SDDS was developed for Sony under contract with Semetex Corp., located in Torrance, California. Although originally slated to premier with Hook, the SDDS project was delayed and instead premiered on June 17, 1993 with the Arnold Schwarzenegger film Last Action Hero. Since then, over 1,400 movies have been mixed in Sony Dynamic Digital Sound, and as of early 1999 over 6,750 movie theaters were equipped with SDDS.
The Code name for the SDDS project was "Green Lantern", taken from a comic book hero and the old term of "magic lantern" used to describe the original projected pictures in the late 19th century. Green came to mind because the key to imprinting the 8 micrometre data bits was to use a green laser.
Initial development efforts were conducted for the Columbia Pictures Sound Department under contract with Semetex Corp., located in Torrance, California. At Semetex, the SDDS Chief Architect was Jaye Waas and the Chief Optical Engineer was Mark Waring.
The Semetex prototype design required all eight digital audio channels to be recorded on (and recovered from) the edges of the film with no data compression. As Sony engineers became more actively involved in the project, the design of the SDDS format evolved toward a more workable implementation, including the use of 5:1 ATRAC data compression, extensive error detection and correction, and redundancy. The data bit size on film was enlarged from 8 to 24 microns square, and Semetex's laser system for the sound camera was replaced with simpler LED/fiber optic assemblies.
The SDDS development took just 11 months from concept to working sound camera.
When it came time for deployment, since Sony also owned the Sony Theatres chain (later sold to Loews), it was able use SDDS in its own theatres. And via its highly successful Columbia/Tristar Studios arm, it was able to use SDDS as the exclusive digital soundtrack on its titles. In addition, in the early days of the "megaplex explosion", Sony struck a deal with AMC Theatres in 1994 to include SDDS in all of their new auditoriums. This gave SDDS a much needed, albeit artificial, kick-start. More than likely it would have garnered far less penetration had Sony not controlled both a theatre chain and a film studio.
SDDS was consistently the least popular of the three competing digital sound formats (the others being Dolby Digital (aka SRD), and DTS). Along with being the most expensive to install (and the last to arrive), there were major reliability issues with SDDS. Due to their placement on the very edges of the film stock, SDDS tracks are more prone to damage than the other digital formats. As with other digital sound formats, any failure of the digital track will result in a "drop-out" to either another digital format if available, or (most likely) to analog sound. These drop-outs are audible to audiences as a change in volume level and a slight loss of fidelity and extreme high and low-end, similar to a "CD skipping", although it is more difficult to tell in a properly calibrated auditorium.
In addition, SDDS's much-touted eight track playback capability never quite caught on, as it required that a separate eight channel sound mix be created in addition to the six channel mix that is needed for SRD and DTS, an additional expense for the studios. Out of the 1,400 plus films mixed in SDDS, only 97 of them to date have been mixed to support the full 8 channels, most of them Sony (Via Sony Pictures/Columbia/Tristar) releases. Because of the added installation expense, the majority of SDDS installations are 6 channel (5.1) installations, as opposed to 8 channel (7.1) installations.
