CANFORD CABLE PROVIDES CRITICAL RELIABILITY ON GROUND BREAKING SPATIAL AUDIO PROJECT

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CANFORD CABLE PROVIDES CRITICAL RELIABILITY ON GROUND BREAKING SPATIAL AUDIO PROJECT Spatial audio occupies an intriguing history. From offshoots of nineteenth-century telecommunications such as Clément Ader’s théâtrophone - a binaural ‘streaming’ device showcased at the World Expo in 1881 - to surround sound experiments like Walt Disney’s Fantasia (1940) and less successful innovations of the postwar hi-fi market, notably quadraphonics in the 1970s, the playback of audio has long been tied to imaginative attempts to create immersive auditory environments.

However, it is stereo - thanks to FM radio and later the Sony Walkman - that has remained the dominant spatial format.

And it is aspects of this technology that are likely to facilitate mainstream acceptance of much more advanced spatial formats in the twenty-first century. The smart phone paired with headphones is effectively the Walkman’s successor and it just so happens that this setup, due to the phone’s onboard gyroscope, doubles as a decent head-tracking playback system for 3D audio.

When viewing 3D footage on a phone, the user scrolls around in 2D using their fingers or fixes the phone within a headset to survey the footage. In both cases the device receives sufficient information about the viewer’s orientation to inflect spatial audio embedded in the video. When a source is viewed head-on the sound appears straight ahead; when the viewer turns to the left the same source sounds on the right. The technology relies on ambisonics, which

encodes the sonic cues of azimuth and elevation within four or more audio channels, and binaural playback, which is configured by the platform hosting the video. Through the use of head-related transfer functions (HRTFs), which effectively standardise unique aspects of human hearing, a virtual sonic environment can be rendered with startling accuracy.

It seems surprising, then, that spatial audio gets so little attention in the music industry. More generally it seems audio development has always lagged behind visuals in the VR industry. Mainstream artists are increasingly turning to 360° music videos, including Bjork, Avicii, Taylor Swift, Muse and Gorillaz, yet nearly all of them rely on headlocked stereo audio supplied by the record company. This means the soundscape is perceived as static regardless of which way the viewer turns.

The effect is one of detachment which leads to a less engaging sensory experience.

UK sales tel: +44 (0)191 4181122 email: sales@canford.co.uk | Int sales tel: +44 (0)191 4181133 email: international@canford.co.uk

canford.co.uk There are exceptions of course. A handful of indie artists and established orchestras such as the Philharmonia have recorded 360° footage with spatial audio. The results are often impressive and far more immersive than audio mixed without head-tracking.Yet movement plays little part in these productions. There are no dynamic sources to incorporate within the mix and grab the listener’s attention.

It was these ideas that led to a collaboration between FixTheMusic’s NOMAD, one of the UK’s only amplified roaming bands, Epiphany VR and Eastwood Records. The aim was to record an interactive function band using conventional multitrack pop techniques and then programme the mix to match the band’s choreography. In this way the project was inspired by Bob Clearmountain’s work on The Rolling Stones’ 2008 film Shine a Light, where the mix followed Scorsese’s onscreen direction.

The recording was made at The Postal Museum in London using a variety of wired and wireless microphones, MIDI triggers and other gadgets drawn upon during NOMAD’s live performances. Miming seemed a cop-out when the aim was immersion so the band needed to be well rehearsed for the session. On the audio side the postproduction drew on several months of work undertaken by producer and engineer Myles Eastwood who was keen to explore new possibilities opened up by this medium. The final result is part of his company’s DynaMix™ service, with potential uses extending to drama, dance, art installations and sound design as well as music videos.

The video is available HERE and on YouTube, currently the most accessible platform for immersive media.YouTube videos filmed in 360° can be switched to ‘cardboard’ mode, which splits the screen in two and delivers a 3D field of view via the headset’s biconvex lenses. Headsets range from cheap cardboard variants that work with most phones to Samsung’s hardware-accelerated models. As processors, graphics and screens improve, the general experience of 3D footage will become more immersive for an expanding audience. At the same time the results of this session only scratch the surface of what’s possible when a project is conceived of with a new medium in mind.

Myles Eastwood, Producer and Sound Engineer concludes: ‘As always time was limited on this session and setup - including configuring the wireless mics, setting up a comfortable monitor mix for the band and rearranging the venue’s lighting - took a considerable amount of time.

Furthermore, when working in 3D you’re invariably dealing with whole takes so you need to be ready to capture the perfect performance. It’s at these moments that the reliability of your equipment is paramount, and it is for this reason we use Canford for so much of our cabling including a number of custom analogue multicores. We also work frequently in urban and dilapidated venues where the structural integrity and shielding of our cabling is critical.You need utmost confidence in your rig when working in these conditions - only then can you focus on more creative concerns!’

UK sales tel: +44 (0)191 4181122 email: sales@canford.co.uk | Int sales tel: +44 (0)191 4181133 email: international@canford.co.uk