The IMAX Experience at Home
IMAX Enhanced is a premium home entertainment certification program created through a partnership between IMAX and DTS. The program’s goal is to establish a set of stringent performance standards for both hardware and content to ensure that consumers can experience a film with the same level of audio-visual impact intended by the filmmakers for an IMAX theatrical presentation. It is not an entirely new audio format, but rather a specific, optimized implementation of the existing DTS:X object-based audio codec. To experience it, a user needs both certified content and certified playback hardware.
The Audio Component: A Theatrical Mix Unleashed
The core of IMAX Enhanced Audio is a unique DTS:X stream that has been specially mastered to preserve the full dynamic range of the near-field theatrical mix. In a standard home audio mix, the dynamic range—the difference between the quietest and loudest sounds—is often compressed to be more suitable for typical living room environments. The IMAX Enhanced mix removes this compression, delivering much deeper bass, greater impact from loud effects, and a more expansive soundstage. This is combined with an ‘IMAX Mode’ on certified A/V receivers and soundbars. This mode adjusts the device’s internal settings, such as bass management and speaker equalization, to a configuration that has been pre-set to best replicate the calibrated, high-power sound system of an IMAX theater.
The Full Picture: Audio and Video
IMAX Enhanced is not just about audio. The certification also applies to the video portion of a release, ensuring two key features:
- Expanded Aspect Ratio: For films shot using IMAX-certified cameras, the IMAX Enhanced version will present these scenes in their original, taller aspect ratio (typically 1.90:1, and sometimes 1.43:1). This can reveal up to 26% more of the picture on screen compared to the standard widescreen version, filling more of the user’s television screen.
- Pristine 4K HDR Image: The content is mastered to the highest 4K HDR standards and undergoes a proprietary noise and grain reduction process developed by IMAX. This ensures the clearest and most vibrant image possible.
The program is available on select 4K UHD Blu-ray discs and through streaming services like Disney+ and Sony’s Bravia CORE. The combination of the powerful, uncompressed DTS:X audio and the taller, cleaner image is what defines the complete IMAX Enhanced experience.