Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

Mixing Clever: Salsa Sound Embraces the Power of AI in MIXaiR 2.0

22/09/2021

Mixing clever: Salsa Sound embraces the power of AI in MIXaiR 2.0 By Michael Burns

Monday, September 20, 2021 - 10:41

Print This Story

Salsa Sound co-founder and CEO, Rob Oldfield

Regular readers of SVG Europe will be well aware of how innovative technology companies working in sports broadcasting can be, but MIXaiR from Salsa Sound looks likely to set a new bar for live audio and the craft of sound mixing.

When the pandemic caused football games to be played in silent stadiums Salsa Sound came to the rescue of broadcasters with its vCrowd real time virtual crowd atmosphere system, which rightly won plaudits. However, MIXaiR is based on technology that the company has been working on for several years, through academia, R&D, beta versions and a soft launch of the system a year ago.

Our company was founded in 2017, but prior to that we were part of the University of Salford, where we were working on a lot of innovative audio techniques, says co-founder and CEO, Rob Oldfield. In particular we were looking at how to leverage artificial intelligence (AI) to recognise sound events and then create the best possible mix, not based on tracking but just based on what is actually [captured by] those microphones.

Fast forward to the future, next month in fact, and the new version of MIXaiR, an AI-driven system that automatically creates and enhances audio mixes for live broadcast, is set to be released.

MIXaiR 2.0 is jam packed with new features and a much more intuitive, easy to use interface, says Oldfield. The idea for v2.0 is you put all your microphones feeds in and then MIXaiR creates different submixes. So you might have a crowd, a commentary, or a pitch mix or aux in, and MIXaiR will automatically balance the levels between them, apply some processing, then create the best possible mix out of it without any human interaction, other than setting it up in the first place.

Hard tackle

According to Oldfield, the hardest mix, by a country mile, is the pitch mix. Historically, it's such a dynamic process by engineers and difficult to replicate, he explains. To make sure you've always got the nearest microphone active in the mix at any one point, requires constant attention and raising and lowering of faders. It's a really clever balancing act.

Rather like the players whose kicks it tracks, MIXaiR's AI has gone through an extensive training regime. Using machine learning technology, Salsa Sound has been training MIXaiR with many hours of content, microphone recordings and mixes across leagues.

People don't realise how hard it is to mix really well. That's why we've gone through pains to get an AI solution that takes the strain from some of the really difficult grunt work of mixing

We know what makes a great mix, says Oldfield. The AI is constantly analysing all of the sounds it is hearing. We tell it what to make of these sound events and it learns what's a kick, what's a whistle, what's a ball bounce, so that when it sees or hears sound in the wild, it can make an intelligent decision based on it.

Oldfield says MIXaiR delivers an even pitch mix, without any slightly awkward transitions and unbalanced crowd noise.

Our approach is to have the AI listen to those live microphone feeds, and when it hears a sound that's interesting like a kick, whistle, ball bounce or hitting the crossbar, you name it it will automatically add that microphone feed into the mix. It tracks the game around, always choosing the microphone that's closest to the action, and [performs] a seamless transition between them.

People don't realise how hard it is to mix really well, he adds. That's why we've gone through pains to get an AI solution that takes the strain from some of the really difficult grunt work of mixing. It can enable these guys to explore creative avenues and to create more innovative content. When you're not completely locked into your screen trying to create the best mix, you can actually lean in to MIXaiR a little bit more, let that create the stems and then you can have a bit of cognitive space to craft a mix, rather than chasing a mix.

Salsa Sound's MIXaiR GUI

The commentary and crowd noise are dynamically processed to provide mix components. These sub mixes are basically ingredients that you can throw into the output mixes, explains Oldfield. Then it's just a drag and drop process. You can create whatever output mixes you want, as many as you want, in different formats. You can have international sound, a French mix, a German mix, a Spanish mix, or whatever, and within that you can have different flavours: the stereo mix, the 5.1 mix, the mono mix. The only limitation is the number of channels that you've got available on your output board. You can also apply VST plug-ins to add your own compression or EQ or effects to the submixes, so it becomes a creative tool, allowing you to craft your mixes.

Importantly, [all mixes] are loudness normalised, he adds. If you're streaming on YouTube, or your own video on demand platform, or when it is for broadcast, they all have different loudness requirements. So within MIXaiR, you just decide which requirement you want, click on it and it will ensure that the mix adheres to those standards, so you don't end up with a fine from the regulator for making too much noise, or making not enough noise.

