Multichannel sound has come a long way since the 4-channel LCRS Dolby Stereo system made popular by 1977’s Star Wars. Today, with object-based control, the possibilities in live or event playback audio are nearly endless, ideal for bringing a realistic sonic palette to museum or art expositions (such as the various immersive tributes to Vincent Van Gogh’s artistry in recent years) along with live theater, concerts and houses of worship — to name a few. The trend for immersive production shows no signs of slowing down. We checked into some recent projects that are taking audio to that next level.
BYU School of Music, Provo, UT
Construction of Brigham Young University’s new School of Music Building took two years to complete, and it was worth the wait. The 170,000-square-foot center was built to house BYU School of Music’s performance and academic spaces replacing the university’s Harris Fine Arts Center, which was demolished this past March, paving the way for a new Arts Building to be completed on the same site in 2025.
The new Music Building has four levels and features several mid-sized spaces for rehearsals and recitals, including practice rooms on the upper floor. The cornerstone of the facility is a 1,000-seat Concert Hall built in the vineyard style in which the performance space takes center stage, with tiers of audience seating rising above them.
Helping to put this new center — part of BYU’s College of Fine Arts and Communications — at the cutting edge of music performance is the inclusion of two L-Acoustics L-ISA immersive sound systems: one in the Recital Hall performance space, with a seating capacity of 257, and the other in a smaller variable-capacity teaching space, The Box. Both were installed by Salt Lake City-based Poll Sound Integration, which also installed an L-Acoustics Kiva II system into the building’s new Concert Hall. The ability to move between teaching and performance spaces and remain in a fully immersive environment sets a new benchmark for immersive audio in education.
The Box was initially envisioned as an opera rehearsal room, but including L-ISA has allowed it to become a much more versatile performance space, now used for classes, rehearsals and immersive audio composition groups. Kevin Anthony, assistant professor in the composition department and an electronic music composer, says the decision to outfit both spaces with immersive audio emerged from discussions among the AV team and faculty members who saw that L-ISA technology could greatly increase the flexibility of those spaces.
“It was exactly what we need for much of the electronic music that our students produce,” he says. “And we also want to be able to host electronic music conferences here, so having L-ISA immersive sound was precisely what we required.” Asked if immersive audio had made inroads into academic settings yet, as it has in cinema and other sectors, Anthony replied that this was the first such installation he’d seen. “It’s a dream setup to have,” he says.
That “dream setup” in the Recital Hall consists of five A10i Focus and ten A10i Wide loudspeakers plus six KS21 subs, eight coaxial X8, and 15 ultra-shallow Soka colinear enclosures, collectively driven by a combination of LA12X and LA4X amplified controllers and an L-ISA Processor. In The Box, the immersive speaker array comprises five Syva colinear speakers, two KS21 subs, and 21 X8, all controlled by an L-ISA Processor and powered by LA4X amplified controllers. The new Concert Hall’s sound system has 24 flown Kiva II speakers buttressed by five A10i Focus, five A10i Wide, and six SB15m subs, all driven by LA12X amps and a P1 processor.
BYU director of audio-visual services Brad Streeter designed all of the new facility’s sound systems in concert with L-Acoustics technicians and Poll Sound AV system designer/project engineers Neil Yates and Bryce Stettler, and PM Dan Salmond, who noted that research around immersive sound for the new facility extended beyond the new music facility.
“We were doing AV design work for two buildings concurrently: the Music Building, which was begun and completed first, and a new Arts Building currently under construction. We were also researching immersive systems for the Arts Building, experiencing different manufacturers’ demos at trade shows,” he explains. “We had evaluated several of the products, and we all felt the L-Acoustics L-ISA technology was the best fit for the proscenium theater in the new Arts Building, and the research showed it was also relevant to the spaces in the Music Building.”
Reaction to the new immersive audio capabilities in the facility has been highly positive. Anthony says they’ve been used for applications ranging from teaching to composition to performance, all while introducing students to the concept of immersive audio. “One of our grad students, Jinxin Fu, is composing a piece specifically to be performed using L-ISA, and several other music students are taking advantage of its real-time spatialization capabilities in an upcoming concert,” he says. “Composition faculty member Steve Ricks just staged a large-scale opera performance in The Box where I designed a ‘weather’ system with sounds of trees and other natural effects that were spatialized throughout the space. It was cool to see that space and the sound system used to its full measure.”
In the meantime, BYU’s music faculty is still finding new ways to apply the L-ISA immersive technology to their work. They anticipate making it part of the learning and performance experience in the new facility. “I think as far as these systems are concerned, they’re new to us and a new technology for campus,” says Anthony. “But we’re looking forward to doing a lot of experimentation and seeing where it’ll be most useful, and that’s tremendously exciting.”
