Follow the Leader, Leader, Leader... Spatial Audio? What Will They Come Up With Next?

As it was announced during Apple's annual Worldwide Developers Conference back in June 2020, among all the spectacular updates to all the company's operating systems (iOS 14, iPadOS 14, watchOS 7, and tvOS 14), Apple discussed a new firmware update that would add spatial audio support for the company's AirPods Pro. Well, a few days ago, Apple did release the promised firmware update and suddenly, the spatial audio support in the AirPods Pro was a reality. And what an update! As everyone realized soon enough, the results are simply spectacular and very noticeable while watching movies with good soundtracks.

In this article for audioXpress, Piotr Szczechowiak and Tomasz Zernicki, the two founders of Zylia, explore the fascinating world of true 6DoF (six degrees of freedom) audio experiences in 3D spaces. With 6DoF technology in VR/AR, users can experience 3D audio content from an unlimited number of listening points, wearing an appropriate headset and headphones to plug into an immersive experience that allows them to move freely through the entire audio soundscape. This article was originally published in audioXpress, October 2019.

During the 2019 AES Convention in New York, Zylia unveiled two major additions to its industry-leading 3D audio recording and production portfolio of solutions, designed around the Zylia ZM-1 spherical microphone array. The new Zylia ZR-1 portable recording device and 6DoF VR/AR Development Kit add greater flexibility to 360-degree and 3rd order Ambisonics recording applications, responding directly to market demand, particularly field applications.

The October 2019 edition of audioXpress closely reflects the highly diverse and exciting areas of innovation in the audio industry. There’s a Market Update on Audio Installation, one of the highest growth and most innovative segments in the audio industry, and our report of the 2019 Midwest Audiofest Speaker Design Competition, followed by a review of Bob Cordell’s 2nd Edition book on Designing Audio Power Amplifiers, and an important insight on modern Class-D amplification. We also review the DPA d:vice MMA-A Digital Audio Interface, explain the potential of true 6DoF (six degrees of freedom) audio experiences, how Auralization allows building virtual acoustic models, and so much more!

Zylia, the Polish company that developed the successful ZM-1 spherical microphone array, is expanding across technical and operational areas to address rapidly rising demand for the company’s innovative 3D audio recording and production solutions. Zylia has hired Maurizio Barausse as key account manager, Marek Kabacinski and Krzysztof Klos as software testers, Michal Huflejt as a research engineer, Wojtek Blachowiak as a technical customer service expert, and Lidia Wojciechowska as office manager.

Zylia, the start-up company that surprised the global market with its spherical microphone array for 3D audio recording and production, together with Infineon Technologies AG, will present an innovative and unique approach to Six Degrees of Freedom (6DoF) technology in virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR) during Mobile World Congress 2019 (Feb. 25-28) in Barcelona. According to Zylia, the presentation will offer a valuable contribution to help users stay on top of current trends in the development of VR and AR solutions.