MIXaiR users also have an option to enhance the pitch mix with pre-recorded sounds. When somebody whacks the ball in the middle of the park, the [sound supervisor] can't even hear it because it's a long way away from the microphones, says Oldfield. However the AI can pick up a kick in the middle of the pitch. The algorithm can detect a kick, go to a bank of pre-recorded kicks and pick out the most appropriate one, and then
LINK: https://www.svgeurope.org/blog/headlines/mixing-clever-salsa-sound-emb...
See more stories from svg

Most recent headlines

05/01/2027

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be demoed at CES 2026

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...

04/08/2026

Dalet Announces Commercial Availability of Dalia, Bringing Media-Aware Agentic AI to Enterprise Productions

Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...

04/07/2026

Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in Dolby Cinemas Across Japan, Presented in Dolby Atmos and Dolby ...

April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...

01/06/2026

Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 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...

02/05/2026

Dalet Flex LTS Delivers Smarter Search, Faster Editing, and an AI-Ready Foundation for Modern Media

Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...

01/05/2026

NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to Integrate Dolby's Full Suite of Premium Picture and Sound Innovations

January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...

30/04/2026

Study: Rokus Low-Cost, Ad-Free Howdy Streamer Hits 1 Million Subs

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

30/04/2026

MLS Innovation Lab Selects AI Partners

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

30/04/2026

NRB Files FCC Complaint Over Jimmy Kimmel Live!' Monologue

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

30/04/2026

D.C. Court Denies Emergency Stay of Nexstar/Tegna Merger

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

30/04/2026

NAB Criticizes FCC for Ordering Early Renewal of ABC-Owned Stations

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

30/04/2026

FCC Approves Station Swaps Between Scripps and Gray Media

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

30/04/2026

Telestream Introduces Pulse - a Software-Defined Test an...

A flexible monitoring platform designed to simplify ST 2110 operations, consolidate vendor tools, and support modern live production environments. See it at NAB...

30/04/2026

Langlev Takes Run Amok to Sundance with Zeiss Supreme Pri...

Sundance-premiering Run Amok is an expressive, unconventional take on today's teen experience, replete with musical numbers. When cinematographer Shachar ...

30/04/2026

Studio Technologies Elevates Jacksonville State Universit...

JACKSONVILLE, AL, APRIL 29, 2026 Jacksonville State University, known as Jax State and a proud NCAA Division I member of Conference USA, has transformed its a...

30/04/2026

Knowledge Network selects ThinkAnalytics to launch AI-pow...

Transforming viewer and content data into real-time intelligence to deliver relevant streaming experiences at scale ThinkAnalytics, the global leader in AI-pow...

30/04/2026

Sports Production, Delivery is Big Biz at NAB

Sports Production, Delivery is Big Biz at NAB Andy Marken April 29, 2026 0 Comments Hero image source: NAB One of the neat things about trade shows i...

30/04/2026

April 29, 2026

Scripps Research ranks third in 2026 Cure Innovation Index April 29, 2026 LA JOLLA, CA Scripps Research ranked third in the inaugural 2026 Cure Innovation In...

29/04/2026

Churchill Downs Racetrack Lifts Curtain on New Big Board Ahead of Kentucky Derby Week

It was a delicate job in a 150-year-old venue laden with traditions. Begun at th...

29/04/2026

How the MLS Innovation Lab Enhances Everything From Athlete Performance to Production to Ticket Sales

In annual event, the league gives startup companies the opportunity to prove the...

29/04/2026

Save the Date: SVG Venues & Teams Summit Travels South to Miamis Kaseya Center on Aug. 12

Panel discussions, networking, and a facility tour will take place in the renova...

29/04/2026

The Cast and Crew of Conbody VS Everybody Have Each Other's Backs for Life

(L-R) Derek Drescher, Coss Marte, and Syretta Wright have each other's backs. (Micheal Hurcomb/Shutterstock for Sundance Film Festival) By Veronika Lee Cla...

29/04/2026

Free Tilt EQ plug-in from Techivation

Combines EQ and harmonic distortion Techivation's latest release is a simple EQ designed to offer quick control over a source's overall tonal balanc...

29/04/2026

Expressive E launch the Osmose CE

Two new MPE controllers announced Expressive E caused quite a stir when they released the Osmose, making the sort of expression that was once reserved for p...

29/04/2026

iZotope RX 12 is here

New modules & enhanced machine-learning The latest version of iZotope's flagship restoration suite is now available, and now offers over 50 tools design...

29/04/2026

Surgeon Dr Jasmina Kevric wins 2026 Les Murray Award

Surgeon Dr Jasmina Kevric wins 2026 Les Murray Award 29 April, 2026 Media releases Australia for UNHCR and SBS are proud to announce that Dr Jasmina Kevric...

29/04/2026

YEP Spotlight: Julissa Padilla

Some people stumble into their passion. Julissa Padilla walked straight into a film vault. For her, entertainment was never just about the movies themselves. It...