BYU School of Music
- Capacity: 257 (Recital Hall), Various (The Box)
- Key Products: L-Acoustics L-ISA
- Integrator: Poll Sound Integration
The Warehouse, Manchester, UK
Free Your Mind: The Matrix is the immersive, dance-based reimagining of the cult 90s movie franchise, created specifically as the opening event for Manchester’s impressive new cultural space within the Factory International complex. The brainchild of director Danny Boyle – who teamed up with choreographer Kenrick “H20” Sandy, composer Michael “Mikey J” Asante of Boy Blue, designer Es Devlin and writer Sabrina Mahfouz –the production pulled the UK’s most creative talent into its orbit. Sound design is by Gareth Fry, who specified TiMax SoundHub to handle the complex spatial audio requirements of vast 21-meter-high The Warehouse where the event’s main action takes place.
In the performance, the role of TiMax is to guide the eyes of the audience to the next point in the action, with what Fry describes as “the complexities of positioning sound in space as well as the complex delaying of multiple speaker systems.
Playback is handled by QLab, which is fed into TiMax, along with the one handheld mic used in the show. In turn, TiMax outputs to the multichannel distributed Warehouse speaker configuration comprised of a mixture of EM Acoustics loudspeakers and four Holoplot X1 arrays. EM Acoustics EMR12s are rigged within the structure of the 38-meter-wide LED screen, firing down to provide great quality locational imaging on the stage area.
When the screen is flown up into the ceiling, the Holoplot X1 arrays take over, using the speakers’ focused beams of sound to distribute certain musical stems from TiMax around the auditorium for a spatialized effect.
TiMax is a trusted tool for Fry who has relied upon the expert capabilities of TiMax for many of his high-profile projects. He confirms, “I used TiMax a lot on Harry Potter and the Cursed Child and it sounds great. Beyond that, the software is a lot more mature than its competitors, which makes it faster to set up and easier to use to achieve complex results.”
The Warehouse
- Capacity: Up to 5,000
- Key Products: TiMax SoundHub; Holoplot X1s; EM Acoustics EMR12s
- Integrator: In-house
- Designer: Gareth Fry
The Appel Room at Jazz at Lincoln Center, New York City
Based on the design of a Greek amphitheater, the Appel Room within New York’s Jazz at Lincoln Center facilities merges state of the art acoustics with a dramatic 50-by-83-foot wall of glass overlooking New York’s Columbus Circle and Central Park, providing the perfect backdrop for jazz performances.
The venue’s ingenious design allows for a smooth transformation from supper club or event mode (four wide tiers) to theater mode (seven incremental levels), with a removable stage on its bottom level.
In 2015, the Appel Room was fitted with a Meyer Sound variable acoustics Constellation system consisting of a D-Mitri digital audio platform with seven processors, (two dedicated to the patented VRAS acoustical algorithm). This works in conjunction with 22 ambient sensing microphones and 87 MM-4XP self-powered loudspeakers, six UP-4XP loudspeakers, and 16 MM-10XP subwoofers. The Constellation system works together with the room’s Meyer main sound reinforcement system of 16 M’elodie line arrays, four 500-HP subwoofers, four UPJ-1P VariO and six UP-4XP loudspeakers for center and fills, and a Galileo loudspeaker management system with Galileo 616 processors.
After eight years, the system works flawlessly, but technology marches on, and it was time to step up from the older D-Mitry platform to Meyer Sound’s new Nadia platform, which brings new levels of performance to Constellation systems while streamlining costs, equipment needs and energy consumption.
The reasons for the update were practical. “Probably the biggest advantage for the Appel room is that Spacemap Go became a seamless part of the system and the system networks on Milan,” says John Monitto, Meyer’s director of business development. “Nadia is a fully Milan-networked system and there are some future advantages for Nadia — in terms of show control — that we’re not talking about yet.”
One key advantage — Nadia’s pairing with the Spacemap Go spatial sound design tool — brings new versatility to the venue, offering the ability to support performances with impressively natural active acoustics, multi-channel spatial audio, or both. Additionally, with Nadia, Constellation systems can provide more discrete zones for even greater acoustical realism and room adaptability — also important to the Appel Room.
“We didn’t make any speaker changes in the room,” Monitto notes. “We considered it, but didn’t have much time. But given the logistics of the room, and the fact that the room was fully booked, just making the processor change in that time frame was challenging.”
According to Monitto, “the results were really amazing, although there was also something that were not necessarily processor-reliant — such as re-tuning and system recalibration — that made it even better, with the Constellation team, that included Constellation project director John Pellowe and Meyer Sound Constellation design manager Pierre Germain.”
The Nadia system debuted at a gala event on Oct. 27, 2023. Meyer Sound founders John and Helen Meyer attended the event, and the reactions to the sound from all present was overwhelmingly positive. The evening closed with lively jazz from the Bruce Harris Quintet, introduced by Wynton Marsalis, who took the occasion to comment on his own experience playing in halls around the world, some equipped with Constellation and others sorely in need of the technology.
“On behalf of Jazz at Lincoln Center, I’m pleased to co-present this evening to showcase the debut of Nadia, a high-powered processing engine designed for the venues of the future,” says Marsalis. “Nadia is the new heart of Constellation, which has changed the world of concert halls. When I ask presenters about Constellation, it seems everyone knows what it is, even if they don’t have it. And when I play dry rooms that are not ambient, where the sound really needs a lot of help, I say, ‘Call Helen and John Meyer, the hippest people you are ever going to meet.’”
