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The Other Large Formats: XD/ETX/RPX/BTX/PDX/XPlus/SDX/AVX/XXDXP. Also, UltraScreen.

…a much shorter and more direct segment of this Intermittent Issues. The existence of a digital and somewhat-customizable version of IMAX gave theater chains the idea that, if IMAX could scale down their own ambitions and present a solution that could theoretically apply to just about any multiplex built within the last 15 to 20 years, they could do the same. This they did, in what are easily the most confusing and arbitrary exercises in brand development and extension in years.

Forget the format war of HD-DVD and Blu-ray, or of VHS and Betamax; this is no case where the industry rallies around a common alternative to the IMAX brand. All of those acronyms in the title of this section are actual living, breathing “premium” cinematic offerings by the major theater chains. Cinemark has XD, AMC has ETX, Regal has RPX, we’ve already covered Bow Tie eXtreme…and Marcus Theaters has chosen to take the comparatively serene and straightforward approach of UltraScreen.

There’s no common standard between any of these, of course; each theater is free and clear to use whatever technology they want to for their large-format option. Most theaters use some derivative of the IMAX Digital workflow: two projectors, set to overlap each other and provide a bigger and brighter image (AMC’s ETX uses a single 4K digital projector). Where I live, we are provided Cinemark XD as a large-format option, and I’ve had the opportunity to see several major films in this format. The Barco projectors do their work well, and the effect is similar to seeing a relatively advanced upconversion of a DVD on an HDTV.

The screen is indeed significantly bigger than the screens in other auditoriums, but this carries a caveat: it is a floor-to-ceiling, wall-to-wall fixed screen in an aspect ratio of roughly 1.85:1, or spherical. This does not change, meaning that any film with an aspect ratio wider than this (a good healthy chunk of tentpoles released are released in the ultra-wide 2.35:1 aspect ratio) is going to be matted with black bars at the top and bottom of the screen. This slightly cheapens the experience. The sound, on the other hand, is fantastic - it’s louder, but it’s also superior in terms of fidelity, with midtones that are noticeably crisper than in a regular auditorium.

Since there are no ETX, RPX, PDX, XXPXPXLXXDDX, et al. theaters in my area, I’m restricted to seeking out written opinion on the relative quality of the experience, and it seems to be similar with other off-brand large-format screens: marginally better image depending on aspect ratio, still not a patch on genuine 70mm IMAX, and superior sound engineering. Another common factor seems to be the relative plushness of the environment: seats are reclining leather rather than cloth, and larger than normal seats, and thicker sound insulation prevents any audio bleed from the auditorium next door. The question it produces a is tougher to answer, at any rate, than the subject of our next topic: an opportunity for surcharge it certainly is, but is there also any way in which it’s inferior to the standard format?

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