cymbal crashes that increase in volume. This is called the "Cymbal Notes" and it's one of the most known sound trademarks.

Music/Sounds Trivia: To give the "increasing volume" effect, the sound designers used an overdrive effect and automated it.

Availability: Extremely rare. Was never in DSP home theater-certified DVD releases. Only appeared in the Digital Sound Plus Demo DVD 2007 and The Wild Thornberrys Movie DVD. Also seen on Digital Sound's website.

Scare Factor: Low to nightmare, because of the dark atmosphere and the Cymbal Notes. Even if you didn't heard the Cymbal Notes before, as it may cause something known as "Cymbalphobia", which is the fear of crashing cymbals. However, the trademark was no longer used since 2010 due to scaring people, and DSP used a tame sound trademark instead. None for people who are used to it.

2nd Logo

(2007-)

Nickname: "Times Square"

Logo: On a black background, we see three rectangles appearing, turning around and sliding. When they meet, they form the DSP logo and "What The Audience Is Listening" fades in below.

Variants:

2008 A: The audio was remixed digitally with new technology.

2008 B: This variant was only on home theater-optimized DVDs. There, "Remastered For 7.1 Audio Playback" is seen replacing "What The Audience Is Listening". Probably the most common one.

2008 C: Both the audio and animation is more faster than the original version. The audio sometimes is in higher (or lower) pitch.

On Intel Core 2 VIIV media PCs, the 2008 A variant plays, but "Your Intel Media PC is DSP-Certified" replaces "What The Audience Is Listening" with "Intel" in corporate font. The URL fades in below the text.

2010: The logo is remastered, or recreated, in high definition. The logo also glows and shines slowly. This variant may use either the "What The Audience Is Listening" or "Remastered For 7.1 Audio Playback" texts. The copyright info also fades in below.

2011: Same as the 2010 variant, but the newer logo is used.

On the first 13.1 Blu-Ray releases, the 2011 variant is seen, but "13.1" replaces "7.1" and the Blu-Ray logo is seen below.

FX/SFX: Everything.

Music/Sounds:

On normal 7.1 DVD releases during 2007-2010, it used the louder and slower Cymbal Notes.

On home theater-optimized 7.1 DVD releases during 2007-2010, it used the quicker Cymbal Notes.

Starting in 2010, the Cymbal Notes were no longer used because of loudness. The music is now a slowed-down wind sound, followed by the same explosion sound and then a sci-fi bell tune. This is called the "Futuristic Bells" and it was also used for newer DSP logos.

Availability: Common. It appears on most DVD/Blu-Ray releases with Digital Sound Plus, especially home theater-optimized ones. Also available online. The 2008 variants started to be used since the 2008 20th anniversary DVD of Who Framed Roger Rabbit? and later appeared on TV when Silvermax HD aired Biskit as a surprise appearance in the same year. The 2011 variant debuted on the Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes: 43 Years Edition DVD and the Blu-Ray one appeared on the 2013 release of Mama.

Scare Factor: See 1st logo. It will rise on the next one however...

3rd Logo

(2008-2013)

Nicknames: "Creepshow", "What The Heck Just Happened?"

Logo: A small blue box appears in the center of the screen, then a conductor hand appears and flicks in baton, blasting out a heavy strobe effect. The words: "7.1" and "SURROUND" appear and move to different places in each frame. It cuts to the Digital Sound Plus logo after some seconds on a blue space background, which zooms to us. Then, the text "What The Audience Is Listening" fade in the same font as the one from "Times Square". Copyright info fades in below.

Variants:

Late in the logo's life in 2010, the strobe part has been replaced with blue lights forming various things related to sound, then the DSP logo, which then turns metallic and zooms to us just like before. In 2011, the newer logo replaces the old logo.

On Technicolor-certified DVDs, the text "This DSP Feature Is Also Equipped With Technicolor" fades before the logo starts. The logo has the 2010 animation. At the end, the Technicolor logo was added at the bottom-left side of the screen.

On a few Blu-ray releases with DSP, the words "Remastered For 13.1 Audio Playback" fade in with the blue space background. The Blu-ray logo is also seen below the DSP logo.

FX/SFX: CGI that was done by VAS Graphic Services.

Cheesy Factor: One of the most unsuitable animations ever made. This logo is VERY bad for viewing, it shows fast-paced irritating effects during the strobe part which can cause problems to even the healthy viewer. The music is FAR more dangerous than the last ones, which also increases the cheesy factor. The 2010 variant is completely decreased.

