Visualise + Sennheiser Partnership
Visualise’s Head of Sound has been working with audio specialists Sennheiser to pave the way for future VR content creators. Here’s what they’ve been working on.
The road to mass VR adoption is predicted to reach its peak by 2025. Having said that, there’s still a long way to go before we reach the futuristic vision of virtual reality which is held in the public mind. This long road makes sharing knowledge and combining expertise even more important if VR technology is going to develop at a faster rate. Our Head of Sound, Henrik Oppermann, has joined forces with 360° audio specialists, AMBEO Sennheiser, to generate new tools and insight for 360° filmmakers.
The Sennheiser AMBEO VR Mic
Here at Visualise, we’ve been using the Sennheiser AMBEO® VR mic on most of our shoots since we received the very first prototype. It’s an ambisonic microphone specially designed to capture surrounding sounds from a single point—the ideal accompaniment to our 360° shooting techniques. It helps us create ‘presence’ – the essential immersive experience that all clients are looking for when embarking on a VR project.
Changing the face of VR audio
Sennheiser are keen to involve VR filmmakers and specialists when developing products, after all—in such an experimental field, it makes sense to fully understand your customers’ pain points and consolidate technical knowledge from all aspects.
Several years ago they approached our Head of Sound, Henrik Oppermann, for product development expertise. As a leading 3D sound specialist with over 80 VR projects under his belt and an expertise in ambisonic sound, he represented a great fit for a partnership.
Sharing the wealth
Aside from product development assistance, Henrik collaborated on a series of hands-on tutorial videos with Mikkel Nymand; Tonmeister & 3D Audio Product Applications Manager at Sennheiser. The YouTube video series addresses the principles of ambisonic sound for VR, how to effectively utilise the mic for 360° recording (including setup and operation) and the intricacies of processing, mixing and delivery.
The aim of the video series is to help guide other VR pioneers after the explosion of VR content and the advancement of capture technology for VR filmmaking last year.
Thanks to companies like Sennheiser, 3D 360° content is now achievable for those with much smaller budgets. Combine this with the reach of 360-enabled social platforms such as YouTube and Facebook and you have the potential for real growth within virtual reality.
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