Audio Video News

Queen: Rock Montreal, the concert film featuring the iconic British rock group and its electrifying front man Freddie mercury at the Montreal Forum in 1981, is the first concert film available with IMAX Enhanced DTS:X sound.

Streaming on Disney+ and hailed as an immersive in-home experience, the concert video is named after the live album recorded at the Montreal Forum November 24-25 1981 and released on CD, Blu-ray, and DVD in October 2007. The film was restored for IMAX by Mercury Studios.

DTS says it has developed a new high efficiency, low bandwidth DTS:X codec for streaming applications. “DTS:X for streaming was specifically developed with streaming applications in mind to provide the best possible audio quality for a premium entertainment experience at home,” explained Sven Mevissen, director of product management for DTS parent company Xperi. The sound part of IMAX Enhanced is based on the DTS:X audio format, which means you need audio gear capable of decoding DTS:X to experience the elevated sound.

Attempting to clarify confusion around exactly what IMAX Enhanced is, Mevissen said: “IMAX Enhanced is a content and device ecosystem that allows viewers to enjoy IMAX’s expanded aspect ratio and stunning visuals on certified devices at home. But the incredibly powerful sound people can experience in theaters was not previously available, until now.

“Having a DTS:X enabled TV is essential in order to unlock the DTS:X sound with IMAX Enhanced,” Mevissen continued in an April blog post on xperi.com. “Certified devices will support IMAX Enhanced sound, beginning with select DTS:X enabled Android/Google TV devices from Sony, Hisense, Xiaomi, and others. Additionally, owners of certified A/V receivers from manufacturers like Denon, Marantz, and JBL will also be able to enjoy the experience.”

Disney+ subscribers with a compatible device who select Queen: Rock Montreal (or an IMAX Enhanced film) for the first time get a notification in the form of an audio control panel allowing them to “opt-in” and turn on IMAX Enhanced sound for the current selection and all subsequent IMAX Enhanced soundtracks.

Click here to read the entire blog post.

In the press release announcing Queen: Rock Montreal, Disney said: “With IMAX Enhanced, IMAX and technology partner DTS enable content that can be experienced in-home and beyond with the highest fidelity, ensuring that filmmakers’ creative intent is fully optimized for an IMAX-quality presentation. DTS:X, provided by DTS, preserves the full dynamic range of the theatrical mix, allowing sound to move freely around the listener for a more immersive presentation at home.”

Queen: Rock Montreal made Sound & Vision’s “100 Best Blu-ray Discs and Concert/Music Videos” in 2010. Here’s what we said at the time:

A concert movie shot on 35mm film, Queen: Rock Montreal is among the best concert movies yet made. The performance is that sensational, and the cinematic elements back it up. Freddie Mercury was one of the most electrifying performers that rock has ever seen. Live Aid is a supplement that’s shot in more raw fashion in 1985. Overall, Rock Montreal’s image quality and sound are spectacular; this is can’t-miss home theater material.

Along with “Queen Rock Montreal,” 18 Marvel films are also now available on Disney+ with IMAX Enhanced sound: Ant-Man and the Wasp, Doctor Strange, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, Avengers: Infinity War, Eternals, Avengers: Endgame, Guardians of the Galaxy (Vol. 2), Black Panther, Guardians of the Galaxy (Vol. 3), Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, The Marvels, Black Widow, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, Captain America: Civil War, Thor: Ragnarok, Captain Marvel, and Thor: Love & Thunder.

Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame were the first films shot entirely with IMAX digital cameras and all IMAX Enhanced titles on Disney+ feature sequences in IMAX’s expanded aspect ratio.