Tech Focus: Immersive Audio, Part 1 - A Toolkit Focused on Capture Manufacturers are making the mics more accessible and easier-to-use By Dan Daley, Audio Editor
Wednesday, December 4, 2024 - 7:00 am
Print This Story | Subscribe
Story Highlights
Conversations around immersive audio for broadcast have a tendency to focus on the outputs: mostly, the number and placement of loudspeakers, especially the four overhead. With Dolby Atmos the dominant immersive-audio format in the U.S., it's usually a foregone conclusion. However, getting sound into the immersive machine and processing its audio is a more complicated proposition. Microphones to capture it and consoles to process and mix it offer a small but growing array of increasingly necessary options. This month's Tech Focus looks at both, starting with microphones.
Multichannel Mics The 2024 Paris Olympics were a case study in immersive capture. NBC Sports deployed 3,680 microphones, including multichannel mics, as part of its immersive-sound strategy to, as Olympic Broadcasting Services (OBS) Senior Manager, Audio, Nuno Duarte described it at SVG Europe's Sports Audio Summit 2024 in November, provide a consistent product across every sport, all in 5.1.4, for two weeks straight.
Interest in the multichannel-microphone category is accelerating, says Joel Guilbert, audio specialist, Dale Pro Audio. Citing several examples, including the Voyage Spatial Mic and Shoeps ORTF-3D array, he points out that network capabilities are making these multi-capsule mics easier to manage.
We're seeing more traction with [Power-over-Ethernet]-equipped multichannel mics, he says. We see this as coming from a number of fronts. One is that, with Dante and PoE connections, it's more plausible to connect four-plus mic capsules without having a massive snake or one with tricky smaller connectors. Also, more and more network infrastructure is available. Camera CCUs and most consoles have some kind of Dante connectivity, or most trucks or facilities have some kind of fiber available to use. The necessary accessory items are becoming available without being super-specialty items. We've put together kits with solid, relatively off-the-shelf PoE injectors with fiber converters for pretty low cost. These tools all make it easy to work with these [kinds of] mics in a real-world environment.
Single-Point and Multichannel Approaches DPA Microphones 5100 mobile surround microphone
An early stalwart of the category, DPA Microphones 5100 mobile surround microphone is a self-contained plug-and-play solution. It was introduced in 2008 for 5.1-audio capture (priced at $3,780) but has been deployed in immersive applications as well. Among its applications for sports are Winter Olympics ice skating and Wimbledon Court 1 in 2023.
However, according to DPA Global Support and Business Development Manager Paul Andrews, use of multiple single-point microphones in arrays, the original technique for capturing surround sound, remains a valid approach to capturing immersive sound as well, offering more-flexible configurations. Some of our users - Sky Sports, for instance-prefer using single-channel microphones in multiple places to get a more immersive field than just [a single multichannel microphone] might provide.
But, even within those arrays, he points out, the multichannel 5100 has been used to provide the four height channels of the Atmos format. There are a number of combinations [of single-point and multichannel mics] you can use to achieve immersiveness, depending on the kind of sound you want.
It's All About Technique That's also how Sennheiser envisions its new MKH 8030 ($1,499) figure-8 polar-pattern microphone. The latest in the 8000 series are being deployed for immersive capture.
Sennheiser MKH 8030
For sports, says Brian Glasscock, project manager, Sennheiser Pro Labs, we've seen a variety of microphone techniques. For crowd noise, we've seen a lot of benefit from using a dual-diaphragm mic, like the MKH 800 Twin, especially in these kinds of non-coincident microphone techniques. With the 8030, you can achieve that effect with a double-midside [configuration] that's easily placed somewhere and is less complicated for cable running. Choosing [specific microphones and techniques] is really about application and the constraints of time and locations or other types of limitations that sports [productions] may face.
Sennheiser also has a single-mic solution for immersive capture: the AMBEO VR ($1,499) with its four matched cardioid capsules in a tetrahedral arrangement. However, Glasscock considers a unit like the 8030 a keystone for the array of microphones already aboard most remote-production trucks.
We see a lot of value in that, he says, because people aren't going to want to buy a different mic array for each application. I think having this toolset of baseline, high-quality microphones and maybe a couple of specialty microphones able to be used in different arrangements makes sense for the immersive application as the way most people will go.
A New Approach Voyage Audio SpatialMic
Voyage Audio is the new kid on a small but growing block, and its SpatialMic has a kind of Millennial-esque flexibility: it's designed to accommodate various output configurations - stereo, 5.1.4, 7.1, etc. - internally and to adjust to future ones, such as 4.0.4 (no LFE channel) via firmware updates.
It's kind of interesting with broadcast right now, says Voyage Audio co-founder Steve Silva. It isn't full Atmos yet, but I think that's the trajectory and the goal for everybody. There's still plenty of 5.1 around sports, like the Olympics, so the goal is to expand on what's being done today. The demand is for a tool to get to those formats quickly, easily, and out of the box, so to
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
01/06/2026
In its sixth year, the broadcaster's coverage has become a global brand and ...
