After an immersive cinema experience with the Dolby Atmos version of the soundtrack, we’re now testing the album for Luc Besson’s film Le Grand Bleu (The Big Blue).
Composer Éric Serra remixed the music in Dolby Atmos, enabling him to recreate exactly what he had imagined when writing it, as he shares in his interview.
Exceptionally, for this test, we had the unique opportunity to compare the Dolby Atmos Master (ADM) with the Dolby Atmos streaming version, offering a precise vision of the sound quality and immersion offered by this technology.
We were also able to explore the stereo versions on CD and vinyl disc, each bringing its own signature sound. This comparison allows us to measure the evolution of the mix and appreciate the subtle differences between each format, to fully understand the impact of this Dolby Atmos remix of Eric Serra’s cult album.

Find out more about Eric Serra’s universe, with a visit to his studio, the Dolby Atmos remix of the album Le Grand Bleu, and many other exchanges like the AI in his interview (link).

For this review, you will find 4 versions tested: CD 1988, CD 2020, vinyl record, streaming Dolby Atmos and the Master Dolby Atmos (ADM).

Below you will find the description of the different editions, as well as the measurements of each edition in the following chapters.

The album is composed of 19 tracks:

1. The Big Blue Overture (Le Grand Bleu)
2. Deep Blue Dream
3. Sailing to Death
4. Rescue in a Wreck
5. La Raya
6. Huacracocha
7. Water Works
8. Between the Sky-Scrapers
9. Remembering a Heartbeat
10. Spaghetti del mare
11. Let Them Try
12. Synchronised Instant
13. Homo Delphinus
14. The Monastery of Amorgos
15. Much Better Down There
16. Cruise of the Dolphin Tribe
17. Second Dive
18. Leaving the World Behind
19. My Lady Blue

Only the 19 tracks on the original album are compared.

Summary, scoring and Samples

Ed 1: CD – 1988

Presentation

This is the original CD released in 1988 (ref : 259188) with a PCM track in 16 bits 44.1 kHz.

Waveform and Spectrum: DR13

The waveform of the CD shows a high dynamic range confirmed with DR13.

The spectrogram shows that the signal rises to 22 kHz (yellow arrow) and that there is no signal above this frequency (white arrow) due to the 44.1 kHz sampling frequency. The black arrow indicates a spurious frequency at 15.7 kHz due to radiation from a cathode-ray tube during recording.

Synthesis and listening

With the original CD version, you get the authentic sound of the album, faithfully preserving all the richness, balance and dynamics of the original mix. Every note, every sonic texture is rendered with precision, just as it was conceived at the time. This version instantly transports us to the film’s 1988 release, reviving the emotion and unique atmosphere of this cult soundtrack as it marked an entire generation. A real trip back in time for purists and lovers of the original sound!

Rating:

• Dynamic: ●●●●o (4)
• Bandwidth: ●●●●o (4)
• Restitution: ●●●●o (4)

Sample : “The Big Blue Overture” 16 bits 44.1 kHz:

Ed 2: CD – 2020

Presentation

This is the remastered double CD released in 2020 included in the BOX “Le grand Bleu”. The BOX contains 2CD, 3 LP and the movie in DVD (ref : 0866050) with a PCM track in 16 bits 44.1 kHz. Only the 19 tracks on the original album are compared.

Waveform and Spectrum: DR9

The CD waveform shows a dynamic range implementing a dynamics compressor, but remaining one with average DR9.

The spectrogram shows that the signal rises to 22 kHz (yellow arrow) and that there is no signal above this frequency (white arrow) due to the 44.1 kHz sampling frequency. The black arrow indicates a spurious frequency at 15.7 kHz due to radiation from a cathode-ray tube during recording.

The graph below compares the spectrum of the CD – 2020 (white curve) with the spectrum of the CD – 1988 (blue curve).The two spectrum curves overlap, with a small difference of 1 dB more for the 2020 CD version in the yellow zone. The yellow arrow indicates the high-frequency limit at 22 kHz due to the 44.1 kHz sampling frequency used for CDs.

Synthesis and listening

This remastered version respects the overall balance of the original while taking a more modern approach, with a more powerful, punchy sound. Thanks to dynamic compression, it adapts better to the listening standards of the 2020s, offering greater presence and a feeling of closeness to the music. However, this optimization comes at the expense of the finesse and dynamics of the original version.

Rating:

• Dynamic: ●●ooo (2.5)
• Bandwidth: ●●●●● (5)
• Restitution: ●●●oo (3)

Sample : “The Big Blue Overture” 16 bits 44.1 kHz:

Ed 3: Blue vinyl record – 2020

Presentation

This is the remastered triple blue LP released in 2020 included in the BOX “Le grand Bleu”. The BOX contains 2CD, 3 LP and the movie in DVD (ref : 0866050) with a PCM track in 16 bits 44.1 kHz. Only the 19 tracks on the original album are compared.

Waveform and Spectrum: DR11

The waveform of the Blu-ray stereo new mix shows a good dynamic range confirmed with DR11.

