Sonofans Uses DPA Mics To Create Stadium Crowd Sound During Professional Sports Broadcast posted: 07/04/2021
Company Owner Fred Vogler Relies on a Combo of New and Existing Sound Files Recorded with DPA's 4091 Omni Condenser and 4560 Binaural Mics and MMA-A Interface
As with many things over the past year, the world of sports saw significant disruption to its regular routine. From halted or delayed seasons to little or no live audiences at the arenas, sporting events around the world had to operate differently. With no ambient sounds to enhance the broadcasts, television networks also had to find alternative ways to replicate the at-home viewers' experience. In response, Fred Vogler launched Sonofans, an immersive sports crowd performance system. The sound library was created using recordings captured with DPA Microphones' 4091 Omni Condenser Mic, 4560 Binaural Mic and MMA-A Digital Audio Interface.
Touted as a performance-based enhancement tool for empty stadiums or those with limited attendance restrictions, Sonofans provides live, dynamic crowd response with a library of reactions that have been mined and curated over the past 15 years. Included among these are sounds recorded during college football games using DPA's 4091 Small-Diaphragm Omni Condenser Microphone with Rycote windscreens, which Vogler installed atop mic stands elevated 15 feet above the ground.
Back in 2006, I was providing scrimmage and practice field noise for USC Football players, using crowd sounds that I had gathered during regular games at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, explains Vogler. The coach at that time, Pete Carroll, liked what I was doing so much that he gave me field access to all the games they played that year. This included other stadiums in the Pac12, as well as at the Rose Bowl. I recorded all the crowd noise from each of those games using four DPA 4091 microphones placed around the stadiums.
Though Vogler says that experience was incredible in and of itself, he never imaged that those files would prove vital in the future. Over the past year, Vogler has utilized the sounds from the USC games to provide crowd enhancement for professional and collegiate baseball, soccer, boxing, football, basketball and bowling on one of the country's top sports networks.
I went back to those files and started to collate and mine sounds that I thought we could use for other sports, especially baseball, which became the foundation for launching Sonofans, adds Vogler. We created this enhanced crowd sound starting with the different levels of energy from those quad recordings back in 2006/2007. We had everything from a light crowd to a very excited crowd. Along the way, there are also a lot of reactions, cheers or disappointed boos. Fortunately, despite the age of the recordings, I had really high-quality sounds to work from for this project because I used DPA microphones.
While he used the USC soundbites as the basis for Sonofans, Vogler still had to find a way to capture and create sounds that differed from sport to sport. Boxing and bowling don't sound the same as football, baseball or basketball, so I needed to record additional audio, he says. To accomplish that, I went into smaller crowds - like those visiting a park or a big box store - and then used the audio as a basis for enhanced sounds.
John Root, regional sales manager, DPA, first introduced Vogler to the 4560 Binaural Microphone and MMA-A Digital Audio Interface. The low profile of the binaural headset mic enabled me to be in a small group or gathering of people and capture more genuine speech patterns and distinct sounds, says Vogler. I was able to interject those recordings into boxing and bowling matches, which have smaller, more individualized crowd voices compared to large stadiums. The mic, in combination with that mic pre, worked incredibly well.
In addition to utilizing the binaural recordings for the more intimate sports events, Vogler also blended the sounds into the arena-style games, like football and baseball. It works great for creating the authenticity and realism of a crowd, he explains.
Though much of the initial Sonofans files were based off Vogler's recordings, he also found himself weeding through the network's past broadcasts to cull chants specific to each stadium or team. The network has somebody who operates a trigger pad with reactions - the cheers, claps, boos, etc. - and then a mixer adds the bed of crowd sounds, like the chants, he explains. Interestingly, only the people at home are able to hear these sounds. While the players on the field have some audio piped in, they don't get the same experience as the broadcast viewers. It would be great to take that binaural microphone into a stadium to create an immersive experience for the coaches, players and managers that could also be blended into the live broadcast.
A recording engineer, mixer and sound designer, Vogler has worked on some of the industry's leading commercial recordings, including the LA Philharmonic at the Hollywood Bowl. As a longtime user of DPA microphones, Vogler says he continues to be impressed by the solutions they develop. I've been using their products for 25 years or so, and they've put out some really clever stuff over that time, he concludes. They're discreet and camera-friendly, but also get a good sound from everything.
ABOUT DPA MICROPHONES:
DPA Microphones is the leading Danish Professional Audio manufacturer of high-quality condenser microphone solutions for professional applications. DPA's ultimate goal is to always provide its customers with the absolute finest possible microphone solutions for all its markets, which include live sound, installation, recording, theatre and broadcast. When it comes to the design process, DPA takes no short
Europe Stories
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
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...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
08/01/2026
An evidence-based analysis on disinformation and information manipulation in Sudan's ongoing conflict is published today. (January 8th 2026).
Thomson Found...
08/01/2026
In 2025 we launched the Spotify Partner Program to give creators more ways to tu...
08/01/2026
On Wednesday in Los Angeles, Spotify welcomed creators and press to a brunch cel...
08/01/2026
TSA awards Rohde & Schwarz contract for advanced airport screening ahead of Socc...
08/01/2026
The review looks back at DPA's miniature microphone development over the years. It compares the evolving technologies from the original mics through CORE an...
