INDUSTRY. AUDIO ROUND TABLE
F rom your industry perspective, can you outline the importance of quality audio in the world of high-end production? JOHN JOHNSON: High-fidelity audio is something we’ve always strived for, whether in recorded music or sound for picture. The combined crafts of location recording, editorial, sound design and final mix play a huge part in telling a story. It’s also critical that dialogue – so often the anchor of this content – is clear and cuts through a mix. Unintelligible dialogue will so often cause the viewer to disengage, leading to poor reviews and, in some cases, complaints. FREDDY VINEHILL-CLIFFE: You’re unlikely to receive many glowing compliments for clear, crisp and intelligible dialogue – but it’s an essential. In many projects, you might not even notice high-quality audio, but
bad audio will stand out like a sore thumb and undermine even the most gorgeous of visuals. KALLE HVIDT NIELSEN: High-quality audio is the most crucial element in most high-end productions. With ongoing improvements in the sound quality of cinemas and home entertainment systems, the requirement for better audio in the content itself is constantly increasing. In speaking with television broadcasters, we know that 90% of the technology-focused complaints they get from viewers relate to audio quality – or rather, the lack thereof. TOM AMMERMANN: Audio is connected directly to human emotion, as we have evolved to be instantly reactive to sound. So, it’s no surprise that around half of the emotional impact of a show, movie or event is created by the audio experience. Thus, every high-end production is bound to the highest quality audio available, to entertain the audience and stir emotions as much as possible. SIMON SHERBOURNE: In all formats – TV, cinema, live sound, VR or music – distribution and reproduction systems have much greater definition and range than in the past. At the same time, the sound worlds being created in spatial formats get denser and more layered. These technical and creative advances rely on transparent audio capture, processing and mixing. The move to networking is significant, having allowed for flexible, modular audio and control systems. Our consoles Focusing on technology, where do the most recent innovations lie?
have become customisable work surfaces that can bring what you need to your fingertips, when you need it. AMMERMANN: While immersive audio has arrived in the cinema – and in VR at home – industry applications like broadcast, live events, fulldomes and installations are set to become more and more immersive audio platforms, as well. But often, regular immersive audio formats, such as 5.1.4 or 7.1.4, are not applicable. Interactivity is also an upcoming customer request. Despite that, customers would prefer to retain known workflows for content creation and delivery. To this end, a bunch of new, innovative approaches and tools have come into the market recently, to open a completely fresh dimension of entertainment. NIELSEN: The Core by DPA technology in our miniature microphones is an amazing
KALLE HVIDT NIELSEN CEO DPA Microphones
TOM AMMERMANN Founder & general manager New Audio Technology
JOHN JOHNSON Chief technology officer HHB
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