01/06/2026
Designed to solve a common problem in broadcasting, the automated workflow detects, identifies, removes, and documents copyrighted music
AudioShake has introdu...
01/06/2026
The sports-analytics company combines its data with proprietary AI to help leagu...
01/06/2026
Category line-up & sponsors announced
Photo: Paul Clarke
The Production Music Awards (PMA) have announced that submissions are now officially open ahead of...
01/06/2026
New hybrid sample/synthesis instrument revealed
Excite Audio have just released the latest instalment in their Evolve series, which has been developed in co...
01/06/2026
Latest TONEX expansion captures three rare vintage amps
The newest addition to IK Multimedia's ever-growing TONEX line-up introduces a set of three incr...
01/06/2026
Musically intelligent soft synth gets upgraded
Scaler Music will be probably be best known to many for their music theory tools, but their product range al...
01/06/2026
SBS confirms its broadcast sponsors for FIFA World Cup 2026
1 June, 2026
Media releases
SBS has secured Hyundai, Hisense, Macca's, Rexona, bet365, Com...
01/06/2026
Rohde & Schwarz Satellite Industry Days 2026 guided by the motto From Earth to ...
01/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/06/2026
Marshall Electronics is showcasing a comprehensive lineup of next-generation POV cameras, purpose-built to power today's connected AV environments, at InfoC...
01/06/2026
Adobe Announces Concept to Vector
Deepa Subramaniam June 1, 2026
0 Comments
One of the biggest frustrations we hear from designers is how difficult it...
01/06/2026
Vampire Feature Night Patrol Graded with DaVinci Resolve Studio
Brie Clayton June 1, 2026
0 Comments
Colorist shapes dark, gritty tone for horror thri...
01/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/06/2026
Mardi 2 juin 14h00
FilmLight (ARRI), 10 rue Ren Boulanger, 75010 Paris
Rejoignez-nous pour d couvrir comment FLAPI (l'API FilmLight) peut transformer e...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
31/05/2026
Olivia P rez-Collellmir to Premiere Original Work at Gaud Centennial in Barcelona The Berklee graduate and faculty member will debut her choral symphony with...
31/05/2026
Back to All News
Netflix Wins 15 Awards at the Canadian Screen Awards - See Pho...
31/05/2026
Taiwan is home to more than 500 NVIDIA ecosystem partners. More than 1 million N...
31/05/2026
As factories move from isolated automation to plant-wide intelligence, manufacturers need AI systems that can connect live machine signals, quality systems, wor...
31/05/2026
The NVIDIA AI Cloud ecosystem is accelerating the global buildout of AI factory infrastructure. Partners are expanding capacity to meet growing demand from ente...
30/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
30/05/2026
Zero in on one that says yes (and no)
Andy Marken May 29, 2026
0 Comments
Hero image courtesy of Deposit Photos
For content creators the most difficu...
29/05/2026
With InfoComm 2026 just weeks away, NDI is giving attendees plenty of reasons to...
29/05/2026
Reaffirming a partnership that has defined Canadian sports broadcasting since 19...
29/05/2026
Mobile/tablet is No. 2 device for watching TV, suggesting that the sports-production industry needs to take another look at the format
Ring Digital's Sprin...
29/05/2026
Berliner Ensemble, one of Berlin's five major theater companies, has expande...
29/05/2026
Solid State Logic will showcase its new compact, fly-away TCA Tour audio product...
29/05/2026
Gerald (Jerry) Pierce, a pioneering technologist who helped shape the digital transformation of the motion picture industry, passed away last month on April 12 ...
29/05/2026
Paramount+ will be the English-language U.S. home for Barclays Women's Super...
29/05/2026
Further strengthening its virtualisation strategy to fully support broadcasters ...
29/05/2026
Swiss broadcaster Canal Alpha has deployed Harmonic's award-winning, software-based XOS Advanced Media Processor to modernize playout operations across cant...
29/05/2026
PTZOptics will showcase a new generation of intelligent video workflows at InfoComm 2026, June 17-19, Las Vegas. Visitors to booth N8227 will see how PTZOptics ...
29/05/2026
Arizona's Family has launched the Arizona's Family Sports (AZFS) streaming app, a new direct-to-consumer destination for live, local sports. The app is ...
29/05/2026
Starting in 2027, DAZN will be the exclusive home of The Canadian Football Leagu...
29/05/2026
Comcast Business has detailed the advanced network infrastructure it has deploye...
29/05/2026
In two-day event, leaders from academia and industry explored solutions to chall...
29/05/2026
The Basketball Tournament (TBT), now entering their 13th year of competition, ha...
29/05/2026
Roku has launched FOX One as a Premium Subscription on The Roku Channel in the U.S. Roku customers can now subscribe to FOX One using their Roku account for liv...
Tech Focus: Immersive Audio, Part 1 - A Toolkit Focused on Capture Manufacturers are making the mics more accessible and easier-to-use By Dan Daley, Audio Editor 
