Sphere Immersive Sound: The Future of Concerts
Sphere Immersive Sound technology, developed by HOLOPLOT, is poised to completely transform the concert and live event experience. Instead of relying on traditional sound systems, Sphere Immersive Sound uses an innovative combination of hardware and software to create an immersive three-dimensional sound environment that completely engulfs the audience in the music.
This revolutionary technology uses an array of directional loudspeakers and advanced audio processing algorithms to create spatially accurate and coherent sound throughout the concert space. Simply put, this means that no matter where you are in the audience, you will experience exceptional sound quality and impressive clarity.
What’s interesting is that Sphere Immersive Sound allows sound engineers and performers to precisely control the direction and focus of the audio itself, and this means they can create truly immersive and customized sound effects in situ. This technology is set to change the way we experience live music, taking us into a world of three-dimensional sound as we have never experienced it live, let alone in large spatial dimensions.
This groundbreaking system builds on a long journey that began in scientific sound labs, backed by a decade of research and development and is now hardware-enabled and powered by cutting-edge software. At the core of HOLOPLOT technology are two major innovations: 3D Audio-Beamforming and Wave Field Synthesis. The former allows precise direction of sound on both the vertical and horizontal axes, which means that sound fields can be created that optimally cover audience areas of any shape and size. This feature ensures uniform coverage and a consistent listening experience in all seats, eliminating unwanted reflections and audible echoes.
The second innovation, Wave Field Synthesis, takes the sound experience to a whole new dimension, by enabling the authentic reproduction of audio objects in space, which means that listeners can accurately perceive the location, distance, and direction of the audio source. This technology offers the possibility of creating realistic and deeply immersive soundscapes.
Something particularly striking is that HOLOPLOT has the unique ability to focus audio content on specific groups of people or even individual audience members: can you imagine that? Such a technology, mixed with others such as Big Data, smart devices, augmented reality, and more, opens the doors to highly targeted sound experiences and customized special effects as never before.
The opening of the Las Vegas Sphere marked an important milestone in the entertainment industry. This 3D beamforming audio system delivered a crisp, immersive sound display that, in effect, was able to focus on specific seats throughout the vast venue space without compromising audio quality.
The demonstration inside the impressive Sphere was a testament to the power of this technology. James Dolan, executive chairman and CEO of MSG Entertainment, highlighted the importance of sound in the audience experience and how Sphere Immersive Sound redefines the perception of sound in an entire space.
Roman Sick, CEO of HOLOPLOT, explained how this technology has been gestated over the years and how it has transformed from its initial implementation as a public address system in the German train system to its current use in MSG’s Beacon Theatre. HOLOPLOT technology has become an integral part of the listening experience in these venues, offering unprecedented sound quality.
Behind it is a lot of study. The key lies in the spherical structure. Sphere’s construction took advantage of a variety of mathematical formulas and scientific laws to bring its amazing design and technology to life. From calculating the area and volume of the sphere that resulted in an outer surface covered in glowing LED lights visible from space to using the Finite Element Method to test strength and functionality on computer models before actual construction. Geodesic Mathematics designed its distinctive exoskeleton of hundreds of interlocking triangles, while the Law of Sines determined architectural angles. The constant Pi appeared in various equations, from pizza dimensions to seating locations. From Stereographic Projection that helped capture images on the curved LED screen to Fanger’s Equation for predicting temperature perception, these mathematical formulas and scientific laws played an essential role in the creation of Sphere, enabling its unique design and advanced technology to deliver exceptional immersive experiences in entertainment.
As we move into this new era of audio technology, intriguing questions arise. How will this innovation affect the live music industry and artists looking to deliver unique experiences to their audiences? How will other venues and events adapt to this revolutionary technology? And, most importantly, how will it change the way listeners connect with live music and performances in general?
If you’re interested in these and other topics related to sound design, editing, and mixing, be sure to follow our content. We like to contribute to the quality of your projects with useful and reliable information. If you need professional advice for your work, here we are: we are Enhanced Media Sound Studio and we would love to take your audio, film, television, or video game projects to the next level!
