Trinnov has announced its new WaveForming technology, designed to improve low frequency reproduction in home theaters. Available free of charge on Trinnov Altitude preamplifiers, this new algorithm offers an unprecedented level of performance and an entirely new bass experience.
Trinnov is world-renowned for its advanced sound processing technologies, which are used in professional music and film studios and commercial movie theaters, as well as high-end residential home theaters and stereo systems. After six years of fundamental research, the company presents WaveForming, its latest proprietary technology. The latter completely redefines the reproduction of low frequencies in home theaters, delivering an unrivaled level of performance by eliminating room modes.
What is a mode, or modal resonance?
The walls, floor and ceiling of a listening room very often generate significant audio distortion. The worst type is modal resonance, also known as modes or standing waves. Modes alter the low frequency response to varying degrees, with peaks and troughs of up to +/- 30 dB over a small portion of the frequency range, at one or several specific locations in the room.
Because of this phenomenon, two spectators separated by only one seat can experience widely varying bass levels during the same movie scene. In an enclosed space, there are usually at least two such resonances, occurring at arbitrary frequencies that differ from room to room.
How does Trinnov WaveForming technology work?
Rather than working to attenuate the impact of room modes, WaveForming attacks the source before it becomes a problem. In other words, instead of implementing extensive processing to mitigate the consequences of room modes, this technology limits the creation of resonant modes in the room in the first place.
WaveForming technology is based on four major innovations, including the MSMC (Multiple Sources, Multiple Controllers) approach, which sets it apart from all other low-frequency optimization technologies.
While the latter analyze and control each subwoofer individually, WaveForming drives several subwoofers separately and combines them to create a single acoustic source. This single source forms the appropriate wavefront (wavefront synthesis) for the acoustic environment. In practical terms, WaveForming directs the bass towards the listening area and away from the most reflective surfaces (via Acoustic Reshaping) to limit and control the amount of reflections created in the room.
With the MSMC approach, each subwoofer can also be used as one of the multiple controllers, effectively absorbing any remaining reflections. The whole process is based on specific measurements of the 3D acoustic field, which the room to be completely and totally analyzed and understood.
Note that to work properly, this technology requires at least two subwoofers, one at the front of the room, the other at the rear.
What are the advantages of Trinnov WaveForming technology?
WaveForming produces very natural low frequencies, free from synthetic artifacts. Reducing the reverberation time of low-frequency sounds profoundly transforms the bass, adding clarity, impact and definition.
By eliminating virtually all low-frequency modes in the room, WaveForming delivers extreme coherence (frequency and amplitude), with a precise response across the entire listening area. All listeners can enjoy the same quality of bass reproduction, no matter where they are in the room.
WaveForming is not just a simple algorithm designed to improve the performance of any system. It is part of a holistic approach that includes system design guidelines, acoustic measurements and, finally, solution optimization.
Trinnov adds that WaveForming technology will be continually refined over the next decade to deliver even better performance, more features and greater flexibility.
Trinnov WaveForming: summary
Trinnov’s WaveForming technology marks a major advance in the home theater field, offering unprecedented low-frequency reproduction. Thanks to a unique and innovative approach, WaveForming not only optimizes sound quality, but also enhances the listening experience for all spectators, regardless of their position in the room. With an ongoing commitment to perfecting this technology over the years, Trinnov reaffirms its position as a leader in high-end audio innovation.
WaveForming is totally free and available now to all users of Trinnov Altitude16 and Trinnov Altitude32 preamplifiers, via a simple update.
