Overview „ICST Ambisonics Plugins 2.3“

Institute for Computer Music and Sound Technology / ICST Zurich University of the Arts

Developer - team: Christian Schweizer / Martin Neukom / Johannes Schuett

Free download here: Downloads

Content

ICST Ambisonics Plugins consist of the following components:

AmbiDecoder Plugins 1st to 7th order
AmbiEncoder Plugins 1st to 7th order with mono-input (1 channel)
AmbiEncoder Plugins 1st to 7th order with multi-input (up to 64 channels)

Currently, the following plugin bundles are available (64-bit universal binary):

OSX: ICST_AmbiPlugins_2.3.0_osx (VST3 and AU)
Windows: ICST_AmbiPlugins_2.3.0_win_x64 (VST3 only)

Installation

Run the Installer (.pkg for OSX; .exe for Windows); the plugins will be automatically copied to the standard plugin folder.

Useful Links

Wiki / Plugin specifications: Wiki
Report problems and bugs: Issues
All examples and tutorials are based on Reaper 64bit DAW: Download

Setup the ICST Ambisonics Plugins in a DAW (Digital Audio Workstation)

The recommended DAW is Reaper v6.13 or newer.

Rescan the plugin folder.
Start a new Reaper project.
Add a new track using the key combination Ctrl+T, double-clicking on the left track area or the menu Insert>Track.
Click FX to open the Plugin List window and search for your AnbiEncoder-panner.
Click on "Routing" in the track where you just added the "AnbiEncoder-panner."
Change the Track Channels to adjust the number of outputs of the AnbiEncoder-panner: 4 for the first job (AmbiEncoder_O1), 16 for the third order (AmbiEncoder_O3), 64 for the seventh order (AmbiEncoder_O7).
To add the decoder, click FX on the master track and add your matching AmbiDecoder.
From the AmbiDecoder user interface, select the speaker settings you want to use from the drop-down menu.
Make sure that the master track has enough channels by clicking on 'Routing' and checking that the 'Track Channels' match the track and the encoder/panner. If not, change it.
Add mono audio to the track by dragging and dropping it or using the Insert>Media File menu.
Make sure you have connected the correct AnbiDecoder speaker configuration to the appropriate hardware audio output channels!
Start playback, and you can start controlling the position of your sound in 3D!
Important: Remember to disable the AmbiDecoder plug-in when rendering your project to get the direct format signals. Otherwise, it will be statically decoded to the speaker setup.

Note: Different Ambisonics plug-ins can use different Ambisonics formats. The ICST-Ambisonics plugins all use the AmbiX (SN3D/ACN) format used by Google for YouTube 360. If you mix panner and encoders from different vendors, make sure that the formats match or use a suitable converter.

We’d love to get your feedback!

ZHdK / ICST 2023