GLM Software

The recordings, which relied heavily on Genelec monitors throughout, were debuted at the recent Inter BEE show in Japan and will form a key part of Genelec’s critical listening sessions at global shows and events in the future.

Sibelius Hall in Lahti, Finland.

Sawaguchi recalls how the project came about thanks to conversations that took place at last year’s AES spatial audio conference in Tokyo. “I gave a lecture about immersive music recording and demonstrated various recordings from the UNAMAS label in the Genelec demo room. At the event I had discussions with Genelec’s MD Siamäk Naghian about working together on an immersive recording that could become a reference disc for the company.”

A year later and the project had developed further with professional double bassist and Genelec brand artist, Juho Martikainen, working closely with Sawaguchi on the concept. The pair worked to select the music for the recording and the classical musicians for the performance.

“It was a very natural process and there was a lot of freedom for me to decide with whom I would like to play and which type of repertoire we would record,” says Martikainen. “Mick really loves the sound of the double bass and wanted classical performances, because he felt this type of music really suits the immersive audio format.

“I went through many options when choosing the pieces but decided to play it safe and go with Franz Schubert’s Trout Quintet for the first piece as it is an all-time favourite for me,” continues Martikainen. “We then chose Jean-Baptiste Barriere’s Sonate No:10 which is a Baroque piece, originally composed for two cellos, but we played an arrangement for a double bass and cello instead. And then of course I had to play one piece composed by Giovanni Bottesini as I think he was a true master of the instrument. So I chose maybe his most famous piece, Elegy.”

“We wanted to use the latest equipment but keep the mic’ing as simple as possible,” adds Sawaguchi. “We opted for a spider tree setup with the artists placed around the main mic, with other microphones placed to capture the rich sound of the hall. This is what I call ‘Subjective Immersive’, as we are using microphones as tools to capture the art.”

L-R Mick Sawaguchi and Juho Martikainen.

The monitoring solution comprised a pair of Genelec’s 8341 coaxial point source monitors located within a lobby space of Lahti’s Sibelius Hall, which operated as a monitoring room for the immersive recording before the final mix by Sawaguchi at his recording studio back in Japan. In this type of adhoc monitoring environment, Genelec’s GLM calibration software was invaluable in optimising the 8341s for the space and minimising any unwanted acoustic influences.

“With this kind of on-location recording, monitoring situations can be challenging - very rarely do you find a recording location where there is a dedicated monitor room with good acoustics,” observes Martikainen. “But the 8341s were the perfect solution as we were all able to hear what we had played, and how it really sounded – which is ideal for musicians.

L-R Mick Sawaguchi and Juho Martikainen.

“I think in general nowadays, many recordings are too polished and end up losing the vibe and the atmosphere of the actual moment,” reflects Martikainen. “For us at Genelec, it’s all about the music and this is the point we were trying to make. It’s about the creativity and to be there to help inspire the best possible level of musical ability. I was very happy when I heard the tracks and I think the system has captured this vibe brilliantly!”

After its first very successful public performance at Inter BEE, the recordings will be used to help showcase Genelec immersive systems at events globally, and Genelec is also researching what other type of platforms it can use for immersive material. “I think there’s been a big rise in the popularity of immersive music and I’m certain it will be the new format that customers will use and enjoy,” states Martikainen.

L-R Juho Martikainen and Mick Sawaguchi at Inter BEE.

Looking back fondly on the experience, Martikainen concludes: “Working with Mick Sawaguchi on this project was a once in a lifetime opportunity. As a musician, it was a great thing to be a part of, and I feel incredibly lucky to have played with great colleagues in a great hall with great equipment - it doesn’t get any better than that!”

The new solution came about after Guetta identified a problem with the mixes that he was creating with his old system. “In the previous system that I had, the subs were so loud that they were not really realistic,” he explains. “If I would mix with those subs, sometimes I would end up with a record that didn’t have enough bass when played on other systems - because the bass in my room was so huge.”

With the 7380As installed, Guetta’s mixes now translate beautifully from his studio straight to the dancefloors of Ibiza, and the subwoofers have helped improve the overall sound in his room. “By installing the subwoofers, we were able to reposition David’s main monitors to avoid early reflections. Finding the best place for the subwoofers also meant that we had a great frequency response curve all the way from low to high frequencies,” notes Genelec’s Pasi Pönkkä, who travelled to Guetta’s studio to calibrate the system using Genelec’s GLM software. Using GLM, Pönkkä was able to analyse the acoustic environment of Guetta’s studio and then optimise each Genelec monitor and subwoofer accordingly - thereby reducing any negative influences of the room on the sound.

