Fraunhofer at AES Latin America

With its unique personalization features, the MPEG-H Audio system, substantially developed by Fraunhofer IIS, offers fully adjustable dialogue levels, customizable audio description, multiple languages, and even interactive object positioning. As a result, users can tailor the media consumption experience to their individual preferences and needs. MPEG-H delivers these unprecedented customization options, as well as enveloping immersive sound, on every kind of playback device – from home theaters to 3D soundbars to mobile devices.

The MPEG-H Audio system is specified in TV broadcast standards such as ATSC 3.0 and DVB as well as in the mobile broadband standard 3GPP. It is currently the only Next Generation Audio codec used in commercial TV broadcasting since the launch of the South Korean ATSC 3.0-based UHDTV service in May 2017. Additionally, MPEG-H Audio was recently added to the Brazilian ISDB-Tb system to enhance the user experience with immersive audio and personalization features. In Europe, many broadcasters and streaming services have already successfully tested MPEG-H Audio during major sports and music events.

Also based on MPEG-H Audio is the immersive music streaming ecosystem 360 Reality Audio. Already available with streaming services like Amazon Music HD, Deezer and Tidal, the technology is enabling the next revolution in music entertainment as well.

The MPEG-H Audio system is designed to work with today's streaming and broadcast equipment. To learn how to create MPEG-H in live productions for sports events, music shows or any other content, watch our Live Production video series:

The MPEG-H Authoring Suite (MAS) is a set of tools that make the production of MPEG-H Audio content easier, faster, more intuitive and more powerful. They support the recently published MPEG-H ADM Profile, as well as binaural monitoring for immersive audio reproduction over headphones.

• The MPEG-H Authoring Plug-in (MHAPi) takes you through all the steps of creating object- or channel-based MPEG-H Audio productions inside a VST3- or AAX-enabled digital audio workstation (DAW). You will be able to export your immersive and interactive MPEG-H Audio scenes to either MPEG-H Production Format (MPF) or MPEG-H BWF/ADM, containing audio and metadata and ready for distribution via MPEG-H-enabled channels.
• The MPEG-H Authoring Tool (MHAT) is a new software tool for Mac and Windows that helps you create MPEG-H metadata with existing audio material. The MHAT allows for easy MPEG-H authoring without the need of a digital audio workstation (DAW). You can define specific MPEG-H parameters, instantly listen to your configurations and export your authored mixes as MPEG-H Production Format (MPF), MPEG-H BWF/ADM or as a template export in an XML file.
• The MPEG-H Production Format Player (MPF Player) is a software tool for Mac and Windows to quality check already authored MPEG-H metadata and the accompanying audio mix, with or without a corresponding video.

Here is an exclusive preview on the MPEG-H Authoring Suite:

3D-Audio or immersive audio mixing for home delivery is done using loudspeakers in an audio control room or near-field mixing environment.

Fraunhofer with its extensive experience in 3D-Audio mixing, as well as setting up studios and listening rooms can provide all the structural requirements and technical specifications for a 3D-­Audio production environment for accurate mixing and reproduction in a flexible manner for loudspeaker reproduction systems ranging from 1.0 up to 7.1+4H channel layouts.

Fraunhofer offers consultation for room geometry and room acoustics,
loudspeaker positioning and electroacoustic performance, 3D-Audio monitoring and mixing capabilities and provides recommendations for related literature.

Our comprehensive paper on studio recommendations is a great starting point. Download it here

The Audio Definition Model (ADM) according to ITU-R BS.2076 defines an open metadata format for production, exchange and archiving of Next Generation Audio (NGA) content in file-based workflows. Its comprehensive metadata syntax allows describing many types of audio content including channel-, object-, and scene-based representations for immersive and interactive audio experiences. A serial representation of the Audio Definition Model (S-ADM) is specified in ITU-R BS.2125 and defines a segmentation of the original ADM for use in linear workflows such as real-time production for broadcasting and streaming applications.

Fraunhofer offers the ADM Info Tool, an application that provides automated conformance verification for ADM files.

Learn more about the MPEG-H ADM Profile

Request the Fraunhofer ADM Info Tool