29/04/2026

Clear-Com Promotes Brian Grahn, Ben Turnwell to Expanded Roles

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/04/2026

The CW Unveils Major Streaming Deals with ESPN and Roku

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/04/2026

Clear-Com Announces New Roles for Brian Grahn and Ben Tur...

Clear-Com has appointed Brian Grahn as Market Outreach Manager of the Americas and Ben Turnwell as Business Development Manager for EMEA live, expanding their ...

29/04/2026

Reduce Workflow Complexity with nxtedition at MPTS 2026

nxtedition is bringing its range of consolidated production tools to MPTS 2026, with new developments spanning transcription, editing, graphics and AI-assisted ...

29/04/2026

Telxius taps Synamedia to unlock seamless global multi-CD...

Quortex Switch to boost the streaming experience for Telxius customers, reaching millions of viewers worldwide Synamedia and Telxius, the leading global connec...

29/04/2026

freispace and Projective Announce Joint Showcase of Integ...

freispace, the leading ERP-as-a-Service platform for media and entertainment production, and Projective, a leading provider of post-production collaboration tec...

29/04/2026

DHD Celebrates 30th Anniversary at 2026 NAB Show

DHD reports strong interest in its broadcast audio product range, exhibited at the April 19th-22nd NAB Show in Las Vegas. The event attracted a claimed 58,000 a...

29/04/2026

Student Spotlight: Alan Catz

Student Spotlight: Alan Catz The Argentine film and game composer talks about working on League of Legends, receiving Berklee's BMI Award, and the lifelon...

29/04/2026

Jay Jennings Builds the Worlds You Hear on Screen

Jay Jennings Builds the Worlds You Hear on Screen The supervising sound designer behind A Minecraft Movie, The Meg, Letters from Iwo Jima, and dozens of other...

29/04/2026

Paramount Will be 49.5% Foreign Owned After WBD Merger

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/04/2026

NAB Show 2026: AI, Vertical and BPS Dominate Broadcasters' Discussions

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/04/2026

IAB Tech Lab Announces New OpenRTB Attributes

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

29/04/2026

Meet the eight finalists for RT Today's TV Home Cook competition

Voting opens at 4pm today RT 's Today show have announced the eight finalists for their TV Home Cook competition. Amateur cooks from Cork, Dublin, Galway ...

29/04/2026

VEON and Kyivstar Fulfill Commitment to Invest USD 1 Billion in Ukraine over 2023-2027 Ahead of Schedule

29 Apr 2026 VEON and Kyivstar Fulfill Commitment to Invest USD 1 Billion in Ukr...

29/04/2026

U challenges stars and their dogs to compete for Wagging Rights

Rhod Gilbert, Harriet Kemsley, Kae Kurd, Sara Pascoe and Vicki Pattison to take part in brand new series on free streaming service U London, 29th April 2026: F...

29/04/2026

Katie Price: Nothing to Hide, a Sky Original documentary series from BAFTA-winning Mindhouse, coming this summer

Wednesday 29 April 2026 Katie Price: Nothing to Hide, a Sky Original documentar...

29/04/2026

Sky announces upcoming documentary series The Lie That Exposed The Truth

Re-examining the case of Ellie Williams and the wider story of grooming in the town of BarrowWednesday 29 April 2026 Sky announces upcoming documentary series ...

29/04/2026

Jennifer Garner to lead an all-star cast in new Sky Exclusive summer escape The Five Star Weekend, coming to screens this July

Wednesday 29 April 2026 Jennifer Garner to lead an all-star cast in new Sky Exc...

29/04/2026

'SUPERNOVA: GENESIS' Reached a Peak Audience of More Than 6.5 Million Viewers on Netflix

Back to All News SUPERNOVA: GENESIS Reached a Peak Audience of More Than 6.5 Mi...

29/04/2026

dB Sponsors College Sustainability Week

Students and staff from Hills Road Sixth Form College in Cambridge ran a 4.5km course around the roads of Cambridge as part of their annual programme of sustain...

29/04/2026

Listen to the birds sing! Experience mother nature in a seven-hour radio marathon

The Dawn Chorus airs Sunday 3 May from midnight to 7am on RT Radio 1 and RT ly...

29/04/2026

April 28, 2026

Jin-Quan Yu elected to the National Academy of Sciences Yu is recognized for his pioneering work in synthetic organic chemistry. April 28, 2026 LA JOLLA, CA S...

28/04/2026

Sound for the NFL Draft Show Balances Often Conflicting Goals

The audio team for the entertainment event must blend speech intelligibility with full-range music reproduction while considering the broadcast Last week's...