Pönkkä explains that “Each 7380A subwoofer is paired with a single 1234A monitor, so the low frequencies can be better localised. Also, the locations were chosen so that the subwoofer sums aren’t cancelling each other out. The overall result was that we were able to provide David with more bass extension, but with a much smoother and flatter response.”

“This is my reference, and this is my perfect setup.”

A further benefit that Guetta is enjoying is that he can now work for much longer periods without the listening fatigue that he used to experience. “When producing, I’m not really playing too loud, and the Genelec 1234As - even though they are huge - still sound very precise even when they aren’t loud,” he explains. “What I like about the 7380As is that I can work at a low volume so that I’m not too tired after a few hours, and it’s still very precise. But, if I want to blast it loud, it’s powerful enough to feel like it’s in a club.”
Reflecting on his newly upgraded monitoring system, Guetta is certain he made the correct decision. “It gives the feeling of how it’s going to sound in the club, but it’s also realistic,” he states. “This is my reference, and this is my perfect setup.”

Take a closer look at David Guetta’s studio, and find out more about his music and workflow:

Combining an ambient music performance with a multi-channel listening experience, both the performers and the live audience were surrounded by a ring array of Genelec loudspeakers, creating a truly unique listening environment. This type of playback system is tailor-made for ambient music, emphasising the sense of space and the abstract nature of the compositions – and creating an incredibly thought-provoking and stimulating live event.

The planning and creation of the show took place over a two month period, using the demonstration space in Modern Sky to evaluate how the sound elements combined, how they moved, and what type of speaker configuration would be best suited to the ambient material. The creative team included electronic musician Wang Lu, also known as L + R, music producer/mixer Shen Lijia and visual artist Tami-musiXgal, and working alongside our colleagues at Genelec China, a system comprising eight S360 high-SPL smart active monitors and a 7382 subwoofer was used to surround the audience, while a smaller smart active array of four 8330 two-ways, four 8331 coaxial three-ways and a 7360 subwoofer was used to envelop the musician and the VJ. Genelec GLM software was then used to analyse the room and optimise the frequency response, distance delay and playback level of each speaker in the system – thereby delivering the best possible listening experience to both performers and audience alike.

In planning the event, the team were seeking a good combination of manual control, programming and random machine triggering, with the pre-programmed foundation of the 8.1 audio mix being handled by Ableton Live, with Cycling 74’s Max allowing communication with external hardware instruments – and plenty of real-time musical improvisation was included too!

Prior to the event, the demand for tickets was so high that it was decided to stage three separate performances, to allow every listener to position themselves comfortably within the speaker array and experience the finest sound quality. And from our own perspective, the whole process of planning and executing the event gave us a much deeper understanding of the shaping of space, the precise positioning of sound and the design of moving trajectories in music.

There’s no doubt to us at Genelec that as the world’s exposure to immersive audio becomes greater, the future of multi-channel live music performances is increasingly looking brighter. There are a whole new generation of music fans who are seeking more and more ‘experiential’ live performances, and Genelec is excited to play its part in the growth of this exciting medium.

The main recording space at Audioguy differs from others in the country since it consists of one large room which accommodates multiple artists together – rather than a series of isolated recording booths. By adopting this approach, the studio has been able to take advantage of the unique acoustic qualities of its recording room. “Typically, studios make the reverberation time as short as possible in order to record mostly the direct sound from the source, whereas Audioguy has a longer reverberation time of 2.7 seconds, more like a concert hall,” explains Jung-Hoon Choi, founder of Audioguy Studios. “We are able to record not only the direct sound from the source to the mic, but also a lot of reflected sound from the walls, ceiling and the floor. Our intention here is to produce music with a unique and colourful sound.”

This kind of environment has made recording in 7.1.4 an interesting process. “With the very long reverberation time, our recordings can emphasise the full benefits of 7.1.4 immersive audio by capturing all the resonances and the reverberation of the room,” says Choi. “We can record using an ambisonic microphone to capture the immersive atmosphere, and spot mics to capture the individual instruments. However, the ambisonic and spot mics tend not to blend well together, so we have tried to separate the two different microphone configurations by using the ambisonic mic to cover the .4 channel content, as well as the rear channel source. The front and side sources are then covered by the additional spot mics next to the instruments in order to capture the unique and atmospheric feel of the content.”

