Voyage Audio is proud to announce Spatial Mic Converter v1.3.0 — an update that allows users to decode the output from Spatial Mic’s 8 capsule array to various surround formats like 7.1.4, 5.1.2, and 5.1. The surround outputs can be used for sound bed tracks in Dolby Atmos® sessions or routed directly to the surround bus of choice. Purchase options are at https://voyage.audio/where-to-buy.
The Spatial Mic 360° Recording System relies on the Spatial Mic Converter plugin to transform the raw 8 capsule recordings from Spatial Mic into a format suitable for audio production. The output from the plugin can be configured for spatial audio production (ambix and FuMa at 1st and 2nd order are supported), mono & stereo with the virtual mic options including mid-side and various surround formats.
The new surround output stage allows the Spatial Mic 360° recording system to be easily incorporated into surround mixes without the need for third party software. Use the rotation, tilt and roll controls to move the soundfield around in 360°, even when decoding to the surround formats.
Under the hood the plugin features dual band decoders inspired by the great work from Bruce Wiggins. For those interested in digging deeper with more output control options, check out his WigWare plugins!
Supported Surround Formats
The surround section includes six different output configuration options that are selectable in the format drop down menu. The channel assignments are listed below for each format option to ensure proper routing.
The numbers in the surround format name indicate the number of channels and type. For example, the numbers to the far left indicate the number of main channels, the middle numbers the number of Low Frequency Elements (LFE) and the numbers to the right indicate the top or overhead channels.
A 7.1 system would normally have 7 main channels and one LFE, while a 7.1.2 (Dolby Atmos) would have 7 main channels, 1 LFE and 4 top channels to increase immersion.
5.1 (ITU 775) surround format
| 5.1 Surround Sound | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Channel # | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
| Channel Name | L | R | C | LFE | Ls | Rs |
| Azimuth | -30° | 30° | 0° | 0° | -110° | 110° |
| Elevation | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0° |
5.1.2 surround format
| 5.1.2 Surround Sound | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Channel # | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
| Channel Name | L | R | C | LFE | Ls | Rs | Ltm | Rtm |
| Azimuth | -30° | 30° | 0° | 0° | -110° | 110° | -73.26° | 73.25° |
| Elevation | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0° | 58.5° | 58.5° |
5.1.4 surround format
| 5.1.4 Surround Sound | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Channel # | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
| Channel Name | L | R | C | LFE | Ls | Rs | Lt | Rt | Lts | Rts |
| Azimuth | -45° | 45° | 0° | 0° | -110° | 110° | -39° | 39° | -140° | 140° |
| Elevation | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0° | 38° | 38° | 38° | 38° |
7.1 surround format
| 7.1 Surround Sound | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Channel # | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
| Channel Name | L | R | C | LFE | Lm | Rm | Ls | Rs |
| Azimuth | -45° | 45° | 0° | 0° | -90° | 90° | -135° | 135° |
| Elevation | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0° |
7.1.2 surround format
| 7.1.2 Surround Sound | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Channel # | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
| Channel Name | L | R | C | LFE | Lm | Rm | Ls | Rs | Ltm | Rtm |
| Azimuth | -45° | 45° | 0° | 0° | -90° | 90° | -135° | 135° | -80° | 80° |
| Elevation | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0° | 44° | 44° |
7.1.4 surround format
| 7.1.4 Surround Sound | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Channel # | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
| Channel Name | L | R | C | LFE | Lm | Rm | Ls | Rs | Lt | Rt | Lts | Its |
| Azimuth | -45° | 45° | 0° | 0° | -90° | 90° | -135° | 135° | -55° | 55° | -125° | 125° |
| Elevation | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0° | 0° | 30° | 30° | 30° | 30° |
What’s New in Spatial Mic Converter v1.3.0
- Surround Output Stage implementing dual band decoders
- Formats supported include:
- 5.1
- 5.1.2
- 5.2.4
- 7.1
- 7.1.2
- 7.1.4
- 22 Factory presets are now included for quick access to pre-configured plugin parameters
- Apple M1 processor compatibility
- Corrected end-fire decoding orientation
- Separate installers for each piece of Voyage Audio software are now available at https://voyage.audio/downloads
Spatial Mic Converter is a 64-bit plugin available in VST3 and AAX format for macOS and Windows. The plugin requires a host capable of multichannel audio tracks like Reaper, Pro Tools Ultimate or Nuendo. The plugin and demo sessions are available as free downloads on the Voyage Audio website to test system compatibility.
