Technology
Ambeo screenshots Sennheiser • Stranger Things S4 images and posters courtesy of Netflix Mark Paterson image, Todd-AO
AMBEO experience now streaming on Netflix NIGEL JOPSON explains how Sennheiser adds exciting sound for viewers without the need for a surround system
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etflix and Sennheiser have announced a significant audio improvement for all viewers accessing the popular streaming service: AMBEO 2-channel Spatial Audio is now implemented on Netflix, and delivers an enhanced immersive audio experience to viewers with standard speakers. Full control of the amount of spatialisation on immersive audio objects is set by the re-recording mixer. “Most people watching Netflix are listening on the speakers built-in to their devices,” Scott Kramer, manager for sound technology at Netflix, told me. I wondered if earbuds and headphones might be significant for tablet or mobile devices, but Kramer told me: “headphones are a pretty small percentage, so AMBEO worked better than binaural for us because it works well on speakers. For a Netflix spatial audio feature, we look at any technology that meaningfully improves the sound experience for members. This includes binaural encoding that happens on mobile devices, and speaker based ‘transaural’ technologies.” An imperative for Netflix was to respect creative intent and engage with production pros involved with mixing audio for picture. “We want to adopt
We take object based input — so the rerecording mixer may choose the amount of effect that is wanted sound technologies which keep the re-recording mixer involved in determining the result, and which have a clean sound that’s respectful of the mix,” Kramer emphasised. “It’s also important to cover the most members possible without regard to what device they use. For this, pre-encoded solutions are a clear fit.” While in the past those viewers without a full surround sound set-up were unable to benefit from the growing amount of music and films produced in Dolby Atmos® or MPEG-H Audio, the AMBEO 2-Channel Spatial Audio feature aims to change this. Netflix’s Stranger Things Season 4 benefits from this new audio experience; currently 32 Netflix titles are available with AMBEO technology, and it’s growing on a daily basis.
Sennheiser ProLabs
I spoke to Dr. Renato Pellegrini, manager of Swiss-based Sennheiser ProLabs, to discover more. “We work on projects for all Sennheiser business units, including Neumann and Dear Reality, and I am in very close contact with the newly acquired Merging Technologies,” Pellegrini told me. “We help each other — we’ll find out what will make sense for a given customer base as an upcoming product; we share our thoughts and inputs from users to come up with next generation solutions.” ProLabs’ brief to deliver a spatial sound for viewers, without the need for a surround system, was to develop a set of tools for re-recording mixers. These tools would take an original immersive mix — let’s say a Dolby Atmos mix or an Autumn 2022 / 49