The results of this process are monitored and mixed using Genelec coaxial Smart Active Monitors, supplied by Genelec’s local Korean distribution partner Sama Sound. The system comprises three 8351As as LCR, eight 8331A monitors as surrounds and overheads – with a 7370A subwoofer handling LF duties, and the entire system configured, calibrated and controlled using Genelec GLM software.

“When you need to mix 7.1.4 immersive audio properly in a limited space, accurate monitoring is essential. The Ones’ point source quality is a must, and I would be very confused when making mix decisions without the standardised in-situ corrections of frequency response, level and delay offered by Genelec’s GLM software,” reflects Choi. “Using this system, the 11 individual monitors sound exactly as they should - which is very much focused. So, we can mix in the most precise and accurate way, and when the mixing is done, GLM makes it very convenient and easy to switch between 3D, binaural and stereo formats and analyse the differences.”

Having supplied the system, Sama Sound have themselves been able to deploy the studios as the perfect location for listening sessions and seminars, such is the extremely high quality of the monitoring environment. Looking to the future, Choi is also determined to get the best out of the new setup at Audioguy Studios. “As we now have this beautiful 7.1.4 immersive audio system, we will be actively recording, mixing and mastering more immersive audio content,” he states. “Aside from their extraordinary accuracy, it’s actually very interesting and fun to work with Genelec monitors!”

Pressure Cooker Studios, a respected music and sound design house specialising in music production for film, television and advertisements, has recently moved into their new purpose-built studio facility in the centre of Cape Town, designed by world-renowned studio designer Martin Pilchner of Pilchner Schoustal International Inc. Genelec is at the heart of this new facility, with its local distributor, TruFi, supplying monitors for all of its recording studio spaces.

From humble beginnings in the basement of a house 10 years ago to a 355 square metre studio space, the new facility is exactly how the Pressure Cooker team had envisioned it from the outset, and features two main control rooms which sandwich a main studio proper, a 7.1 post theatre with adjacent ADR booth, five writing rooms, an independent isolation booth, reception, lounge and common spaces. James Matthes, Co-Founder and CEO of Pressure Cooker Studios notes: “We wanted to make our space as comfortable, but also as technologically advanced as possible – we spend so much time here, so it definitely had to feel lived in, making it a homely but premium space.”

Helping the Pressure Cooker team achieve this feat was Genelec’s GLM software. “The GLM system is fantastic in that it assists with all the relevant calibration of any one of the monitors within the array in terms of EQ and phase alignment,” notes Neil Leachman, Final Mix Engineer at Pressure Cooker. “After the system is aligned and EQ'd I spent a small amount of time just setting up levels for the individual outputs to align properly to the recommended levels for cinema monitoring for surround and R128 compliance. But the GLM system is invaluable in the setup.”

Pressure Cooker has been using Genelec stereo and surround sound monitoring systems since the company was founded, and this trend continues in the new facility. “Every room in the facility has Genelec!,” smiles Matthes “From buying my first pair over nine years ago, I have never looked back – each monitor is fantastic. The sound produced is so clean, natural and unadulterated – nothing colours it, and I just love that.”

Each room in the new facility has utilised Genelec monitors in one way or another; Matthes has a pair of 8040 nearfields in his writing room, there are three 1238A three-ways fulfilling the LCR role behind the screen in the 7.1 theatre, with two 7380A 15-inch subwoofers and 8040s as surrounds - while the smaller rooms all have 8030 nearfields. “We chose a uniform approach with Genelec because we wanted to be able to move from room to room and feel comfortable from the moment we hit play.” Matthes continues.

“For example, if I go from a writing session to the composition suite, or start doing a mix with a client in the theatre – my ears aren’t going to trick me. I find with Genelec, you don’t need any other reference monitor at any point, since they just naturally translate very well.”

The first true test for Pressure Cooker’s new facility was the film ‘This is not a burial, it is a resurrection’ that was premiered at this year’s Venice Film Festival. “This was the first film we mixed using our Genelec system and particularly for the international market, it converted amazingly,” says Matthes. “The film’s producer told us how clear and brilliant the sound was, which makes me very confident in the set-up we have, and confirms that our decision to choose Genelec for the whole facility was the right one.”

“It was a massive project,” confirms Garrett’s sales director, Raúl Fernandes. “We were involved from the very start, which was extremely helpful, but the pressure for everything to be perfect was possibly worse for the second venue than for the first! It’s always the problem when the first job is so successful – the second has to be even better…”

With the capacity to accommodate over 300 people, JNcQUOI Asia is not just about the food. It’s a place where people come to see and to be seen, offering four different spaces for customers to relax and soak up the atmosphere: a large bar with comfortable seating – which also hosts a DJ booth; the main dining room dominated by a huge, golden dragon skeleton suspended from the central glass atrium; a glamourous sushi bar; and a comfortable terrace and interior garden. Garrett supplied an extremely high quality, zoned audio solution throughout with full control.

