Qube Cinema has once again partnered with D3D Cinema to install its single-server True 4K 3DTM system, this time at the newly renovated Air Force Museum Theater (AFMT) in Dayton, Ohio. The museum has upgraded from 15/70 film projection to the Qube XP-I server and dual Xi 4K Integrated Media Blocks (IMBs) and is the fifth giant screen installation in North America to use this Qube system. Visitors to the world's largest and oldest military aviation museum can now enjoy stunning True 4K 3D digital imagery on the giant screen from a system that is much easier to operate than the 70 mm film setup the museum used previously.
Photo credit: Michael J. Ullery
The digital cinema playback system at the AFMT features a single Qube XP-I server paired with two Qube Xi 4K IMBs embedded in a pair of Barco 4K projectors. Using a single DCP, the server is capable of streaming data at speeds of up to 1 Gbps, sufficient throughput to support the Xi IMBs and dual 4K projectors at up to 30 fps or 2K 3D at up to 120 fps per eye.
Digital Conversion - Looking to the Future
Opened in 1991, the AFMT operated as a 15/70 2D film theater until its upgrade to digital cinema was completed in March of this year. The new 400-seat giant screen theater, with its 80-foot tall atrium offers a focal point for the entire museum.
The museum theater was 22 years old and in need of an upgrade, said Mary Bruggeman, chief of theater operations. We undertook a complete renovation of the infrastructure, including new seating and carpet, as well as adding a stage for presentations.
The new giant screen is so large - it measures 80 feet by 60 feet - that it had to be brought in by crane. It is the only giant screen in the greater Dayton area and the largest digital screen in southwestern Ohio. With this need for change came the realization that the format also needed to be updated to reflect changes in the entertainment industry.
People are looking at entertainment and education differently than they did twenty years ago, explained Bruggeman. They're getting digital entertainment from their laptops and tablets and we intend to progress with the technology. This meant we needed to modernize from 70 mm film to digital 3D.
The foundation that runs the theater undertook research long before they started the renovation and were looking for a solution that supported the museum's mission.
When we saw what Qube technology could do, we decided they would be part of the theater's future, said Bruggeman. The Qube XP-I server and Xi 4K IMBs will take us into that future, giving us access to higher frame rate digital material and true 4K 3D playback that exceeds industry standards. We wanted something we could grow with and we found it in Qube.
The system integrator, D3D Cinema, installed a Qube Cinema XP-I server and two Qube Xi 4K IMBs embedded in two Barco 4K projectors, Masterimage 3D and a premium 7.1+ surround sound system that provided the museum with extra speakers. The sound system, along with devices for the visually impaired and personalised closed captioning for the hearing impaired, were custom provided by D3D Cinema.
This system offered the best flexibility and a better economic model, allowing us to use revenue generated from the theater for our other programs, explained Bruggeman. Converting to digital gives us access to an expanded list of documentaries that are not available in the film format and that provide the museum better ways to explain aviation history and support the mission of the museum.
With the new system, the Air Force Museum Theater opened with Air Racers 3D and has added many other aviation-themed movies to their schedule, including Space Junk 3D, Rescue 3D and Fly Me To The Moon.
Our regular visitors, as well as staff and volunteers, tell us they like the sharpness and steadiness of the 3D images, said Bruggeman. School children like the 3D experience and we find it's better for keeping their attention.
The economic rationale
Showing movies at the theater has always generated revenue that benefits the museum's other activities. They were looking to renovate the theater so that it could be used for different meetings and educational presentations, as well as expanding the movie schedule.
One of the logistical challenges with film was that we couldn't bring in more than two films at a time, explained Bruggeman. There's a much wider range of movies to choose from in the digital format. In April we held our first Reel Stuff Film Festival of Aviation with nine different digital movies. This would have been impossible with film.
This system is much simpler for our staff to operate, leading to streamlined operations and decreased staff costs, she said. 15/70 film prints are expensive and heavy to transport and handle. I can now hold in one hand a movie's DCP that costs less than one-tenth what film used to cost us. By reducing our costs while improving the quality of the movie-going experience, we are able to better support our mission.
The world's largest and oldest aviation museum
The Air Force Museum Theater is part of the National Museum of the US Air Force. At 90 years old and with over 1.2 million visitors each year, this National Museum is home to a permanent collection of planes, spaceships and missiles. The museum houses 360 aerospace vehicles and missiles on display on 17 acres of space. It has a permanent display of a B-2 stealth bomber and spacecraft such as the Apollo 15 command module.
Visitors are drawn to our museum out of their love of aviation history, said Sarah Swan, a public affairs specialist at the museum. Whether it's one-of-a-kind aircraft or the Wright Flyer, many of our visitors come from all over the US specifically to see this - we are their destination. We are within a day's drive of 60 per cen
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
19/08/2026
As the cost of IP nears price parity with traditional SDI, Reynolds argues that ...
19/08/2026
A private 5G bubble was chosen instead of traditional broadcast RF for the race ...
19/08/2026
(L-R) Rafael Manuel and Isabel Sicat attend the Filipi ana premiere during the 2026 Sundance Film Festival at The Ray Theatre on January 23, 2026, in Park Cit...
19/08/2026
Studio owners invited to have their say on rates cuts
The Music Producers Guild (MPG) are inviting UK-based studios to take part in an in-depth survey that ...
19/08/2026
Vintage-inspired desktop interface revealed
Harrison's latest hardware offering sees them head into the world of audio interfaces, delivering a 10-in/12...
