Genelec drives South Korea’s immersive pioneers

Seoul-based Sound360 have upped the audio production game with the installation of South Korea’s first 9.1.6 Dolby Atmos studio, packed with Genelec’s Smart Active Monitors. Sound360’s founder Jung Hoon Choi’s decided to create an immersive recording space based on the belief that this is the direction of audio recording. He selected the 9.1.6 format for its ability to deliver 3D mixes through popular consumer devices. “As you know, we used to have surround sound before immersive audio,” comments Choi. “We used to be able to produce multi-channel surround content, but not many consumers could play that content through a multi-channel playback system. For that reason, surround didn’t become standard.

“Now that immersive audio is available, Dolby Atmos is one of the various immersive audio formats that Sound360 currently offers,” Choi adds. “The mixes we create here at the studio can easily be enjoyed using just a simple stereo system like you would find on a typical mobile device. This compatibility is, at last, making 3D audio more accessible to the public, and it is becoming popular.”

Choi explains his choice of monitors: “One of the biggest reasons I have been using Genelec for a long time is because I tend to set the monitoring level slightly lower than other engineers, typically around 75 dB, and make it louder at certain points. Genelec monitors deliver consistent sound not only at loud volumes but also at relatively low volumes so I can easily get the right balance of each instrument in the mix.”

If monitors sound different in different rooms, it feels like going through hell every day

Audio engineer Ha Neul Lee

The 9.1.6 setup uses three-way coaxial monitors from The Ones series and features three 8351s for the L-C-R channels, twelve 8341s as surrounds and overheads, and three 7370s as subs, with the whole system tuned and calibrated using GLM Loudspeaker Manager software. 

“Genelec monitors allow users to calibrate and control with ease,” says audio engineer Ha Neul Lee. “If monitors sound different in different rooms, it feels like going through hell every day. By using Genelec Smart Active Monitors with GLM, we calibrated the monitoring systems for consistent sound from one room to the next. We could even fix acoustical problems while working with a consistent sound. I am 99% satisfied with Genelec. I kept the 1% to spare my pride!”