The spectrogram shows that the signal rises above 20 kHz (yellow arrow) with signal above this frequency (white arrow) containing musical information and distortion due to the vinyl record’s operating principle.

The graph below compares the spectrum of the Blue vinyl record – 2020 (white curve) with the spectrum of the CD – 2020 (blue curve).The two spectrum curves are very similar, with a small difference of 1 dB more for the vinyl version at the bottom of the spectrum (green zone). The yellow zone shows a difference beyond 15 kHz, with the vinyl disc attenuated by up to 5 dB compared with the CD version. The red arrow shows the spurious peak at 15.7 kHz, corresponding to the frequency of a CRT used in the studio.

Synthesis and listening

Superb pressing for this blue vinyl, in perfect harmony with the color of the sea in the film. The pressing quality is top-notch, with surface noise reduced to a minimum, enabling fluid, immersive listening. Here we find the magnificent stereo version, sublimated by the warmth and depth characteristic of vinyl, offering an enveloping restitution of great musicality. A wonderful rediscovery of this soundtrack in this format.

Rating:

• Dynamic: ●●●●o (4)
• Bandwidth: ●●●●o (4)
• Surface noise: ●●●●o (4.5)
• Restitution: ●●●●o (4)

Sample : “The Big Blue Overture” 24 bits 96 kHz:

Ed 4: Tidal Dolby Atmos – 2024

Presentation

This is the Tidal Dolby Atmos presented in Dolby Digital Plus or AC-4 (link). The album is also available in Dolby Atmos on Apple Music and Amazon Music.

Below the spatialization for all tracks. Click on the images to zoom in.

Waveform and Spectrum: DR13

The waveform of the Tidal Atmos shows a high dynamic range confirmed with DR15.

The spectrogram of the Tidal Dolby Atmos track downmixed in 7.1 is limited to 20kHz (yellow arrow) with no signal above (white arrow). This limitation is due to Dolby Digital Plus encoding, which is a lossy encoder that limits bandwidth to optimize data size for a bit rate of 768 kbits/s.

The graph below represents the spectrum of the Tidal Dolby Atmos – 2024.
The spectrum of Tidal’s Dolby Atmos version decoded in 7.1 shows similarities to that of the Dolby Atmos Master version. The LFE channel uses a cutoff frequency of 120 Hz (indicated by the green arrow), although this cutoff is more pronounced than on the master version. The white arrow indicates the high-frequency limit at 20 kHz, due to the Dolby Digital Plus encoding. Finally, the yellow arrow shows the high-frequency limit at 24 kHz, attributable to the 48 kHz sampling frequency used for encoding.

Synthesis and listening

The Tidal Dolby Atmos version is presented in Dolby Digital Plus, and we appreciate all the work done on this Dolby Atmos mix, immersing us totally in the music. However, lossy encoding removes some of the nuances present in the Dolby Atmos Master.

Rating:

• Dynamic: ●●●●o (4)
• Bandwidth: ●●●●● (5)
• Spatialization: ●●●●●●oooo (6.6)
• Restitution: ●●●●o (4)

Sample : “The Big Blue Overture” 7.1 Dolby Atmos (Downmixed in 7.1) :

The sample is in 7.1 wav format, if you can not play the sample in your navigator, you can save it, right button menu and “Save Audio As…” and play it with an external player.

Sample : “The Big Blue Overture” Dolby Atmos (Downmixed 2.0) :

Ed 5: Dolby Atmos Master – 2024

Presentation

This is the Master version of the Dolby Atmos ADM format heard in Eric Serra’s studio. The ADM format is a lossless format that contains the Dolby Atmos BED in 7.1.2 and up to 118 audio objects in 24-bit 48 kHz format.

Below the spatialization for all tracks. Click on the images to zoom in.

Waveform and Spectrum: DR13

The waveform of the Master Dolby Atmos shows a high dynamic range confirmed with DR15.

The spectrogram of the Atmos downmixed in 7.1 version of Mster Dolby Atmos shows that the signal goes down to 24 kHz (yellow arrow) and that there is no signal above this frequency (white arrow), due to the 48 kHz sampling frequency used.

The graph below represents the spectrum of the Dolby Atmos Master – 2024.
In contrast to the Dolby Digital Plus version, the spectrum rises to 24 kHz (yellow arrow), corresponding to the 48 kHz sampling frequency used for the Dolby Atmos Master. There is also less low-frequency filtering in the FLE channel (green arrow).

Synthesis and listening

As Éric Serra explains in the interview, the Dolby Atmos version corresponds exactly to his original vision for the soundtrack of Le Grand Bleu. Immersion is total, with optimal sound quality, since we’re listening to the Dolby Atmos Master. To give you an idea, the Master ADM file for the album’s first song weighs in at 825 MB, while the Dolby Digital Plus version encoded at 768 kbit/s is just 28 MB. Having the opportunity to listen to this master in Éric Serra’s studio allows us to measure all the work accomplished on this Dolby Atmos remix. This is unquestionably the ultimate version of the album! We hope Universal will consider a Blu-ray Audio release with a Dolby TrueHD track, to come as close as possible to the quality of this master!