Music/Sounds:

An orchestra warms up, then extremely loud laser sounds during the strobe and finally a more overdriven version of the Cymbal Notes.

For later versions (including the Technicolor variant), a nice orchestral piece done by Ram Frank. We hear an orchestra warming up at the start, then a dramatic score, which then evolves into a beautiful composition of random notes when the DSP logo appears (representing the Futuristic Bells). A whoosh is heard as the DSP logo zooms in. This music was also used in the Creepshow trailer shown at the end of the Digital Sound HIT! (2008) feature.

The Blu-ray variant uses thunder sounds and a shorter version of the later music and sounds.

Availability: This became the first alternate DSP trailer to be used in 2008, beginning with the original DVD release of Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story. The original version is extremely rare because DVDs including it are out of print and re-releases from them include the later variant. The Blu-ray variant can be seen on pre-2014 releases like The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, Avatar, Titanic, and others (namely Fox flicks).

Scare Factor:

Nightmare to HEART ATTACK for the original version. The sudden strobe part has scared a lot of people, including the overdriven version of the Cymbal Notes. It shares the same scare factor with the IHI Productions logo, and is the main reason why people got Cymbalphobia. Either that, you might be saying "What the heck happened?!?!?" after seeing the logo.

Minimal for the later version. The use of the new fanfare sounds better than the original version, but the thunder sounds on the Blu-ray variant may rise the scare factor a little.

4th Logo

(2009-)

Nicknames: "Willow", "Blood Cells"

Logo: On a black background, blood cells suddenly emerge and move, turning it red. The text "What The Audience Is Listening" fades in and fades out after some seconds. After that, the background turns blue and the cells explode, which then transform into pieces of the DSP logo. They fly around and form the normal logo, which later turns cyan. Copyright info fades in below.

Variants:

The home theater DVD version of Avatar has the words: "This DVD is DSP home theater-optimized." before the logo starts. After the logo is formed, the words "BEST SOUND" fade in below.

On Intel or AMD-powered HTPCs, the Avatar variant plays, but "DVD" is replaced with the Intel or AMD logo.

A few Intel HTPCs use the previous variant, but the DSP logo transforms to the Intel logo at the end and the 2005 version of the Intel Inside jingle plays.

Just like the 2nd and 3rd logos, the 2011 logo is seen replacing the old logo on recent releases.

FX/SFX: The blood cells, background changing colors, text fading in, and logo forming. According to the Digital Sound: The History DVD, the visuals were created by ILM.

Music/Sounds: Sounds of liquid, then some whooshes, followed by a calmer version of the Cymbal Notes. This was done by Rolling Wave Sound in Avid Pro Tools.

Starting in 2010, the Cymbal Notes are replaced by the Futuristic Bells.

Availability: Was seen on DSP DVDs until 2011, starting with the 1st DVD release of The Dark Knight. Currently used on Intel/AMD HTPCs.

Scare Factor: Medium, since the Cymbal Notes are more tamer. Low with the Futuristic Bells.

5th Logo

(2009, 2011-)

Nicknames: "Blue Light Harvest"

Logo: We see blue lights appearing, which form a city skyline. The camera goes to the top side of the skyline, as the lights move around and start forming the Digital Sound Plus logo. The logo turns metallic, and the URL/copyright notice fade in below.

Variants:

Since 2011, the new logo is used.

There is a version where "CS-1" appears under "plus" and "We polished the sounds" is seen above the URL. "CS-1" stands for "Clean Sound 1", which is the attempt of DS to enhance the sounds on DVDs and BluRays of old films.

For DSP BDs with CS-2, the CS-1 variant is shown, but a 2 replaces the 1 of "CS-1" and the slogan is changed to "It's more cleaner now".

FX/SFX: The lights, the logo turning metallic.

Music/Sounds: The Futuristic Bells.

Availability: Uncommon. The logo was first used in 2009, but it was shortlived and only appeared on the deluxe DVDs of Cloverfield, Jumper and the Remastered version of It's Raining Spiders. 2 years after it's discontinuation, the logo was used again in 2011 with the newer logo, starting with the DVD of Tangled. The CS variants are only shown of HD prints of 40's-80's films, including those of My Fair Lady and 101 Dalmatians. Also seen on DSP demo discs and on DS's Vimeo.

Scare Factor: None. The Futuristic Bells are way tamer than the Cymbal Notes.

