Santa Barbara, CA’s Riviera Theatre was built in 1926, so when the historic site was given a $5 million renovation by the Santa Barbara International Film Festival, one of the big considerations was sound. As one of just 26 theaters in the country with the state-of-the-art Dolby Atmos sound system, the people behind the Riviera’s transformation wanted the very best in loudspeaker performance to complete the incredible listening environment, so they turned to Ocean Way Audio for the essential screen channel monitoring. Last week, the completely renovated facility had its ribbon cutting ceremony.

Custom Ocean Way monitors being installed into thick insulation for the screen channels at the historic Riviera Theatre in Santa Barbara, CA.

The exterior of Santa Barbara’s historic Riviera Theatre. Built in 1926, the theater’s new owners, the Santa Barbara International Film Festival, spared no expense in bringing the projection and audio systems up to the most state of the art, featuring a Dolby Atmos sound system and a custom Ocean Way Audio screen channel loudspeaker installation.
The theater is now open and running seven days a week, with beautiful decor and new large, plush seats to create a comfortable environment for moviegoers to experience the immersion in sound and picture in what be the finest non-profit film theater in the world.