Rating:

• Dynamic: ●●●●o (4)
• Bandwidth: ●●●●o (4)
• Spatialization: ●●●●●●oooo (6.6)
• Restitution: ●●●●● (5)

Sample : “The Big Blue Overture” 7.1 Dolby Atmos (Downmixed in 7.1) :

The sample is in 7.1 wav format, if you can not play the sample in your navigator, you can save it, right button menu and “Save Audio As…” and play it with an external player.

Sample : “The Big Blue Overture” Dolby Atmos (Downmixed 2.0) :

Immerse yourself with the Dolby Atmos version of the soundtrack to the film Le Grand Bleu. Thanks to this three-dimensional mix, the music takes on a whole new dimension, corresponding exactly to Éric Serra’s initial vision, as he explains in the interview. Listening to the Dolby Atmos Master faithfully reproduces every detail of the composer’s intended mix, offering an exceptional sound experience. We hope that Universal will release a Blu-ray audio with a Dolby Digital TrueHD track, to come as close as possible to this studio quality. As for the vinyl, it’s a real success, with rich, immersive sound reproduction. A Picture Disc edition is also available, offering a superb collector’s item.

Dynamic Range measurements are shown below.

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Measurements

Dynamic Range comparaisons

Dynamic represents the ability to reproduce a wide range of sounds from the softest to the loudest. The target is to compare the dynamics of the music and not of the media (CD, digital files or vinyl).

For our 5 editions reviewed have obtained the following Dynamic Range (DR) :

	CD – 1988	CD – 2020	Blue vinyl record – 2020	Tidal Dolby Atmos – 2024	Dolby Atmos Master – 2024
Global	DR13	DR9	DR11	DR13	DR13
Min	DR9	DR6	DR9	DR10	DR10
Max	DR17	DR13	DR14	DR16	DR16
The Big Blue Overture (Le Grand Bleu)	DR14	DR8	DR12	DR13	DR13
Deep Blue Dream	DR11	DR6	DR9	DR14	DR13
Sailing to Death	DR9	DR7	DR9	DR12	DR11
Rescue in a Wreck	DR12	DR7	DR11	DR13	DR12
La Raya	DR12	DR7	DR10	DR12	DR12
Huacracocha	DR10	DR9	DR10	DR12	DR12
Water Works	DR13	DR9	DR11	DR13	DR13
Between the Sky-Scrapers	DR15	DR9	DR11	DR15	DR15
Remembering a Heartbeat	DR9	DR9	DR9	DR10	DR10
Spaghetti del mare	DR17	DR9	DR14	DR16	DR16
Let Them Try	DR15	DR9	DR13	DR16	DR15
Synchronised Instant	DR12	DR11	DR11	DR12	DR11
Homo Delphinus	DR15	DR8	DR11	DR14	DR13
The Monastery of Amorgos	DR12	DR9	DR11	DR12	DR11
Much Better Down There	DR12	DR13	DR12	DR10	DR10
Cruise of the Dolphin Tribe	DR12	DR8	DR10	DR13	DR12
Second Dive	DR12	DR10	DR12	DR13	DR13
Leaving the World Behind	DR13	DR9	DR11	DR14	DR14
My Lady Blue	DR13	DR9	DR12	DR15	DR15

As a reminder, the scale goes from 0 to more 20, but the dynamics are considered good from 12, quite good between 10 and 11, and deteriorate below 10.

Detail of the ratings :

• Dynamic :
  1. Significant dynamic compression, DR less than 7
  2. Compression of the present dynamics, DR between 7 and 9.
  3. Correct piece DR >=10
  4. No dynamic compression (DR >12), dynamic rendering
  5. No dynamic compression, high DR and very dynamic sound rendering
• Spectrum :
  1. Spectrum cut and less than 15 khz
  2. Spectrum cut at 15 khz
  3. Spectrum not conforming to the original and cut (not HD) or original but limited bandwidth (but less than 20 kHz)
  4. Spectrum conforming to the original (but not HD)
  5. Spectrum conforming to the original with HD resolution (higher than 24kHz)
• Surface noise (only for vinyl):
  1. Continuous audible noise
  2. Audible surface noise except on passages with a high level of noise
  3. Reduced surface noise, barely audible on low level crossings
  4. Low surface noise, very good quality
  5. Very low surface noise, no defects, almost inaudible on the quiet passages (exceptional disc)
• Spatialization :
  • Between 0 and 5 for 5.1 or 7.1 channels configuration
  • Between 0 and 10 for Atmos configuration (7.1.4)
  • For more information on spatialization, you can read the article describing this parameter here.
• Restitution :
  1. Low quality of the restitution mixing dynamics, clarity, separation of voices and instruments.
  2. Average quality of the restitution mixing dynamics, clarity, separation of voices and instruments.
  3. Quality of the restitution mixing dynamics, clarity, separation of voices and instruments. Good record.
  4. High quality of the restitution mixing dynamics, clarity, separation of voices and instruments. Very high level disc.
  5. Maximum quality of the restitution mixing dynamics, clarity, separation of voices and instruments. Exceptional disc.

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