Image: The Other Side
This year, the Amsterdam Dance Event (ADE) will feature its first spatial sound event, Full Cycle. Hosted by Polygon Live and Amsterdam-based agency, club and label The Other Side, Full Cycle will bring the very latest in immersive, 360-degree technology to Amsterdam audiences. The Other Side is fully rigged with L-Acoustics’ L-ISA system, the very technology Polygon uses, and the synergy between these three audio pioneers feels nothing short of a perfect match.
“Full Cycle is a real meeting of minds,” says Polygon CEO Nico Elliott. “Polygon, The Other Side and L-Acoustics have a shared love for exceptional audio. We all believe that spatial sound is the future and we’re ready to bring it to audiences. ADE is up next.”
“Our main goal at The Other Side is to create a platform for all things spatial audio and to expand our connections with others in the field,” says Doeshka Vrede, Co-founder of The Other Side. “We were already aware of Polygon and were delighted when L-Acoustics introduced us.”
Getting technical
While Polygon was the first to use L-Acoustics’ L-ISA technology to spatialise audio in outdoor environments, The Other Side is the first nightclub to do so. L-ISA is a comprehensive ecosystem of audio tools that enables artists to create and deliver 360-degree sound. L-Acoustics calls it “Immersive Hyperreal Sound” because it gives audiences the sense that they’re inside the music. Since it comes from all directions, it’s fully immersive, and its loudspeaker resolution makes it sound natural and realistic.
Image: Polygon Live
Polygon and The Other Side have a similar approach to their work. While Polygon typically uses a 12-point surround system with eight height channels, The Other Side uses a 14-point surround system with five height channels. L-ISA is the processor that drives the spatialisation, making individual elements of each song move above, around and through the audience.
There’s also a lot of prep involved with artists, who have to provide their music in a particular format and work closely with expert sound engineers to spatialise it. Soundchecks involve placing artists in the middle of the room — or, in the case of Polygon, beneath the dome — and allowing them to hear their music on a fully spatialised system.
“Once that happens, we often can’t get artists to leave,” says The Other Side’s Head of Technology Stefan Liem. “They ask if they can come and live with us for a week. If we can simply lock them in and let them play.”
The word “play” comes up a lot in conversations about spatial audio. “Even artists and engineers who have been in the game for decades find it exciting,” says Doeshka. “Working with spatial audio feels like a playground — an open canvas. It opens their minds to a whole new way of creating music and sharing it with others.”
Full Cycle approaches
Full Cycle brings together the best of what Polygon, The Other Side and L-Acoustics have to offer. “We want everyone to be able to experience and enjoy spatial audio,” says Nico. “And we can only do that if more people develop an interest in it and experience it. Working with The Other Side to make this happen is hugely inspiring.”
“I’ve loved seeing how Polygon is using L-ISA,” Stefan adds. “The team is really experimenting with the full capabilities of the system. There’s a lot of channels being used and there’s loads of spatialisation. And it’s great to nerd out with other engineers and artists who are as excited about this technology as we are.”
Together, Polygon, The Other Side and L-Acoustics are driving a revolution in sound. “We want to start influencing how venues and sound engineers approach audio. How artists compose their music. What audiences expect of an event,” Nico adds. “There’s more to stereo, and once people experience spatial audio, they don’t want to go back.”
Full Cycle will take place at The Other Side during ADE in Amsterdam on 17 and 18 October 2024.
Don’t miss it! Tickets are on sale now.
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