The Appel Room at Jazz at Lincoln Center
- Capacity: 467 max. (bleacher seating)
- Key Products: Meyer Sound Constellation, Nadia
- Integrator: Sound Associates; in-house Local 1
Los Angeles Theatre, Los Angeles, CA
In partnership with integrator Sound & Sales West and IMN Creative, Biamp helped create a truly haunting environment through sound for the Angel of Light immersive horror theater experience at the historic Los Angeles Theatre, integrating Biamp Community and Desono loudspeakers, subwoofers and Tesira DSP and amplifiers to power one of the largest live theater immersive experiences in the world.
The soundscape is combined with projection mapping, shifting light, power strobe lights, incredible live action performances and unique set designs — all intended to transport attendees back to the old Hollywood of 1935. There, guests are guided through the multi-room experience to witness the gripping and terrifying story of Rota Krisha — where ancient curses, sonic secrets and demonic possession intertwine.
Biamp worked with AV integrator partner Sound & Sales West and IMN Creative, a full-service, post-production company, to design, commission, and install the experience, including more than 100 pieces of Biamp audio equipment.
The equipment is installed throughout the historic Los Angeles Theatre entertainment facility. “Location-based entertainment is one of the fastest growing markets for advanced audiovisual technologies,” said Mark Binder, CEO of IMN Creative. “Angel of Light is a state-of-the-art example of a new type of entertainment experience that integrates augmented reality, virtual reality, mixed reality, interactive digital surfaces, and 3D projection mapping to deliver a high-end immersive experience.”
The show consists of more than 30 separate experience rooms that provide multi-dimensional sound emanating from more than 300 speakers, providing incredible clarity that envelops guests in an immersive soundscape.
Audio quality is a critical element in creating a memorable experience for Angel of Light live audiences at the Los Angeles Theatre,” said IMN Creative’s Mark Binder. “With Biamp’s leading Community and Desono loudspeakers matched with Tesira configurable DSPs, we helped create a unique, thrilling experience for horror-genre fans.
Los Angeles Theatre
- Capacity: 2,000
- Key Products: Biamp Community and Desono speakers and Tesira DSP
- Integrator: Sound & Sales West
Treetop Adventure Golf, Gateshead, UK
Known for its immersive mini golf courses, Treetop Adventure Golf recently opened its newest site in Gateshead, Newcastle, consisting of two jungle-themed 18-hole courses, one focusing on the natural world and the other on an ancient temple structure.
To provide visitors with an uninterrupted adventure, Treetop approached integrator Full Production who contracted experience designer Dan Roncoroni to create an AV system that would be able to stand alone with no operator intervention 14 hours a day, seven days a week.
The aim of the install was to tell a story for visitors playing mini golf. “With a huge variance in visitor demographics, and hundreds of visitors a day, ensuring that all voice lines are intelligible in all circumstances, and that the site is well-balanced and not cacophonous, is vital,” says Roncoroni.
Multiple loudspeakers are hidden at each hole with the goal of no individual low-level loudspeaker being visible to guests. Players trigger audio content by succeeding or failing their putts on each hole, while a continual soundscape runs in the background.
Amplification is Powersoft throughout, comprising 16 units of Unica 8M amplifier platforms divided as follows: eight Unica 2,000W/8-channel and eight Unica 4,000W/8-channel. Roncoroni likes the Unica amplifier platform for its Powersoft Cloud remote monitoring. “This lets us be proactive with servicing and fault finding,” he says.
Roncoroni also employed Powersoft’s compact Mover low-frequency inertial-drive haptic transducer, installed to replicate the sound and feel of a collapsing structure. Roncoroni lacked the ceiling height to mount a large subwoofer and was worried about noise complaints from neighboring units. “Mover solved both of those problems while arguably being far more effective than a traditional subwoofer,” he explains.
The speaker complement was: 68 EM Acoustics EMS-41, 13 EMS-51, five EMS-61 and four EMS-81X passive speakers, 14 EM Acoustics S-48 low-profile subwoofers, two QSC AD-CTW ceiling speakers, 24 QSC AD-P4TB pendant speakers and seven AD-P.SUB-B pendant subwoofers. Playback was via two M2 Mac Minis, running QLab and PanLab plug-ins, two RME Digiface Dance and a TiMax SoundHub 32-S.
“The audio system is relatively simple. Each 18-hole course is run from a Mac Mini running QLab. The Mac Minis output content via Dante, through the RME units, either directly to an amplifier or via the TiMax for spatial audio,” explains Roncoroni, adding that “we’ve had an excellent response from Treetop Adventure Golf. The company and its creative team have embraced an attitude that wouldn’t be amiss in professional theater making.”
Treetop Adventure Golf
- Key Products: EM Acoustics EMS-41, EMS-5; Powersoft Unica, Mover
- Integrator: Full Production
- Designer: Dan Roncoroni