08/01/2026
Comscore Launches Audio Targeting and Measurement Capabilities with The Trade De...
08/01/2026
Tonight, on RT Prime Time at 9:35pm on RT One and RT Player
Tonight, Prime T...
08/01/2026
The Late Late Show celebrates the very best of traditional Irish music with its first-ever full special dedicated entirely to the tradition
Lisa Canny | Kevin...
08/01/2026
It will be murder on the dancefloor when Dancing with the Stars returns this S...
07/01/2026
Spotify is launching a week-long celebration spotlighting creators at the center...
07/01/2026
We know people use Spotify not just to listen, but to share the songs, podcasts, and audiobooks they love with their friends and family. When we launched Messag...
07/01/2026
This week, all eyes are on the podcast industry as the Golden Globes recognizes ...
07/01/2026
Podcasts are stepping onto a new stage this week as the Golden Globes recognize the medium for the first time. To mark this milestone moment, we're hosting ...
06/01/2026
Spotify is launching a week-long celebration spotlighting creators at the center...
06/01/2026
Lorde. A$AP Rocky. JENNIE. Baby Keem. KATSEYE. That's just a taste of who...
06/01/2026
Channel 4 and UKTV are giving viewers even more reasons to stream, with UKTV's U service set to feature thousands of hours of free, unmissable and bingeable...
06/01/2026
Tuesday 6 January 2026
An update on our Sky Mobile prices
Devesh Raj, Chief Operating Officer, Sky
Today, we've announced some changes to the prices of ...
06/01/2026
Comscore Launches Daily Program-Level Reporting with Deduplicated Insights on Sh...
06/01/2026
Comscore Completes Recapitalization Transaction with Preferred Stockholders Foll...
05/01/2026
Bad Bunny's DeB TiRAR M S FOToS defined the sound of 2025 for listeners eve...
05/01/2026
As the clock struck midnight and 2026 was born, so was an exciting range of new ...
05/01/2026
These Sacred Vows starring Tom Vaughan-Lawlor, Justine Mitchell and Jason O'...
05/01/2026
DANDANCING WITH THE STARS RETURNS TO SHAKE UP SUNDAY NIGHTS
Reigning Rose of Tr...
02/01/2026
Any Given Day: Cork University Hospital premieres Wednesday 7 January on RT One and RT Player at 9:35pm
RT will debut a powerful new six-part documentary se...
02/01/2026
Friday 2 January 2026
All episodes of Heated Rivalry will be landing on Sky and...
02/01/2026
Sequins, chat shows, live sporting action, ground-breaking docuseries and brand-new Irish drama to kick off 2026
New Year, New Content Coming Soon across RT
...
01/01/2026
The Quantum 852 is situated in the 6,500-seat Seoul-based place of worship, a church which is home to a 1,000-person choir and a 50-piece orchestra. There are f...
01/01/2026
Formed in 2002, OneRepublic have enjoyed huge international success, with over 18 billion streams on Spotify alone. Their current tour, Escape to Europe, contin...
01/01/2026
We had been using the club's previous console for the last ten years, so we researched manufacturer information very carefully, says venue audio manager Mr...
30/12/2025
Your live countdown to 2026 with Inhaler, David Gray, Lyra, Garron Noone, Sharon...
29/12/2025
From crisper Lossless audio and immersive music videos in beta to new Audiobooks+ plans, custom transitions between tracks, and in-app Messages, we keep levelin...
24/12/2025
RT has unveiled an exclusive first look at the new Dancing with the Stars promo...
23/12/2025
The year is winding down, the weather outside is frightful, and it's the perfect time to escape into a story that warms the heart. For listeners looking for...
23/12/2025
23 Dec 2025
VEON's Beeline Kazakhstan and Rakuten Symphony Collaborate to A...
22/12/2025
For a decade, popular German podcast Fest & Flauschig has hosted an annual Chris...
22/12/2025
Monday 22 December 2025
Sky extends PGA TOUR partnership until 2029, as Sky Spo...
22/12/2025
Siobh n McSweeney, Rory McIlroy, Elon Musk, Catherine Connolly, Jim Gavin, Ivan Yates and Traitor Paudie Moloney lead new characters for Callan Kicks the Year 2...
22/12/2025
Winner announced in the picturesque surroundings of Wicklow's Avondale Tower and Treetop Walk
Andrew Trimble wins the show in his first series as coach
Th...
22/12/2025
The 2025 winners have been announced today, Sunday 21 December, for Ireland's largest choral competition Choirs for Christmas hosted by RT lyric fm.
Ove...
21/12/2025
John Shortt named Young Sportsperson of the Year Kerry are the Team of the Year
...
19/12/2025
With Playout Release 2025.4, ToolsOnAir continues to push professional playout w...
19/12/2025
19 Dec 2025
VEON's Mobilink Microfinance Bank Launches Islamic Banking Oper...
19/12/2025
The six-part drama, set in a close-knit Welsh town fractured by an unspeakable c...
19/12/2025
Rohde & Schwarz drives the future of mobility at CES 2026 At the 2026 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Rohde & Schwarz will present a powerful lineup o...
19/12/2025
RT is proud to return to the RDS to support the 2026 Stripe Young Scientist & T...
Sonofans Uses DPA Mics To Create Stadium Crowd Sound During Professional Sports Broadcast posted: 07/04/2021 