6th Logo

(2009-2014)

Nicknames: "Digital Cinema Sound Rip-Off", "Metallic Cubes and the Theater"

Logo: We see a movie theater entrance on a sunny sky, then three metallic cubes enter and buy the tickets. We follow them as they go to the movie theater room and sit on their chairs. The camera settler as the lights dim out and the screen displays a moving musical score with notes, fishes swimming around on the ocean with a shark, and an explosion. When the explosion plays one of the cubes grabs a DVD controller and presses the "next" button, and the scene changes to a living room with a TV showing the Digital Sound Plus logo from before, with the cubes sitting on a white sofa. They go out as the camera zooms and faces on the logo, and the copyright notice fades in below it.

Variant: Like the previous 5 logos, the 2011 logo replaces the old logo at the end.

FX/SFX: All the CGI.

Cheesy Factor: It's not cheap, but we can find a few similarities between this and the 1991 DCS logo.

Music/Sounds: There's some synths in the logo, with cartoon sounds, as well as some sound effects, including a dark orchestra, water sounds and a deep explosion (not like the one you've heard in the 1st and 2nd logos). When the living room scene plays we hear the Futuristic Bells.

Availability: No longer current, but can be seen commonly on family movies from the time, including The Little Engine That Could and The Muppets. Rarely seen on DVD prints of PG-13/R-rated films, an example being Stinger.

Scare Factor: Low, mostly due to the movie theater part, but this is a well made logo.

7th Logo

(Late 2009-)

Nicknames: "Digital Cinema Sound Rip-Off II", "The Metallic Cubes Strike Again"

Logo: We see nothing for a few seconds, until the metallic cubes from before, now glowing in various colors, are seen zooming out. They move around and see a DVD, which they later swirl near it and make it blue. The cubes shrink and go inside the DVD, and they see various light beams, musical notes, Matrix-like things and huge rectangles. We follow them and the cubes later meet a portal, which brings them to a dark city with various high-rise buildings. Some of them move around the streets, while the others are seen swirling around the buildings. One of them gets inside a music studio, then the others go with it. They move up to reveal a mixer, speakers and a window with the black DSP logo seen on it. The cubes crash with the center of the window, making the DSP logo flash. We then see the metallic DSP logo zooming in slowly on a black background, with copyright fading below after a few seconds.

Variant: Same as the previous logo (the 2011 logo replacing the old one).

FX/SFX: Late 2000's CGI.

Cheesy Factor: It still rip-offs the DCS logo, this time with their 2nd one.

Music/Sounds: More sounds that suit the action of the logo, including drum music, whooshes and the Futuristic Bells.

Availability: Current. It was used in tandem with the previous one until 2014, when that logo was discontinued. Seen on DVD prints of family/PG-13-rated films, starting with the November 2009 print of Ice Age: The Meltdown. It later appeared on other family-related films. This never appeared on DVDs of R-rated films unlike the previous logo.

Scare Factor: Minimal. The logo flashing near the end may suprise a few, otherwise a harmless one.

8th Logo

(2010-)

Nicknames: "Made With Words"

Logo: We see the glowing blue words "digital sound plus" scrolling to the left of the screen. The camera zooms out to reveal that the words are forming a DNA-like figure, which then rotates. We zoom out even more to reveal more blue text making DNAs. The words then stop forming the DNAs, and form the Digital Sound logo, which then flashes to turn 3D. It shines, and the copyright info fades in below.

FX/SFX: The movement of the (glowing) words, the DSP logo flashing and shining.

Music/Sounds: The Futuristic Bells, but high-pitched.

Music/Sounds Variant: On German DVDs featuring Digital Sound Plus, if selected a commentary feature to appear when the movie plays, a disco theme is heard while a male voice says "This DVD is equipped with Digital Sound Plus, giving you a new way to experience sound like on the future." If the commentary is in German, it says: "Diese DVD ist mit Digital Sound Plus, die Ihnen eine neue Art zu erleben Sound ausgestattet.", which in English means "This DVD is equipped with Digital Sound Plus that allows you to experience a new kind of sound". The English version also appears in British and Australian DVDs if selected the commentary function.

Availability: Rare today. The normal version made it's debut with the 2010 deluxe DVD of What Now? and later made another appearances on other DVDs, including the 2010 print of Sunshine. This is more easier to find on international prints, mostly German/Polish/French ones. This version made it's last appearance in the 2013 print of Oz The Great and Powerful, but the commentary variant is currently used for some German, UK and Australian discs, one example being Resigned Friday.

Scare Factor: None.

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