NEW TECHNOLOGIES
L-ISA can
position up to
96 sound objects
around a venue
Immersive audio
Evolutionary Arts Hackney (EartH) in London,
UK, is an early adopter of immersive audio
technology – three-dimensional audio delivered
to a constellation of speakers. The technology was
installed as part of the renovation of an early
20th century cinema that had been vacant for 40
years. Spearheaded by the team behind Village
Underground, a cultural space that includes artist
studios made from decommissioned London
Underground subway cars, EartH marries
21st century sound design with its vintage
surroundings. “We liked that marriage of history
and leading technology,” explains Alessandro
Melchior, EartH’s head sound engineer.
A tricky room
Working with L-Acoustics, the theater’s
management team invested in the L-ISA
technology to deliver enhanced clarity, more
natural sound, and a wider sound panorama
– all to create an amazing live venue where
audiences and artists feel more connected.
“To be honest, L-ISA is the only way we could
use this room,” says Melchior. “The acoustics
are quite tricky in this old theater, but the sound
element you get from this is just at a new level.”
A frontal system of five hangs is paired
with additional speakers on the sides, rear and
ceiling. More than simply offering surroundsound
capability, immersive audio enables sound
engineers to craft with much greater precision
where sounds go in the space, because they can
adjust pan, width, depth and elevation.
“Sometimes people are scared by it,” says
Jeff Woodford of L-Acoustics. “But when people
hear the difference, they don’t want to go back.
The resolution and clarity of the mix is so much
greater. It gives you the ability to pan objects
around the room or across the front of the stage,
which you don’t normally have. You can also
separate the sounds. Normally, when all the
sounds are coming out of one set of speakers,
they’re fighting for space in the mix. With this,
you just move the sound to the left or right.
That’s when you get really creative.”
Spatial planning
Immersive audio also enables sound engineers
to translate today’s recordings, made on 24 or 48
tracks, directly to corresponding speakers or areas
of the room. “If you’ve got a 24-track album, and
you’re mixing that for a left-right stereo, you’re
mixing it down to two outlets," says Woodford.
"With L-ISA, we’re mixing those objects to a
position in space.”
That also means that at live performances or
even dance settings with recorded music, audience
members can customize how they hear the music
by moving around the room. “If you want to feel
like you’re nearer certain sounds, you can,” says
Woodford. “Drummers usually sit in the middle
so they’re mixed mostly in the center channel.
If you’re a drumming fan, that’s the place to be.
But if you like the vocals or certain instrument
sounds, you can just move a little. On either side,
you do get that slightly different information.”
AUDITORIA 2019 VOLUME ONE 29
Luke Hayes