Arapolarmic in actionEdited 19:19 on 05/03/2014
Spanish audio company Aratech have announced their first product: Arapolarmic.
Arapolarmic is a software tool that uses augmented reality technology for monitoring the directivity of microphones, and supposedly for improving the decision making process for better positioning of microphones in any live or recording situation.
With the technical data of each microphone model and through the use of augmented reality, the tool monitors the scene in real time, tracks the microphone’s position and displays its directivity in the tablet's screen through its polar pattern.
AratechLabs has just begun contacting microphone manufacturers to offer the possibility to add their microphones to the database. The first brand with which an agreement has been reached is the Austrian Lewitt.
The software is also a repository of technical data a great number of mics. So, if you're using a mic that you've never used before, it could come in handy as a reference tool, even for the more experienced engineer. Through corresponding with Aratech, it's clear that they don't see this as a magic bullet for audio engineering, but rather as a way of providing visual reinforcement to an engineer's decision making. They even provide the analogy of an audio waveform in a DAW—"The engineer listens to the tracks but he uses his eyes to see the waveform too. A spectrum analyser does not build the EQ curve on your behalf but it is an objective input. It is a monitoring tool." says Lluís of Aratech Labs.
We've yet to see it first-hand but initial reaction is that it could be popular among educators and students as well.
The application of augmented reality in the studio is an intriguing development, and it will be interesting to see how this technology works in practice.
The software will be marketed initially as a professional software application for tablets in late April or early May 2014.
