A greater knowledge is expected on the part of the end user about the benefits of immersive audio so that it can be massified.
Since 1985 the company Vari has a presence in the Mexican market offering solutions in the area of professional audio for radio and television stations, recording studios and post-production studios.
In an evolution of the market, he began to participate strongly in the cinema, installing 5.1 and 7.1 audio with Dolby in more than a thousand movie theaters throughout Mexico. At the same time, the company was growing in other fields such as sound for mass events, in what has to do with mixing and sound reinforcement.
TVyVideo+Radio spoke with engineer Hugo Patiño, president of Vari and Bruno Carranza, sales director of the company, who stressed that the industry has seen an evolution that does not stop. Greater and greater requirements arise, optimization of resources and based on that they are moving.
"In recent months the industry has had a great transformation. The major players have changed quite a bit with digitalization and large content platforms have transformed the industry. We have to adapt to that, we no longer have the same pace and we are adapting to this new pace of growth, "said the president of Vari.
Audio, an experience
The representatives of Vari explained that audio is taking a very relevant role, it is no longer just listening for listening to a content but living an experience. It already involves a full interaction with the content. The biggest players in the broadcast industry in Mexico are trying to jump on the boat of immersive audio.
And although it is still an incipient topic in some ways, for some producers who worked with other audio formats. They have already seen that they are experimenting with these formats and production houses are starting to do it, having their tests and pilot programs, to enter this Atmos experience.
"To implement immersive audio in productions requires an arduous process because traditional production companies have established rooms with the formats they use and require a series of adjustments to be able to make a premix and mix and in this case standardization to an immersive system. This is a process that requires a design and return on investment that is currently being done. Everything comes at the same time, the demand for content, the demand to produce, the investment that has to be made, the dissemination of the material, "said Bruno Carranza.
From the end user
The process of immersive audio from the end user can be compared to the time when 4K began, it was difficult at the beginning to get some material with this resolution but it has already been massified. With immersive audio you're at that point.
"The final consumer has access to conventional 5.1 and 7.1 systems, but the Atmos system people want it but do not know how to obtain it, it lacks a little more knowledge and marketing. With this great demand for content, the same thing will happen as with high-definition screens and can become a familiar format for the final consumer, "said engineer Hugo Patiño.
Highlights
Vari representatives highlighted a few points about immersive audio and how to leverage it in the industry:
- Accessibility of the equipment. There are multiple brands that can offer this format but it requires accessibility and investment for the marketing and distribution of these equipment.
- Dissemination with the final consumer. More and more users are interested in having a greater experience with the material that is currently being generated, the information they may have at hand on how to develop an Atmos system at home and some other application.
- Immersive audio generates a different experience when it comes to enjoying a movie or a video game. They're even starting to test for live events, talk about a concert or studio music recordings. It is summarized in the experience that immersive audio offers.
