L-Acoustics announced the launch of L-ISA 3.0, a comprehensive, best-in-class immersive-audio software platform for the live sound and music creation markets. Per the company, with the powerful new features in the upgraded L-ISA 3.0, investing in spatial technology is now even easier.
L-Acoustics L-ISA 3.0 New Features
As audio professionals seek to leverage spatial audio technologies in live, professional and consumer audio, L-Acoustics states that its L-ISA 3.0 mixing software makes immersive audio more accessible. It does so with the help of its powerful tools that make it easier to create and automate compelling spatial audio content, live or in the studio.
FX Engine
According to a statement, working dynamically in real-time has always been a core philosophy for L-ISA. The new FX Engine supercharges creativity by allowing designers to create reactive movements and trajectories of any kind: reactive to the designer and reactive to other objects within L-ISA to create true organic movements. The powerful FX Engine includes fully customizable controls and behaviors that can be additively applied to unlimited objects. Thus, it allows even the simplest of mixes to come alive in new and complex ways.
Stereo Mapper
While an increasing number of venues around the world already possess L-ISA immersive audio configurations and 3D mixing capabilities; visiting artists may not have their content ready in an immersive format while on tour. For those artists, the new Stereo Mapper feature in L-ISA 3.0 maps existing stereo content to an immersive speaker configuration. It achieves this without changing the original artist’s mix. Stereo Mapper thus distributes stereo content to an L-ISA configuration while conserving a similar power distribution as traditional left/right array configurations. With this, it helps retain the original stereo image and overall mix.
Stereo Mapper also allows L-ISA venues to welcome artists who prefer to perform in stereo without the need to change their L-ISA configuration. Another benefit of Stereo Mapper is that it increases low-frequency coverage throughout the venue. As a result, it helps reduce or even improve the stereo image while maintaining or improving low-frequency directivity.
Any out-fill speakers can be time aligned to either stereo or immersive. This makes switching between stereo and spatial content seamless or even achievable on the fly. Sound engineers and artists who perform in venues equipped with Stereo Mapper will find it easier to step into spatial audio with a stereo-mapped mix as the new functionality allows users to widen one or two sound objects beyond the traditional left/right positioning. With Stereo Mapper, moving up to a fully spatialized mix will be easier than ever, says L-Acoustics.
Snapshot Engine
According to a statement from L-Acoustics, L-ISA 3.0 is the most simple and efficient platform to achieve high-quality immersive-audio experiences. It works well for a spatial mix with a laptop and headphones or even mixing FOH for live productions.
An entirely updated Snapshot Engine provides increased granularity and scope of what can be stored in snapshots, says L-Acoustics. It thus allows users to choose which sources are visible at any given moment in time, with features. Some of these include source processing, delay, reverb and more. This affords precision and control over spatial mixes for both live sound and studio applications.
Meanwhile, a powerful new Edit Mode allows users to visualize the position of audio sources in each snapshot. By using this, users can follow an object’s position across the soundscape at a specific moment in time. The brand-new Preview Mode, available for both online and offline use, also makes it possible to visualize the position of specific objects in different snapshots or an object’s position throughout every snapshot. If there are any changes, users can make on-the-fly adjustments in Preview Mode without any interruption or downtime.
L-ISA 3.0’s new Snapshot Engine thus makes it easy and intuitive for both novice and experienced users to achieve truly convincing spatial audio mixes. With its real-time editing and previewing functionality, users can fine-tune spatialization settings to achieve the exact 3D audio mix as required.
The L-ISA Ecosystem
To make immersive experiences even more accessible, L-Acoustics says it is expanding the L‑ISA ecosystem. With this, it is possible to install qualified third-party applications and technologies on the L-ISA Processor II. The first application to natively leverage the outstanding processing power of L-ISA is Mixhalo. Mixhalo is an ultra-low latency networking technology that unlocks high-fidelity, augmented audio for fans at live events. Per L-Acoustics, it is now fully integrated into the L-ISA 3.0 platform.
Mixhalo offers audiences multi-channel audio streaming via their own phones and headphones. Fans can hear the full band mix with studio quality sound at a concert or focus on a guitar mix or drum solo. Or they could tap into a binaural mix powered by the L-ISA Processor. While at a soccer match, users can listen to a home radio broadcast or tap into a celebrity broadcast. At a conference, they can listen to a keynote speech by a foreign language interpreter. All in low latency and dynamically synced to the PA.
Using Mixhalo
Coupling Mixhalo with the L-ISA Processor II allows show designers to natively control Mixhalo augmented audio content directly from the processor and stream directly to mobile phones. L-Acoustics and Mixhalo will start a public Beta phase with a select number of qualified Certified Providers this month.
“As consumer audio platforms such as Apple Music, Tidal, and Amazon Music continue to make spatial audio more ubiquitous, having the ability to create and perform in immersive is now a necessity and accessible to all — regardless of skill level or format,” explains Scott Sugden, director of product management, software and electronics, L-Acoustics. “The new L-ISA 3.0 platform brings more value to our immersive technology platform for those who’ve chosen to use it in their venues and for those who choose to create their content with it.”
In addition to the various new functionalities in L-ISA 3.0, the L-ISA Studio desktop processor has gone from 12 outputs to 16. This gives on-the-go sound designers more options for their immersive-sound content.
According to L-Acoustics, L-ISA 3.0 will be at InfoComm 2023 at booth #5751, Level 2 and Demo Room W320, Level 3.