The first area is the bar, itself separated into three separate zones: the DJ area which utilises a pair of Genelec G Fives offering professional active loudspeaker performance but with flexible XLR and RCA connectivity, and a pair of 5041 in-wall subwoofers behind the DJ booth; the main bar area which is equipped with six 4030 and six of the larger 4040 installation loudspeakers plus three 5041 subwoofers hidden in columns; and finally the toilets – a design haven in themselves! – where Garrett installed four AIC25 in-ceiling speakers.

The challenge for the bar area was to provide sufficient coverage for what is a very open space without sacrificing quality for SPL. The solution also had to be as discreet and as aesthetically pleasing as possible. “We spent a long time getting loudspeaker placement absolutely right for optimum results, and then we fine-tuned the system with the loudspeakers’ own on-board room response controls plus EQ and delay via a matrix. Our service manager, Luis Tavares, did a fantastic job of tuning the system, especially here in this room,” recounts Fernandes who also notes that there is an output to each speaker enabling every speaker to be controlled individually for maximum precision. “When the system was commissioned, we turned the music up pretty loud and I invited the owner to come and stand in the middle of the room with me. We could still carry on a conversation – I told him that this is why we use Genelec!”

“A good live band actually sounds amazing as the system is so well calibrated to the space.”

It’s also possible to have live music in the bar although the system wasn’t initially designed with live music in mind. “The owner changed his mind at the last minute! Fortunately, we had enough inputs and outputs still available to make it possible – we just had to add extra microphones and a digital mixer,” says Fernandes. “A good live band actually sounds amazing as the system is so well calibrated to the space. It also helps that there are lots of nice, absorbent surfaces in the bar area to reduce the amount of reflections.”

“The larger 4040s gave us the extended bass response we required whilst still remaining aesthetically pleasing.”

For the restaurant area, Garrett opted for a total of fourteen 4040s. The biggest issue here was the acoustics, as the outside wall is mostly glass and there is a huge glass atrium overhead that houses the rather magnificent dragon. “As there was no room for subs in the restaurant, the larger 4040s gave us the extended bass response we required whilst still remaining aesthetically pleasing. The most challenging aspect was managing the very reflective environment. Fortunately, Genelec products excel in that respect, and once again we were able to calibrate the system very precisely for optimum results – in other words, intelligible, clean audio at levels where diners can still hold a conversation at normal, comfortable levels.”

The project manager for JNcQUOI Asia was Garrett’s Mário Trigueiros, who also oversaw the original JNcQUOI project, and he was keen to point out how Genelec’s GLM software had helped the Garrett team optimise the loudspeaker system performance for different situations. “GLM is an amazing tool for system calibration,” he says. “We used it to perform all the measurements that were then turned into presets accessible via the control system. We’ve done all of the hard work upfront to ensure that the system is fully optimised for every situation, be it background music, a DJ or a live band.”

Garrett has provided control for all four zones, giving access to level, mute and source selection for the audio system, plus lighting and temperature. There are presets for daytime and night-time ambience settings. Access is via strategically placed wall panels or a mobile phone app.

Garrett also went to the trouble of measuring the sound outside the restaurant to ensure that there was absolutely no issue for the hotel next door, some of whose rooms border directly onto the bar. “We had to ensure that there was no sound leakage whatsoever. Once again, Genelec is an excellent choice in this respect because the loudspeakers are extremely efficient with tightly controlled directivity. Listeners have the impression that the system is loud because intelligibility is high which enables us to keep SPLs down – which is great for the neighbours!”

Fernandes and Trigueiros are proud of what they have achieved at JNcQUOI Asia. “It’s another fantastic showcase for both us and Genelec,” confirms Trigueiros. “Genelec is a very high quality brand, ideally suited to this kind of high-end environment where failure of any kind, or sub-par performance would not be tolerated. Nevertheless, the active system design is a bonus – firstly because it saves on space and makes for a much cleaner installation, and secondly, in the unlikely event that one does go down, it doesn’t compromise the rest of the system. That is very reassuring for the owners, although we’ve never had a failure yet. The owners are thrilled with the results and so are we. You only have to look at the reviews to realise that the concept is a success at every level.”