Active acoustics and immersive sound technology specialist Amadeus Acoustics has released ART::Director v1.3.1, introducing a sophisticated Downmix Engine feature alongside a suite of powerful workflow optimisations. This new capability resolves one of the performing arts industry’s greatest challenges: translating complex, immersive venue mixes into standardised formats for broadcasting, studio pre-production, and ancillary monitoring.
‘While spatial audio has redefined the audience experience inside major auditoriums, venues frequently face the logistical headache of exporting those multichannel mixes to external environments that lack massive loudspeaker arrays,’ the company says. ‘The new Downmix feature acts as a direct bridge, allowing sound engineers to run multiple, highly customisable speaker-based downmixes in parallel following the primary in-house spatial mix.
The practical application of the Downmix Engine feature extends across the highest echelons of live entertainment and international broadcasts. In a OB, engineers can deliver a dedicated spatialised 5.1 or stereo fold-down directly to the mobile broadcast truck for pre-production, allowing most of the house mix to be prepared before or in between the limited number of stage rehearsals.
For rehearsals and Green Rooms, independent downmix feeds can be sent backstage so that production crews, artists and the wider team can track their positioning and cues in the show’s timeline, knowing exactly where they are in the show at any given moment.
‘Immersive audio shouldn’t be trapped inside the auditorium,’ says Volker Werner of Amadeus Acoustics. ‘The Downmix Engine ensures that whether you are a director checking cues in a stereo rehearsal room, a mix engineer in a mobile broadcast truck, or a performer waiting backstage, the integrity of the acoustic space is perfectly preserved.’
The update also transforms the pre-production timeline for sound designers working on world-class performing arts spaces. For example, at a prestigious opera house like Theater an der Wien, a historic venue in the heart of Vienna which features an Amadeus Immersive Sound and Active Acoustics installation, the Downmix Engine feature unlocks a new workflow between the studio and the main stage.
The Downmix Engine offers granular control, supporting standard formats like Stereo, 5.1, 7.1, and Atmos, alongside bespoke loudspeaker configurations. Every parallel downmix system features an integrated size multiplier to widen or narrow the field based on the target room’s loudspeaker resolution, individual fade controls for spatial and performing sources, and an independent, dedicated LFE output for low-end management. Further enhancing this flexibility, performer sources can be mapped to the main frontal loudspeakers of the studio set-up, ensuring isolation from the surround and overhead loudspeaker channels.
Additional v1.3.1 upgrades include pattern-based OSC addresses alongside variables and properties in OSC addressing for deeply flexible system control. This also ensures full compatibility with ADM-OSC. Scaling can be applied either to the overall boundaries or configured individually for each OSC source.
Additional performer source gain offsets designed explicitly for fill, precedence and subwoofer systems, plus support for negative loudspeaker delay offsets.Significantly improved Director/DSP connection handling, automatic network port detection, and a built-in connection history log for stability during live operations.
Adjustable crossfades between venue snapshots, customisable value mapping, and granular fade-out gains within immersive fade zones are also possible.
More: https://amadeus-acoustics.com/amadeus-immersive-sound-next-generation