19/08/2026
Granular effect remains locked to scale and tempo
Described as your dream granular effect , Minimal Audio's latest creation is capable of turning any s...
19/08/2026
First polyphonic SWAM instrument incoming
Audio Modeling's latest physical-modelling orchestral instrument is just around the corner, and is now availab...
19/08/2026
World Cup Games Generate 84 Billion Minutes Across FOX, Fox Sports 1 and NBCU...
19/08/2026
July brought typical peak-holiday drops in viewership, driven primarily by viewers stepping away from screens and a visible decline in reach across both traditi...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Henry joins BCE as the company accelerates its commercial strategy and expands its international presence across the media, broadcast and technology markets. He...
19/08/2026
iWedia, a leading provider of software solutions for connected TV devices, today announced a major milestone in Android platform optimization with the successfu...
19/08/2026
NTP Technology announces that ST 2110-30 audio-over-IP connectivity with AES67 and RAVENNA capabilities is now available for the brand's world-class audio i...
19/08/2026
Net Insight has been selected to provide its Nimbra platform by the service provider Big Blue Marble, formerly ORS Group, as the core media transport solution f...
19/08/2026
LiveU has supported Coventry City FC and several other top-flight UK football clubs through one of their most demanding live production challenges of the year, ...
19/08/2026
Nature Seekers Documentary Shot with Blackmagic URSA Cine 12K LF
Brie Clayton August 18, 2026
0 Comments
Filming endangered turtles required camera...
19/08/2026
Neyrinck Brings D-Control Consoles Back to Life on Apple Silicon with D-Control ...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/08/2026
Riedel Communications today announced that Edith Cowan University (ECU) in Perth, Australia, implemented a comprehensive communications infrastructure that brin...
19/08/2026
QuickLink, a leading provider of award-winning video production and remote guest contribution solutions, will spotlight a major leap forward in remote guest con...
19/08/2026
Integrated platform melds media asset management, playout automation and newsroom workflows
EMAM, PlayBox Neo and SNEWS have officially launched Nuvex, a conne...
19/08/2026
Screen Australia releases the Private Investment Toolkit to strengthen screen in...
19/08/2026
Do Aussies truly value local content? Unpacking Screen Currency 2026 with Deirdr...
19/08/2026
There's an early Christmas gift for Bookish fans, as UKTV confirms the re-commission of the hit U&alibi drama, created by and starring Mark Gatiss. Viewers ...
19/08/2026
Wednesday 19 August 2026
Sky gives sports fans the chance to watch multiple liv...
19/08/2026
On Saturday September 5 Katie Taylor will step into the ring for the fight of her life against Flora Pili in front of 80,000 fans in Croke Park. A legendary fig...
18/08/2026
SportStream 2026, a free three-day virtual event, will take place September 15-17. One registration provides access to all three days of live programming and on...
18/08/2026
BeckTV will introduce BeckFlow to the European market at IBC2026, demonstrated on the Providius stand (10.F53).
BeckFlow is a web-based schematic documentation...
18/08/2026
Boland Communications will introduce a SMPTE ST 2110 input option for its 4K monitors at IBC2026, along with a new 55-inch super-narrow bezel display for video ...
18/08/2026
Dolby Laboratories and the Seattle Seahawks have announced a partnership integrating Dolby OptiView into the Seahawks' live streaming coverage, making the S...
18/08/2026
For BMG Executive Producer of Sports Production, Graham Taylor, producing live s...
18/08/2026
TMRW Sports has appointed Rufus Hack as President of Golf, a newly created role in which he will lead the company's golf businesses including TGL presented ...
18/08/2026
SMT will provide race technology for FOX Sports' coverage of the Freedom 250 Grand Prix of Washington, D.C. on August 23, when the NTT INDYCAR SERIES races ...
18/08/2026
The live, YouTube-native roundtables combine fan voices, credentialed reporters,...
18/08/2026
Behind The Mic provides a roundup of recent news regarding on-air talent, includ...
18/08/2026
The industry legend sounds off on replacing the Heat's iconic Medusa score...
18/08/2026
William F. Rasmussen, the sports fan-turned broadcaster and entrepreneur whose out-of-the-box idea of a 24-hour cable sports network, ESPN, changed forever the ...
18/08/2026
DAZN Group has completed its acquisition of ViewLift, a provider of streaming and digital solutions for sports content owners. The acquisition was first announc...
18/08/2026
The American Association of Professional Baseball (AAPB) has added SI TV, Sports Illustrated's 24/7 streaming channel, as a broadcast partner for the remain...
18/08/2026
The Esports Foundation has announced that the inaugural Esports Nations Cup (ENC), originally scheduled for November 2026 in Riyadh, will be postponed to Novemb...
18/08/2026
Diversified has announced a new Global Managed Services Practice, consolidating the company's managed services capabilities into one organization. Rob Mello...
18/08/2026
Appear has completed a proof of concept with Thoroughbred Racing Productions (TRP), demonstrating multi-camera remote live production over bonded 5G cellular an...
Qube Cinema has once again partnered with D3D Cinema to install its single-server True 4K 3DTM system, this time at the newly renovated Air Force Museum Theater (AFMT) in Dayton, Ohio. The museum has upgraded from 15/70 film projection to the Qube XP-I server and dual Xi 4K Integrated Media Blocks (IMBs) and is the fifth giant screen installation in North America to use this Qube system. Visitors to the world's largest and oldest military aviation museum can now enjoy stunning True 4K 3D digital imagery on the giant screen from a system that is much easier to operate than the 70 mm film setup the museum used previously.
